FMCSA's Training Provider Registry lists 4,119 providers with a training site in the 50 states, the schools a new driver must use to get a Class A or B license under the entry-level driver training rule. That is 12.1 per million residents nationally. Montana has 63.8 per million, Rhode Island 3.6.
What was counted
Since February 7, 2022, 49 CFR 380.700 onward requires anyone taking a Class A or Class B skills test, or a first hazmat, passenger or school bus endorsement, to complete entry-level driver training with a provider on FMCSA's Training Provider Registry. We loaded the registry and kept providers with a physical training site in a state (4,119), assigned to the state of that site. Providers that only train their own employees, online-only theory providers with no site, and registrations not yet finalized are left out. A provider with sites in several states counts once per site. Population is the Census Bureau's July 1, 2025 estimate.
Providers per million residents
Sparsely populated states with long hauls and farm economies have the densest coverage: Montana (63.8), Mississippi (39.6), North Dakota (38.8), South Dakota (37.4), Wyoming (35.7), Maine (30.4). The thinnest coverage is in the Northeast and in a few large states where a small number of big schools serve many students: Rhode Island (3.6), Massachusetts (4.6), Ohio (4.9), Florida (4.9), Connecticut (4.9), Michigan (5.1).
| # | State | Registered providers | Population 2025 | Per million residents |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Montana | 73 | 1,144,694 | 63.8 |
| 2 | Mississippi | 117 | 2,954,160 | 39.6 |
| 3 | North Dakota | 31 | 799,358 | 38.8 |
| 4 | South Dakota | 35 | 935,094 | 37.4 |
| 5 | Wyoming | 21 | 588,753 | 35.7 |
| 6 | Maine | 43 | 1,414,874 | 30.4 |
| 7 | New Mexico | 55 | 2,125,498 | 25.9 |
| 8 | Nebraska | 52 | 2,018,006 | 25.8 |
| 9 | Oklahoma | 103 | 4,123,288 | 25.0 |
| 10 | West Virginia | 44 | 1,766,147 | 24.9 |
| 11 | Indiana | 173 | 6,973,333 | 24.8 |
| 12 | Hawaii | 30 | 1,432,820 | 20.9 |
| 13 | New Jersey | 191 | 9,548,215 | 20.0 |
| 14 | Arkansas | 62 | 3,114,791 | 19.9 |
| 15 | Utah | 70 | 3,538,904 | 19.8 |
| 16 | Idaho | 38 | 2,029,733 | 18.7 |
| 17 | Vermont | 12 | 644,663 | 18.6 |
| 18 | Kentucky | 85 | 4,606,864 | 18.5 |
| 19 | Iowa | 58 | 3,238,387 | 17.9 |
| 20 | Louisiana | 81 | 4,618,189 | 17.5 |
| 21 | Missouri | 109 | 6,270,541 | 17.4 |
| 22 | Kansas | 51 | 2,977,220 | 17.1 |
| 23 | Alaska | 12 | 737,270 | 16.3 |
| 24 | Washington | 129 | 8,001,020 | 16.1 |
| 25 | Delaware | 16 | 1,059,952 | 15.1 |
| 26 | Alabama | 74 | 5,193,088 | 14.2 |
| 27 | New Hampshire | 19 | 1,415,342 | 13.4 |
| 28 | Maryland | 79 | 6,265,347 | 12.6 |
| 29 | Oregon | 53 | 4,273,586 | 12.4 |
| 30 | California | 478 | 39,355,309 | 12.1 |
| 31 | Tennessee | 88 | 7,315,076 | 12.0 |
| 32 | Wisconsin | 68 | 5,972,787 | 11.4 |
| 33 | Texas | 354 | 31,709,821 | 11.2 |
| 34 | Colorado | 64 | 6,012,561 | 10.6 |
| 35 | Pennsylvania | 136 | 13,059,432 | 10.4 |
| 36 | Arizona | 76 | 7,623,818 | 10.0 |
| 37 | Illinois | 126 | 12,719,141 | 9.9 |
| 38 | Virginia | 85 | 8,880,107 | 9.6 |
| 39 | Minnesota | 53 | 5,830,405 | 9.1 |
| 40 | Georgia | 92 | 11,302,748 | 8.1 |
| 41 | Nevada | 26 | 3,282,188 | 7.9 |
| 42 | New York | 159 | 20,002,427 | 7.9 |
| 43 | North Carolina | 83 | 11,197,968 | 7.4 |
| 44 | South Carolina | 36 | 5,570,274 | 6.5 |
| 45 | Michigan | 52 | 10,127,884 | 5.1 |
| 46 | Connecticut | 18 | 3,688,496 | 4.9 |
| 47 | Florida | 114 | 23,462,518 | 4.9 |
| 48 | Ohio | 58 | 11,900,510 | 4.9 |
| 49 | Massachusetts | 33 | 7,154,084 | 4.6 |
| 50 | Rhode Island | 4 | 1,114,521 | 3.6 |
By total count
In absolute numbers the ranking follows population and freight volume: California (478), Texas (354), New Jersey (191), Indiana (173), New York (159), Pennsylvania (136), Washington (129), Illinois (126). Together the top eight hold 1,746 of the 4,119 providers, 42 percent.
What the count does not say
The registry is a list of who may train, not of how many drivers each provider trains. A community college with a fleet of twenty trucks and a one-truck owner-operator school count the same. It also says nothing about price, wait time or pass rates; FMCSA does not publish those. What it does show is where a candidate has a choice of providers within driving distance, and where the choice is one school or none. For the schools themselves, with their training methods and the registry's own record for each, see the CDL training directory; the rule is explained on the ELDT requirements page and the steps on how to get a CDL.
Method and reuse
Sources: FMCSA Training Provider Registry, providers with a training site, as read on the date shown on the directory pages; Census Bureau NST-EST2025. Computed 2026-09-28. The ranking may be reproduced with attribution to DriverComply and a link to this page.