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Custom Military Honor Coins
An honor coin is the coin a leader presents one at a time. Your unit challenge coin proves membership. A military honor coin marks a completed deployment, a promotion, or another moment worth marking. Commanders and first sergeants keep a stack on hand so they can coin someone when the work is done. The coin lives in a pocket or a shadow box.
Honor coins are military recognition coins built for that handshake. A unit coin can go to everyone who wears the patch. An honor coin goes to one person. Put the reason on the metal: dates and theater for a deployment, rank and unit for a promotion. We make custom honor coins so the person holding it can read the occasion without anyone explaining it.
What It Means to Be Coined
To be coined in the military is to have a leader shake your hand and press a coin into your palm. It usually happens on the spot, for a job well done. The commander was carrying the coin and used it. That handshake is the award.
People keep honor coins in a pocket, then in a shadow box with the rest of a career. Die-struck brass or steel, with enamel that still reads decades later, is what we strike for this kind of award. Put the unit and the occasion on the coin so the story stays with it. The history of challenge coins is where that habit started.
When Commanders Present Honor Coins
Honor coins come out at the occasions below.
- Graduation from basic training or a service academy: a coin as the new service member leaves the schoolhouse.
- Completing a deployment or a successful mission: a coin for the people who finished the work.
- Promotions: given when someone puts on new rank.
- Reenlistments: given when someone signs another term.
- Change of command: outgoing and incoming leaders coin the people who carried the unit.
- Unit anniversaries and military balls: a coin for the people in the room.
- Honor flights and Veterans Day or Memorial Day ceremonies: a coin for veterans and families at the event.
A retiring service member should leave with a coin that lists the career. We make retirement coins for that last handshake, struck with years of service and rank. Order them alongside your promotion and reenlistment coins so the finish matches across the set.
Coins Built Around Core Values
Many honor coins carry the words a unit already uses. Honor and courage coins put those words on the rim, where they read as the coin turns. Honor and sacrifice coins do the same. Beverly Hills Police ordered a motor officer coin ringed with Integrity, Courage, Commitment, Respect, and Honor. We placed the department’s own list on the edge.
The Herrmann fire company coin uses the same idea, with a brass nozzle and Honor on the legend next to Integrity and Respect. A values coin can go across a whole unit or department. One design, one run, presented whenever a leader sees the standard met. Engrave a name or a number on the back when the handshake is for one person.
Honor Coins for Police, Fire, and the Companies That Hire Veterans
Police departments and fire companies order honor coins the same way a battalion does. Westchester’s Finest came to us for a 1974-2024 fiftieth-anniversary coin in black nickel and blue enamel. That run marked fifty years on the job. We make police challenge coins for precincts and academies, and firefighter coins for fire companies.
Companies that hire veterans order corporate challenge coins for their shops and offices. Steelcase Salutes, for veteran employees, reads Honor Above All and Service Beyond Self. The United States Merchant Marine Academy ordered a coin presented by the Deputy Superintendent with Respect, Honor, Service on the legend. Families and veteran-program leads also order veteran challenge coins, including a veteran honor coin and thank you for your service coins that read Honoring All Who Served.
Designing Your Honor Coin
Most honor coins put the unit seal or the occasion on the front, and a motto or dates on the back. We engrave names or numbers on the reverse so one design covers a whole cycle of presentations. Antique gold, antique silver, black nickel, and dual plating suit a formal award. Soft enamel or hard enamel fills the color. Add an epoxy dome for a glossy face.
3D challenge coins raise rank insignia or a ship off the field. Cut-to-shape coins follow a badge or a unit emblem. Rope or reeded edges finish the rim. We die-strike in brass. The custom minimum is 50 coins, and the per-coin price drops as quantity goes up. For one coin or a run under 50, use the no-minimum custom coin builder.
Why Order From Signature Coins
Signature Coins has made military challenge coins and custom honor coins for 26 years. Send the unit crest and any photos on hand. We return a proof within 24 to 48 hours and revise it until you sign off. After you approve the proof, we strike the run. You deal with one company from artwork through delivery.
- Free artwork and quote
- Free unlimited revisions
- Free shipping
- 3–4 weeks of production once the proof is approved
- 100% satisfaction guarantee
Call +1-800-953-3607 to start a proof.
From Your Vision to a Finished Masterpiece
Don't touch a pixel. Our award-winning design team handles everything, you just share your idea and approve the proof.
