Austin has a smaller CDL training market than Houston or Dallas, so a handful of schools covers most of the choice. If you’re outside the Austin area, you can browse CDL training options near you anywhere in Texas.
Four Austin-area CDL schools publish enough detail to compare, and all four publish a price. Austin Community College lists $4,950 for a 4-week Class A course at its Northridge Campus in North Austin. Changing Lanes CDL School in Pflugerville lists $4,300 for Class A with testing and endorsements included, and publishes weekday, weeknight and weekend starts. In Round Rock, Austin CDL Services sells one-on-one packages from $2,600 to $3,300 for 10 to 14 driving hours, and Community Truck Driving School lists $3,500 for Class A and $2,250 for Class B. Available through Get CDL Texas: a participating Austin-area school offering 1:1, hands-on training with continued instruction through licensing, subject to school program terms. Nothing here is ranked. Before you pay a deposit, search any provider by name on the FMCSA Training Provider Registry. Compare Austin CDL options free →
The Austin CDL Training Market
Austin’s trucking work runs along I-35 between San Antonio and Dallas–Fort Worth, with the SH-130 toll road as a truck route east of the city, and across a metro where construction, distribution and local delivery all move by truck. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics counts about 10,760 heavy and tractor-trailer truck drivers employed in the Austin–Round Rock–San Marcos area, with a median annual wage of $57,110 (OEWS, May 2025).
Training comes from fewer providers than in the bigger Texas metros, and they differ mainly in how they package it. The public college — Austin Community College — runs a full-time weekday cohort. Private schools in Pflugerville and Round Rock either run a multi-week course or sell a set package of one-on-one driving hours. Carrier-sponsored programs are an employment agreement with training attached, which is a different decision altogether.
Fewer schools means fewer start dates and formats, so the schedule you can actually keep may decide more than the price. It also makes one question more important than usual: how much training does the price buy? A package of 12 to 14 driving hours and a 4-week, 40-hours-a-week course are different products, even though both end at the same DPS skills test.
How We Built This Guide
Get CDL Texas publishes guidance on choosing a CDL school in Austin. We do not publish rankings or aggregate scores. Here is how we built the comparison and how to verify any school yourself.
What we compare
Only what a school states on its own current pages: license class, published price, hours or program length, schedule, location, what the school says is included, retest terms, and the payment or funding routes it names. Where a school is silent on something, this page says “Not published” rather than filling the gap.
What we do not claim
- We publish no rankings, scores, star ratings or pass rates. The named schools are listed alphabetically, and nothing is ordered “best to worst”.
- We have not visited, inspected or audited any school on this page.
- We do not guarantee admission, tuition, financing, a school response, or a job.
- We did not check FMCSA Training Provider Registry listings for this page. FMCSA does not approve or certify listed providers, and listings change, so search each school yourself, by name, before paying anything.
- Hours are shown the way each school counts them. They are not comparable with one another and are not a ranking.
How to verify a school yourself
- Confirm the school’s FMCSA Training Provider Registry listing at tpr.fmcsa.dot.gov.
- Check the Texas DPS licensing steps at dps.texas.gov.
- Ask the school in writing: the total cost and what is billed separately, how many behind-the-wheel hours you actually get, what extra practice costs, students per truck, where the skills test happens and who provides the vehicle, the refund and retest policy, and how your ELDT completion is reported.
- For a private school, ask for its Texas Workforce Commission certificate or school number.
How we are paid, and what that does not buy
Get CDL Texas may be compensated by participating schools, and this may influence which schools are featured on our pages. On this page, the participating Austin-area school is highlighted because it is available through Get CDL Texas; it is not ranked above the four schools in the comparison, and nothing here is an endorsement or a rating. We are not paid by the four named schools and do not contact them for you. Read our advertising disclosure and editorial policy.
Last reviewed: September 2026.
Austin-Area CDL Schools Compared
Every figure for the four named schools was read from the school’s own current page on 18 September 2026. “Not published” means the school does not show that detail on those pages — not that it does not exist. Named schools are listed alphabetically; the participating option is shown last and is not ranked.
