2027 VA Disability Rates Projection: COLA Announced at 3.6%

Final (October 14, 2026): The 2027 COLA is 3.6%. September 2026 CPI-W came in at 330.654, which put the third-quarter average at 328.746. SSA announced the 3.6% figure the same day. Read the full 2027 VA COLA announcement for estimated pay by rating, when the first higher payment arrives, and the status of the VA adjustment in Congress. For every rating with a spouse, children or parents, see the estimated 2027 VA disability pay chart. The tables below now use the final percentage. The scenario analysis further down is summarized from the September 3 version.

For payments in effect today, use the official 2026 VA disability rate tables. You can also estimate your current compensation with the VA disability calculator or compare the 2025 historical rates.

Estimated 2027 VA pay at 3.6%

Each estimate increases the complete official 2026 VA table cell by 3.6% (× 1.036) and rounds to cents. VA's published 2027 table may differ by up to about 35 cents, and by up to about $2 for some dependent amounts, because of its own rounding. How we estimate.

Need a spouse, children or parents? See the full 2027 VA disability pay chart with dependents.

How the 2027 COLA formula works

The Social Security Administration compares the average Consumer Price Index for Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Workers (CPI-W) for July, August, and September 2026 with the same three-month average for 2025. It uses the not-seasonally-adjusted CPI-W series CWUR0000SA0, not CPI-U and not a seasonally adjusted index.

The 2025 comparison months were:

For 2026, the three months were July 327.104, August 328.481, and September 330.654:

1. Current average: (327.104 + 328.481 + 330.654) ÷ 3 = 328.746 (rounded to three decimals).
2. Percentage change: ((328.746 − 317.265) ÷ 317.265) × 100 ≈ 3.62%.
3. COLA: rounded to the nearest one-tenth of one percent, 3.6%.

July’s CPI-W was 3.4% higher than July 2025. That 3.4% year-over-year reading was not the COLA because it does not include August or September and does not compare the two full third-quarter averages.

What the September 3 scenarios assumed

These were the planning cases before August and September data existed. All three came in below the final 3.6%. On September 27, with August known, we calculated that September CPI-W would need to reach about 329.047 for a 3.5% COLA; it came in at 330.654.

• 3.1% flat carry-forward: August and September both equal July’s 327.104 reading, producing a Q3 average of 327.104.
• 3.2% recent monthly pace: the roughly 0.057% geometric monthly pace from April through July continues, producing a Q3 average of 327.292.
• 3.4% 12-month monthly pace: the roughly 0.279% geometric monthly pace from July 2025 through July 2026 continues, producing a Q3 average of 328.017.

These are published-data exercises, not economic forecasts. For context only, the 2026 Social Security Trustees intermediate assumptions use a 2.7% assumption for the COLA effective in December 2026 and payable in January 2027. That long-range assumption is not a current official forecast and does not replace the third-quarter calculation.

How to read the projected payment amounts

The veteran-alone chart starts with each complete cell in VA’s official 2026 compensation table. The veteran-with-spouse-and-one-child table does the same for each complete cell. Each baseline is multiplied by 1.036 and rounded to cents.

That method avoids reconstructing dependent totals from separately rounded additions. It still cannot reproduce unpublished VA rates. Once the adjustment is enacted and VA publishes its table, individual cells may differ by up to about 35 cents, and by up to about $2 for some dependent amounts because of the statutory and agency rounding used to build the official schedule.

The estimates cover standard disability compensation only. They do not attempt to project Special Monthly Compensation or every dependent combination. Your combined rating also does not change because of a COLA; see the rating-level guides for how VA percentages work.

Milestones

The VA adjustment still requires law

Social Security’s COLA calculation does not, by itself, publish a new VA disability compensation table. Congress has historically enacted legislation applying the Social Security percentage to VA compensation.

As of October 14, 2026, S. 4487 and H.R. 8552 were still pending and had not passed either chamber. This page therefore frames every payment figure conditionally: what the compensation amounts could be if Congress applies the 3.6% percentage and VA publishes matching rates.

What happens next

The 2027 VA disability pay chart now shows estimates for every rating and dependent combination. Once the VA adjustment is enacted and VA publishes its complete table, we will replace those estimates with the official amounts on that page. This article will remain as the dated calculation and announcement history.

For the expected effective date and first payment timing, see the 2027 VA COLA announcement.

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