Ribbon

For the Ribbons in the Pokémon Mystery Dungeon series, see Sun Ribbon and Lunar Ribbon.

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Brendan awarding Torchic an Effort Ribbon

A Ribbon (Japanese: リボン Ribbon) is a special item that can be awarded to a Pokémon for a variety of reasons. In the core series, Ribbons stay on a Pokémon permanently even across generations and can be checked on the summary screen in most games.

In the core series games

Ribbons were first introduced in Generation III. In Generation III, the large majority were obtained by competing in and winning Pokémon Contests, but in later generations, a larger variety of Ribbons have been added. Besides competing in Contests, some Ribbons are awarded for conquering special battle facilities like the Battle Tower, others are obtainable from various NPCs in-game, and some are only distributed on event Pokémon. In Generation III, Ribbons also had no names, they only had unique icons and descriptions.

In the Generation V games, there are no ways to earn any Ribbons in-game, but Pokémon distributed through events could have Ribbons, and Pokémon transferred from a previous generation also retained their Ribbons.

Prior to Generation VI, Ribbons were only added (and a few changed), and if a Pokémon had Ribbons and was transferred to a later generation, all of its Ribbons would be retained and could be viewed on its status screen. Generation VI, however, reduced the total number of Ribbons from 80 to 46 (48 counting different versions of the Contest/Battle Memory Ribbons) by consolidating the Contest and Tower Ribbons from previous generations. If a Pokémon with Contest or Tower Ribbons is transferred from Generation V to VI or VII through Poké Transporter, all of its Contest and Tower Ribbons are replaced by a Contest Memory Ribbon or a Battle Memory Ribbon.

Ribbons are not present in Pokémon: Let's Go, Pikachu! and Let's Go, Eevee!.

In Pokémon Sword and Shield, as well as Pokémon Scarlet and Violet, any single Ribbon that a Pokémon has earned can be equipped to it. When sent into battle (except when Pokémon from different Trainers are sent out simultaneously during a Multi Battle), the Pokémon will have a special title added after their name based on the Ribbon that is equipped.

Checking Ribbons

Since Generation IV, a Pokémon's Ribbons can be viewed in a designated page on its summary screen, but in Generation III, Ribbons could only be viewed on the PokéNav in Pokémon Ruby, Sapphire, and Emerald and could not be viewed at all in Pokémon FireRed and LeafGreen (though the data would still be safely retained if a Pokémon had any Ribbons). In Generation V, the summary screen normally has only two pages, but a third page for ribbons will appear if a Pokémon has any. In Pokémon HOME, the list of Ribbons cannot be seen in the Nintendo Switch version, but it can be seen in the mobile version by scrolling down beneath the met data.

Game Boy Advance

RSE

Nintendo GameCube

Colo

Nintendo DS

DPPt	HGSS	BW	B2	W2

Nintendo 3DS

XY	ORAS	SM	USUM

Mobile

HOME

Nintendo Switch

SwSh	BDSP
Scarlet	Violet
Kitakami	Blueberry Academy

Categories

The Generation V games introduced categories for the Ribbons, dividing them into League, Contest, Tower, Memorial, and Gift Ribbons.

League Ribbons

Main article: List of Ribbons in the games → League Ribbons

League Ribbons (Japanese: リーグリボン League Ribbons) are awarded to every Pokémon in the player's current party when they enter the Hall of Fame in most games. Different Ribbons are awarded for this in Generation III, in Pokémon Diamond, Pearl, and Platinum, in Pokémon X and Y, in Pokémon Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire, in Pokémon Sun, Moon, Ultra Sun, and Ultra Moon, in Pokémon Sword and Shield, and in Pokémon Scarlet and Violet. All of these Ribbons are retained if a Pokémon that has them is transferred to a later generation.

Contest Ribbons

Main article: List of Ribbons in the games → Contest Ribbons

Contest Ribbons (Japanese: コンテストリボン Contest Ribbons) are awarded to the winning Pokémon in Pokémon Contests or Pokémon Super Contests. Different Ribbons are awarded for each of the five different Contest categories. In Generations III and IV, different Ribbons are also awarded for each of the four different ranks therein, but in Generation VI, a Ribbon is only earned after winning a Master Rank Contest. A Ribbon for winning all Master Rank Contests is also granted in Generation VI.

Any Contest Ribbons obtained in Generation III are retained if a Pokémon that has them is transferred to Generation IV or Generation V, and any Contest Ribbons earned in Generation IV are retained into Generation V, but if a Pokémon with any Contest Ribbons is transferred from Generation V to Generation VI through Poké Transporter, the Ribbons will be consolidated into a Contest Memory Ribbon.

Contest Ribbons are the only type of Ribbons found in the games to be featured in the anime.

