Over the years, there has been an increase in the number of defensive driving courses made available online.

These courses offer you the convenience of completing the training from the comfort of your home and at a flexible pace, provided one has a functioning PC or mobile device and a stable data connection.

However, the quality of these courses can vary greatly, and it can be challenging for drivers to determine which ones are worth their time and money.

Several factors like the course’s overall user experience, price, user review, content, and interactive features most often determine if a defensive driving course is worth a driver’s time and money or not.

As a result of the hazards that drivers might face while driving on roads, defensive driving courses have been made available to teach them how to anticipate and avoid these hazards.

Also, as a result of the inconveniences that might come with taking these courses in a physical classroom, some of them have been made available online for easy access.

The key to staying safe and keeping others safe while driving is to have strong defensive driving skills, and the easiest way this skill can be acquired in the most convenient of ways is by enrolling in an online course.

The skills you acquire from defensive driving courses can help you stay safe while driving, and keep other drivers and pedestrians safe by avoiding activities that might result in collisions or accidents.

Are you living in New York? See 8 Best Defensive Driving Courses Online In New York, if you are not living in New York, do not worry, this article will have you covered.

Table of Contents

What Is Defensive Driving?

Defensive driving refers to those techniques that have been put in place to help drivers reduce the chances of collisions or accidents occurring and stay safe while driving as well as keep others safe on the road.

These techniques involve a combination of mental strategies, like being conscious of one’s own behavior and having the right attitude while driving, and physical strategies, like scanning the road while driving and assessing potential dangers such as road conditions, pedestrians, and other vehicles.

What are the 5 Rules of Defensive Driving?

Stay alert: Don’t be distracted by your surroundings and always be prepared to avoid potential dangers.
Keep a safe distance: Don’t move too close to the vehicle in front of you. This will help you prevent crashing into the vehicle in case the car comes to a halt suddenly. Remember the golden traffic rule: give a space of the length of a car for every 10 mph of speed.
Expect road hazards: Scan the road ahead for objects that can cause accidents, such as pedestrians, cyclists, and other vehicles. Anticipate the future actions of other drivers plan your reaction.
Follow the rules of the road: Obey the traffic laws and regulations.
Stay in control: Always be in control of your vehicle and avoid unnecessary aggressive driving behaviors such as speeding, tailgating, etc.

How Long Are Defensive Driving Courses?

There is no nationally or globally agreed duration for defensive driving courses as they can be of any length. However, most of these courses last between one day and one week. The shortest and most popular courses are one-hour, eight-hour, and four-hour defensive driving courses.

How to Get a Defensive Driving Certificate

There are some processes you need to pass before you can get a defensive driving certificate and the most important one of them is that you need to enroll in a defensive driving course. The following list contains the steps you need to go through in order to get a defensive driving certificate and I will explain them:

Find a suitable defensive driving course
Enroll in the defensive driving course
Complete the course and get your certificate

sample-of-a-certificate-for-online-defensive-drving

Find a Suitable Defensive Driving Course

The most important thing to check when you see a defensive driving course is the validity of the course; the course should be approved by regulatory bodies in your state of residence. This is even more important if you are looking for a defensive driving course in response to a court order.
If you are only hoping to improve your driving skills, then you should only be focused on the content of the course you enroll in. In this case, you should check online for reviews to make sure that the defensive driving course is worth your time and money.
You should consider online options as they offer you a flexible and less stressful way to improve your defensive driving skills. You also need to check the price and other features so you will make the best choice.

Enroll in the Defensive Driving Course

enrollment-page-for-an-online-defensive-driving-course

When you find the right course for yourself, the next step is to enroll in the course as you won’t be getting anything if you don’t enroll. Most of these courses are not free, they usually cost between $10 and $40.
For payment, using your card is the most widely used and suitable option so I advise you to make use of your bank card for fast and seamless payment.

