Combined ratings / 50% and 10%
38 CFR 4.25 Table I · checked 2026-10-20
50% and 10% VA rating combined
A 50% and a 10% rating combine to 55, which VA rounds up to 60%. The 10% is not added to the 50%: it takes 10% of the 50% efficiency the first rating leaves, which is 5 points. At 60% a veteran alone receives $1,435.02 a month and a veteran with a spouse $1,566.02.
- 1First rating 50 squares
- 210% of what is left 5 squares
- 3Efficiency left 45%
- 4Combined rating 60%
The arithmetic, step by step
- Order by severity: 50% first, then 10%.
- After the 50% rating, 50% efficiency is left. The 10% rating takes 10% of that: 10 × 50 ÷ 100 = 5.
- 50 + 5 = 55. That is the figure printed in Table I at row 50, column 10.
- Round once to the nearest 10, values ending in 5 going up: 55 becomes 60%.
Because 55 ends in 5, it rounds up, so this pair is rated 5 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 55, not with 60, because intermediate values are never rounded.
Added together, the two ratings would make 60. VA's method gives 60, 0 points less. The gap grows with the size of the ratings, because each later rating works on a smaller remainder.
What 60% pays
At 60%, VA's table effective December 1, 2025 pays $1,435.02 a month to a veteran alone, $1,566.02 with a spouse, and $1,663.02 with a spouse and one child under 18. Compared with 50% alone ($1,132.90), the pair adds $302.12 a month for a veteran with no dependents. The 60% pay page lists every dependent row.
If a third rating is added
A third 10% rating would combine with 55, not with 60: 55 and 10 give 60, rated 60%, no change in the rating. The smallest single rating that moves this pair up a step is 30%, reaching 69 and 70% ($1,808.45 a month alone).
The 50% rating meets the 40% part of the 38 CFR 4.16(a) threshold for unemployability, but the combined 60% is below the 70% it also requires.
If the two ratings are on paired limbs
When the 50% and the 10% are on the left and right leg (or both arms), 38 CFR 4.26 adds a bilateral factor: 50 and 10 combine to 55, plus 10% of that gives 61, rated 60%. Here the factor raises the exact value but not the rounded rating, which stays at 60%; it can still matter once more ratings are combined. The bilateral factor guide has the full rule.
Conditions that are rated at 50% and 10%
Diagnostic codes on this site with a 50% level include PTSD (DC 9411), Hip replacement (DC 5054), Elbow (forearm) limitation of flexion (DC 5206), Back strain (lumbosacral or cervical strain) (DC 5237), Knee limitation of extension (DC 5261), Flat feet (pes planus) (DC 5276), Migraines (DC 8100), Carpal tunnel (median nerve) (DC 8515), Upper radicular group (C5-C6 nerves) (DC 8510), Sleep apnea (DC 6847), Chronic sinusitis (DC 6510-6514), GERD (acid reflux) (DC 7206), Scars of the head, face or neck (DC 7800), 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 4.124a, diagnostic code 8100, Migraines, 50%: “With very frequent completely prostrating and prolonged attacks productive of severe economic inadaptability.”
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 5257, Knee instability, 10%: “Sprain, incomplete or complete ligament tear (repaired, unrepaired or failed repair) causing persistent instability, without a prescribed assistive device or bracing. For patellar instability: recurrent instability, with or without surgery, without a prescribed brace, cane or walker.”
38 CFR 4.97, diagnostic code 6847, Sleep apnea, 50%: “Requires use of a breathing assistance device such as a continuous airway pressure (CPAP) machine.”
Criteria summarized from the rating schedule; each condition page links to the regulation.
Other pairs
- 50% and 20%: 60, rated 60%
- 60% and 10%: 64, rated 60%
- 40% and 10%: 46, rated 50%
- 60% and 20%: 68, rated 70%
4 other pairs also round to 60%: 60+10, 50+20, 40+40, 40+30.
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.