The FAA Part 107 knowledge test is 60 questions, 2 hours, passing score of 70 percent. You need to answer 42 questions correctly. Most people who fail do so because they studied the wrong things or studied the right things in the wrong order.
Here is what actually appears on the test and how to prepare for it efficiently.
What the Test Covers
The FAA publishes the exact knowledge areas tested. Nothing on the exam is a secret. The test pulls from these categories:
- Airspace classification -- Class A through G, special use airspace, TFRs
- Weather -- METARs, TAFs, winds aloft, density altitude, weather patterns
- Regulations -- 14 CFR Part 107 rules, waivers, certificate requirements
- Loading and performance -- weight and balance, how conditions affect flight
- Operations -- emergency procedures, radio communication, crew responsibilities
- Airport operations -- runway markings, taxiway signs, traffic patterns
- Sectional chart reading -- reading airspace symbols, identifying landmarks
Airspace and regulations together account for roughly 40 percent of most exams. Master those two categories first.
Study Materials That Actually Work
FAA Remote Pilot Study Guide (free). The FAA publishes this document specifically for the Part 107 exam. It covers every tested topic and includes the same figures used in the actual test. Download it from faa.gov and read it completely before using any third-party study tool.
Sectional chart practice. A significant portion of the exam involves reading VFR sectional charts -- identifying airspace boundaries, reading airport information, and understanding symbols. Practice with the San Francisco or Los Angeles sectional, both available free from the FAA. The exam provides a legend, but you need to be comfortable enough with chart reading to apply it quickly under time pressure.
METAR decoding. You will be given METARs and asked to interpret conditions. Practice decoding at least 20 real METARs before the exam. UAS SkyCheck's METAR panel is a useful reference -- every check shows the decoded METAR for the nearest airport.
Practice tests. Use the FAA practice question bank, not third-party question dumps. The FAA publishes the actual question pool that the exam draws from. Third-party apps often contain outdated or inaccurate questions.
Airspace: The Most Important Topic
More exam questions trace back to airspace than any other category. Know these cold:
Class B surrounds the busiest airports (major hubs). You need prior authorization to fly in Class B. Surface to 10,000 ft MSL. Depicted on sectional charts as solid blue lines.
Class C surrounds moderately busy airports. Authorization required. Surface to 4,000 ft AGL above the airport. Depicted as solid magenta lines.
Class D surrounds airports with an operating control tower. Authorization required when tower is open. Surface to 2,500 ft AGL. Depicted as dashed blue lines.
Class E is controlled airspace that is not A, B, C, or D. Starts at 1,200 ft AGL in most areas, 700 ft AGL in some transition areas (depicted as fuzzy magenta on sectionals), and at the surface in some areas around airports. No authorization required for operations below the floor of Class E.
Class G is uncontrolled airspace from the surface up to the floor of Class E. No authorization required. Most drone operations occur here.
The 400-foot rule. Under Part 107, maximum altitude is 400 ft AGL unless you are within 400 ft of a structure, in which case you may fly up to 400 ft above the structure's highest point. This is one of the most commonly tested and most commonly misunderstood rules.
Regulations You Must Know Cold
These specific rules appear on nearly every exam:
- 107.51 -- operating limitations (altitude, speed, visual line of sight)
- 107.29 -- night operations (anti-collision lights required, no waiver needed since 2021)
- 107.31 -- visual line of sight requirement
- 107.36 -- careless or reckless operation prohibition
- 107.49 -- preflight familiarization requirements
- 107.57 / 107.59 -- offenses that disqualify you from a certificate
Know the difference between what requires a waiver and what is prohibited outright. Flying over moving vehicles requires a waiver unless you meet the category requirements (107.110-107.140). Flying over people requires a waiver or category compliance. Flying at night does not require a waiver -- just anti-collision lighting.
Weather Questions
Density altitude questions appear on most exams. High density altitude -- produced by high elevation, high temperature, and high humidity -- reduces aircraft performance. A drone that climbs well at sea level on a cool morning may struggle at 5,000 ft MSL on a hot afternoon.
The formula: density altitude increases roughly 120 ft for every degree Celsius above standard temperature at a given pressure altitude.
For METAR questions, focus on:
- Wind group: direction in degrees true, speed in knots, gusts
- Visibility: statute miles
- Sky condition: CLR, FEW, SCT, BKN, OVC, and the altitude in hundreds of feet AGL
- Temperature and dewpoint: Celsius, separated by a slash
Test Day
The exam is administered at PSI testing centers. You will need a government-issued ID. No study materials are allowed in the testing room. You will be given scratch paper and access to a printed legend and chart supplement.
The test provides sectional chart excerpts and figures for questions that require them. Read each question carefully -- many wrong answers are plausible if you misread the chart scale or altitude units.
Budget your time. 60 questions in 120 minutes is 2 minutes per question. Flag questions you are unsure of and return to them. Do not leave any question blank -- a guess has a chance, a blank does not.
After You Pass
Your temporary certificate is issued immediately after passing. The permanent plastic certificate arrives by mail within 3 weeks. Register your drone with the FAA (if it weighs 250g or more) and complete Remote ID compliance before your first commercial flight.
Your Part 107 certificate is valid for 24 months. After that, you must complete recurrent training to keep it current.
Once you are certified, use uas-skycheck.app before every commercial flight to verify airspace, TFRs, and weather conditions. Know before you fly.