Tinnitus and bilateral hearing loss are the two most frequently granted service connected disabilities in the VA system. They usually arrive together, because they usually come from the same in service noise exposure. What surprises veterans is how little the pair pays.
Tinnitus Is Capped at 10%
Diagnostic code 6260 provides one evaluation and one only: 10%, for recurrent tinnitus. The code states explicitly that a single evaluation is assigned whether the sound is perceived in one ear, both ears, or in the head. There is no 20% tier. There is no severity ladder. In 2026 a 10% rating pays $180.42 per month.
Hearing Loss Is Rated by Table, Not by Symptom
Hearing loss is rated under 38 CFR 4.85 using two audiometric measurements: the pure tone threshold average across 1000, 2000, 3000, and 4000 Hz, and the Maryland CNC speech discrimination score. Those two values are cross referenced in Table VI to produce a Roman numeral for each ear, and the two numerals are cross referenced again in Table VII to produce the percentage.
The practical consequence is that hearing loss which feels disabling in daily life frequently rates 0%. Speech discrimination scores tested in a quiet booth stay high for most veterans even when real world hearing in noise is poor. This is the single most common source of frustration with audiology claims, and it is a limitation of the rating table rather than an error by the rater.
What the Combination Actually Pays
| Tinnitus | Hearing loss | Raw combined | Rounded | 2026 monthly |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 10% | 0% | 10% | 10% | $180.42 |
| 10% | 10% | 19% | 20% | $356.66 |
| 10% | 30% | 37% | 40% | $795.84 |
Note the second row. Ten plus ten does not equal twenty in VA math. It equals 19 raw, which then rounds up to 20%. The rounding, not the addition, is what gets you there.
A 0% Hearing Rating Is Still Worth Having
Veterans often treat a 0% grant as a denial. It is not. A noncompensable rating gives you:
- Established service connection, which cannot be taken away easily once it is in place.
- VA provided hearing aids and audiology care at no cost.
- A baseline for a future increase. If your hearing worsens, you file for an increase rather than starting a new claim from zero, and the effective date rules are more favorable.
- A foundation for secondary claims, since hearing loss and tinnitus both support secondary claims for other conditions.
Where the Real Rating Increase Comes From
If your ceiling on this pair is 20%, the way forward is the conditions that accompany chronic tinnitus rather than the tinnitus itself. Commonly granted secondaries include:
- Migraines under DC 8100, where prostrating attacks can rate 30% or 50%.
- Anxiety or depression secondary to chronic tinnitus, rated on the general mental disorders formula at 30%, 50%, or 70%.
- Sleep impairment where the ringing prevents sleep onset, often claimed through the mental health rating rather than separately.
- Meniere's disease or vestibular disorders where vertigo accompanies the tinnitus.
A 10% tinnitus rating combined with a 30% anxiety rating yields 37 raw, which rounds to 40% and pays $795.84. That is more than four times the tinnitus rating alone.