Add your ratings and see your real combined rating — with the exact VA "whole person" math shown step by step, including the bilateral factor. (Spoiler: 50% + 30% isn't 80%.)
Estimate only, using the official whole-person method (38 CFR §4.25) and bilateral factor (38 CFR §4.26). Your official rating is decided by the VA. Not legal advice; VetAid is not VA-accredited.
VetAid's AI reads your conditions and C&P exams, flags missed secondary conditions and exam errors, and drafts the statements to fight a lowball rating.
Analyze my claim free →The single most confusing thing in the VA system: ratings don't add up. If you have a 50% and a 30% rating, you are not 80% disabled in the VA's eyes. The VA uses the "whole person" method — each rating is applied to the part of you that's still considered healthy.
Start with your highest rating. That 50% leaves 50% "healthy." The next rating (30%) is taken as a percentage of that remaining 50: 30% of 50 is 15. So 50 + 15 = 65 — and the VA rounds the final number to the nearest 10, giving you 70%. Add more ratings and each one chips away at a smaller and smaller remaining slice, which is why ten 10% ratings will never reach 100%.
If you have disabilities affecting both arms, both legs, or paired skeletal muscles, the VA combines those bilateral ratings first and then adds an extra 10% of that combined value (the bilateral factor) before combining everything else. Check the "bilateral" box on those rows above and the calculator applies it for you.
Compensation is paid in tiers, and a couple of points can move you across a boundary. Combined values ending in 5 round up (65 → 70). That's why getting one more condition rated — or fixing an under-rated one — can be worth far more than it looks.
| Combined rating | Roughly means |
|---|---|
| 10–20% | Flat monthly payment; no dependents added |
| 30%+ | You can add dependents (spouse, children, parents) for more |
| 70%+ | Common threshold many use to pursue TDIU (paid at the 100% rate) |
| 100% | Maximum schedular compensation, plus many state and federal benefits |
Exact dollar amounts change yearly and depend on dependents — check VA.gov for the current compensation tables.
It doesn't add them. Each rating is applied to the efficiency you have left: highest first, then each next rating as a percentage of the remaining healthy percentage, rounded to the nearest 10.
The 30% only applies to the 50% of you still considered healthy. 30% of that 50 is 15, so 50 + 15 = 65, which rounds to 70% — not 80%.
Under 38 CFR §4.26, disabilities of both arms, both legs, or paired muscles are combined first, then an extra 10% of that value is added before combining with your other ratings.
Yes — compensation rises in tiers from 10% to 100%, with big jumps at 30% (dependents) and 100%. A few points can cross a tier, which is why rounding matters.
No. It's a free, independent tool that uses the same official math (38 CFR §4.25 and §4.26). It's an estimate; your official rating is decided by the VA.