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Free tool · 38 CFR § 4.25
VA doesn’t add your ratings together — it takes a percentage of whatever is left of you each time. Enter your conditions below and watch the whole-person math run, line by line, with the bilateral factor and your monthly compensation included.
Free tool · 38 CFR § 4.25
VA doesn’t add your ratings together — it takes a percentage of whatever is left of you each time. Enter your conditions below and watch the whole-person math run, line by line, with the bilateral factor and your monthly compensation included.
0 contentions
No conditions yet. Search below to add each condition you are rated for — or each one you are about to claim — and the whole-person math runs as you go.
Add a condition above and every step of the whole-person calculation appears here — what each rating takes, and what is left for the next one.
0%
No conditions entered yet
$0.00/ month
Add your conditions above to estimate retroactive pay.
Estimate only. VA’s published rate tables govern the amount you actually receive.
THE METHOD
VA starts from the idea of a whole, healthy person — 100 percent efficient. Your highest-rated condition is applied first, reducing that efficiency. The next condition is then applied to what remains, not to the original 100. This is the combined ratings method in 38 CFR § 4.25, and it’s why two 50% ratings combine to 75%, not 100%.
Start from a whole person
VA treats you as 100% efficient before any disability is applied. Everything that follows reduces that figure.
Apply the highest rating first
A 50% condition takes 50 points from 100, leaving you 50% efficient. This is the largest single reduction you will see.
Apply each next rating to what remains
A 30% condition applied to a remaining 50 takes 15 points, not 30. Your combined figure is now 65% and 35% remains.
Round to the nearest ten
The exact figure is rounded for payment. 65 becomes 70%. Anything from 64.5 to 74.4 pays at the 70% rate.
When you have service-connected disabilities affecting both arms, both legs, or paired skeletal muscles, VA combines those ratings first, then adds 10 percent of that result before combining with everything else. It recognizes that losing function on both sides is more limiting than the two losses considered separately. Tag conditions L or R in the calculator above and the group appears in the ledger with the factor applied — tagging only one side produces no factor, because § 4.26 requires both.
Your exact combined figure is rounded to the nearest whole number, then to the nearest 10 percent for payment purposes. An exact 74.4 pays at 70%; an exact 74.5 pays at 80%. This is why a small additional rating sometimes changes your check substantially and sometimes does nothing at all — and why the calculator tells you how far you are from the next bracket.
2026 RATES
Effective December 1, 2025. VA pays additional amounts for dependents only at 30% and above. Your row is highlighted.
| RATING | VETERAN ALONE | + SPOUSE | + SPOUSE, 1 CHILD | + SPOUSE, 2 CHILDREN |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 10% | $180.42 | No dependent addition below 30% | No dependent addition below 30% | No dependent addition below 30% |
| 20% | $356.66 | No dependent addition below 30% | No dependent addition below 30% | No dependent addition below 30% |
| 30% | $552.47 | $617.47 | $666.47 | $698.47 |
| 40% | $795.84 | $882.84 | $947.84 | $990.84 |
| 50% | $1,132.90 | $1,241.90 | $1,322.90 | $1,376.90 |
| 60% | $1,435.02 | $1,566.02 | $1,663.02 | $1,728.02 |
| 70% | $1,808.45 | $1,961.45 | $2,074.45 | $2,150.45 |
| 80% | $2,102.15 | $2,277.15 | $2,406.15 | $2,493.15 |
| 90% | $2,362.30 | $2,559.30 | $2,704.30 | $2,802.30 |
| 100% | $3,938.58 | $4,158.17 | $4,318.99 | $4,428.10 |
Special Monthly Compensation beyond SMC-K, additional dependents, and aid-and-attendance amounts are not included in this table. Verify current figures at va.gov/disability/compensation-rates.
COMMON QUESTIONS
Because VA applies each rating to what is left of a whole person, not to a running total. The 50% rating leaves you 50% efficient; the 30% rating then takes 30% of that remaining 50 — 15 points, not 30. The combined figure is 65%, which rounds to 70%.
The arithmetic requires starting with the highest rating and working down, and this calculator does that automatically. The final combined figure is the same regardless of what order you enter them in.
It applies when service-connected disabilities affect both arms, both legs, or paired skeletal muscles. Those ratings are combined first, 10% of that result is added, and the total then combines with your other conditions. Tag conditions L or R above to see it applied. Tagging only one side never produces a factor — 38 CFR § 4.26 requires both.
At higher combined ratings each new condition draws from a smaller remaining share, so it adds fewer exact points — and the result still has to cross a rounding threshold. At 80% combined, a new 10% condition adds only 2 exact points, which is not enough to reach the 84.5 needed for 90%.
For payment purposes yes, but they are reached differently. A single condition rated 100% is a schedular total; combining many conditions to 100% produces the same rate. Total Disability based on Individual Unemployability (TDIU) pays at the 100% rate without requiring a 100% combined rating.
Only SMC-K, which is a flat additional amount under 38 CFR § 3.350(a) for loss or loss of use of a creative organ, shown as a toggle. Other SMC levels have their own rate structure and are not modeled here.
It multiplies the difference between your new monthly rate and your current one by the number of whole months since the effective date you enter. Actual retroactive payments account for rate changes over that period, mid-month proration, dependency changes, and any offsets — so treat the figure as a ceiling, not a promise.
Legatus takes the conditions you just entered and shows you what evidence each one needs, which secondaries commonly follow, and whether your file is ready before you send it to VA.
This tool provides general information about VA disability claims, not legal or medical advice. Consult an accredited Veterans Service Organization (VSO) or VA-accredited attorney for case-specific guidance. Legatus is not affiliated with or endorsed by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs.
