When must you turn on your headlights, state by state?
Every state’s answer, and the District of Columbia’s, from its own manual or code: 49 have a rule on this, quoted below with where it is written; 2 say nothing on it.
Manuals fetched between 6 September and 4 October 2026. How the answers are made
| State | The rule | Where it is written | As of |
|---|---|---|---|
| Alabama | Headlights are also required whenever visibility is limited so that you cannot see clearly for at least 500 feet. | Alabama Driver Manual, p.69 | 14 Sep 2026 |
| Alaska | Headlights must be turned on in daytime when fog, rain, snow, smoke, or dust reduces visibility to 1000 feet or less. | Alaska Driver Manual, p.67 | 14 Sep 2026 |
| Arizona | You must use headlights from sunset to sunrise. | Arizona Driver License Manual and Customer Service Guide, p.57 | 14 Sep 2026 |
| Arkansas | Turn on your headlights 30 minutes after sunset and keep them on until 30 minutes before sunrise. | Arkansas Driver License Study Guide, p.51 | 4 Oct 2026 |
| California | If you need your windshield wipers because of fog, rain or snow, you must turn on your low-beam headlights. | California Driver’s Handbook, p.11 | 14 Sep 2026 |
| Colorado | Colorado law requires you to drive with your headlights on from sunset to sunrise, or whenever visibility is less than 1,000 feet. | Colorado Driver Handbook, p.16 | 14 Sep 2026 |
| Connecticut | If you turn on your wipers, turn on your headlights; in Connecticut it is the law. | Connecticut Driver's Manual, p.38 | 14 Sep 2026 |
| Delaware | Delaware law requires your headlights, not parking lights, to be on when driving after sunset or before sunrise. | Delaware Driver Manual, p.62 | 14 Sep 2026 |
| District of Columbia | You must turn on your headlights from one-half hour after sunset until one-half hour before sunrise. | DC Driver Manual, p.73 | 16 Sep 2026 |
| Florida | Florida law says you must use headlights between the hours of sunset and sunrise. | Official Florida Driver License Handbook, p.73 | 14 Sep 2026 |
| Georgia | Georgia requires headlights from one-half hour after sunset to one-half hour before sunrise, any time it is raining, and whenever your view is limited. | Georgia Driver's Manual, p.59 | 18 Sep 2026 |
| Idaho | Turn on your headlights, not just your parking lights, when driving between sunset and sunrise or when visibility falls below 500 feet. | July 2026 Idaho Driver's Handbook, p.109 | 14 Sep 2026 |
| Illinois | A vehicle must have two headlights, which must be on from sunset to sunrise, whenever rain, snow or fog calls for the windshield wipers, and whenever objects 1,000 feet away cannot be seen. | Illinois Rules of the Road 2026, p.92 | 14 Sep 2026 |
| Indiana | Headlights must be on between sunset and sunrise and whenever visibility is less than 500 feet. | Indiana Driver's Manual, p.44 | 14 Sep 2026 |
| Iowa | Iowa law requires both headlights from sunset to sunrise. | Iowa Driver's License Manual, p.49 | 14 Sep 2026 |
| Kansas | Kansas requires a driver to turn on their headlights whenever the wipers are used on the vehicle. | Kansas Driving Handbook, p.67 | 14 Sep 2026 |
| Kentucky | Kentucky headlights must be illuminated from one-half hour after sunset to one-half hour before sunrise. | Kentucky Driver Manual, p.54 | 14 Sep 2026 |
| Louisiana | Louisiana law requires headlights, not just parking lights, to be on between sunset and sunrise. | Class D & E Driver's Guide, p.75 | 14 Sep 2026 |
| Maine | By Maine law, you must turn on your headlights whenever visibility is too dim to see 1,000 feet ahead. | Maine Driver’s License Manual, p.90 | 4 Oct 2026 |
| Maryland | You must turn on your headlights any time there is not enough light to clearly see at least 1,000 feet in front of your vehicle. | Maryland Driver's Manual, p.27 | 6 Sep 2026 |
| Massachusetts | You must use headlights and taillights from one-half hour after sunset until one-half hour before sunrise. | Massachusetts Driver's Manual, p.45 | 14 Sep 2026 |
| Michigan | Headlights must be turned on from one half-hour after sunset until one half-hour before sunrise, and at other times when visibility is reduced. | What Every Driver Must Know, p.64 | 14 Sep 2026 |
| Minnesota | Turn your headlights on at sunset and keep them on until sunrise. | Minnesota Driver’s Manual, p.23 | 14 Sep 2026 |
| Mississippi | You should use your lights between sunset and sunrise, and any time you cannot see clearly 500 feet ahead. | Mississippi Driver's License Manual, p.63 | 4 Oct 2026 |
| Missouri | Turn your headlights on from half an hour after sunset until half an hour before sunrise. | Missouri Driver Guide, p.62 | 14 Sep 2026 |