| School | Class | Published price | Training format & hours in the price | Additional practice & retests | Where |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Austin CDL Services private school |
A and B, manual or automatic | $3,300 A manual $2,900 A automatic $2,800 B manual $2,600 B automatic |
One-on-one: 14 hrs (A manual), 12 hrs (A automatic), 10 hrs (Class B). Open 6 days a week. | Retest at no extra cost, up to 3 attempts; truck supplied for the DPS road test. Cost of extra hours not published. | 3566 Rocking J Rd, Suite A, Round Rock 78665 |
| Austin Community College public college (Continuing Education) |
A | $4,950 page states additional fees apply |
4 weeks, 40 hrs a week, Mon–Thu 7 a.m.–5:30 p.m. (some Fridays). The page also refers to 5 weeks — confirm. | Not published | Northridge Campus, 11928 Stonehollow Dr, Austin 78758 |
| Changing Lanes CDL School private school |
A | $4,300 automatic training; manual restriction removal +$500 for students |
180-hour certificate. Weekday & weeknight starts on the 1st, 3rd and 5th Monday; weekend start on the 1st Saturday. | Not published. Third-party testing is listed as included. | 100 W Pflugerville Pkwy #111, Pflugerville 78660 |
| Community Truck Driving School private school |
A and B; Hazmat training | $3,500 Class A $2,250 Class B shown as reduced from $4,200 / $3,000 |
Not published | Not published | 1611 Chisholm Trail Rd, Suite 450, Round Rock 78681 |
| Participating Austin-area CDL school Available through Get CDL Texas — we may be paid if you enroll |
Confirm with the school | Confirm with the school | Hands-on, 1:1 instruction | Continued training through licensing, subject to school program terms | Austin area — shared after review |
It does not rank schools by hours or price. The hours are counted differently — one-on-one driving time, a certificate total, a weekly schedule — and none of them is a quality score.
It does not fill gaps. Where a school publishes nothing, the cell says so. Ask for an itemised written quote.
It does not report registry status. We did not check the FMCSA Training Provider Registry for this page. FMCSA does not approve or certify providers; being listed is a minimum requirement, not a quality signal. Look each school up at tpr.fmcsa.dot.gov before paying anything.
The four schools, one by one
Suits you if: you want one-on-one coaching in Round Rock and are confident a set number of driving hours will be enough
Suits you if: you want a public-college course with a fixed, full-time weekday schedule in North Austin
Suits you if: you want testing and endorsements bundled into the price and need a weeknight or weekend start
Suits you if: you want a Round Rock school with Class A and Class B options and will ask for the details in writing
One-on-one training available through Get CDL Texas
The school below is a participating Austin-area CDL school available through Get CDL Texas. Get CDL Texas may be compensated by participating schools, and this may influence which schools are featured. It is highlighted here because it is available through our service — not because it is ranked above the schools in the comparison, and not as an endorsement or a rating. If your request is shared with it, we may earn a referral fee if you enroll. Read our full advertising disclosure.
Suits you if: you want one-on-one, hands-on training with continued training through licensing (school program terms apply)
We do not publish its tuition, schedule, license classes, program length, funding options or location on this page, because we have not independently verified them for publication. If your request is shared with the school, get those details and the program terms in writing before you enroll, and check its FMCSA Training Provider Registry listing yourself.
Carrier-sponsored training — a different pathway, not a cheaper school
Suits you if: upfront cash is the binding constraint and you are open to the route and schedule the work requires
The Criteria That Actually Decide It
Proximity and sticker price are the two things people compare first, and in Austin they are rarely the two that matter most. Work through these instead.
1. Class A or Class B
Every school here trains Class A, which covers combination vehicles and most I-35 freight work. Class B — single vehicles such as dump trucks, buses and straight delivery trucks — is published separately by the two Round Rock schools: Community Truck Driving School at $2,250 and Austin CDL Services at $2,600–$2,800 for 10 hours. See Class A vs Class B if you are still deciding.
2. What the price actually buys
This is the Austin-specific question. Published prices run from $2,250 to $4,950, but they buy very different amounts of training: one-on-one packages of 10 to 14 driving hours, a 180-hour certificate, or 4 weeks at 40 hours a week. FMCSA sets no minimum number of behind-the-wheel hours — you train until the instructor judges you ready — so a lower price for fewer hours is only a bargain if those hours turn out to be enough. Ask every school how many driving hours are included, what an extra hour costs, what a retest costs, and what happens if you are not ready when the included time runs out. Our Austin CDL cost guide works through it line by line.
3. Schedule, honestly assessed
ACC runs a full-time weekday cohort. Changing Lanes publishes weekday, weeknight and weekend starts. Austin CDL Services says it is open six days a week and works around your schedule. Community Truck Driving School does not publish a schedule. A longer calendar is usually the same training spread thinner, and enrolling full-time then dropping out still costs you the tuition — count the earnings you keep, or lose, as part of the comparison.
4. Location and the commute you will actually do
ACC’s Northridge Campus is in North Austin; Changing Lanes is in Pflugerville; both private Round Rock schools are further north along I-35. We did not verify a school in South Austin, Kyle, Buda or San Marcos for this page, so from the south side of the metro the daily drive is part of the cost. Count it before you commit.
