Rating Ledger

Combined ratings / 30% and 10%

38 CFR 4.25 Table I · checked 2026-10-20

30% and 10% VA rating combined

A 30% and a 10% rating combine to 37, which VA rounds up to 40%. The 10% is not added to the 30%: it takes 10% of the 70% efficiency the first rating leaves, which is 7 points. At 40% a veteran alone receives $795.84 a month and a veteran with a spouse $882.84.

Table I value37%Rounded once40%30 + 10 → 371234
  1. 1First rating 30 squares
  2. 210% of what is left 7 squares
  3. 3Efficiency left 63%
  4. 4Combined rating 40%
Table I value
37%
VA rating
40%
Monthly, alone
$795.84
Efficiency left
63%

The arithmetic, step by step

  1. Order by severity: 30% first, then 10%.
  2. After the 30% rating, 70% efficiency is left. The 10% rating takes 10% of that: 10 × 70 ÷ 100 = 7.
  3. 30 + 7 = 37. That is the figure printed in Table I at row 30, column 10.
  4. Round once to the nearest 10, values ending in 5 going up: 37 becomes 40%.

Because 37 ends in 7, it rounds up, so this pair is rated 3 points above its Table I value. The extra points exist only in the rounded rating: if a third disability is added later, VA combines it with 37, not with 40, because intermediate values are never rounded.

Added together, the two ratings would make 40. VA's method gives 40, 0 points less. The gap grows with the size of the ratings, because each later rating works on a smaller remainder.

What 40% pays

30% alone$552.4730% + 10% (40%)$795.84With another 20% (50%)$1,132.90
Monthly compensation, veteran with no dependents, VA rates effective December 1, 2025. Bars to scale from zero.

At 40%, VA's table effective December 1, 2025 pays $795.84 a month to a veteran alone, $882.84 with a spouse, and $947.84 with a spouse and one child under 18. Compared with 30% alone ($552.47), the pair adds $243.37 a month for a veteran with no dependents. The 40% pay page lists every dependent row.

If a third rating is added

A third 10% rating would combine with 37, not with 40: 37 and 10 give 43, rated 40%, no change in the rating. The smallest single rating that moves this pair up a step is 20%, reaching 50 and 50% ($1,132.90 a month alone).

If the two ratings are on paired limbs

When the 30% and the 10% are on the left and right leg (or both arms), 38 CFR 4.26 adds a bilateral factor: 30 and 10 combine to 37, plus 10% of that gives 41, rated 40%. Here the factor raises the exact value but not the rounded rating, which stays at 40%; it can still matter once more ratings are combined. The bilateral factor guide has the full rule.

Conditions that are rated at 30% and 10%

Diagnostic codes on this site with a 30% level include Vertigo (peripheral vestibular disorder) (DC 6204), Meniere's disease (DC 6205), PTSD (DC 9411), Shoulder replacement (DC 5051), Hip replacement (DC 5054), Knee replacement (DC 5055), Shoulder (arm) limitation of motion (DC 5201), Elbow (forearm) limitation of flexion (DC 5206), Back strain (lumbosacral or cervical strain) (DC 5237), Knee instability (DC 5257), Knee limitation of flexion (DC 5260), Knee limitation of extension (DC 5261), Flat feet (pes planus) (DC 5276), Plantar fasciitis (DC 5269), Foot injury (other) (DC 5284), Hip (thigh) limitation of flexion (DC 5252), Migraines (DC 8100), Carpal tunnel (median nerve) (DC 8515), Common peroneal nerve (foot drop) (DC 8521), Sleep apnea (DC 6847), Asthma (DC 6602), COPD (DC 6604), Allergic rhinitis (DC 6522), Chronic sinusitis (DC 6510-6514), Supraventricular arrhythmia (incl. AFib) (DC 7010), GERD (acid reflux) (DC 7206), Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) (DC 7319), Hernia (inguinal, ventral, umbilical) (DC 7338), Scars of the head, face or neck (DC 7800), Deep scars (not head, face or neck) (DC 7801), Painful or unstable scars (DC 7804), Eczema (dermatitis) (DC 7806), Prostate conditions (voiding dysfunction) (DC 7527), TMJ (temporomandibular disorder) (DC 9905). A 10% level appears in Tinnitus, Vertigo (peripheral vestibular disorder), PTSD, Degenerative arthritis, Elbow (forearm) limitation of flexion, Back strain (lumbosacral or cervical strain), Intervertebral disc syndrome (IVDS), Knee instability, Knee limitation of flexion, Knee limitation of extension, Ankle limited motion, Flat feet (pes planus), Plantar fasciitis, Foot injury (other), Hip (thigh) limitation of flexion, Migraines, Sciatic nerve (radiculopathy), Carpal tunnel (median nerve), Common peroneal nerve (foot drop), Epilepsy (seizures), Asthma, COPD, Allergic rhinitis, Chronic sinusitis, Hypertension (high blood pressure), Supraventricular arrhythmia (incl. AFib), Varicose veins, GERD (acid reflux), Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), Hemorrhoids, Hernia (inguinal, ventral, umbilical), Scars of the head, face or neck, Deep scars (not head, face or neck), Painful or unstable scars, Eczema (dermatitis), Diabetes mellitus (type 2), Prostate conditions (voiding dysfunction), TMJ (temporomandibular disorder).

38 CFR 4.71a, diagnostic code 5054, Hip replacement, 30%: “Minimum evaluation for total hip replacement only.”

38 CFR 4.71a, diagnostic code 5003, Degenerative arthritis, 10%: “Without limitation of motion: X-ray evidence of involvement of 2 or more major joints or 2 or more minor joint groups. Also 10% for each major joint or group of minor joints with X-ray-confirmed arthritis whose limitation of motion is noncompensable, when the limited motion is objectively confirmed (swelling, muscle spasm or satisfactory evidence of painful motion).”

38 CFR 4.71a, diagnostic code 5237, Back strain (lumbosacral or cervical strain), 10%: “Forward flexion of the thoracolumbar spine greater than 60 degrees but not greater than 85 degrees; or forward flexion of the cervical spine greater than 30 degrees but not greater than 40 degrees; or combined thoracolumbar range of motion greater than 120 but not greater than 235 degrees; or combined cervical range of motion greater than 170 but not greater than 335 degrees; or muscle spasm, guarding or localized tenderness not resulting in abnormal gait or contour; or vertebral body fracture with loss of 50 percent or more of the height.”

38 CFR 4.71a, diagnostic code 5206, Elbow (forearm) limitation of flexion, 30%: “Flexion limited to 70 degrees.”

Criteria summarized from the rating schedule; each condition page links to the regulation.

Other pairs

2 other pairs also round to 40%: 30+20, 20+20.

For three or more ratings, or to add dependents, use the calculator. Background: why 50 and 50 is not 100.

Rating Ledger is not part of VA and does not file or decide claims. Amounts are VA's published monthly rates effective December 1, 2025 for a veteran, before any deduction or special monthly compensation; ratings follow 38 CFR 4.25 and 38 CFR 4.26. Last checked 2026-10-20. Only a VA rating decision sets a rating or a payment. See the methodology.