Complete the Course and Get Your Certificate

The process doesn’t end with enrollment as you have to complete the course. Usually at the end of the course, you will take a test or exam. You should not be afraid because some courses have unlimited or multiple test retries. So you can retake your test multiple times.
You will get your certificate after you have completed all the processes I mentioned here, this certificate will either be sent to you through mail or in a printable document format.

Top 30 Online Defensive Driving Courses in the US By States

Aceable Online Defensive Driving Courses

Cost of courses: Courses at Aceable cost between $15 and $100.

The Aceable Online Defensive Driving Courses, accessible on computers, laptops, and smartphones, is an easy, fast, and reliable option for drivers like you to take and complete courses on defensive driving.

It has a vertical mode that allows users to scroll through its small, engaging content while also allowing them to stop and start at their own convenience.

When a user logs into their account, their progress in the course is usually saved automatically when they take a break or stop. This is how they can stop and start at their own convenience.

Aceable defensive driving online course also has great offers you can take advantage of. It helps you save money by giving you a discount of up to 10% on your car insurance and removing your traffic ticket fee.

This cost is influenced by various factors, some of which include the location one is in when taking the course and the requirements of that course in the state where one is located.

The duration for the Aceable online defensive driving courses is around 6 to 32 hours. This depends on the requirements of the course in the state where one is located.

Florida Defensive Driving Course Online

The Florida defensive driving course is an online course operated by the American Safety Council. This course contains various effective techniques that can be implemented by drivers to prevent crashes or accidents while driving.

It can also be useful for drivers who have been given an order by the court to finish Basic Driver Improvement (BDI) training.

The Florida defensive driving course has different prices, each of which varies with its duration.

The Basic Driver Improvement (BDI) costs around $5 and lasts for 4 hours, while the Driver Improvement costs around $59 and lasts for 8 hours, and the Advanced Driver Improvement (ADI) costs around $100 and lasts for 12 hours.

Also, in a situation where you don’t want to increase the rate of your insurance,(by preventing added points to your record) or where you want to reduce the cost of a non-criminal moving violation ticket, you can simply take the course online.

The course is known to be highly efficient, and it is approved by the Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles. For more information about the course, see Florida Traffic School Course Details.

Wyoming Safe Motorist Course

The Wyoming Safe Motorist Course is a 100% online course that makes the art of defensive driving easy for drivers. The following are some of the topics in this course:

The 10 Habits of Defensive Driving
Road Dynamics
Sharing the Road
Collisions and Safety Mechanisms
Driving Attitudes and Behaviours
Factors Beyond a Driver’s Control
Recognize the Importance of Traffic Laws
Recognize the Six Deadly Choices and How to Avoid Them

Starting and completing the Wyoming Safe Motorist Course is very simple and fast. All you have to do is register for the course, provide your personal details, and start taking lessons.

You will be required to take a quiz at the end of each lesson you take. After the quizzes, you will then be required to take the final exam and pass with a minimum score of 80% before you can be given your certificate.

Massachusetts RMV-Approved Defensive Driving Courses

The Massachusetts RMV-Approved Defensive Driving Courses is a collection of defensive driving courses online available to drivers who have had their licenses suspended or are on the verge of having their licenses suspended.

Drivers who have had their license suspended under the Junior Operator Laws, drivers responsible for multiple hands-free and distracted driving violations, and drivers who have committed violations of some specific motor vehicle violations.

The Massachusetts defensive driving course online costs around $25, and its duration depends largely on the type of course that is being taken.

For instance, its Driver Attitudinal Retaining Program lasts for 4 hours, while its State’s Courts Against Road Rage (SCARR) lasts for 4 hours, and its Driver Retaining Program lasts for 8 hours.

This defensive driving course is available online every hour of the day, and it also comes with animations, 3D graphics, audio clips, and video clips for easy understanding. For more information about the courses see Massachusetts RMV-Approved Defensive Driving Courses.

