VA Math Isn’t Real Math—Here’s What You Need to Know

Why your ratings don’t add up, and how to fight for the percentage you actually earned.

How the VA’s “combined ratings” system undercounts your disability—and what you can do about it.

They tell you 50% + 50% = 100%. In the real world, that’s true. In the VA system? Not even close.

This is the math they don’t explain when you file a claim. The math that leads veterans to believe they’re more compensated than they are. And the math that can cost you thousands in lost benefits if you don’t know how to check it.

Let’s break it down.

What Is VA Math?

When the VA calculates your combined disability rating, it doesn’t just add percentages together. Instead, it uses a formula based on what the VA calls your “efficiency”—how much of your body is still functioning.

Let’s say you’re rated at 50% for PTSD. That means the VA sees you as 50% disabled, and 50% efficient. Now you get another 50% for your knee. The VA applies that 50% to the remaining 50% of you.

So: 50% + (50% of 50%) = 75%, not 100%. That’s how VA math works.

The final combined rating is rounded to the nearest 10% according t…