| Montana | Turn on your headlights when it begins to get dark, at dusk or on overcast days; turning them on a little early helps other drivers see you. | Montana Driver Manual, p.56 | 14 Sep 2026 |
| Nebraska | Headlights must be used from sunset to sunrise. | Nebraska Driver’s Manual, p.61 | 14 Sep 2026 |
| Nevada | Headlights are required from a half hour after sunset until a half hour before sunrise. | Nevada Driver Handbook, p.56 | 14 Sep 2026 |
| New Hampshire | New Hampshire law requires every motor vehicle driven from 1/2 hour after sunset to 1/2 hour before sunrise to display at least 2 lighted lamps on the front. | New Hampshire Driver's Manual, p.15 | 14 Sep 2026 |
| New Jersey | Headlights must be used between one-half hour after sunset and one-half hour before sunrise. | New Jersey Driver Manual, p.83 | 14 Sep 2026 |
| New Mexico | Turn on your headlights when it begins to get dark; even turning them on a little early helps other drivers see you. | New Mexico Driver Manual, p.18 | 4 Oct 2026 |
| New York | The law requires a driver to use their headlights from one-half hour after the sun sets to one-half hour before the sun rises, when visibility is less than 1,000 feet, and when they use their windshield wipers to clear rain, snow or sleet. | New York State Driver's Manual, p.63 | 14 Sep 2026 |
| North Carolina | The law requires headlights from sunset to sunrise and whenever visibility is 400 feet or less. | North Carolina Driver Handbook, p.71 | 14 Sep 2026 |
| North Dakota | In North Dakota, use your headlights from sunset to sunrise, and at any other time necessary for safe driving. | North Dakota Noncommercial Driver License Manual, p.24 | 14 Sep 2026 |
| Ohio | Headlights must be on between sunset and sunrise, in rain, snow or fog whatever the hour, whenever objects cannot be clearly seen one thousand feet ahead, and any time the wipers are running for precipitation. | Digest of Ohio Motor Vehicle Laws, p.35 | 14 Sep 2026 |
| Oklahoma | In Oklahoma, use your headlights beginning 30 minutes after sunset and until 30 minutes before sunrise. | Oklahoma Driver Manual, p.59 | 14 Sep 2026 |
| Oregon | Headlights must be turned on from sunset to sunrise, and also at any time conditions make it difficult to see people or vehicles 1,000 feet ahead. | 2026-2027 Oregon Driver Manual, p.76 | 14 Sep 2026 |
| Pennsylvania | State law requires headlights between sunset and sunrise, in rain, snow, sleet, hail, fog, smoke or smog, when you cannot see people or vehicles 1,000 feet ahead, in work zones, and any time your wipers are in continuous or intermittent use because of the weather. | PA Driver's Manual, p.40 | 6 Sep 2026 |
| Rhode Island | Headlights must be on any time you cannot see 500 feet ahead of you. | Rhode Island Driver’s Manual, p.52 | 14 Sep 2026 |
| South Carolina | Turn on your headlights when it begins to get dark or when driving away from a rising or setting sun. | South Carolina Driver's Manual, p.101 | 14 Sep 2026 |
| Tennessee | Your headlights must be on from 30 minutes after sunset until 30 minutes before sunrise. | Tennessee Comprehensive Driver License Manual, p.45 | 14 Sep 2026 |
| Texas | A driver must use headlights beginning 30 minutes after sunset and ending 30 minutes before sunrise. | Texas Driver Handbook, p.47 | 14 Sep 2026 |
| Utah | Headlights and taillights must be illuminated from sunset to sunrise, or when people and vehicles are not clearly visible at 1,000 feet ahead. | Utah Driver Handbook 2026-2027, p.60 | 14 Sep 2026 |
| Vermont | The law requires headlights to be turned on from a half hour after sunset to a half hour before sunrise. | 2025 Vermont Driver's Manual, p.49 | 14 Sep 2026 |
| Virginia | You must use headlights from sunset to sunrise. | Virginia Driver's Manual, p.23 | 6 Sep 2026 |
| Washington | Washington law requires headlights from a half hour after sunset to a half hour before sunrise. | Washington State Driver Guide, p.49 | 14 Sep 2026 |
| West Virginia | Turn on your headlights from sunset to sunrise, in fog, smoke or rain, and at any other time when people and vehicles cannot be seen clearly at 500 feet. | West Virginia Driver's Licensing Handbook, p.51 | 6 Sep 2026 |
| Wisconsin | Low beams must be used from a half hour past sunset to a half hour before sunrise. | Wisconsin Motorists' Handbook, p.21 | 14 Sep 2026 |
| Wyoming | In Wyoming, headlights must be used from one-half hour after sunset until one-half hour before sunrise. | Wyoming Rules of the Road Driver License Manual, p.77 | 14 Sep 2026 |
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