How it works
How our estimates work
We want you to trust the numbers you see here — so here is exactly how we produce them, and exactly where their limits are. Everything below is an estimate, not a guarantee. The VA makes every final decision about your rating and benefits.
How we estimate your combined rating
VA disability ratings don't add up the way you'd expect — 50% plus 30% is not 80%. We follow the official VA method in 38 CFR §4.25, the same combined-ratings rule the VA itself uses.
- We order your conditions from highest to lowest, then combine them one at a time: each condition applies only to the part of you that's still rated as healthy. So a 30% condition combined with a 50% condition adds 30% of the remaining 50% — not a flat 30 points.
- When compensable conditions affect both arms or both legs, we apply the §4.26 bilateral factor — combining the paired group, then adding 10% of that subtotal before combining the rest.
- Finally, we round the result to the nearest 10%, exactly as the VA does. That rounded number is your estimated combined rating.
Our combined-rating explainer walks through the math step by step with a real example, and the free calculator runs it for your own conditions.
50% + 30% + 20% = 70% (72% before rounding to the nearest 10 — not 100%)
Source: 38 CFR §4.25 (combined-ratings table) and §4.26 (bilateral factor).
See the full worked example
Our combined-rating explainer walks through the math step by step with a real example, and the free calculator runs it for your own conditions.
Read the combined-rating explainer →These are estimates only. They are not a promise of any rating, payment, or approval. The VA evaluates your actual evidence and makes the final decision — your real rating may differ.
Our medical-review standards
Some of our tools help you draft documents a medical professional may use — most importantly a nexus-opinion letter, which connects a condition to your service. A draft is a starting point for a clinician, not medical evidence on its own.
Under 38 CFR §3.159, a nexus opinion only counts as competent medical evidence once a qualified clinician who has reviewed your records signs it. We intend every draft to be independently reviewed, completed, and signed by your own treating clinician or an accredited independent medical-opinion (IMO) physician before it goes anywhere near the VA.
Do not file an unsigned, AI-generated nexus letter as-is — it can actively hurt your claim. Take the draft to a clinician to review against your records and decide whether to sign.
Our tools and content are not medical advice and are not a substitute for evaluation by a licensed clinician.
VA Disability Pro is an independent technology platform and is not affiliated with or endorsed by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. We are not an accredited representative, attorney, or VSO, and nothing here is legal or medical advice. All ratings and payments shown are estimates, not guarantees — the VA makes all final decisions.