Tower Ribbons

Main article: List of Ribbons in the games → Tower Ribbons

Tower Ribbons (Japanese: タワーリボン Tower Ribbons) are awarded to Pokémon that have been used to conquer various challenges in certain battle facilities.

• In Generation III, the facility is the Battle Tower located in an island in Hoenn's southeastern sea, only accessible by boat.
• In Generation IV, the facility is the Battle Tower located north of Fight Area in Sinnoh or west of Olivine City in Johto.
• In Generation VI, the facility is the Battle Maison located in Kiloude City in Kalos or in the Battle Resort in Hoenn.
• In Generation VII, the facility is the Battle Tree located in Poni Island in Alola.

In the Generation III Battle Tower in Pokémon Ruby, Sapphire, and Emerald, two Ribbons are awarded for clearing the Level 50 Battle Tower and the Level 100^RS/Open Level^E Battle Tower. Ribbons are awarded to party Pokémon upon completion of the eighth consecutive Battle Tower challenge (defeating 56 Trainers in a row) and for completion of any challenge thereafter if a Pokémon does not already have a Ribbon.

In the Generation IV Battle Tower, one Ribbon is awarded for defeating Palmer the first time in a challenge, and one for defeating him the second time. Three additional Ribbons are rewarded for winning 50 times in a row in Double Battles, Multi Battles against the CPU, or Multi Battles with someone, and another Ribbon is awarded for reaching Rank 5 in the Wi-Fi mode.

In Generation VI, two Ribbons are rewarded for defeating a Battle Chatelaine in either a normal battle or a super battle at the Battle Maison. In Generation VII, two Ribbons are awarded for winning against a Battle Legend in the Battle Tree.

Any Tower Ribbons obtained in Generation III are retained if a Pokémon that has them is transferred to Generation IV or Generation V, and any Tower Ribbons earned in Generation IV are retained into Generation V, but if a Pokémon with any Tower Ribbons is transferred from Generation V to Generation VI through Poké Transporter, the Ribbons will be consolidated into a Battle Memory Ribbon.

Memorial Ribbons

Main article: List of Ribbons in the games → Memorial Ribbons

Memorial Ribbons (Japanese: メモリーリボン Memory Ribbons) are usually awarded for an in-game achievement, but some require nothing more than talking to the correct NPC at the correct time. They are often awarded only to the first Pokémon in the player's party, but some are awarded to all members of the player's party.

Gift Ribbons

Main article: List of Ribbons in the games → Gift Ribbons

Gift Ribbons (Japanese: プレゼントリボン Present Ribbons), in contrast to all other types, cannot be obtained in-game in core series Pokémon games. Most are found on event Pokémon. The National Ribbon and the Earth Ribbon can be earned in Pokémon Colosseum and Pokémon XD: Gale of Darkness.

Some Gift Ribbons prohibit Pokémon with them from being traded over the GTS or through Wonder Trade.

Gift Ribbon descriptions

Main article: List of Ribbons in the games/Gift Ribbon descriptions

By participating in certain Pokémon activities, (such as the Regional, National, and Global tournaments for 2003, 2004, and 2005) Ribbon descriptions would be associated with certain Gift Ribbons distributed, based on the event itself.

These variable descriptions were removed in the Generation V games.

In the spin-off games

Pokémon GO

Main article: Buddy Pokémon → Buddy Adventure

Best Buddy Ribbon

Pokémon GO features an exclusive Ribbon, the Best Buddy Ribbon, which is automatically granted to a player's Buddy Pokémon when it reaches Best Buddy level. Unless disabled in the game's settings, this Ribbon is physically attached to the Pokémon. The Best Buddy Ribbon was added in the Buddy Adventure update on December 17, 2019.

If a Pokémon with the Best Buddy Ribbon is traded to another player, the Ribbon is lost along with the reset of all Buddy information. The Best Buddy Ribbon is also lost if the Pokémon is sent to Pokémon HOME or another game.

Pokémon Sleep

During the one-year anniversary of Pokémon Sleep in July 2024, the Good-Night Ribbon was announced for the game, planned to be added in early August. Helper Pokémon can receive up to four levels of the Good-Night Ribbon depending on how much sleep they share with the player, starting at 200 hours. Each level provides bonuses to the Pokémon, and the bonuses are additive; a level 2 Good-Night Ribbon provides both the benefits of level 1 and level 2.

In the anime

Dawn being awarded a Ribbon

In the anime, Ribbons are not attached to individual Pokémon like in the games. Instead, they can be compared to Badges received from Gym Leaders in that they are considered proof that a Pokémon Coordinator has won a Pokémon Contest. In contrast with Gym Badges, Coordinators only get one chance of earning a particular Ribbon in a certain Pokémon Contest within a specific time period. They also must compete with other Coordinators to earn it.

