Is this your first DUI charge? Learn whether jail is on the table and what the law sets.
First-Offense DUI Penalties by State: What the Statutes Set
Learn the jail, fine, suspension and interlock ranges each statute writes for a first offense: 33 states publish a jail range and 6 of them set no mandatory minimum. Then choose your state in the free tool below to see its rules and your license hearing window, which runs on its own deadline.
Quick answer
For a first DUI, the statutes in this dataset set fines that can run from a $100 minimum (Michigan, Rhode Island and West Virginia) to a $5,000 maximum (Massachusetts and Washington), and 33 states publish a jail range, from no mandatory minimum in 6 states to 10 days in Arizona, Louisiana and Oklahoma; Arizona's judge may suspend all but 1 of those days once a court-ordered screening, education or treatment program is completed (A.R.S. 28-1381(J)). 26 jurisdictions require an ignition interlock for every offender, first offense included (17 of them on NCSL's 2024 table and GHSA's 2025 state pages agreeing rather than statute text). Where a lookback is published (25 states), a first DUI can count as a prior for 5 to 20 years, and Colorado and Kansas count older priors for some purposes. These are the statutes' ranges as checked on October 14, 2026, not a forecast of any sentence.
Free tool
Choose your state to learn the statute's jail, fine, suspension and interlock ranges for a first offense, and your hearing window, each with its source.
Each statute writes the sentence in pieces; the examples are from the statutes themselves.
Jail
Alaska sets at least 72 consecutive hours (AS 28.35.030), Arizona 10 consecutive days, all but 1 of which the judge may suspend once a court-ordered screening, education or treatment program is completed (A.R.S. 28-1381(I)(1), (J)), Kansas 48 consecutive hours to 6 months (K.S.A. 8-1567) and Washington 24 consecutive hours to 364 days (RCW 46.61.5055). Virginia sets no jail floor for a basic first offense but requires 5 days at a BAC of 0.15 to 0.20 and 10 days above 0.20 (Va. Code 18.2-270).
Fine
A minimum, a maximum or both. 28 states publish a minimum and 27 a maximum here, from Michigan's $100 to $500 (MCL 257.625) to Massachusetts's $500 to $5,000 (M.G.L. c. 90, s. 24).
License suspension or revocation
Vermont suspends for 90 days (23 V.S.A. 1206), Wisconsin revokes for 6 to 9 months (Wis. Stat. 343.30), Idaho suspends for 30 days with no driving and then 60 to 150 more days with restricted privileges possible (Idaho Code 18-8005), and Ohio suspends for 1 to 3 years (R.C. 4511.19).
Ignition interlock
26 jurisdictions require one for every offender (17 of them on NCSL's 2024 table and GHSA's 2025 state pages agreeing rather than statute text), 12 only above a high BAC threshold, and 13 do not require one for every first offense, 4 of those only for a restricted license or early reinstatement.
Alternatives the statute allows
Connecticut allows probation with 100 hours of community service in place of its 48-hour jail term (C.G.S. 14-227a), Utah 48 hours of compensatory service in place of 2 days in jail (Utah Code 41-6a-505), and Colorado lets the court suspend its 5-day jail term on completion of a level I or II education program (C.R.S. 42-4-1307).
Learn the name each state's statute gives the offense.
Texas, New York, North Carolina, Virginia, Missouri, Minnesota, New Hampshire, New Mexico and Arkansas call it DWI. Iowa, Michigan, Wisconsin and Louisiana call it OWI, operating while intoxicated or impaired, and Maine, Massachusetts and Connecticut OUI. Ohio uses OVI, Oregon DUII and Wyoming DWUI.
Some states write more than one offense. Colorado has DUI, DUI per se and the lesser DWAI (C.R.S. 42-4-1301). Maryland separates driving under the influence from driving while impaired (Md. Transp. 21-902).
Learn the per-se limit and the higher readings that raise the penalty.
The Governors Highway Safety Association lists a per-se limit of 0.08 in 50 of 51 jurisdictions; Utah's is 0.05. Several statutes then raise the penalty at a higher reading. Nebraska revokes for 1 year instead of 6 months at 0.15 or more (Neb. Rev. Stat. 60-6,197.03), Louisiana suspends for 2 years instead of 180 days at 0.15 or more (La. R.S. 32:667), and Virginia adds mandatory jail at 0.15.