Nevada Online Defensive Driving Course & Traffic School

Licensed by the Nevada Department of Motor Vehicles, the Nevada Online Defensive Driving Course & Traffic School helps drivers to reduce their insurance costs, reduce up to 3 points from the points they have accumulated from traffic violations, and satisfy a plea bargain they have with a court or a general court order.

This course, like most other online driving courses, can be accessed on smartphones and PCs and completed anywhere deemed fit, provided a user has an Internet connection.

Once a driver completes the Nevada defensive driving course, the Nevada Department of Motor Vehicles will be notified, and the driver will be given credit for taking and completing the course. The necessary notations will then be made on that driver’s driving record.

The Nevada defensive driving course costs around $24, and its duration varies depending on the type of defensive driving course taken by a driver. It will take you only 1 hour to complete this course.

California Online Traffic School Course

The California Online Traffic School Course was created by The Online Traffic School, Incorporated. It is available for those who are willing to learn strategies, techniques, and skills that can be used on roads to defend themselves against collisions or accidents.

Topics covered in this course include the following:

Pedestrian awareness
Proper vehicle maintenance
Turning techniques
Parking procedures
Safe passing maneuvers
The identification of hazardous activities

To register for the California Online Traffic School course, you only need to visit their website and provide the necessary information needed.

You can then go on to take the course, which involves reading and answering questions. Each chapter of the course comes with a quiz, which can be taken an unlimited number of times. The final part of the course is the examination, which can be taken more than once.

The California defensive driving course costs $19.95. See California Traffic School Options to learn more about the online course.

National Safety Council Defensive Driving Course

First introduced in 1964, the defensive driving course from the National Safety Council is another good option for drivers looking to acquire certain skills that can be helpful in the prevention of accidents and collisions on the road.

It has a high reputation for being successful in reducing the severity and number of accidents or collision incidents among its graduates.

Since 2000, the online version of this defensive driving course has been made available and incorporated with graphics, sounds, and animations to aid interactive and engaging learning. The National Safety Council’s defensive driving course costs $50 for each person taking it.

New Jersey Online Defensive Driving Course

With as little as $19.95 or $34.95 for one year of access, you can take the New Jersey Online Defensive Driving Course. The course, which lasts for six hours, can be taken and completed only once every five years.

Drivers taking this defensive driving course also get a 2-point reduction from their license and a 10% discount on car insurance for three years.

A certificate for the New Jersey defensive driving course is usually issued upon completion of the course, which requires at least an 80% score in its examination. For enrollment in the course, see New Jersey Online Defensive Driving Course.

Oklahoma Online Defensive Driving Courses

The Oklahoma Safety Council offers the Oklahoma Online Defensive Driving Course, it is available in two different categories.

The first category is for drivers who received tickets in the city of Oklahoma, the second category is for drivers who received tickets outside the city of Oklahoma, and the third category is for drivers who wish to get a discount on their insurance.

The cost of all three categories of the defensive driving course is $39.95, and the duration of each of them is four hours.

It is important to note that the Oklahoma Online Defensive Driving Courses does not guarantee anyone taking it a dismissal of their ticket or a reduction in the point on their motor vehicle. For more information about the course, Oklahoma Online Defensive Driving Courses.

Idaho Online Traffic School

The Idaho Online Traffic School offers one of the best defensive driving courses online which is approved by the state of Idaho. It lasts for about six hours and is beneficial to drivers who have accumulated points from traffic violations like inattentive driving, driving over the speed limit, and failure to yield.

With this defensive driving course, a driver can reduce as many as three points from their traffic violation score. The Idaho defensive driving course online costs $49.94 with no hidden fees attached to it.

Missouri Defensive Driving Course

The Missouri Defensive Driving Course, certified by the state of Missouri and approved by the Missouri Department of Transportation, is another online defensive driving course that is available for drivers who wish to reduce the points on their driver’s license.

