Department of Motor Vehicles

‼‼Best DMV in town! I know most of the wonderful human beings here that help us all journey through this rite of passage!!! Alysia is awesome! remember they are coping, managing, dealing with disgruntled and challenging cases and issues all day long!!! They need a loving break !!! You! BRING YOUR INFORMATION IN! Have everything ready to go!!! Only bring checks and cash!!! Best place in town to go!!! Be respectful and kind! Give great feedback ! Be kind… Bring fun things to do or make an appointment on the red carpet and breeze through Heavenly and then take a victory stroll down ocean !!! Love these people!!! Prepare and prevent rather than repair and repent !!! Be humble and have humility… You will enjoy this experience … Anything other than that…⁉PS… It is all about your attitude of gratitude … The way you relate to this DMV will determine your experience!!! Please prepare to connect and understand that these dynamics are very complicated …

The office is clean and looks to be organized
But I strongly recommend you not to take your behind the wheel test in this place!!! I have been there yesterday, and examiner literally failed me. She was also extremely mean, especially after seeing my international DL. My test only lasted for 5 min, and she didn’t want to go further with me (I didn’t keep the lane when I was turning). I asked her to give me another chance, since im working and it’s hard for me to find time for this test. She was really picking on me and said I didn’t look over the shoulder when I turned– which is TOTALLY NOT TRUE! Eventually she added– don’t worry, I also failed it a couple of times. You can do it again
Very bad impression. You don’t treat people like that.
Very disappointed, will retake my test somewhere else

I had a great experience at DMV. Good service and knowledge staff. All the employees were friendly. I forgot the name of the worker there, he was really nice. Thank you

Very organized inside. As for the people who conduct the driving test, a mess !!! What on earth are these people looking for to get this damn california licence ?? Im a pilot who has also been driving all over the world safely for almost 17 years and they fail me twice? Bullshit. I definitely drive better than these guys for sure. I took my time to do all they condemned me for and mr fred flinstone still had the world to complain about. Lets see what they have to say the third time. They cant be wasting my time and money like this. Smh

I didn’t make an appointment and stood 30 minutes vs. 5 minutes in line to get a number. I sat for about 25 minutes when someone offered me their number since they had to leave. I believe they saved me an hour of waiting so my trip to this dmv was lucky! The lady who helped me was pleasant and the photographer who took my picture was nice enough. Overall, a good trip.

I am glad I made an appointment because when I got to the DMV around 11 am, the line was out the door. I had to get a vehicle inspection which took about 15 – 20 minutes and when I got back, the main line was shortened by half. There was only one person there for that line, don’t know how that happened — very fast. The lady on the appt line knows her stuff and was very fast, too. She asked for all the documents I would need, gave me the forms and what to do.
Big plus, they lend you a driver to change plates.

Everything was going great. Everything was organized up until I actually went to the window to get helped.
I experienced a very apathetic and slightly rude worker. It was not until later I realized that he had misspelled my middle name. When I came back into the office and waited near his window, he looked at me with that type of look of annoyance like «what do you want.» Then, he asked me what was the matter and I pointed out the misspelling on my name. I had came in for a replacement for a lost license, and you should not have to take a new photo for this. However, since he made this mistake, I had to then go take a new photo. I know it seems kind of absurd to be upset over this, I just frustrated over the whole ordeal and the amount of attitude this person had.

Organised, clean, doesn’t get too busy and staff are polite and friendly!
Very pleased with my experience :)

I was in and out of this DMV in only 4 minutes. This must be a world record!!!
Extremely nice people.

I had been dragging my feet on swapping out my NY license for a CA one. My husband and I were both anxious about having to take the written exam. I think it’s completely unnecessary that this state makes you take a written exam even when you have had your license in another states for a decade plus. Most other states simply change the license for a fee.
I decided I would suck it up and go take the test so I was «legal» on the roads. I set up my appointment for early in the day on ¹¹⁄₂₄. I was able to get an appointment fairly quickly (one week out), but I suspect it was due to the holiday week and many people leaving LA for Thanksgiving.
My husband accompanied me for moral support. We arrived at about 8:10 for my 8:30 appointment. First of all, they won’t check you in until 8:15, just FYI.
I filled out the form for the new license and waited for my number to be called.
I gave my application to the clerk, paid my fee and showed my passport. I was then sent for my photo and took the written exam. FYI, the written exam allows you to skip up to 3 questions, so if you see anything you really don’t know I recommend skipping it.
Luckily, I passed my test and was out of the DMV fairly quickly. I would say I was there a total of 50 minutes.
The staff was ok at this location.
FYI, bring your passport or birth certificate with you.

Came in with no appointment. Waited about 5 minutes in line. Got my number. Estimate was a 2 hour wait. I left to go run a few errands came an hour later and was the next number to be called. Spent about 15 minutes max at the DMV. Surprisingly a good DMV experience.

