Medals look like the simple part of an order and quietly carry the most choices. Taken in this order, none of them can trap you.
Buying guide
Medals, and
what to put on them
A medal is the cheapest award you will ever hand out and the one most likely to be kept. This is what the diameters actually suit, the difference between a struck medal and an insert medal, and the two decisions people leave until it is too late to change them.
β’
Diameters in millimetres
β’
Ribbons included
β’
Free engraving
25,000+
Products available
4,000+
Organisations served
40+
Years, since 1984
4.9β
From 2,300+ reviews
Before you order
Five decisions, in this order
01
How many, and for how many events?
Medals are almost always ordered for a whole season or carnival rather than one presentation. Counting every event now β including the ones three months away β is what gets you the quantity break and one consistent look across the year.
Settle first: the season, not the next event
02
Struck, or insert?
A struck medal carries your design in the metal itself and suits an event that repeats every year. An insert medal takes a printed 25mm or 50mm centre, which is cheaper, faster and lets one medal body cover twenty different sports.
Settle first: one design, or many
03
What diameter?
Diameter is felt more than it is seen. A 50mm medal reads as a participation award; 65mm and up reads as a placing. Weight matters as much as width β a thin, wide medal feels cheaper than a smaller, denser one.
Settle first: participation, placing, or both
04
Which ribbon?
Ribbon is the colour people actually notice. Club colours, event colours, or the traditional gold, silver and bronze split. Widths are standard, so it is a colour decision rather than a technical one.
Settle first: club colours or placing colours
05
What goes on the back?
The reverse is flat, free to engrave, and almost always left blank. A name, an event and a year on the back turns a generic medal into the one that stays in a drawer for thirty years.
Settle first: whether the back is engraved
The types
Struck, insert and printed medals
Three ways to get your design onto a medal. The right one depends on how many designs you need and how often they change.
45β50mm
55β60mm
65β70mm
Struck
Insert
Medal types compared
Type
Best for
Design freedom
Reordering
Price band
Insert medal (25mm or 50mm centre)
Multi-sport clubs, schools, carnivals
Full colour, changes every year
Same body, new centres
TBC
Jade glass
A single event that repeats annually
Your design in the metal
Runs from the same die
TBC
Printed or domed medal
Fun runs, participation days, sponsors
Full colour, edge to edge
Reprint any time
TBC
Placing medal set (gold / silver / bronze)
Carnivals, athletics, championships
Finish carries the placing
Held stock, quick to top up
TBC
Insert medals are what most multi-sport clubs should be buying: one medal body, a different printed centre per sport, and one quantity break across the lot. Quantity pricing applies at 25+ (6% off), 50+ (12%) and 100+ (24%).
The part people notice
Ribbons do more
work than the medal
01
Club colours
The strongest choice for a season-long award. Every medal reads as yours from across the room, whatever the sport or the placing.
02
Placing colours
Gold, silver and bronze ribbon with matching medal finishes. Instantly legible at a carnival where results matter more than the club.
03
Event colours
One ribbon for a one-off β a centenary, a gala day, a fun run. It dates the medal in a way people like later.
The practical note
Ribbons are supplied attached unless you ask otherwise. If volunteers are handing out hundreds on the day, ask for them boxed by event rather than loose β it saves an hour at the table.
The free upgrade
The back of a medal is the whole point
01
Name, event, year
Three lines is all a reverse needs. It converts an anonymous medal into a record of a specific day, which is why the engraved ones survive house moves.
02
Engraving is free
There is no engraving charge on the reverse. The only cost is getting the list to us in one file with the spellings right.
03
Or leave it blank on purpose
For carnivals where results are decided on the day, blank reverses let you hand out from stock and engrave the placings afterwards.
What we need from you
One spreadsheet, one column per line of engraving, and one person nominated to approve the proof. WORDING EXAMPLES
Ordering a whole season
How clubs buy medals without paying twice
The single most common medal mistake is ordering per event. Here is what buying once looks like.
One
Count the season
Every event, every age group, plus 10% for late entries. One order, one quantity break, one look across the year.
Two
One body, many centres
Insert medals let a netball carnival and a swimming day share a medal body with different printed centres.
Three
Hold the ribbons separate
Buy ribbon by colour and attach as you go, so a change of sponsor or age group does not strand a box of medals.
Four
Keep the artwork on file
We hold your centre artwork and reverse layout, so next season is a reorder rather than a redesign.
Good to know
Medal questions
Do medals come with ribbons?
Yes, ribbons are included and attached unless you ask for them separately. Colour is your choice β club colours, placing colours or event colours.
What size medal should we order?
Most club and school medals sit between 50mm and 65mm. Under 50mm reads as a participation token; over 70mm starts to feel heavy on a ribbon around a childβs neck.
Can we put our logo on the medal itself?
On an insert medal your logo goes on the printed centre, in full colour, and can change every year. On a struck medal it is formed in the metal, which suits an event that repeats with the same design.
Is engraving the back extra?
No. Engraving is free; what it costs you is the list. Send names, events and the year in one file and we proof it before anything is cut.
Can we top up mid-season?
Yes, and it is the reason to keep the design on file. Top-ups run from your held artwork so a medal added in August matches the ones handed out in April.
How long do medals take?
Held stock with printed centres is the quickest route; struck medals need a die and are the longest. Tell us your first event date and the quote carries dated timings for your own order.
Next
Where people go from here
Australian trophy makers since 1984
Send us your season, not your next event
Give us the events, the age groups and the numbers. We will quote the season in one go so every medal matches and the quantity break works for you.