Yes — for most speeding tickets in California, you can go to traffic school, and doing so keeps the conviction off the driving record your insurance company sees. The rules are set in Rule 4.104 of the California Rules of Court, and they come with a few hard limits: your ticket has to be an infraction, you can’t have been clocked more than 25 mph over the limit, and you can’t have used traffic school for another violation in the past 18 months.1Judicial Branch of California. Rule 4.104 Procedures and Eligibility Criteria for Attending Traffic Violator School
Who Qualifies
You need a valid driver’s license and a speeding ticket charged as an infraction. Almost all speeding tickets are infractions, so most drivers clear that bar without thinking about it.
Four situations will knock you out:
- Your alleged speed was more than 25 mph over the posted limit.
- You attended traffic school for another violation within the last 18 months. That window runs from one violation date to the next, not from the date you finished the course.
- Your ticket is charged as a misdemeanor rather than an infraction.
- You have an unresolved failure-to-appear on the same case. The clerk can’t grant traffic school until that’s cleared and any fine is paid.
All four exclusions come straight from Rule 4.104.1Judicial Branch of California. Rule 4.104 Procedures and Eligibility Criteria for Attending Traffic Violator School
Commercial driver’s license holders are a special case covered further down.
What It Costs
Going to traffic school means paying three separate things: the full bail on the ticket, a court administrative fee, and the tuition for the course itself.
The bail is set statewide. Under the 2026 Uniform Bail and Penalty Schedules, a speeding ticket costs:
- $234 for 1 to 15 mph over the limit
- $363 for 16 to 25 mph over
- $486 for 26 or more mph over
- $896 for over 100 mph
The base fines are small — $35, $70, $100, and $200 — but state and county penalties push the totals up to the numbers above.2Judicial Branch of California. 2026 Uniform Bail and Penalty Schedules
On top of the bail, the court charges a non-refundable administrative fee for processing the traffic school request. The amount varies by county. Los Angeles Superior Court, for instance, charges $64.3Los Angeles Superior Court. Traffic School – How Do I Request Traffic School? Your courtesy notice from the court will list the exact fee for your case.
Then there’s the course itself. You pick a traffic violator school from the list the DMV publishes, which includes both online and classroom providers.4California State Department of Motor Vehicles. Traffic School List Online courses typically run $20 to $50; in-person classes can cost a bit more. The course is eight hours.
A ticket for 20 mph over the limit works out to roughly $430 to $490 all in. That’s often less than the insurance increase you’d face from a point on your record, which can follow you through three to five years of renewals.
How to Request It
After the ticket, the court mails you a courtesy notice with your total bail, your response deadline, and whether you’re eligible for traffic school. Read it carefully — it’s the roadmap for everything that follows.
Requesting traffic school is not fighting the ticket. You are pleading guilty or no contest and asking the court to let you keep the point off your record in exchange for completing the course. Most courts let you submit the request online, by mail, by phone, or at the clerk’s window.5Judicial Branch of California. Traffic School You pay the full bail and the administrative fee when you submit.
Once the court approves you, pick a DMV-licensed school, sign up, and finish the full eight hours before the completion deadline the court assigns. That deadline is court-specific, so check it against the paperwork you received.
If you’d rather contest the ticket than accept a guilty plea, that’s a separate path — a trial, in person or by written declaration — and you give up the traffic school option when you go that way.6Judicial Branch of California. Trial by Written Declaration
What Completion Does for You
When you finish, the school reports your completion electronically to both the court and the DMV. Follow up with the court anyway to confirm it was received and processed. Clerical delays happen, and a missing completion record can turn into a point on your record or a failure-to-comply notice.
Once processed, the conviction becomes confidential on your DMV record under Vehicle Code 1808.7. Confidential means the conviction doesn’t appear on the driving record insurance companies pull, so your premiums shouldn’t rise because of this ticket.7California Legislative Information. California Vehicle Code 1808-7 The record still exists inside the DMV; it’s just hidden from outside parties.
The point also stays off. A standard speeding infraction otherwise adds one point to your record; speeding over 100 mph adds two.8California Legislative Information. California Vehicle Code 12810 If you already have points, keeping this one off can be the difference between keeping and losing your license.
If You Miss the Deadline
This is where drivers get burned. If you pay for traffic school but don’t finish the course by the court’s deadline, the court treats the case as an ordinary conviction. The point lands on your DMV record, your insurance company can see it, and you’ve already paid the bail and administrative fee with nothing to show. Some courts tack on a failure-to-comply notice as well.
Courts can sometimes grant an extension if you ask before the deadline, so call the clerk if you’re falling behind. Once the deadline passes and the conviction is reported, reversing it is much harder.
If You Hold a Commercial Driver’s License
Traffic school works differently for CDL holders, and the usual benefit largely disappears. You may still be allowed to take the course, but under Vehicle Code 1808.10, convictions for holders of a Class A, Class B, or commercial Class C license don’t get the confidential record treatment. The conviction stays visible whether or not you complete the school.9California Legislative Information. California Vehicle Code 1808-10
Federal rules add more. Under 49 CFR 383.31, any CDL holder convicted of a traffic violation in any vehicle must notify their employer in writing within 30 days, including the license number, date and location of the conviction, the offense, and whether a commercial vehicle was involved.10eCFR. 49 CFR Part 383 Subpart C – Notification Requirements and Employer Responsibilities
And federal law treats speeding 15 mph or more over the limit as a serious traffic violation. A second within three years disqualifies the CDL for 60 days; a third within three years, 120 days. These apply whether you were driving a commercial vehicle or your personal car.11eCFR. 49 CFR 383.51 – Disqualification of Drivers If you drive for a living, a speeding ticket needs more attention than traffic school alone can give it.