Nadia was very nice and polite! The office was organized and clean. I went up to the appointments line the gentleman was nice and friendly also .
My appointment was at 9:45, I was out if there by 10:00a.m.
They do a great job to get out fast!
Thank you D.M.V. of Santa Monica!
Keep up the good work

Went to the DMV this morning to renew my DL bc I never got a letter in the mail so I couldn’t renew by mail or online and I had a change of address a few months ago.
Wednesday’s they open at 9am not sure why. I was in line for about an hour. A lady a me out with a cart holding paperwork and pens. Asking what we are here for so depending what you are at the DMV for she will either send you home or hand you the paperwork you need.
Once they open I received my non appointment number and waiting for about 10 mins for my number.
Had to take a picture so I was glad I had a nice outfit… Quick bathroom visit to fix my curly hair n then had my picture taken.

Very well managed DMV. By making an appointment in advance, my waiting time was about 5 minutes. Through out the process of getting a new driver’s license with an out-​of-​state license, I interacted with 5 staffs, each one of them was friendly and knowledgeable. The entire process (paper work, headshot, written test) took no more than an hour. As with most DMVs, this place is under-​funded, hence under-​staffed (staff to client ratio was 1:5+ at the time of visit), so make sure to make an appointment to save you some time.
Kudos especially to the staffs working the ‘photo/​testing’ section. The staffs at the time of visit were each taking care of 2 customers at a time to compensate for the likely slowness of their software systems.

Best DMV office I’ve been to.
Workers are very nice to me… Been going here for over 3 years so I have a good relationship with some of them.
Never have to wait in line…
Only thing is SOMETIMES parking can be a hassle

No one really likes going to the DMV, but this location is actually as good as it gets, REALLY.
I came in on a Thursday morning at 7:50, without an appointment and was out by 8:40. Honestly, it probably would have gone way faster if I had not made personal conversation with the employees, but how could you not?! The employees here are great, bright and peppy. You can tell the employees actually GET ALONG.
I was helped by the lovely and bright, Janiqua, or as her co-​workers call her «Crazy» at window 18.
Hope you get her!!!
Ps: the girls at the entry desk are also very nice!

I like this DMV. I know I sound crazy. Who likes going to the DMV. I like it because I’m so use to getting horrible service and this one wasn’t too bad.
I walked in and there was no line! Yes, you read it right. NO LINE whatsoever. Both the appointment and non-​appointment line were empty when I came in.
The lady at the front was nice in a different way. She asked me what I needed to do. I had to do like 3 things. She smiled but sort of in a sarcastic way and told me I had a lot going on. She told me to slow down and just repeat it back slowly.
This is why I was confused. I think she was a little mean, but maybe I WAS talking too fast. She did smile and that’s something you hardly see at a DMV.
Anyways, the wait wasn’t too bad either. It was about 30 minutes and at my nearest DMV it is about an hour or more.
When my number was called and I got to the DMV the lady was nice. I handed her my paperwork. She asked if that was all I needed. I said yes and it took about 5 minutes.
I reviewed my documents and I was out in no time. I was pretty impressed in how fast I was out of there.

So Easy! Made an appointment online. When I got there the line was insane if you didn’t have an appointment. Who are these people who can spend all day at the DMV… seriously? Checked in, took care of what I needed and was in and out in less than 30 minutes, pictures and all. Super nice people do.
0217 2015

This DMV location is my favorite branch.
This location is kind of hidden in the sense that it is away from major streets.
It is also conveniently located across the street from a Starbucks which is perfect if you’re waiting to be called and you know it’s going to be a while.
This location has a big parking lot as well. Additionally the staff here are very friendly and polite when it comes to being attentive and understanding to your needs.
Example: My permit is set to expire may 15, 2015 and I was feeling really bummed out because I would have had to take the permit test again because I couldn’t find any sooner appointments to take my drivers test. The wonderful teller here found me an appointment the following week. He saved me time, money, and having to take the written test over again as well as scheduling another drivers test!
Come to this location! It was also open today which is Saturday! Unheard of.
The workers are friendly and the people who come here are also well mannered and polite too!
Probably the best DMV in Los Angeles as far as quality goes :)

Parking here is not bad, and it usually is in Torrance. I walked in through the door and into the appointment line. I was checked in quickly and given a number. My number was called literally within a minute of sitting down.
The worker helping me did not know how to process my order for the vanity plates, but her supervisor helped her out. That took about 20 minutes, but I give her the benefit of the doubt because not that many DMV workers deal with veteran plates often enough to process them.
The license renewal took about 10 minutes.
Overall, it took 40 minutes to process everything, which is great considering the wait times in other locations.