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Challenge Coin Pricing
Color on Both Sides (Up to 7 Colors per Side)
| Size | 50 | 100 | 300 | 500 | 1,000 | 2,000 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1.5" | $6.69 | $4.06 | $3.59 | $3.50 | $3.42 | $3.35 |
| 1.75" | $7.57 | $4.62 | $4.14 | $4.09 | $4.04 | $3.98 |
| 2" | $8.44 | $5.13 | $4.76 | $4.69 | $4.64 | $4.57 |
| 2.25" | $9.18 | $5.81 | $5.40 | $5.33 | $5.25 | $5.18 |
| 2.5" | $10.31 | $6.90 | $6.48 | $6.34 | $6.33 | $6.28 |
| 2.75" | $11.40 | $7.57 | $7.20 | $6.92 | $6.74 | $6.68 |
| 3" | $12.64 | $8.24 | $7.89 | $7.44 | $7.18 | $7.10 |
Color on One Side (Up to 7 Colors)
| Size | 50 | 100 | 300 | 500 | 1,000 | 2,000 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1.5" | $6.32 | $3.82 | $3.29 | $3.23 | $3.17 | $3.12 |
| 1.75" | $7.02 | $4.20 | $3.77 | $3.71 | $3.62 | $3.57 |
| 2" | $7.68 | $4.73 | $4.25 | $4.18 | $4.09 | $4.04 |
| 2.25" | $8.66 | $5.57 | $5.07 | $5.03 | $4.97 | $4.91 |
| 2.5" | $9.89 | $6.80 | $6.28 | $5.67 | $5.27 | $5.21 |
| 2.75" | $10.77 | $7.34 | $6.95 | $6.50 | $6.19 | $6.14 |
| 3" | $11.95 | $7.75 | $7.63 | $7.32 | $7.10 | $7.04 |
No Color (Metal Only)
| Size | 50 | 100 | 300 | 500 | 1,000 | 2,000 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1.5" | $5.83 | $3.58 | $3.03 | $2.96 | $2.89 | $2.84 |
| 1.75" | $6.44 | $3.89 | $3.38 | $3.29 | $3.26 | $3.19 |
| 2" | $6.98 | $4.24 | $3.71 | $3.59 | $3.55 | $3.48 |
| 2.25" | $8.25 | $5.27 | $4.44 | $4.20 | $4.13 | $4.07 |
| 2.5" | $8.72 | $5.97 | $4.77 | $4.72 | $4.52 | $4.47 |
| 2.75" | $9.94 | $6.80 | $6.14 | $5.86 | $5.60 | $5.54 |
| 3" | $11.04 | $7.65 | $7.51 | $7.05 | $6.65 | $6.60 |
Mold Setup Fees
| Size | One Side | Two Sides | Order 300+ |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1.5" | $50.00 | $100.00 | FREE |
| 1.75" | $62.50 | $125.00 | FREE |
| 2" | $75.00 | $150.00 | FREE |
| 2.25" | $87.50 | $175.00 | FREE |
| 2.5" | $100.00 | $200.00 | FREE |
| 2.75" | $112.50 | $225.00 | - |
| 3" | $125.00 | $250.00 | - |
Custom Coin Customer Reviews
Frequently Asked Questions
A military honor coin is a custom challenge coin a leader gives to one recipient for a specific act or milestone. Leaders use it for finishing a tour or making rank. It is carried in a pocket for the rest of a career. Military honor coins differ from a unit’s everyday challenge coin because the presentation is individual and tied to a reason. See real examples on our military honor coins page. Custom honor coins start at 50 per run, and the per-coin price drops as quantity increases.
Read more in our Help CenterTo be coined in the military means a commander or first sergeant gives you a coin during a handshake, usually immediately after the work that earned it. The coin is a personal award from that leader, and it goes in a pocket rather than on a uniform. Later it often joins a display at home. Commanders carry honor coins so they can do this without waiting on a ceremony. When you order the run, include the unit and the reason so the recipient can show the coin and explain how they were coined.
Read more in our Help CenterCommanders and first sergeants present most military honor coins. Chiefs and department heads do the same in their shops. HR leads and veteran-program managers present them to employees who served. Family members order runs for honor flights and for Veterans Day or Memorial Day ceremonies. The presenter is usually the leader standing in front of the recipient. If you are ordering the coins, you can present them. We work with all of those buyers on runs of 50 or more.
Read more in our Help CenterAn honor coin should identify the unit and the reason it was given. Front: the unit seal or a piece of gear that belongs to the shop. Back: dates or a motto. Values such as honor and courage can ring the rim. If the coin is for one person, engrave the name or a roster number on the reverse. Choose a finish that looks like an award in indoor light: antique gold, antique silver, black nickel, or dual plating. We set all of this in the free artwork, with unlimited revisions before you approve the proof. See examples on our military honor coins page.
Read more in our Help CenterYes. We make honor coins for police departments, fire companies, corporate veteran programs, and military units. A department anniversary, a company coin for veteran employees, an academy coin presented by a deputy superintendent, and Thank You For Your Service pieces for families all come through the same process. Artwork is free. Proofs are ready within 24 to 48 hours. The custom minimum is 50, and the per-coin price drops with quantity. For fewer than 50, the no-minimum custom coin builder is available.
Read more in our Help Center
