How many practice hours do you need in Michigan?
In Michigan, a learner driver must log 50 hours of supervised driving practice—including 10 at night—before applying for a license.
Michigan learner permit requirements
- Minimum permit age: 14 years 9 months
- Supervised practice required: 50 hours total, 10 at night (what counts as night driving)
- Permit hold period: 6 months
- License eligibility age: 16
- How hours are certified: 50-hour log (including 10 at night) certified by a parent or guardian between Segment 1 and Segment 2. DriveMint fills in the Supervised Driving Log from your logged drives (see every state form).
Michigan's GDL requires 50 hours of supervised driving (10 at night) between Segment 1 and Segment 2 driver education before the Level 2 license.
When can you drive with a permit in Michigan?
Michigan sets no curfew for Level 1 learner's license holders. With a licensed parent or guardian, or a licensed adult 21 or older they approve, you can practice at any hour. The 10 p.m.–5 a.m. limit starts at Level 2.
With a licensed parent or guardian, or a licensed driver 21 or older they approve.
Same as daytime. There's no Level 1 curfew.
Alone, with no more than one passenger under 21 unless they're immediate family or a parent or designated adult rides along.
Only with a parent or guardian or a licensed adult 21+ they designate, or for work or an authorized activity.
- Authorized activities are school and school events (home school included), organized sports leagues and clubs, vocational classes, events run by a tax-exempt religious group, and taking someone to emergency care or a safe place.
- A ticket, an at-fault crash, a suspension or breaking these rules keeps you at your level longer: until 90 clean days at Level 1, or 12 clean months at Level 2, or until you turn 18.
- Breaking a Level 1 or Level 2 restriction is a civil infraction, and the Secretary of State notifies a parent or guardian.
With no Level 1 curfew, the 10 night hours fit any evening after dark. Winter makes them easy: sunset is around 5 p.m. across Michigan in December.
Checked against Michigan Vehicle Code, MCL 257.310e in October 2026. Limits after the road test are under restrictions for new drivers.
Requirements change and have exceptions. Always confirm the current rules with the Michigan Secretary of State before applying.
Michigan's graduated licensing stages
Complete Segment 1 driver ed; drive only with a licensed parent or guardian, or a licensed adult 21+ they approve; log 50 hours (10 at night).
Issued after Segment 2 and 6 months at Level 1; night and passenger limits apply.
Issued after a clean record at Level 2; restrictions removed.
Driving restrictions for new Michigan drivers
At Level 2 you can't drive between 10 p.m. and 5 a.m. unless a parent or guardian, or a licensed adult 21+ they designate, is with you, or you're driving for work or to or from an authorized activity such as school or an organized sport.
At Level 2 you can't carry more than one passenger under 21 unless they're immediate family, a parent, guardian or designated adult 21+ is with you, or you're driving for work or an authorized activity.
Level 1 and Level 2 drivers may not use a cell phone while driving.
Log every Michigan practice hour automatically
DriveMint tracks each supervised drive, separates day and night hours, and generates a PDF you can print or show at the DMV. Prove all 50 hours without a paper logbook falling apart in the glove box.
New to DriveMint? Watch the one-minute video guides, from setup to a signed log.
Michigan driving practice FAQs
How many driving hours do you need in Michigan?+
Michigan requires 50 hours of supervised driving practice, including 10 hours at night, before a teen can apply for a license.
What time can you drive with a permit in Michigan?+
Michigan puts no time-of-day limit on a Level 1 learner's license. A Level 1 driver can drive at any hour with a licensed parent or legal guardian, or, with the parent's or guardian's permission, a licensed driver 21 or older. At Level 2 (intermediate license), a teen can't drive between 10 p.m. and 5 a.m. unless accompanied by a parent or guardian or a licensed driver 21 or older the parent designates, or while driving for work, to or from work, or to or from an authorized activity such as school, an organized sport, a vocational class or a religious event.
What are Segment 1 and Segment 2 in Michigan?+
Michigan splits teen driver education into two parts: Segment 1 before the learner's license, and Segment 2 after at least three months and 30 hours of practice.
How old do you have to be to get a permit in Michigan?+
You can apply for a Level 1 learner's license at 14 years and 9 months once you're enrolled in Segment 1 driver education.
Requirements in other states
Compare practice hours in all 50 states side by side, or read what actually counts as a night driving hour.