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UK practical test · interactive

Number plate eyesight check: can you read the plate?

Stand back from your screen and read a number plate drawn at the size a real one looks from 20 metres. Then do the real check outdoors with our step-by-step guide.

Step 1 · Size your screen

Match a bank card

At 100% browser zoom, hold a standard bank card flat against the screen and move the slider until the blue card is exactly the same width.


Got a ruler? Each block in this bar should be 1 cm, and the whole bar 10 cm.

Step 2 · Pick your distance

How far back will you stand?

Measure from your eyes to the screen with a tape measure. The further back you stand, the more accurate the plate size.

Wear the glasses or contact lenses you drive with. You’ll get a countdown to walk back before the plate appears.

Step 3 · Read the plate

Can you read the number plate?

Finish steps 1 and 2, then press start.

Practice only. This screen check can’t tell you whether you meet the legal eyesight standard, which also covers visual acuity and field of vision. Always check a real number plate from 20 metres before your test, and see an optician if you’re unsure about your eyesight.

Then do the real 20-metre check outdoors

Set up the check

  1. Choose a stationary car with a modern UK plate. Make sure it is safe and legal to stand where you will check it.
  2. In good daylight, measure 20 metres from the plate to where your eyes will be. Use a tape measure, measuring wheel, or a reliably measured space; do not estimate by footsteps.
  3. Stand at the measured point with both eyes open. Wear the glasses or contacts you need for driving.
  4. Read the complete registration aloud and have another person compare it with the plate. Ask them to choose a different plate for a repeat round.

Struggling or uncertain? Arrange a professional sight test before your driving test. This home check does not measure the separate visual acuity and field-of-vision requirements.

20 metres

Modern number plate used in the GB car driving test.

20.5 metres

Old-style number plate, where applicable. Choose a modern plate for the straightforward practice above.

Prefer a game first?

Try the number-plate recognition game for fun. Its car and plate are illustrations; the game is not scaled to represent a legal 20-metre check.

Play plate game →

GOV.UK: What happens during the car test · GOV.UK: Driving eyesight rules