After twenty or thirty years, you get one afternoon. The flag, the citation, the people who showed up, and a uniform you may never put on again.
So it is worth getting the medals right. Fortunately, the rules are simpler than most people expect, and this guide walks through them in a few minutes.
Quick Answer: A military retirement ceremony is a full dress occasion, so you wear full-size medals rather than ribbons. Awards that exist only as a ribbon still appear, usually as a small ribbon bar worn alongside. Order four to six weeks ahead, because commands set the date early and mounting takes time.
Full-Size Medals, Not Ribbons
Retirement ceremonies call for the ceremonial version of your service’s dress uniform, which means the hanging metal medals rather than the flat ribbon bars you wore every day.
Each branch names that uniform differently.
| Branch | Uniform | What you wear |
| Army | Army Service Uniform, dress configuration | Full-size medals |
| Navy | Full Dress Blue or Full Dress White | Full-size medals |
| Marine Corps | Blue Dress “A” | Full-size medals |
| Air Force and Space Force | Service Dress, ceremonial | Full-size medals |
| Coast Guard | Full Dress Blue | Full-size medals |
Notice the Marine Corps distinction in particular. Blue Dress “A” carries large medals, while Blue Dress “B” carries ribbons instead. One letter separates them, and people mix them up constantly.
If your invitation or your unit specifies something different, you can follow those.
What About Awards With No Medal?
Not every award comes with a medal. Several exist only as a ribbon, and those still belong on your uniform.
The usual practice is to wear those ribbon-only awards as a small separate bar, worn alongside the medals rather than replacing them. In the Navy, some of them move to the right chest. Consequently, your medal display is often shorter than the ribbon rack you wore last week, and nothing is missing.
Check your own branch regulation, or ask your personnel office, because placement rules differ between services.
Order Four to Six Weeks Ahead
Commands set retirement dates months in advance, yet most people order the medals last. Please do not leave it to the final week.
Four to six weeks gives you room to confirm your award list, order what you are missing, and fix anything that arrives wrong. Rush shipping solves a late order, admittedly, but it cannot solve a device you notice missing the night before.
Start with your record. If you have a draft DD Form 214, block 13 lists your decorations, medals, badges, and campaign ribbons. Otherwise, your personnel office can pull the list for you.
Then count your devices carefully. Oak leaf clusters, service stars, and clasps all have to be right, and they are the single most common thing people get wrong. Our order of precedence guides cover the sequence for each branch.
Five Mistakes Worth Avoiding
Wearing ribbons instead of medals. This is the most frequent one. Retirement is a full dress occasion, so the medals come out.
Getting the order of precedence wrong. Your medals follow the same sequence as your ribbons. A ceremony event does not change the sequence.
Forgetting devices. A Good Conduct Medal with three clasps is not the same as a bare one. Similarly, campaign stars matter.
Mounting them yourself the night before. Medals need to hang level and evenly spaced. Rushed mounting shows in every photograph.
Assuming your old rack still fits. Awards accumulate near the end of a career. Check the list rather than reusing what you wore five years ago.
A Note for Family and Guests
Families often ask us what they should wear. Generally, business attire is right for civilian guests, and nobody expects anything more formal than that.
If a family member also serves, they wear their own service dress uniform, not the retiree’s. Meanwhile, spouses and children wear no medals at all. Those belong to the person being honored.
One thing is worth planning early, though. Many families frame the medals afterwards in a shadow box, alongside the flag and the certificate. If that appeals to you, order a second set now, because a mounted rack looks far better in a case than a loose handful of medals.
Build Your Rack Before the Date
Once you know your award list, mounting should be the easy part.
Our ribbon rack builder arranges everything in the correct order of precedence for your branch and handles devices for you. Furthermore, you can browse by branch: Army, Navy, Air Force, Marine Corps, Coast Guard, and Space Force. Our full range of military medals is there as well.
Not sure whether your event calls for full-size or miniature medals? Our guides to mini medals versus full-size and what to wear to mess dress cover the other occasions.
Use code STR2025 for 10% off your order.
Built in the USA
We make every ribbon and rack right here in the United States, ready to wear.
Super Thin Ribbons is a U.S.-based company, headquartered at 1602 Loop 11, Wichita Falls, Texas 76306. You can reach our team directly at 940-851-6220 or sa***@**************ns.com.
If your ceremony is coming up and you are unsure about anything, please call. We would far rather help you sort it out now than have you notice a problem in the photographs afterwards.
Frequently Asked Questions
Full-size medals. Retirement is a full dress occasion, so the ceremonial uniform and the hanging medals are correct.
The ceremonial dress uniform for your branch, such as Full Dress Blue in the Navy or Blue Dress “A” in the Marine Corps, unless your command specifies otherwise.
They still appear, worn as a separate ribbon bar alongside the medals. In the Navy, some move to the right breast.
Four to six weeks. That leaves time to confirm your award list, order anything missing, and correct mistakes without rushing.
Retired members may wear the uniform at ceremonies and similar occasions, subject to their branch’s rules. Check your service regulation for the specifics.
Thank you for your service. Thirty years is most of a working life, and the people in that room will be there because of what those years meant to them. We would be honored to help you wear the record of it properly.