Combined ratings / 80% and 10%
38 CFR 4.25 Table I · checked 2026-10-20
80% and 10% VA rating combined
A 80% and a 10% rating combine to 82, which VA rounds down to 80%. The 10% is not added to the 80%: it takes 10% of the 20% efficiency the first rating leaves, which is 2 points. At 80% a veteran alone receives $2,102.15 a month and a veteran with a spouse $2,277.15.
- 1First rating 80 squares
- 210% of what is left 2 squares
- 3Efficiency left 18%
- 4Combined rating 80%
The arithmetic, step by step
- Order by severity: 80% first, then 10%.
- After the 80% rating, 20% efficiency is left. The 10% rating takes 10% of that: 10 × 20 ÷ 100 = 2.
- 80 + 2 = 82. That is the figure printed in Table I at row 80, column 10.
- Round once to the nearest 10, values ending in 5 going up: 82 becomes 80%.
Because 82 ends in 2, it rounds down. The result is the same 80% the first rating gave alone, so on its own the 10% rating changes neither the rating nor the $2,102.15 monthly payment. It still counts: it stays in the ledger, and the next rating combines with 82, not with 80. One more 20% rating would lift it to 86, rated 90%.
Added together, the two ratings would make 90. VA's method gives 80, 10 points less. The gap grows with the size of the ratings, because each later rating works on a smaller remainder.
What 80% pays
At 80%, VA's table effective December 1, 2025 pays $2,102.15 a month to a veteran alone, $2,277.15 with a spouse, and $2,406.15 with a spouse and one child under 18. That is the same payment as 80% alone. The 80% pay page lists every dependent row.
If a third rating is added
A third 10% rating would combine with 82, not with 80: 82 and 10 give 84, rated 80%, no change in the rating. The smallest single rating that moves this pair up a step is 20%, reaching 86 and 90% ($2,362.30 a month alone).
On the numbers alone this pair meets the schedular threshold for a total rating based on unemployability in 38 CFR 4.16(a): one disability rated at least 60%. Meeting the percentages is only the start; VA must also find that service-connected disabilities prevent substantially gainful work. See the TDIU guide.
If the two ratings are on paired limbs
When the 80% and the 10% are on the left and right leg (or both arms), 38 CFR 4.26 adds a bilateral factor: 80 and 10 combine to 82, plus 10% of that gives 90, rated 90%. Here the factor moves the rating from 80% to 90%, worth $2,362.30 a month alone instead of $2,102.15. The bilateral factor guide has the full rule.
Conditions that are rated at 80% and 10%
Diagnostic codes on this site with a 80% level include Sciatic nerve (radiculopathy) (DC 8520), Epilepsy (seizures) (DC 8910), GERD (acid reflux) (DC 7206), Scars of the head, face or neck (DC 7800). 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 8910, Epilepsy (seizures), 80%: “Averaging at least 1 major seizure in 3 months over the last year; or more than 10 minor seizures weekly.”
38 CFR 4.71a, diagnostic code 5260, Knee limitation of flexion, 10%: “Flexion limited to 45 degrees.”
38 CFR 4.71a, diagnostic code 5271, Ankle limited motion, 10%: “Moderate: less than 15 degrees of dorsiflexion or less than 30 degrees of plantar flexion.”
38 CFR 4.124a, diagnostic code 8520, Sciatic nerve (radiculopathy), 80%: “Complete paralysis: the foot dangles and drops, no active movement possible of muscles below the knee, flexion of knee weakened or (very rarely) lost.”
Criteria summarized from the rating schedule; each condition page links to the regulation.
Other pairs
- 80% and 20%: 84, rated 80%
- 90% and 10%: 91, rated 90%
- 70% and 10%: 73, rated 70%
- 90% and 20%: 92, rated 90%
8 other pairs also round to 80%: 80+20, 70+40, 70+30, 70+20, 60+60, 60+50, 60+40, 50+50.
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.