The following are some of the topics in the syllabus:

Driving Maneuvers
Right of Way Concepts
Alcohol and Drugs
Different Driving Environment
State of Mind
Sharing the Roadway
Basic Safe Driving Skills
Defensive Driving Skills

The Missouri defensive driving course costs $19.99, and it is available for 60 days after registration, even though it can be completed in a matter of four hours. It is one of the best defensive driving courses online in Missouri, for more information about this course, see Missouri Defensive Driving.

Washington DC Online Traffic School

If you are in doubt about your capability to drive and keep others around you safe when driving, or if you are willing to enhance your driving skills and knowledge, then you should consider taking the Washington DC Online Defensive Driving Course.

You can enroll in this course through the Online Traffic School Incorporated Incorporated or the American Safety Council.

The Washington DC defensive driving course is divided into eight chapters, with each chapter talking about a single subject.

Some areas covered by this defensive driving course include traffic rules and laws of the road in Washington DC, proper vehicle maintenance, night driving, highway driving, and defensive driving techniques. This course costs between $25.95 and $29.95.

Delaware Defensive Driving Course Online

Approved by the Delaware Department of Motor Vehicles and rated A+ by the Better Business Bureau, the Delaware defensive driving course is another great option if you are looking to acquire skills and learn techniques that will help you avoid collisions and accidents while driving.

This course is divided into two parts: the basic defensive driving course, which lasts for six hours, and the refresher defensive driving course also known as the advanced defensive driving course which lasts for three hours.

Some of the benefits of taking the Delaware defensive driving course online include the availability of course materials in video, audio, and text formats; a reduction of up to 15% on your insurance premium for three years, an addition of a credit of three points to your driving record, etc.

The Delaware online defensive driving course costs just $14.95 with no hidden fees attached. To learn more about the course or to enroll, see Delaware Defensive Driving Courses.

Georgia Defensive Driving Course Online

This defensive driving course online can benefit drivers in terms of helping them make safe trips for themselves, their passengers, and other vehicle drivers, as well as improving their driving skills.

Its learning materials are short and engaging, and they usually include graphics and animations to make understanding easy for you.

To benefit from an insurance premium discount when you take this course, meet with your insurance provider to see if you will be given an insurance discount when you take the course, register and complete the course, and submit your certificate to your insurance provider for your discount.

The Georgia defensive driving course online costs $19.95 and it lasts for six hours.

Arizona Defensive Driving Course

This course, just like most other defensive driving courses, is a recommended option for drivers interested in improving their driving skills and learning driving techniques that would help them stay safe while driving.

The Arizona Defensive Driving Course comes with an audio read-along option, which means instead of reading the course, you can simply sit back and listen to it. Also, each chapter in this course takes around 24 minutes to complete, meaning, you would have needed 4 hours to complete all the 10 chapters in this course.

This course costs $29.95 with no hidden fees whatsoever.

North Dakota Defensive Driving Point Reduction Course

Approved by the North Dakota Highway Patrol for point reduction and an insurance discount, the North Dakota online defensive driving course is also another option for drivers looking to improve their driving skills and learn techniques that can help reduce accidents while driving.

In as little as eight hours, you can complete the North Dakota Defensive Driving Course online and get your certificate.

The cost for this course also varies. It costs $45 for North Dakota Safety Council members, $55 for non-North Dakota Safety Council members, and $75 for drivers referred by a court.

The course is self-paced and you can retake the exams as many times as you want. To enroll in this course, you need to visit North Dakota Defensive Driving Point Reduction Course to proceed.

New Hampshire Defensive Driving Course

The New Hampshire Defensive Driving Course is fully online and is available for drivers who wish to dismiss their traffic ticket or reduce their driver’s license points.

To take this course for traffic dismissal, you first need to get permission from the court. Failure to do so will lead to the non-awarding of credit and non-refund of the course fee paid.

Some areas covered in the New Hampshire defensive driving course online include safety vehicle maintenance, safe driving habits development, driving distractions avoidance, driver’s action predictions, vehicle safety features, and traffic regulations in New Hampshire.

