Nevada’s legal alcohol limit for driving is 0.08% blood alcohol concentration (BAC) for adult drivers 21 and older, 0.04% for anyone operating a commercial vehicle, and 0.02% for drivers under 21. Those thresholds come from NRS 484C.110, and hitting any of them is enough for a DUI charge on its own, no matter how sober you feel or look to the officer.
How the Three BAC Limits Break Down
The 0.08% standard covers most drivers on Nevada roads. In rough terms it lines up with two to four drinks in an hour, though weight, food, and metabolism move that number around enough that counting drinks is a poor way to guess where you are.
Commercial drivers are held to half that. Anyone driving under a commercial driver’s license faces a 0.04% limit, and a conviction at that level brings CDL disqualification for at least one year on a first violation and a lifetime disqualification on a second.
Drivers under 21 face a near-zero-tolerance 0.02%. The margin exists to account for mouthwash, medication, or trace amounts rather than actual drinking. One beer will usually push an underage driver past it.
All three limits apply to both blood and breath measurements taken during a stop or at a testing facility.
The 0.18% Aggravated Threshold
Nevada draws a second line at 0.18% BAC. A driver at or above that level faces every penalty attached to a standard DUI plus a mandatory treatment program for alcohol or substance use disorders, ordered by the court under NRS 484C.360. A judge cannot waive it. Expect a harder line on sentencing generally at that level, even on a first offense.
What “Illegal Per Se” Means for You
Nevada is an “illegal per se” state. The chemical test result alone establishes the offense. Prosecutors do not have to show you were swerving, slurring, or failing a field sobriety test. If your BAC hits the statutory number, you are legally intoxicated in the eyes of the court.
That framework cuts both ways. A driver who handles alcohol well and walks a straight line is just as guilty as one who cannot stand up. The number on the test is what the case turns on.
First-Offense DUI Penalties
A first DUI within a seven-year window is a misdemeanor, but the statutory consequences under NRS 484C.400 go well beyond a fine:
- Jail time of 2 days to 6 months, or equivalent residential confinement, or 48 to 96 hours of community service in the alternative.
- Fines between $400 and $1,000, plus a $35 civil penalty payable to the DMV.
- An approved educational course on alcohol or substance use disorders, to be completed within a set timeframe. If you miss the deadline, the court notifies the DMV.
- Mandatory substance use treatment if your BAC was 0.18% or higher.
Those are the statutory floors and ceilings. Where a judge lands inside them depends on your BAC, the circumstances of the stop, and whether anyone was hurt. License revocation runs on a separate track through the DMV and follows its own timeline regardless of what happens in criminal court.
Repeat Offenses and the Seven-Year Window
Nevada counts DUI history on a rolling seven years. A second offense inside that window brings steeper jail time and fines than the first. A third offense inside the same window escalates the charge from a misdemeanor to a Category B felony, which opens up state prison rather than county jail.
A DUI that causes death or substantial bodily harm can also be charged as a felony regardless of your prior record. If you already have a DUI on your record, do not assume a second one plays out like the first.
Implied Consent and Refusing a Test
By driving on any Nevada road, you have already agreed to chemical testing. NRS 484C.150 treats every driver on a public highway or premises open to the public as having consented to a preliminary breath test when an officer has reasonable grounds to suspect impairment.
If an arrest follows, an evidentiary test under NRS 484C.160 comes next, usually breath or blood, and urine when drugs are suspected. Refusing the preliminary breath test carries no separate criminal penalty, but the officer can still arrest you on other grounds and move to the evidentiary stage. At that point the statute authorizes reasonable force to obtain a blood sample. Refusal does not make the test disappear; it changes how the sample is collected.
The arrest also triggers the DMV’s administrative process. That side of the case can revoke your license before your court date arrives, and getting driving privileges back typically requires filing proof of high-risk insurance (an SR-22) and paying reinstatement fees.
Drugs Are Covered Too
The same statute sets per se limits for controlled substances. For marijuana, the thresholds are 2 nanograms per milliliter of delta-9-THC or 5 nanograms per milliliter of marijuana metabolites in the blood. Metabolites can linger for days or weeks in regular users, and Nevada measures what is in your blood at the time of the test, not whether you are actively impaired. Similar per se limits apply to amphetamines, cocaine, and other controlled drugs, whether or not the substance is legal to possess in the state.