Military Service Branches With the Most Medal of Honor Recipients in Every War

The Medal of Honor is the highest level of recognition any man or woman in the U.S. military can receive. Under federal law, only those service members who distinguish themselves "through conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of life above and beyond the call of duty" are eligible recipients — and standing out in such a way is no easy feat, particularly in the company of hundreds of thousands of other Americans who are prepared to make the ultimate sacrifice in service of their country.

Key Points

• Since its inception in 1861, the Medal of Honor has been issued to fewer than 4,000 American service members.
• These recipients have distinguished themselves in virtually every conflict in the last 150 years, and have served in nearly every branch of the U.S. military.

The legislation that created the Medal of Honor was signed into law by President Abraham Lincoln in 1861, the first year of the Civil War. Since then, more than 40 million Americans have served in the military, but only 3,547 medals have been issued. Over half of all Medals of Honor ever awarded were issued in the 19th century to Americans who fought in the Civil War and the Indian Campaigns. By contrast, fewer than 1% of all Medals of Honor have been awarded in the 21st century. Partially as a result, there are only 61 Medal of Honor recipients alive today. (Here is a look at the 40 newest Medal of Honor recipients.)

While the Medal of Honor was initially created for members of the U.S. Navy, the candidate pool eventually expanded to include members of each service branch, including the U.S. Coast Guard. With the exception of the U.S. Space Force, which was formed in 2019, every military branch has counted some number of Medal of Honor recipients among its ranks.

Using data compiled by the National Medal of Honor Museum, 24/7 Wall St. identified the service branches with the most Medal of Honor recipients. We reviewed the number of medals awarded to members of each branch of the U.S. military for 18 different conflicts in which American service men and women were deployed, from the Civil War up through the War on Terrorism in both Afghanistan and Iraq. Conflicts are listed in chronological order, and for each, only service branches with at least one Medal of Honor recipient are listed. In some cases, Medals of Honor associated with a certain conflict may have been issued to troops outside of the conflict's date range as noted in this story. Medals of Honor issued for conduct in noncombat scenarios are not included in this story.

Among all military service branches, the U.S. Army has had the most Medal of Honor recipients. Since 1861, over 2,400 Medals of Honor have been issued to Army troops, more than four times the number of medals issued to members of the U.S. Navy, the branch with the second most recipients. It is no coincidence that the Army is also the largest service branch by total personnel, with over 443,000 active-duty service members as of mid-2024 — over 100,000 more than in any other branch.

It is also important to note that aerial combat did not emerge as a critical component of war-fighting until well into the 20th century. Since most Medals of Honor were issued in the 19th century, it is not surprising that the U.S. Air Force and its predecessors, the U.S. Army Air Service and U.S. Army Air Forces, have had fewer Medal of Honor recipients than the older service branches. (Here is a look at the states with the most Medal of Honor recipients.)

These are the service branches with the most Medal of Honor recipients.

The U.S. stands as the world's preeminent military power. Though much of America's military might is derived from our nearly $1 trillion defense budget and advanced weapons technology, none of that would have any value without the hundreds of thousands of active-duty service members who fill the ranks of every major branch of the U.S. military. While each of these men and women has made extraordinary sacrifices for their country, an elite few have distinguished themselves by risking everything to go above and beyond the call of duty, and have subsequently been recognized with the Medal of Honor, the most prestigious award issued in the U.S. military. Since the Civil War, the Medal of Honor has been issued to American troops in nearly every branch of the armed services.

• Service branch with the most Medal of Honor recipients: U.S. Army (1,200 medals awarded)
• Service branch with the second most Medal of Honor recipients: U.S. Navy (307 medals awarded)
• Service branch with the third most Medal of Honor recipients: U.S. Marine Corps (17 medals awarded)

• Service branch with the most Medal of Honor recipients: U.S. Army (426 medals awarded)

• Service branch with the most Medal of Honor recipients: U.S. Navy (9 medals awarded)
• Service branch with the second most Medal of Honor recipients: U.S. Marine Corps (6 medals awarded)

• Service branch with the most Medal of Honor recipients: U.S. Navy (64 medals awarded)
• Service branch with the second most Medal of Honor recipients: U.S. Army (31 medals awarded)
• Service branch with the third most Medal of Honor recipients: U.S. Marine Corps (15 medals awarded)