This course lasts for between four to eight hours, and it costs $14.95.

Ohio Online Defensive Driving Courses

The Ohio Defensive Driving Courses come with graphics, animations, and videos to help you understand easily. It also has easy-to-understand chapters with quizzes that help to simplify learning.

To complete the Ohio online defensive driving course, confirm with a court to check your eligibility status, register for the course proper, start taking the course and write the exams, and lastly, collect your certificate of completion after passing the exam.

The Ohio defensive driving course costs $47.95, and every driver who takes it gets to qualify for a credit of two points on their license. The courses are approved by the court, self-paced, and fully online.

Wisconsin Online Defensive Driving Class

Accessible at every hour of the day and every day of the week, the Wisconsin Online Defensive Driving Class is one of the best defensive driving courses online.

This course is focused on motivating drivers to change their risky attitudes behind the wheel and to reinforce defensive driving strategies.

It also covers areas of topics that have to do with the dynamics of crashes, techniques for preventing crashes, safety equipment, and traffic crashes, among others.

The Wisconsin defensive driving course lasts for four hours and costs $35. You can online enroll in this defensive driving course under a court order or if you have received a ticket in Wisconsin. For more information about the course, see Wisconsin Defensive Driving Class.

Pennsylvania Defensive Driving Course Online

The Pennsylvania Defensive Driving Course Online can be taken to receive a discount on insurance premiums and to reduce points accumulated from traffic violations.

The topics of the course include the following:

Defensive driving techniques
Safe driving techniques
Vehicle safety features
Crash risk factors
Collision prevention
The dangers of alcohol and drugs to drivers
Speeding dangers
Accident avoidance
Injury and death prevention
Pennsylvania traffic laws and regulations

The Pennsylvania defensive driving course online costs $14.95 and lasts for four hours, although one is allowed to take and complete the course at their own pace.

Montana Defensive Driving Course Online

This defensive driving course online is focused on teaching drivers how to be more responsible, how to drive safely on the road, and how to avoid mistakes that might result in accidents or traffic violations.

This course covers topics like driving emergencies, vehicle safety features, collision avoidance techniques, defensive driving strategies, and traffic laws and regulations in Montana, among others.

The course costs $24.95, and it takes between four and eight hours to complete. For more information about the course, Montana Defensive Driving.

Illinois Online Defensive Driving Class

The Illinois Online Defensive Driving Class is an ideal course for drivers that are looking to improve their defensive driving techniques, reduce their insurance rate, or meet the requirements of a court for ticket dismissal.

This course is rated A+ by the Better Business Bureau, and it has helped produce over four million drivers with adequate skills and knowledge of techniques that can help avoid collisions and accidents.

The Illinois defensive driving course has a duration of six hours and costs $19.95.

Online Connecticut Defensive Driving Class

The Online Connecticut Defensive Driving Class is of the best available online, this course is recommended for drivers within the state of Connecticut.

If you wish to acquire the skills or master the techniques that are needed to maintain safe driving and prevent accidents while studying within your schedule and at your own pace, you can try the Connecticut defensive driving course online.

This defensive driving course focuses on topics like traffic etiquette, defensive driving laws, driving in poor road and weather conditions, and traffic laws and regulations in Connecticut, among others.

The course also contains instructions on vehicle safety features, challenging driving situations, the hazards of overspeeding, proper passing techniques, safe driving distances, etc.

The online Connecticut defensive driving course costs $49.94 with no hidden fees attached.

New Mexico Defensive Driving Online

The New Mexico Defensive Driving is one of the cheapest defensive driving courses online for drivers to learn safe driving while saving money and time. This defensive driving course can be taken to dismiss a traffic ticket and to show an insurance discount. Some of the topics it covers include basic vehicle maintenance, driving emergencies, traffic laws and regulations in New Mexico, and safety tips on the highway.