5. One-on-one versus shared instruction
Austin CDL Services and the participating school available through Get CDL Texas both describe one-on-one instruction. The difference is what happens at the end: a set package of hours, or training that continues through the licensing process, subject to the school’s program terms. For any school, ask how many students share each truck during behind-the-wheel time.
6. Where you test, and who provides the vehicle
Austin CDL Services supplies the truck for the DPS road test, and Changing Lanes lists third-party testing in its price. Ask every school where the skills test happens, who supplies the vehicle, what a retest costs, and whether any of it is inside the quoted price.
7. Funding eligibility — decided elsewhere, so settle it first
The school does not decide this. WIOA funding runs through your local workforce board — Workforce Solutions Capital Area for Travis County, and Workforce Solutions Rural Capital Area for surrounding counties including Williamson, Hays and Bastrop — and the board decides. The Texas Workforce Commission states that appearing on the statewide eligible provider list “does not guarantee that a Board will refer any student to the program”. Veteran benefits depend on the benefit you hold and whether the exact program is approved. Get approval in writing before you pay a deposit.
8. Placement support versus a guarantee
No school can guarantee employment. ACC describes company representatives visiting students with pre-hire applications; the other named schools do not describe placement support on the pages we read. Ask which employers have hired recent graduates and what the support actually consists of. Completing training makes you eligible to apply — it is not a job offer.
9. What you are signing
Refund policy, retest policy, withdrawal terms, what “continued training” or “extra practice” actually covers, and — for carrier-sponsored training — the driving commitment and what you owe if you leave early. Read our CDL school contract red flags and refund policy guide before signing anything.
Want one-on-one, hands-on training with continued instruction through licensing, subject to school program terms? Tell us your ZIP code, schedule and how you plan to pay.
Compare Austin CDL Options Free →Not sure you’re ready to enroll? Use our free CDL readiness checklist to confirm your DOT physical, permit, schedule, budget and school questions before you commit to an Austin-area program.
Red Flags to Avoid When Choosing an Austin CDL School
These are the warning signs that should make you walk away, or at least ask hard questions before signing anything:
- Not on the FMCSA Training Provider Registry. Training from an unlisted provider does not count toward CDL testing eligibility, so check before you pay a deposit.
- No itemised written quote. Not publishing a price online is normal; refusing to put one in writing when you ask is not. The quote should separate tuition from the DOT physical, the permit, skills testing, the test vehicle, retests and materials.
- Hours you cannot pin down. If a school cannot tell you how much driving time the price includes, and what more costs, you cannot compare it with anyone else.
- Unusual payment demands. Cash-only requests, wire transfers and pressure to pay before you have seen the enrollment agreement are warning signs. A published, documented payment policy is different — it is a term to plan around.
- Guaranteed job placement, or a pass-rate figure with nothing behind it. No school can guarantee employment. Ask for the employers, the period and the denominator behind any placement or pass figure.
- High-pressure enrollment tactics. “This price is only good today” and “seats are nearly gone” are a playbook, not information. A real cohort start date is a fact you can verify.
- Funding promised by the school. No school decides whether you get WIOA funding or VA benefits. A school that says funding is arranged, rather than telling you who decides and how to apply, is over-promising.
Schedules Side by Side
The same schools, set out by format, so you can see what a schedule choice means in practice. Published prices are in the comparison table above.
| Format | Published length or timing | Worth knowing |
|---|---|---|
| Austin CDL Services — Class B package | 10 hrs one-on-one | Open 6 days a week; scheduled around you |
| Austin CDL Services — Class A package | 12 hrs (automatic) or 14 hrs (manual) one-on-one | Retests up to 3 at no extra cost |
| Austin Community College — Class A | 4 weeks, Mon–Thu daytime (page also says 5 weeks) | Full-time weekday cohort |
| Changing Lanes — weekday & weeknight | Starts 1st, 3rd & 5th Monday; 180-hour certificate | Weeknight option for day workers |
| Changing Lanes — weekend | Starts 1st Saturday of each month | The only published weekend start we found |
| Community Truck Driving School | Not published | Ask for the schedule in writing |
| Participating Austin-area school (via Get CDL Texas) | 1:1 training, continued through licensing (program terms apply) | Schedule confirmed with the school after review |
| Carrier-sponsored | Varies by carrier | Upfront cash is the binding constraint |
What an Austin CDL Actually Costs
Every named school here publishes a price. Everything else is either a state fee, which is fixed, or a charge that varies by school and belongs in your written quote.