• Service branch with the most Medal of Honor recipients: U.S. Army (72 medals awarded)
• Service branch with the second most Medal of Honor recipients: U.S. Navy (10 medals awarded)
• Service branch with the third most Medal of Honor recipients: U.S. Marine Corps (6 medals awarded)

• Service branch with the most Medal of Honor recipients: U.S. Marine Corps (3 medals awarded)
• Service branch with the second most Medal of Honor recipients: U.S. Navy (1 medal awarded)

• Service branch with the most Medal of Honor recipients: U.S. Marine Corps (33 medals awarded)
• Service branch with the second most Medal of Honor recipients: U.S. Navy (22 medals awarded)
• Service branch with the third most Medal of Honor recipients: U.S. Army (4 medals awarded)

• Service branch with the most Medal of Honor recipients: U.S. Army (89 medals awarded)
• Service branch with the second most Medal of Honor recipients: U.S. Navy (21 medals awarded)
• Service branch with the third most Medal of Honor recipients: U.S. Marine Corps (13 medals awarded)
• Service branch with the fourth most Medal of Honor recipients: U.S. Army Air Service (4 medals awarded)

• Service branch with the most Medal of Honor recipients: U.S. Navy (46 medals awarded)
• Service branch with the second most Medal of Honor recipients: U.S. Marine Corps (9 medals awarded)
• Service branch with the third most Medal of Honor recipients: U.S. Army (1 medal awarded)

• Service branch with the most Medal of Honor recipients: U.S. Marine Corps (8 medals awarded)

• Service branch with the most Medal of Honor recipients: U.S. Marine Corps (3 medals awarded)

• Service branch with the most Medal of Honor recipients: U.S. Marine Corps (2 medals awarded)

• Service branch with the most Medal of Honor recipients: U.S. Army (293 medals awarded)
• Service branch with the second most Medal of Honor recipients: U.S. Marine Corps (82 medals awarded)
• Service branch with the third most Medal of Honor recipients: U.S. Navy (57 medals awarded)
• Service branch with the fourth most Medal of Honor recipients: U.S. Army Air Force (38 medals awarded)
• Service branch with the fifth most Medal of Honor recipients: U.S. Coast Guard (1 medal awarded)

• Service branch with the most Medal of Honor recipients: U.S. Army (97 medals awarded)
• Service branch with the second most Medal of Honor recipients: U.S. Marine Corps (42 medals awarded)
• Service branch with the third most Medal of Honor recipients: U.S. Navy (7 medals awarded)
• Service branch with the fourth most Medal of Honor recipients: U.S. Air Force (4 medals awarded)

• Service branch with the most Medal of Honor recipients: U.S. Army (182 medals awarded)
• Service branch with the second most Medal of Honor recipients: U.S. Marine Corps (58 medals awarded)
• Service branch with the third most Medal of Honor recipients: U.S. Navy (16 medals awarded)
• Service branch with the fourth most Medal of Honor recipients: U.S. Air Force (14 medals awarded)

• Service branch with the most Medal of Honor recipients: U.S. Army (2 medals awarded)

• Service branch with the most Medal of Honor recipients: U.S. Army (14 medals awarded)
• Service branch with the second most Medal of Honor recipients: U.S. Navy (3 medals awarded)
• Service branch with the third most Medal of Honor recipients: U.S. Marine Corps (2 medals awarded)
• Service branch with the fourth most Medal of Honor recipients: U.S. Air Force (1 medal awarded)

• Service branch with the most Medal of Honor recipients: U.S. Army (6 medals awarded)
• Service branch with the second most Medal of Honor recipients: U.S. Navy and U.S. Marine Corps (1 medal awarded in each branch)

• Service branch with the most Medal of Honor recipients: U.S. Army (2,417 medals awarded)
• Service branch with the second most Medal of Honor recipients: U.S. Navy (564 medals awarded)
• Service branch with the third most Medal of Honor recipients: U.S. Marine Corps (300 medals awarded)
• Service branch with the fourth most Medal of Honor recipients: U.S. Army Air Force (38 medals awarded)
• Service branch with the fifth most Medal of Honor recipients: U.S. Air Force (19 medals awarded)
• Service branch with the sixth most Medal of Honor recipients: U.S. Army Air Service (4 medals awarded)
• Service branch with the seventh most Medal of Honor recipients: U.S. Coast Guard (1 medal awarded)