During a visual field exam, you’ll look straight ahead and watch for lights to the sides of your central field of view. Some states also require you to complete a visual field test, which is used to check for peripheral (side) vision loss. If you have difficulty reading the eye chart, you may be asked to complete additional distance vision tests on a testing machine. Test your vision before you go to the DMV with our free, printable eye chart.

The state will place a restriction on your license that requires you to wear your prescription lenses any time you’re behind the wheel. But only wear them at the DMV if you need to wear them while you’re driving too. You’re allowed to wear your glasses or contact lenses during this part of the eye test. They can measure the sharpness of your eyesight based on the smallest row of letters you can read. They have one big letter at the top (usually an “E”) and several rows of gradually smaller letters below.Ī DMV employee will ask you to read certain rows to find out how well you can recognize the characters on the chart.

If you’ve ever had an eye exam, you might be familiar with these charts. How a Snellen chart and a 'tumbling E' chart might look at your eye doctor's office.