VA Disability Ratings for Hearing Loss and Tinnitus Explained
9 min read · Last updated August 27, 2026
- Tinnitus almost always rates at a flat 10% under Diagnostic Code 6260, whether you hear it in one ear, both ears, or your head.
- Hearing loss ratings come from a two-step table lookup, not a fixed percentage – a puretone threshold average and a speech discrimination score set a Roman numeral for each ear, then a second table converts both numerals into a percentage.
- Your hearing loss has to clear a threshold in the Code of Federal Regulations (CFR), the federal rule book that governs VA ratings, at section 38 CFR 3.385 just to count as a ratable disability at all – a 40-decibel loss at one frequency, three frequencies at 26 decibels or more, or a speech recognition score under 94%.
- Missing in-service noise exposure evidence, no medical nexus opinion, and an audiogram that doesn’t reach a compensable combination are the three reasons these claims get denied most often.
In this article
- What VA actually rates
- Who qualifies – the audiogram threshold
- What the hearing exam requires
- How the percentage gets calculated
- What causes these claims to get denied
- Frequently asked questions
An Army artillery crewman spends 14 months stationed near 155mm howitzers with inconsistent access to hearing protection. Two decades later he files a disability claim for hearing loss and tinnitus. His Compensation and Pension (C&P) exam, the medical evaluation the VA orders to evaluate a disability claim, confirms both conditions are present. The tinnitus claim resolves in one line on the rating decision. The hearing loss claim runs through two tables before it produces a number.
That difference is not a paperwork quirk. It is how the VA Schedule for Rating Disabilities, the federal regulation at 38 CFR Part 4 that assigns percentages to service-connected conditions, treats these two conditions structurally differently. This article walks through the mechanics of both, what the audiology exam actually measures, and where these claims go wrong.
What VA actually rates
Tinnitus, the perception of ringing, buzzing, or hissing with no external sound source, is rated under Diagnostic Code 6260 in the VA Schedule for Rating Disabilities. The regulation assigns recurrent tinnitus a single value: 10 percent. There is no higher tier. A veteran who hears constant, severe ringing in both ears gets the same 10 percent as a veteran with occasional ringing in one ear, because the regulation’s own note is explicit: only one evaluation is assigned “whether the sound is perceived in one ear, both ears, or in the head.” Loudness, frequency, and which ear are not rating factors under this code.
Hearing loss works differently. It is rated under Diagnostic Code 6100, which does not list a fixed number anywhere in the regulation. Instead, 38 CFR 4.85 describes a process: run your test results through two tables to get a percentage. There is no shortcut that skips the tables, and no version of the regulation states a rating percentage directly the way it does for tinnitus.
Who qualifies – the audiogram threshold
Before a hearing loss claim can be rated at all, it has to clear a separate, lower bar: does VA even consider this hearing loss a disability? 38 CFR 3.385 sets that threshold. Impaired hearing counts as a disability for VA purposes when any one of the following is true:
- The hearing threshold at any single frequency (500, 1000, 2000, 3000, or 4000 Hertz) is 40 decibels or greater
- At least three of those five frequencies are 26 decibels or greater
- The speech recognition score on the Maryland CNC (Consonant Nucleus Consonant) test, the standardized word-recognition test described below, is below 94 percent
A veteran whose audiogram shows mild loss that doesn’t reach any of these three thresholds has hearing loss in the everyday sense, but not in the sense VA rates. This is a separate gate from the percentage tables below – it decides whether the condition is ratable at all before the tables decide how much.
What the C&P audiology exam requires
Under 38 CFR 4.85(a), the hearing exam must be conducted by a state-licensed audiologist and must include two separate tests, performed without hearing aids:
- Puretone audiometry – measures the quietest tone you can hear at each of several frequencies, expressed in decibels.
- The Maryland CNC test – Consonant Nucleus Consonant, a standardized word-recognition test where you repeat back single-syllable words at a controlled volume in a quiet room, scored as the percentage you got right.
Both scores feed the tables in the next section. If you’re unsure what to expect walking into the appointment, this site’s guide to the C&P exam covers general exam-day mechanics that apply regardless of which condition is being tested.
How the percentage gets calculated
This is the two-step lookup the regulation actually runs, described here as a mechanic, not a prediction of what any individual veteran will receive.
Step 1 – Table VI. For each ear separately, the puretone threshold average (the average of the thresholds at 1000, 2000, 3000, and 4000 Hertz) is cross-referenced against the Maryland CNC speech discrimination percentage. Where the two intersect on Table VI produces a Roman numeral from I (mildest) to XI (most severe) for that ear.
