GI Bill Programs Compared: Which Benefit Should You Use?

There is no single "GI Bill." Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) education benefits are a set of programs, each with its own chapter of Title 38 of the United States Code and its own way of paying. The Post-9/11 GI Bill pillar covers the flagship program in depth; this page compares all of them.

Source: https://www.va.gov/education/benefit-rates/post-9-11-gi-bill-rates/ (effective August 1, 2026), https://www.va.gov/education/benefit-rates/montgomery-active-duty-rates/, https://www.va.gov/education/benefit-rates/montgomery-selected-reserve-rates/ and https://www.va.gov/education/benefit-rates/chapter-35-rates/ (effective October 1, 2025).

How many GI Bill programs are there? 3 carry the name (Chapters 33, 30 and 1606). The rest are related VA education programs with many of the same rules.

The Post-9/11 GI Bill is the program most veterans who served after 2001 use (full rules in the Post-9/11 GI Bill guide). You may be eligible if at least 1 of these is true:

• you served at least 90 days on active duty (all at once or with breaks) on or after September 11, 2001, or
• you received a Purple Heart on or after September 11, 2001 and were honorably discharged, or
• you served 30 continuous days after that date and were honorably discharged with a service-connected disability.

It pays 3 ways. Tuition and fees go to the school: all of it at a public in-state school, and up to $30,908.34 a year at a private or foreign school for August 1, 2026 through July 31, 2027. You get a Monthly Housing Allowance (MHA) based on the Basic Allowance for Housing (BAH) of an E-5 with dependents at the school's ZIP code, or up to $1,261 a month if you study only online. And you get up to $1,000 a year for books. Figures are from VA's Post-9/11 GI Bill rates page, effective August 1, 2026.

Your share depends on your active-duty time: 50% at 90 days, rising through 60%, 70%, 80% and 90% to 100% at 36 months, a Purple Heart, or 30 continuous days with a disability discharge. The Post-9/11 GI Bill full rates page has the day counts.

Watch out: You get no MHA if you are enrolled half time or less. For part-time study, the flat Montgomery payment can beat Post-9/11.

Two add-ons matter. The Yellow Ribbon Program lets a school cover part of the tuition above the private cap, and VA matches it, but only at the 100% tier (see the Yellow Ribbon Program guide). And after 6 years of service you may be able to move unused months to a spouse or child; the transfer of benefits guide has the rules.

Does the GI Bill expire? If you left active duty on or after January 1, 2013, your Post-9/11 months never expire, under the Forever GI Bill (the Harry W. Colmery Veterans Educational Assistance Act of 2017). If you left earlier, you have 15 years from your last separation.

The Montgomery GI Bill Active Duty (MGIB-AD) is the older program. In the most common category you paid $100 a month for your first 12 months of service to join. It pays you, not the school, a flat monthly amount for tuition, rent and everything else. You usually have 10 years after discharge to use it. Paying into the $600 Buy-Up program while serving raises the rate.

Source: https://www.va.gov/education/benefit-rates/montgomery-active-duty-rates/, effective October 1, 2025 through September 30, 2026.

The Montgomery GI Bill Selected Reserve (MGIB-SR) is for Guard and Reserve members with a 6-year Selected Reserve obligation. It pays up to 36 months at $493.00 a month full time ($246.00 half time) from October 1, 2025 through September 30, 2026, and generally ends when you leave the Selected Reserve.

Which GI Bill is better, Post-9/11 or Montgomery? For a full-time student at a public school, Post-9/11 usually pays more: tuition is covered, and the housing allowance alone often beats $2,518. MGIB-AD can win if your tuition is free (a state waiver, an employer plan) or you study half time. The Montgomery GI Bill overview works the math.

What is the difference between Chapter 30, 31, 33 and 35? Chapters 30 and 33 are the GI Bills for your own service. Chapter 31 is about work after a service-connected condition. Chapter 35 is for your family.

Veteran Readiness and Employment (VR&E, Chapter 31) is not a GI Bill. You may be eligible if you have a service-connected disability rating of at least 10% and a VA counselor finds the disability limits your ability to prepare for, get or keep suitable work. For discharges on or after January 1, 2013, the old 12-year window does not apply. VR&E pays training costs under a plan you build with the counselor, plus a subsistence allowance. You do not need GI Bill months to use it. The VR&E program guide and the GI Bill vs VR&E comparison explain how the 2 fit together.

Survivors' and Dependents' Educational Assistance (DEA, Chapter 35) pays a spouse or child a flat amount when the veteran is permanently and totally disabled from a service-connected disability, died from one, died in the line of duty, or is missing or captured for more than 90 days. It pays up to 36 months, at $1,574.00 a month full time from October 1, 2025 through September 30, 2026. See the DEA Chapter 35 benefits guide.

The Fry Scholarship is the Post-9/11 GI Bill for survivors of a member who died in the line of duty on or after September 11, 2001, for up to 36 months. A survivor eligible for both Fry and DEA can use only 1 at a time, capped together at 48 months. The Elizabeth Dole 21st Century Veterans Healthcare and Benefits Improvement Act removed the spouse time limit and temporarily widened Fry eligibility for terms starting on or after August 1, 2025 and before October 1, 2027.

VET TEC 2.0 pays for short technology courses if you served at least 36 months on active duty and are under 62. If you have GI Bill entitlement, VA charges 1 month per month of full-time training; if you have none, you can still enroll.

Can you use both the Montgomery and Post-9/11 GI Bill? Yes, within a cap. 38 U.S.C. 3695 says total assistance under 2 or more listed programs (Chapters 30, 33, 1606 and others) "may not exceed 48 months." Chapter 31 is the exception: VA can go past 48 months with VR&E when the extra months are needed to finish a rehabilitation plan.

For years VA read the rules so that a veteran who switched from MGIB-AD to Post-9/11 gave up the difference. On April 16, 2024 the Supreme Court rejected that reading in Rudisill v. McDonough. VA's Rudisill page says it applies if you have 2 periods of service, 1 qualifying for MGIB and 1 for Post-9/11, and a later case, Perkins, extends it to a single period with months that qualify for each. The combined cap is 48 months.

You do not have to file anything. VA says it will "automatically evaluate your file" and tell you if action is needed, and its old October 1, 2030 deadline "no longer applies." If you disagree with a review, a VA-accredited representative can help at no charge.

VA's check-your-benefits tool shows whether you have benefits left, how many months remain (your "remaining entitlement") and how much time you have to use them. The remaining benefits guide walks through the screen.

To apply, use the VA education application:

1. Pick the form. VA Form 22-1990 covers Post-9/11, MGIB-AD and MGIB-SR. VA Form 22-1990e is for a family member using transferred benefits. VA Form 22-5490 is for DEA and Fry. VA Form 28-1900 is for VR&E.
2. Apply online at VA.gov, by mail, or through an accredited Veterans Service Organization (VSO) representative.
3. Wait for the decision. VA reports an average of 30 days for education claims.
4. Give your Certificate of Eligibility (COE) to your school's certifying official, who reports your enrollment to VA.

Watch out: VA Form 22-1990 asks you to pick between MGIB-AD and Post-9/11. Compare them for your actual school first, and ask VA how Rudisill affects your months.

Which GI Bill am I eligible for, and which should I use? Find your row:

Source: VA program pages linked above, checked September 2026.

Most states add tuition waivers at public colleges for veterans, and some for their children and spouses. Some pay after your GI Bill runs out. Pick your state below or start at the state veteran benefits finder.

Check your months with VA's tool, then read the Post-9/11 GI Bill pillar or, if you have a rating, the VR&E program guide. Recent changes are on the education blog.