Learn the lookback period each state sets for counting a prior DUI.
The lookback period decides whether the next case is sentenced as a first or a second offense. The shortest is 5 years, in Arkansas for its license-suspension tiers, Florida for the second-offense enhancement and Mississippi. Washington, Michigan, North Carolina, Nevada and Arizona use 7 years, a group of states including Ohio, Kentucky, Louisiana, Delaware and Connecticut use 10, and Vermont 20 (23 V.S.A. 1210).
Two statutes count further back. Colorado sets no time limit for its felony count of three or more prior impaired-driving convictions (C.R.S. 42-4-1301), and Kansas counts convictions and diversions on or after July 1, 2001 (K.S.A. 8-1567).
Learn the license penalties for refusing the chemical test the first time.
On a first refusal of the chemical test, Florida suspends for 1 year (Fla. Stat. 322.2615), Illinois for 12 months under its statutory summary suspension (625 ILCS 5/6-208.1), Maine for 275 days (29-A M.R.S. 2521), and Massachusetts for at least 180 days (M.G.L. c. 90, s. 24). New York's DMV lists a $500 civil penalty and a revocation of at least 1 year, and Rhode Island makes a first refusal a civil offense heard by its Traffic Tribunal (R.I. Gen. Laws 31-27-2.1).
Learn what a floor and a ceiling in the statute mean for a sentence.
A range is the space the legislature gives the court. Where a statute sets a floor, the court cannot go below it unless the statute itself allows a suspension or an alternative; where it sets a ceiling, the court cannot exceed it for that offense.
The figures here are the law as written, checked on October 14, 2026. They are not a prediction of what any court will order in your case.
Frequently Asked Questions
Tap a question to see the answer.
In some states. Alaska requires at least 72 consecutive hours and Arizona 10 consecutive days (A.R.S. 28-1381), while Kentucky, Maine, Pennsylvania, Vermont, Virginia and Wisconsin set no mandatory minimum for a basic first offense. Wisconsin treats a first offense as a civil forfeiture (Wis. Stat. 346.65).
Not in the statutes cited here. Alaska makes a basic first offense a class A misdemeanor (AS 28.35.030), Illinois a Class A misdemeanor (625 ILCS 5/11-501), and Wisconsin a civil forfeiture. The statutes name the aggravating facts that change the charge.
Among the 24 published rows it can run from none in Pennsylvania for a general-impairment first offense (75 Pa.C.S. 3804) and a 30-day minimum in South Dakota to 1 to 3 years in Ohio (R.C. 4511.19). Georgia's 12-month suspension can end after 120 days with a DUI Risk Reduction certificate, per its Department of Driver Services.
$5,000, the statutory maximum in Massachusetts and Washington. Alaska's $1,500 is the highest minimum in the dataset (AS 28.35.030), and Iowa sets $1,250 (Iowa Code 321J.2).
In 26 jurisdictions, yes, for every offender (17 of them on NCSL's 2024 table and GHSA's 2025 state pages agreeing rather than statute text); in 12 only above a high BAC threshold. Alaska requires at least six months on the interlock after the license comes back (AS 28.35.030), Nevada 185 days (NRS 484C.460) and South Carolina six months (S.C. Code 56-5-2990).
Each legislature names its own offense (OWI in Iowa, Michigan, Wisconsin and Louisiana, OVI in Ohio); the conduct is the same: driving while impaired or over the per-se limit.
For the lookback period: 5 to 20 years in the 25 states with a published figure, with 10 years the most frequent. Colorado and Kansas count older priors for some purposes.
Some statutes allow it: Connecticut, Utah and Colorado allow service or an education program in place of jail, and Hawaii lets the court choose among community service, jail and a fine (HRS 291E-61).
Information on this page reflects laws and published figures as of October 14, 2026. This is general information, not legal advice, and not a prediction for any matter. Rules and fees change; check the court or agency page linked for each figure.
Ready for the numbers in your state? The tool is free.