Colorado Motorcycle Safety Course
Verified against Motorcycle Operator Safety Training Program ·
Compiled and verified against primary state DMV/DPS/BMV sources by GetMotorcycleLicense Research Team — cite-or-deny, with no invented figures. How we source & verify →
Whether Colorado mandates a motorcycle safety course by age is not published by the state's own program. This page covers who runs the course, what it costs, how long it takes, and exactly which tests completing it can waive.
Colorado's motorcycle safety course requirements — including completion waiving the state skills test — are verified against Motorcycle Operator Safety Training Program (see Ride Safe Colorado — Motorcycle Safety Training Courses), current as of 2026-07-28.
Colorado Motorcycle Safety Course at a Glance
| Program | Motorcycle Operator Safety Training Program |
|---|---|
| Who runs it | Colorado State Patrol, Department of Public Safety, which certifies and licenses independent training vendors statewide |
| Delivery model | State-approved sponsorsThe state licenses sponsors, who set their own tuition; the rider picks among them at market price. |
| Typical cost | — |
| Course length | 15 hours |
| Mandatory under age | — |
| Waives the riding skills test | Yes |
| Waives the knowledge test | No |
The Beginners Course pairs an e-course component with formal classroom activities and 10 hours of riding instruction over two days; motorcycles and helmets are provided. Vendors also run a one-day Intermediate Course for riders with prior experience or a permit, using their own motorcycle, and a two-day Three Wheel Course of five classroom hours and 10 riding hours for a three-wheel-only endorsement.
MOST courses are taught by more than a dozen independently owned and operated training vendors across the state, each certified and licensed by the Colorado State Patrol under Code of Colorado Regulations 8 CCR 1507-56; course tuition is set by the vendor and is not published centrally by the state. Passing both a written and an on-cycle evaluation earns a MOST completion card, which a rider takes to a driver licence office to add the endorsement with no further DMV testing. Colorado law (§ 43-5-504, C.R.S.) bars the state from reimbursing a vendor's motorcycles, helmets, textbooks or other capital costs, so the vendor, not the state, sets what the rider pays.
What Colorado’s course covers
Colorado teaches the MOST Beginners Course, developed by Colorado State Patrol, Motorcycle Operator Safety Training Program. Full detail here.
How Colorado differs: The Beginners Course pairs an e-course component with formal classroom activities and 10 hours of riding instruction over two days; motorcycles and helmets are provided. Vendors also run a one-day Intermediate Course for riders with prior experience or a permit, using their own motorcycle, and a two-day Three Wheel Course of five classroom hours and 10 riding hours for a three-wheel-only endorsement.
Once you complete the course, see license requirements in Colorado.
Source Notes
Where a source is stale, conflicting, or required a judgment call, we document it here rather than presenting a single confident-sounding number. See our methodology for how these calls are made.
- Endorsement rules, permits, tests and fees come from the Colorado Department of Revenue, Division of Motor Vehicles. Training facts come from the Motorcycle Operator Safety Training program, run by the Colorado State Patrol, and its public site, Ride Safe Colorado. Helmet rules come from the Colorado Revised Statutes.
- A change already enacted by the Colorado legislature (HB 24-1021) will require every applicant under 21 to complete an approved motorcycle safety course before a motorcycle instruction permit is issued, but only for applications submitted on or after 1 January 2027. Everything on this page reflects the law as it stands before that date.
- Motorcycle Operator Safety Training courses are taught by independently owned vendors across the state, each certified by the Colorado State Patrol. Course tuition is set by the individual vendor and is not published by the state.
means no primary source publishes that figure — left blank on purpose rather than estimated or copied from an unverified aggregator.
Sources
- Ride Safe Colorado — Motorcycle Safety Training Courses
- Ride Safe Colorado — home
- Colorado Secretary of State, Code of Colorado Regulations 8 CCR 1507-56 (Motorcycle Operator Safety Training Program), effective 30 December 2022
- Colorado Revised Statutes Title 43 (§§ 43-5-501 to 43-5-504, Motorcycle Operator Safety Training program and fund)
Data last verified: 2026-07-28 (verified by: agent) | Source: Ride Safe Colorado — Motorcycle Safety Training Courses