- Published prices: $2,250 to $4,950 across the four named schools, Class B to Class A, as the comparison table sets out — for very different amounts of training
- Original commercial learner permit: $25, set by Texas DPS and identical wherever you train
- Standard new CDL, ages 18–84, without a hazardous materials endorsement: $97 at Texas DPS. Other transactions are priced separately
- Charges that vary and must be itemised: medical examination, drug screening, skills testing, the test vehicle, extra practice, retests, books and materials
We do not publish an Austin “total out-of-pocket” range, because the only honest total is the price of the program you choose plus the charges that school bills you. Build yours on the Austin cost guide, or compare across the state on the Texas CDL cost page. Current state amounts: DPS fee schedule.
How Soon You Can Realistically Start
ACC runs fixed cohorts; Changing Lanes publishes twice-monthly weekday starts and a monthly weekend start; one-on-one schools generally schedule around you. Confirm the next actual start date with the school rather than working from a general impression. Two fixed requirements set the floor whatever a school tells you:
- Days 1–7: Submit an inquiry, get your DOT physical, apply for your commercial learner permit at Texas DPS, and begin ELDT theory
- Day 14+: The permit must be held 14 days before the skills test — Texas Transportation Code §522.014 puts it as “not before the 15th day after” the permit is issued
- Training: behind-the-wheel training at your school, from a short one-on-one package to a 4-week full-time course
- End of training: CDL skills test at DPS or a third-party test site, then the license is issued
On ACC’s published 4-week schedule, the permit period and the course together come to roughly six weeks from decision to license if nothing goes wrong. A short one-on-one package can be quicker on paper, but no route gets you licensed sooner than the 14-day permit hold. Cohort availability, the DOT physical, permit results and retests all move the date.
Frequently Asked Questions
Two checks do most of the work. First, search the school by name on the FMCSA Training Provider Registry at tpr.fmcsa.dot.gov — your entry-level driver training only counts toward CDL testing if it comes from a listed provider. We did not check registry listings for this page, and listings change, so look each school up yourself before you pay. Second, a private career school in Texas normally holds a Texas Workforce Commission certificate of approval; ask for its school number. A public college answers the legitimacy question but not the fit question.
On published prices, Community Truck Driving School in Round Rock lists the lowest Class B figure at $2,250, and Austin CDL Services lists the lowest Class A figure at $2,900 for a 12-hour one-on-one automatic package. But the lowest sticker price is not always the lowest total cost, because these prices buy very different amounts of training — from a set package of driving hours to a 4-week, 40-hours-a-week course. Ask each school how many driving hours are included and what extra practice and retests cost.
Yes. Austin CDL Services in Round Rock sells one-on-one packages of 10 to 14 hours depending on the license class. Separately, Get CDL Texas works with a participating Austin-area CDL school that offers 1:1, hands-on instruction with continued training through licensing, subject to school program terms. Submit the form on this page to be considered for it.
At least one Austin-area school publishes them: Changing Lanes CDL School in Pflugerville lists a weekend class starting on the 1st Saturday of each month, plus weekday and weeknight classes starting on the 1st, 3rd and 5th Monday. ACC’s published Class A schedule is weekdays. Austin CDL Services says it is open six days a week and works around your schedule; Community Truck Driving School does not publish a schedule. Confirm the next actual start date in writing.
This page will not pick for you, because it depends on four things: which license class you need, how much training you want the price to include, which schedule you can actually keep, and how far you will drive to train. The comparison table sets out each school’s published class, price, hours and schedule, and the criteria section works through the rest.
Possibly, but neither is decided by the school. WIOA funding runs through your local workforce board — Workforce Solutions Capital Area for Travis County and Workforce Solutions Rural Capital Area for the surrounding counties — and the board decides whether you and the exact program qualify. Veteran benefits depend on which benefit you hold and whether the specific program is approved. None of the four schools we compared names the GI Bill or WIOA on the pages we read; ACC states that financial assistance is available. Get approval in writing before you pay a deposit.
It is an agreement with a trucking company rather than a course you buy, and every term varies by carrier: what is covered, whether you are paid during training, where training happens, and what you repay if you leave early. A carrier having an Austin terminal does not mean it trains new students in Austin. Read the agreement you are asked to sign, not the recruiting page.
Every detail for the four named schools was read from that school’s own current page on 18 September 2026: Austin CDL Services (home page), Austin Community College Continuing Education (truck driving page), Changing Lanes CDL School (price list and CDL training pages) and Community Truck Driving School (programs page). We cite them by name rather than linking out. The participating Austin-area school’s training model was confirmed directly with Get CDL Texas; the school is not named on this page. Wage figures from BLS OEWS, May 2025; state fees from the DPS fee schedule; licensing steps from Texas DPS and FMCSA; funding rules from Texas Workforce Commission. Limits: we did not check FMCSA Training Provider Registry listings, have not surveyed every Austin-area provider, have not inspected or audited any school, and publish no ratings or pass rates. Published details change — confirm anything you plan to act on directly with the school. Reviewed September 2026.