Some benefits of taking the New Mexico defensive driving course online include the freedom to work on your own schedule and at your own pace, short chapters that are easier to go through, and multiple chances to take the final exam, among others.

The New Mexico defensive driving course costs $49.94 and lasts for up to six hours. For more information about the course, see New Mexico Defensive Driving.

Maryland Defensive Driving Course Online

This Maryland defensive driving course is the best defensive driving course online for people in Maryland. It can help drivers reduce their insurance rates, acquire more knowledge of defensive driving techniques, and complete a requirement ordered by a court.

There are three different categories of the course: the insurance discount defensive driving course, which costs $27.95, the court-ordered defensive driving course, which also costs $27.95 and the employee-referred/fleet defensive driving course, which costs $39.95.

See Maryland Defensive Driving to learn more about this course and to enroll.

Oregon Defensive Driving Class

Oregon Defensive Driving Class is the best online defensive driving course available in Oregon. Through this course, you will learn how to be a better driver and at the same time save money by getting insurance discounts.

If you wish to get an insurance discount, satisfy a court order, or have just been employed as a driver in an organization, you need to consider enrolling in the Oregon Defensive Driving Course.

The course is available online and it is also self-paced, it course also has an audio read-along feature that allows you to listen to it instead of reading it.

The Oregon Defensive Driving Class costs just $34.95.

Nebraska Online Defensive Driving Courses and Traffic School

If you are looking to satisfy the requirements for 2-point credit, court referral, a work permit, or reinstatement of your license, you should take the Nebraska defensive driving course. This course is not only educational but also fun and interesting to take. Its coursework is also engaging through its audio and video capabilities.

The Nebraska defensive driving course has a duration of 8 hours and costs around $24.95. For more information about these courses, see Nebraska Online Defensive Driving Courses and Traffic School.

Iowa Online Traffic School and Defensive Driving Courses

The Iowa defensive driving courses can either be taken in one sitting or in short multiple sessions. With a court’s permission, one can dismiss their traffic ticket by taking this course.

There are four topics in the course:

Awareness of driving responsibilities
The effects of drugs on driving ability
The effect of attitudes on driving behavior
The influence of emotions on drivers.

The Iowa defensive driving course costs $40. To enroll in the course, see Iowa Online Traffic School and Defensive Driving Courses.

Kentucky Online Defensive Driving Course

If you are a rideshare driver in Kentucky, taking the Kentucky online defensive driving course is compulsory. This course costs just $15, and it lasts for just 2 hours.

Some of the topics covered in the Kentucky online defensive driving include habits of defensive driving, road dynamics, the importance of traffic laws and regulations, collisions and safety mechanisms, behaviors and attitudes while driving, etc.

Utah Defensive Driving Course Online

The Utah defensive driving course provides drivers with strategies that can help reduce injuries or fatalities that might come with car collisions. It also reinforces good driving skills in drivers and educates them on how they can prevent crashes with their driving attitude.

Some topics of defensive driving covered in this course include defensive driving techniques, traffic laws and regulations in Utah, road hazards and how to deal with them, safety features and vehicle restraints, and the dangers of drunk, drowsy, or distracted driving.

The online Utah defensive driving course costs $29.99 with no hidden fees and a money-back guarantee.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is a defensive driving course online?

Online defensive driving courses are those courses that have been created to help drivers reduce their chances of colliding with other vehicles or getting involved in accidents. These courses can only be accessed online on PCs, smartphones, and other mobile devices.

Are defensive driving courses legit?

Defensive driving courses are legit. Some of them have been approved by the Department of Motor Vehicles, the court, and the government.

Can I take my defensive driving course online?

Yes, you can take your defensive driving course online only if you have an internet connection and a supported device.

Does Georgia accept defensive driving courses?

Yes, the state of Georgia accepts defensive driving courses. Some institutions that offer defensive driving courses that are approved by the Georgia Department of Driver Services include iDriveSafely, Drive Safe Online, National Safety Council, and AAA.