Class A vs Class B CDL training

Class A and Class B are different licenses. The price of a short Class B course is not a fair comparison with a Class A tractor-trailer program. Filter the directory for Class A or Class B using the flags in the FMCSA file.

Class A

Under federal rules, Class A covers a combination of vehicles with a gross combination weight rating of 26,001 pounds or more, when the vehicle being towed weighs more than 10,000 pounds. That is the typical tractor-trailer license. See 49 CFR 383.91.

Class B

Class B covers a single vehicle with a gross vehicle weight rating of 26,001 pounds or more, or that vehicle towing a unit that is not over 10,000 pounds. Straight trucks and many buses fall here. A passenger or school-bus endorsement is separate from the class.

What has to be on the registry

Since February 7, 2022, an applicant for a Class A or Class B CDL has to finish entry-level driver training with a provider on the FMCSA Training Provider Registry before taking the skills test. The training has three parts for behind-the-wheel classes: theory, range (yard), and public road. A location can be registered for theory only. Our school pages show which of those boxes are marked Yes in the registry file dated 2026-10-31.

In Texas, for example, 320 public, in-person locations list Class A public-road training, and 13 list Class A theory without public-road training. Read the row before you treat a low price as a full Class A course.

Automatic restriction

If you test in an automatic truck, the license can carry an E restriction that keeps you out of manual-transmission jobs. Ask the school which truck you will train and test in, and which jobs you want that restriction to block.

Federal text: 49 CFR 383.91 and the Training Provider Registry.