Carlow results: 42.1% (2,452)
Test centre in County Carlow, with every figure from the CSO tables the Road Safety Authority publishes.- 2,452car tests
- 56 of 57car rank
- 10weeks to invite (August 2026)
How Carlow compares
Carlow passed 42.1% of 2,452 car tests (1,033 passes) over September 2025 to August 2026, 10.3 points below the national 52.4%. Of the 57 centres that delivered 500 or more car tests, Carlow ranks the joint lowest, level with Waterford. Above Carlow: Finglas (2.9 higher) and Mulhuddart (3.8 higher). Carlow's 2,452 car tests: 19th quietest of 57. Carlow's closest in size: Tuam with 127 more tests, 20.0 higher; Kilkenny (Govt Buildings) with 279 more tests, 8.0 higher; Roscommon with 129 fewer tests, 13.9 higher and Dungarvan with 222 fewer tests, 12.3 higher.
Carlow across all categories: 42.1% of 2,452 tests (54.8% nationally), all of them car tests. Carlow took 44.6% of the 5,502 car tests at 2 County Carlow centres. Carlow's 42.1%, county 45.5%: 3.4 points below.
Car driving test pass rate at Carlow, month by month
Carlow's best month: 56.0% of 167 tests, August 2026. Worst: 23.1% of 188, November 2025, a 32.9 point gap. Carlow's quietest month: 86 tests, December 2025; busiest: 282, October 2025. Carlow, first 6 months: 36.6% of 1,268; last 6: 48.1% of 1,184, so Carlow improved 11.5 points. Latest at Carlow, August 2026: 56.0% of 167. A year earlier: 41.7% of 128, so Carlow is 14.3 points up.
Show the monthly figures
| Month | Car tests | Pass rate |
|---|---|---|
| September 2024 | 153 | 52.6% |
| October 2024 | 131 | 56.9% |
| November 2024 | 321 | 49.5% |
| December 2024 | 95 | 42.1% |
| January 2025 | 157 | 37.5% |
| February 2025 | 204 | 36.3% |
| March 2025 | 249 | 44.1% |
| April 2025 | 162 | 37.9% |
| May 2025 | 213 | 36.5% |
| June 2025 | 246 | 38.7% |
| July 2025 | 342 | 41.9% |
| August 2025 | 128 | 41.7% |
| September 2025 | 226 | 37.9% |
| October 2025 | 282 | 31.7% |
| November 2025 | 188 | 23.1% |
| December 2025 | 86 | 29.2% |
| January 2026 | 234 | 46.9% |
| February 2026 | 252 | 43.9% |
| March 2026 | 205 | 39.8% |
| April 2026 | 151 | 48.2% |
| May 2026 | 181 | 46.1% |
| June 2026 | 212 | 42.4% |
| July 2026 | 268 | 55.3% |
| August 2026 | 167 | 56.0% |
Carlow pass rates by year
Carlow, September 2024 to August 2025: 42.8% of 2,401 car tests. Since then Carlow slipped 0.7 points on 2,452 car tests against 2,401, up 51 (2.1%). Carlow went from 5th lowest of 57 to the lowest of 57. Of 55 centres ranked in both periods, Carlow's 0.7 point fall ranks 15th largest. Carlow added 51 car tests, the 49th largest of 49 increases. Carlow lost 1.2 points on County Carlow, which went from 45.0% to 45.5%.
Carlow by calendar year: 54.3% of 2,345 car tests in 2024, 36.9% of 2,483 in 2025, down 17.4 points (national up 2.8). Best full year: 54.3% in 2024; worst: 36.9% in 2025; busiest: 2,483 car tests in 2025. Carlow's car no shows: 91 in 2024, 94 in 2025; not conducted: 160, then 201. Carlow, 2026 to date: 47.3% of 1,670 in 8 months, 5.0 points under national at Carlow.
| Year | All tests | Pass rate, all tests | Car tests here | Car pass rate here | Car no shows | Car tests not conducted | Car pass rate nationally |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 (6 months) | 1,139 | 56.3% | 1,072 | 56.1% | 9 | 93 | 53.3% |
| 2022 (0 months) | n/a | not published | n/a | not published | n/a | n/a | 50.2% |
| 2023 (1 months) | 5 | 50.0% | 5 | 50.0% | 0 | 1 | 50.6% |
| 2024 | 2,345 | 54.3% | 2,345 | 54.3% | 91 | 160 | 49.0% |
| 2025 | 2,486 | 37.0% | 2,483 | 36.9% | 94 | 201 | 51.8% |
| 2026 (8 months) | 1,670 | 47.3% | 1,670 | 47.3% | 74 | 180 | 52.3% |
Carlow by licence category
Carlow tested cars only over September 2025 to August 2026; no other licence category had a test at Carlow.
| Category | Tests | Pass rate here | Nationally |
|---|---|---|---|
| Category B (Car or light van) | 2,452 | 42.1% | 52.4% |
Carlow waiting times and capacity
Carlow's estimated time to a test invitation at the end of August 2026, against 11.6 weeks nationally: 10 weeks at Carlow. Longer waits than Carlow: 31 centres. Shorter than Carlow: 9, of 57 others with a published wait. Every County Carlow centre with a published wait, Carlow included, showed 10 weeks. Driver testers assigned to Carlow in July 2026: 2. In August 2026, 98.2% of the 170 test slots at Carlow were filled, against 98.3% across all centres. Carlow's 170 test slots: 13th fewest of 59 centres.
- 10 weeksEstimated wait for a test invitation, August 2026
- 2Driver testers assigned
- 170Test slots in the latest month
- 98.2%Slots used
Carlow: no shows and tests not conducted
Carlow counted 2,799 car tests: 2,452 delivered, 109 no shows and 238 not conducted or abandoned. Carlow's shares of those 2,799: 3.9% no shows and 8.5% not conducted at Carlow. Of 57 centres, Carlow's 3.9% no show share ranks 5th highest. Neither count moves Carlow's 42.1% pass rate: 1,033 passes over 2,452 tests delivered. Nationally the two shares were 3.1% and 7.4%.
2,452 car tests is enough for the car figure to be stable from month to month, but it still reflects who sat the test here, how much they had practised and the local roads, not only how strict a tester is.
How to read a centre's figures beside the national picture, and what the test checks, is in the driving test pass rates guide.
Source: Road Safety Authority, published by the Central Statistics Office, PxStat ROA30, CC BY 4.0, checked on 2026-09-16.Carlow and County Carlow
Carlow trails Carlow Talbot Hotel by 6.1 points (3,050 tests at 48.2%); Carlow has the same wait as Carlow Talbot Hotel. No other County Carlow centre beat Carlow on both rate and wait.