If you’re trying to understand a VA disability rating, you’re not alone. A lot of veterans hear percentages like 10%, 30%, 70%, or 90% and assume the math is straightforward. In practice, VA ratings can feel much more technical than most people expect.
That confusion matters because a disability rating affects monthly tax-free compensation, access to some additional benefits, and in some cases how a claim or appeal is approached. The rating system is based on federal regulations, medical evidence, and a formula that often works differently than ordinary addition.
In this post you’ll learn what a VA disability rating is, how VA assigns percentages, how combined ratings work, why two ratings don’t simply add together, and what can change the amount a veteran receives each month. For a broader look at the percentage system and why even small percentage changes can affect benefits, it may help to start with this overview of how the rating percentages and combined numbers fit together.
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A VA disability rating is a percentage assigned to a service-connected condition. VA explains that the rating reflects how severe the condition is and uses that percentage to determine monthly disability compensation and eligibility for certain other benefits. The rating process is governed by the VA Schedule for Rating Disabilities, found in 38 C.F.R. Part 4. According to 38 C.F.R. § 4.1, the schedule is designed to represent the average impairment in earning capacity caused by service-connected disabilities in civilian occupations. VA’s disability ratings page describes the same basic framework.
In general terms, that means VA is not simply asking whether a veteran has a diagnosis. It is looking at how the condition is evaluated under the rating schedule, often based on symptoms, frequency, functional loss, medical testing, or exam findings.
VA says it bases a rating decision on several sources of evidence, including the evidence submitted by the veteran, medical records, and the results of a Compensation & Pension exam if one is required. VA also may gather records from federal sources when relevant, according to VA’s explanation of disability ratings.
Each service-connected condition is generally evaluated under a diagnostic code in the rating schedule. Those diagnostic codes can assign different percentages depending on the facts. For example, one condition may be rated based on range-of-motion limits, another on lab results, and another on the severity and frequency of symptoms. That is one reason a diagnosis alone often doesn’t answer the real compensation question.
This is also why veterans sometimes focus closely on the wording in a rating decision. A small detail in the medical evidence or the diagnostic code selected by VA can affect the percentage assigned, which can then affect the combined rating and monthly pay.
VA disability ratings are typically assigned in increments from 0% to 100%. A higher percentage usually reflects a greater level of impairment under the rating schedule. VA states that the rating percentage is then used to determine monthly compensation. See VA’s disability compensation overview and VA’s current compensation rate tables.
A few basics often help beginners:
A 0% rating is often called noncompensable. VA recognizes the condition as service-connected, but that percentage does not usually pay monthly compensation by itself. Even so, a 0% rating can still matter because it establishes service connection and may affect access to some benefits or future increase claims. VA explains that on its page about non-compensable disabilities.
At 10% and 20%, compensation is payable, but dependents generally do not increase the basic monthly amount at those levels. According to VA’s 2026 compensation tables, a veteran with no dependents receives $175.51 at 10% and $346.95 at 20% per month. Those are the current 2026 basic rates listed by VA.