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VA Disability Calculator (Combined Rating)

This VA disability calculator combines your individual ratings the way the VA does – with the combined ratings table of 38 CFR § 4.25, not by simple addition – and shows every step. Example: ratings of 50%, 30% and 20% combine to 72, which is rounded to a combined rating of 70%, not 100%.

Source: U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs: Veterans disability compensation rates (effective December 1, 2025; page last updated December 2, 2025). Updated: .

Separate the ratings with commas. Each rating is a multiple of 10. Do not enter bilateral ratings here if you list them below.
Ratings for both arms, both legs or paired skeletal muscles – at least one for each side. They are combined first and get the bilateral factor.
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Result

Result
Combined VA rating: 70% (combined value 72 before rounding) · $1,808.45 per month for a veteran alone
Working (“VA math”)
  • Ordered by severity: 50, 30, 20.
  • 50 and 30: 50 + 30 × (100 − 50) ÷ 100 = 65.
  • 65 and 20: 65 + 20 × (100 − 65) ÷ 100 = 72.
  • Last step: the combined value 72 is converted to the nearest multiple of 10 (values ending in 5 go up) → 70%.
Basic monthly rates, veteran alone (effective December 1, 2025)
Combined ratingMonthly payment
10%$180.42
20%$356.66
30%$552.47
40%$795.84
50%$1,132.90
60%$1,435.02
→ 70%$1,808.45
80%$2,102.15
90%$2,362.30
100%$3,938.58
An unofficial estimate of the combined rating under 38 CFR § 4.25 and § 4.26 – the VA makes the binding decision. The dollar amounts are the basic monthly rates for a veteran with no dependents, effective December 1, 2025 (va.gov); they are adjusted every December 1, and dependents or Special Monthly Compensation change the amount. Not legal or benefits advice.

How it is calculated

The VA does not add disability ratings together. Each additional rating is applied only to the part of you that is still considered “efficient” after the more severe disabilities – the rule laid down in 38 CFR § 4.25 and often called “VA math”. That is why 50% plus 30% is 65, not 80.

How the combined rating is calculated

  1. Put the ratings in order, highest first.
  2. Combine the first two: a + b × (100 − a) ÷ 100, rounded to a whole number as in Table I of the regulation (halves go up).
  3. Combine that result with the next rating, and so on.
  4. Only at the very end is the combined value converted to the nearest multiple of 10; values ending in 5 are adjusted upward.

Worked example

Ratings 50%, 30% and 20%. A 50% disability leaves 50% efficiency. 30% of that remaining 50 is 15, so 50 + 15 = 65. Then 20% of the remaining 35 is 7, so 65 + 7 = 72. Rounded to the nearest 10, the combined rating is 70% – for a veteran alone that is $1,808.45 a month at the rates effective December 1, 2025. The regulation gives its own examples: 50 and 30 combine to 65, converted to 70; 40 and 20 combine to 52, converted to 50; 60, 40 and 20 give 76, then 81, converted to 80.

The bilateral factor

If disabilities affect both arms, both legs or paired skeletal muscles, § 4.26 gives a small bonus: the bilateral ratings are combined first, then 10% of that value is added (not combined), and the total counts as a single rating for everything that follows. The regulation’s example: 60, 20, 10 and 10, the two 10s being bilateral. 10 and 10 combine to 19; adding 1.9 gives 20.9, treated as 21. The order is then 60, 21, 20: 60 and 21 make 68, 68 and 20 make 74 – a combined rating of 70%.

Since an amendment published in April 2023, the regulation also says that a bilateral rating is left out of the factor whenever including it would give a lower result. The calculator checks this for you and tells you when it applies.

Monthly compensation

The table below the result lists the basic monthly rates for a veteran with no dependents, effective December 1, 2025: from $180.42 at 10% to $3,938.58 at 100%. At 10% and 20% the rate does not rise with dependents; from 30% upward a spouse, children or dependent parents increase it. The VA publishes the full tables and adjusts them each December 1 in line with the Social Security cost-of-living adjustment.

Frequently asked questions

Why is my combined rating lower than the sum of my ratings?

Because each further rating is applied to the efficiency that remains, not to the whole person. With 50% and 30%, the second rating takes 30% of the remaining 50, which is 15 – so the combined value is 65, converted to 70%. The VA calls this the “whole person theory”: nobody can be more than 100% disabled.

How does the VA round the combined rating?

Only once, at the end: to the nearest multiple of 10, with values ending in 5 going up. A combined value of 74 becomes 70%, 75 becomes 80%, and 95 or more becomes 100%.

What is the bilateral factor?

An addition of 10% for disabilities of both arms, both legs or paired skeletal muscles. The bilateral ratings are combined first, 10% of that value is added, and the result is treated as one rating. Two 10% ratings become 19 + 1.9 = 20.9, counted as 21.

Does the order in which I enter my ratings matter?

No. The calculator sorts them from highest to lowest before combining, as the regulation requires.

How much is the monthly payment for my rating?

For a veteran alone, the basic rates effective December 1, 2025 are, for example, $552.47 at 30%, $1,132.90 at 50%, $1,808.45 at 70% and $3,938.58 at 100%. With dependents the amounts are higher from 30% upward; see the rate tables on va.gov.

Sources and legal basis

As of: · Editorial policy

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