Reference & AI
Military Money Guides
Written from active dutyThe decisions behind the calculators. PCS moves, deployment pay, and retirement elections, explained in plain English by someone who lives them.
Reviewed by Guilherme Correia, active-duty U.S. Air Force
Our calculators give you the number. These guides give you the decision. Should you do a PPM? How do you capture every dollar on a deployment? Should you take the BRS lump sum? They’re written from inside the military, not from a corporate desk, and every figure traces to an official 2026 source. No fluff, no "10 money tips," just the real math and the gotchas nobody warns you about.
Showing the 7 guides that cite SBP Calculator. See all guides
Guides for the SBP Calculator
7 publishedRetirement & Transition
The Survivor Benefit Plan: The Retirement Decision Nobody Prepares You For
Your military pension stops the day you die. The Survivor Benefit Plan is the one chance you get to keep part of it flowing to your spouse, and you decide at retirement, often without much warning.
7 min readRetirement & Transition
SGLI After Retirement: 120 Free Days, Then VGLI Priced by Your Age
Retiring does not let you keep SGLI. It runs free for 120 days after your retirement date and then stops. What replaces it is VGLI, and at the ages people retire from the military its premium climbs every five years. Here is the timeline, the premium table, and what $500,000.00 of VGLI costs against a 20-year retired check by grade.
6 min readRetirement & Transition
Marschner v. Marschner: The Supreme Court Will Decide Whether a Divorce Deal Can Make a Veteran Repay a VA Waiver
On October 1, 2026 the Supreme Court agreed to hear No. 25-1349, a North Dakota divorce in which the veteran promised to make up any retired pay his former spouse lost to a VA waiver. The question is whether Howell v. Howell (2017) voids that promise. Here is what is decided, what is not, and what a waiver costs a former spouse at each grade.
7 min readRetirement & Transition
TRICARE For Life at 65: You Must Take Medicare Part B to Keep TRICARE, What It Costs in 2026, and the Sign-Up Window TRICARE Sets
TRICARE For Life has no enrollment form and no enrollment fee, but it only exists once you hold Medicare Part A and Part B. Skip Part B at 65 and TRICARE ends, except for prescriptions at a military pharmacy. Here is the rule in the statute, the 2026 Part B premium by income, the penalty for signing up late, and the sign-up window TRICARE's own brochure gives.
9 min readFamily & Spouse
SGLI and the $500,000 Decision You Make When You Get Out
While you serve, you have up to half a million dollars of life insurance you barely think about. When you separate, you get one short window to keep it, and missing it can cost your family the coverage entirely.
6 min readVeterans Benefits
2027 VA Disability Rates: The Increase Is 3.6%, and One Thing Is Still Missing
The percentage behind the 2027 VA disability rates is now fixed: the September CPI-W, published October 14, 2026, puts the cost of living adjustment at 3.6%, the same figure Social Security announced that morning. What is still missing is the law: the bill that carries the increase to disability compensation has not passed. Here is every rating at 3.6%, alone and with a spouse, and what has to happen before it is paid.
6 min readRetirement & Transition
The 2027 COLA Is 3.6%: September CPI-W Closes the Formula for Retired Pay, SBP and VA Compensation
BLS published the September Consumer Price Index on October 14, 2026, the last of the three months that set next year's cost of living adjustment for military retired pay, SBP annuities and VA compensation. The arithmetic is now closed: the 2027 COLA is 3.6%, and Social Security announced the same figure the same morning. Here is the calculation, what it is worth by retired grade, and the one piece still missing on the VA side.
8 min readHow these guides are sourced
Every figure comes from a primary 2026 source: the Joint Travel Regulations, DoD Financial Management Regulation, DFAS pay tables, IRS publications, or U.S. Code. Each guide lists exactly which. Worked examples are clearly labeled illustrations, never real-person claims. Read more about our research methodology and update cadence.
REF: Military Toolkit Guides, effective 2026
Official 2026 DoD, DFAS, DTMO, IRS, and VA sources
Results are estimates. Always verify with your finance office.
Reviewed by Guilherme Correia · Military Toolkit editorial