Step 2 – Table VII. The Roman numeral for the better-hearing ear and the Roman numeral for the worse-hearing ear are cross-referenced against each other on a second table, which converts the pair into the final percentage.
Here is what that looks like for two different, purely hypothetical audiogram profiles, to show how the mechanic responds to different numbers, not to suggest any individual result:
| Input (illustrative only) | Profile A | Profile B |
|---|---|---|
| Puretone threshold average, both ears | 52 decibels | 65 decibels |
| Maryland CNC speech discrimination, both ears | 80% | 60% |
| Table VI result, each ear | Roman numeral IV | Roman numeral VI |
| Table VII combined result | 10% | 30% |
Notice what moved the outcome: a 13-decibel difference in the puretone average and a 20-point difference in speech discrimination pushed the ear-level result from Roman numeral IV to VI, and the final percentage from 10 percent to 30 percent. Two ears with symmetrical, moderate loss and reasonably preserved word recognition (Profile A) sit well below two ears with more severe loss and weaker word recognition (Profile B), even though both are still short of profound hearing loss. This is why two veterans who each describe their hearing as “getting worse” can land on very different numbers – the tables respond to the specific decibel and percentage figures on that day’s exam, not to a general sense of severity.
If impaired hearing is service-connected in only one ear, the non-service-connected ear is assigned Roman numeral I for the Table VII lookup, subject to the rules in 38 CFR 3.383. A rating of 10 percent or higher is compensable – as of the rates effective December 1, 2025, a standalone 10 percent rating pays $180.42 a month. Ratings below that threshold, including a 0 percent outcome, do not carry a monthly payment on their own, though a 0 percent service-connected disability can still matter for later claims and combined ratings.
What causes these claims to get denied
Three gaps account for most hearing loss and tinnitus denials.
No evidence of in-service noise exposure. VA needs something connecting an acoustic event to your service record – your military occupational specialty (MOS), deployment orders, a unit history placing you near aircraft, artillery, or machinery, or statements from people who served alongside you. A vague claim of “loud noises in the military” without anything documenting exposure is the single most common gap examiners flag.
No nexus opinion. A nexus is the medical opinion linking your current hearing loss or tinnitus to that in-service event. Even with a confirmed diagnosis and confirmed noise exposure, VA still needs a doctor to connect the two in writing. Without it, the claim has two disconnected facts and nothing tying them together.
The audiogram doesn’t clear the threshold. Sometimes hearing loss is real but doesn’t meet the 38 CFR 3.385 threshold described above, so it isn’t ratable as a disability yet. Other times the loss clears 3.385 but the Table VI and Table VII combination lands below 10 percent, so the claim is service-connected but non-compensable. Reviewing your own audiometry results against the thresholds before you file, or asking the audiologist to walk through the numbers at the exam, catches this before the decision letter does.
If your claim is denied or rated lower than you expected, you have three review paths available, and this site’s guide to Higher-Level Review, Supplemental Claims, and Board Appeals covers how each one works and when to use which.
Frequently asked questions
Can I get more than 10% for tinnitus if it’s severe in both ears? No. Diagnostic Code 6260 assigns a single 10 percent evaluation for recurrent tinnitus regardless of loudness or whether you hear it in one ear, both ears, or your head. VA does not currently rate tinnitus above 10 percent under any combination of symptoms.
Why did my hearing loss claim come back at 0%? A 0 percent outcome usually means your audiogram cleared the 38 CFR 3.385 disability threshold, so the condition is service-connected, but your Table VI and Table VII results didn’t reach the combination needed for a 10 percent or higher rating. The condition is documented in your record even without a monthly payment attached.
Do I need to prove noise exposure if my service record shows a combat MOS? A documented combat-related military occupational specialty, deployment history, or awards can support noise exposure without additional buddy statements in many cases, but the exam and nexus opinion still need to connect your current hearing loss or tinnitus to that exposure. Combat history alone doesn’t replace the nexus requirement.
Can I take my own hearing aids off before the C&P exam and still get an accurate result? The exam is required to be conducted without hearing aids under 38 CFR 4.85(a), so this isn’t optional. The audiologist tests your unaided hearing on purpose, since the rating schedule measures the underlying impairment, not how well a device compensates for it.
Does tinnitus have to be caused by hearing loss to be rated separately? No. Tinnitus can be rated on its own even if a hearing loss claim is denied or rated at 0 percent, and a separate tinnitus evaluation can generally be combined with most other ear-condition ratings. Check the specific diagnostic code notes if you’re claiming tinnitus alongside a related ear condition, since a small number of codes already account for tinnitus within their own criteria.
