Tennessee · TWRA-approved
Tennessee Boating License Practice Test
Ten questions. Instant answers. A little confidence before the real thing.
- TWRA-approved
- NASBLA-certified
- 100% online, age 12+
- Unlimited exam retakes
These ten questions cover the Tennessee-specific rules TWRA tests on: who needs a certificate, age limits, personal watercraft, towing, alcohol and accidents. The real exam is 40 questions and you need 80% to pass; our course includes unlimited retakes.
40
questions
80%
to pass
~3 hrs
to finish
Never
expires
A 34-year-old Tennessee resident wants to drive a 90 hp bass boat on Percy Priest Lake. Does she need a boating safety certificate?
What's on the real Tennessee exam?
40 multiple-choice questions, 80% (32) to pass. Roughly two-thirds are general boating safety (navigation lights, buoys, life jackets, engine cutoff switches, carbon monoxide, cold water, towing) and one-third are Tennessee law: the 1989 birth-date rule, age limits, PWC restrictions, distance rules, towing requirements, BUI and accident reporting. The course is built to the TWRA handbook so the exam has no surprises.
Your next day on the water starts here.
Join the Tennessee boaters who certified with ABF this season
How hard is the Tennessee boating test?
Most learners pass on the first try after completing the course, and retakes are free and unlimited. The questions people miss most are the distance rules (100 ft, 200 ft, 300 ft) and the 2027 PWC age change, so those are worth a second look.
All 10 questions and answers
1. A 34-year-old Tennessee resident wants to drive a 90 hp bass boat on Percy Priest Lake. Does she need a boating safety certificate?
Answer: Yes, if she was born after January 1, 1989
Tennessee ties the requirement to birth date, not age. Anyone born after January 1, 1989 must carry a TWRA certificate to operate a vessel over 8.5 horsepower.
2. Which of these boats can a Tennessee resident born in 1995 operate without a certificate?
Answer: A canoe with a 5 hp trolling motor
The certificate is required only for vessels powered by more than 8.5 hp. A 5 hp motor is under the threshold.
3. An 11-year-old wants to steer the family's 60 hp runabout. When is this legal in Tennessee?
Answer: When an adult 18 or older who can take immediate control is on board
Children under 12 may operate a vessel over 8.5 hp only with a supervisor aged 18 or older aboard who can immediately take over.
4. It's 9:30 p.m. on a clear July night. Can you ride a personal watercraft on Old Hickory Lake?
Answer: No, PWC may only be operated between sunrise and sunset
Tennessee limits personal watercraft operation to daylight hours, sunrise to sunset, regardless of lighting.
5. Your 10-year-old is riding on the bow of a moving pontoon boat. What does Tennessee law require?
Answer: A worn, USCG-approved life jacket at all times on the open deck of a moving vessel
Children 12 and under must wear a USCG-approved PFD whenever they are on the open deck of a recreational vessel that is under way (not anchored, moored or aground).
6. You're on a PWC and want to jump the wake of a passing wakeboard boat. How far away must you be?
Answer: 100 feet
It is illegal in Tennessee to jump another vessel's wake within 100 feet of that vessel.
7. Passing a marina's commercial fuel dock, how close can you get while still on plane?
Answer: No closer than 300 feet; inside that you must be at idle speed
Vessels faster than idle speed must stay at least 300 feet from a commercial vessel dock.
8. You're pulling a tuber. The boat has no wide-angle rearview mirror. Who else must be aboard?
Answer: An observer at least 12 years old watching the person being towed
Without a wide-angle mirror, Tennessee requires a separate observer at least 12 years old in addition to the operator. Towing is also limited to sunrise to sunset and not during inclement weather.
9. In Tennessee, a boat operator is presumed to be boating under the influence at what blood alcohol concentration?
Answer: 0.08%
The BUI threshold on the water is the same as on the road: 0.08% BAC.
10. You bump a dock and crack your hull. Nobody is hurt. The repair estimate is $2,500. Do you have to file a report with TWRA?
Answer: Yes, because property damage exceeds $2,000
Tennessee requires an accident report whenever there is an injury, a death, or property damage over $2,000.
Frequently asked questions
40 multiple-choice questions.
80%, which is 32 of 40 correct.
Yes. Retakes in our course are free and unlimited.
It is online and untimed, and the course material stays available while you study. Learn the rules anyway: on the water, TWRA officers ask you, not the test.
Most people finish in about three hours. Your progress saves automatically, so you can stop and come back.
Ready for the real thing?
TWRA-approved course, unlimited exam retakes, certificate the moment you pass.