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Practice test · Noise

Hearing Conservation Practice Test

Twenty-five questions on the OSHA hearing conservation program, with every answer traced to the paragraph of 29 CFR 1910.95 it comes from — the 85 dBA action level and the 90 dBA permissible exposure limit, what a monitoring program has to capture, the baseline and annual audiogram, what a standard threshold shift is and what has to happen when one appears, how hearing protector attenuation is evaluated, training and records. Construction differences (1926.52 and 1926.101) are tested where they matter. This is a review tool; the annual training your employer owes you under 1910.95(k) is still required.

25 questions about 20 min

Not OSHA-authorized training. SteelToeTools is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or authorized by OSHA or the U.S. Department of Labor. This free educational content does not satisfy any OSHA or other regulatory training requirement, and no card, certificate, or credential is issued. Only OSHA-authorized trainers can deliver OSHA Outreach Training (10-Hour and 30-Hour) and issue DOL cards. Always follow your employer's training program and applicable federal, state, and local requirements.

Frequently asked questions

There is no official OSHA hearing conservation test. OSHA writes the standard and requires your employer to train you annually under 29 CFR 1910.95(k); it does not publish or grade an exam. This free practice test is not affiliated with OSHA or the U.S. Department of Labor, and nothing is issued for taking it.

No. Nothing is issued — no card, no certificate, no credential. Only OSHA-authorized trainers can deliver OSHA Outreach Training and issue DOL cards, and no online quiz replaces the annual training 1910.95(k) requires.

Mostly general industry, because that is where the detailed hearing conservation program lives (1910.95(c) through (o)). Construction is covered by 1926.52 and 1926.101, whose Table D-2 permissible exposures are identical to Table G-16, and 1926.52(d)(1) requires a continuing, effective hearing conservation program when levels exceed the table. Questions that turn on the difference say so in the wording.

OSHA enforces a 90 dBA permissible exposure limit with a 5 dB exchange rate, and an 85 dBA action level for the program. NIOSH recommends 85 dBA with a 3 dB exchange rate, which is more protective but not law. Under federal OSHA, the enforceable answers are the OSHA ones — which is how every question here is scored.

No. A program is judged on what it does: monitoring under (d), audiograms under (g), protector evaluation under (j), training under (k) and records under (m). A quiz checks whether the people running it know the rules, which is a reasonable first step and nothing more.

Sources & references

Content checked against these sources — last reviewed August 28, 2026.

By — Editorial team of SteelToeTools.com (published by LSEA SAS) Updated