Ribbons are awarded by the Chief of the Pokémon Activities Committee, Raoul Contesta, and once a Coordinator collects five Ribbons, they are able to enter the Grand Festival and compete for the title of Top Coordinator. Ribbons do not expire, and multiple years can be used to collect the five needed for the Grand Festival. However, after being used to enter the competition, the five Ribbons cannot be used again. In addition, Ribbons can only be used in the Grand Festival of the region where they were earned, with the notable exception of the Aqua Ribbon.

Hoenn Ribbons

Ribbon	Episode	Location	Owner	Details
	All Things Bright and Beautifly!	Unknown	Janet	Janet's two Hoenn Ribbons
Rustboro Ribbon	All Things Bright and Beautifly!	Rustboro City	Janet	Janet's third Hoenn Ribbon
Slateport Ribbon	Win, Lose or Drew!	Slateport City	Robert	None
Fallarbor Ribbon	Come What May!	Fallarbor Town	May	May's first Hoenn Ribbon
Verdanturf Ribbon	Disguise Da Limit	Verdanturf Town	May	May's second Hoenn Ribbon
Rubello Ribbon	A Fan with a Plan	Unknown	Savannah	None
Rubello Ribbon	Cruisin' for a Losin'	Rubello Town	Drew	Drew's fourth Hoenn Ribbon
Lilycove Ribbon	Pokéblock, Stock, and Berry Lessons in Lilycove	Lilycove City	May	May's third Hoenn Ribbon
Purika Ribbon	A Cacturne for the Worse	Purika City	May	May's fourth Hoenn Ribbon
	Who, What, When, Where, Wynaut?	Unknown	Drew	Rest of Drew's Hoenn Ribbons
Pacifidlog Ribbon	Mean With Envy Pacifidlog Jam	Pacifidlog Town	May and Erica/Joshua	May's fifth Hoenn Ribbon; Erica and Joshua share two halves of this Ribbon

Kanto Ribbons

Ribbon	Episode	Location	Owner	Details
Saffron Ribbon	A Hurdle for Squirtle	Saffron City	May	May's first Kanto Ribbon
	On Cloud Arcanine	Unknown	Drew	Drew's first Kanto Ribbon
Silver Ribbon	Weekend Warrior	Silver Town	May	May's second Kanto Ribbon
Wisteria Ribbon	Harley Rides Again	Wisteria Town	Harley	Harley's fourth Kanto Ribbon
Chrysanthemum Ribbon	Spontaneous Combusken!	Chrysanthemum Island	May	May's third Kanto Ribbon
Gardenia Ribbon	What I Did for Love!	Gardenia Town	May	May's fourth Kanto Ribbon
	New Plot, Odd Lot! Going for Choke!	Unknown	Harley	Rest of Harley's Kanto Ribbons
Mulberry Ribbon	New Plot, Odd Lot! Going for Choke!	Mulberry Town	May	May's fifth Kanto Ribbon
Terracotta Medal	Once More With Reeling! Home is Where the Start Is!	Terracotta Town	Ash/May	Referred to as a "Medal", it is an unofficial Ribbon and cannot be used to enter the Grand Festival. Ash and May agree to share the halves of the Medal.

Sinnoh Ribbons

Ribbon	Episode	Location	Owner	Details
Jubilife Ribbon	Mounting a Coordinator Assault! Arrival of a Rival!	Jubilife City	Zoey	Zoey's second Sinnoh Ribbon
Floaroma Ribbon	Getting the Pre-Contest Titters! Settling a Not-So-Old Score!	Floaroma Town	Dawn	Dawn's first Sinnoh Ribbon
Alamos Ribbon	The Rise of Darkrai (end credits)	Alamos Town	Allegra	Shown only during the end credits
Hearthome Ribbon	Dawn's Early Night!	Hearthome City	Nando	Nando's second Sinnoh Ribbon
Sage Ribbon	Throwing the Track Switch	Sage Town	Kenny	Kenny's second Sinnoh Ribbon
Solaceon Ribbon	Team Shocker!	Solaceon Town	Jessilina	Jessilina's first Sinnoh Ribbon
Aqua Ribbon	Staging a Heroes' Welcome! Pruning a Passel of Pals! Strategy with a Smile!	Lake Valor	Dawn	Prize given to the winner of the Wallace Cup; can be used for entering every known Grand Festival; Dawn's second Sinnoh Ribbon
Celestic Ribbon	Battling The Generation Gap!	Celestic Town	Dawn	Dawn's third Sinnoh Ribbon
Majolica Ribbon	Shield with a Twist!	Majolica Town	Jessilina	Jessilina's second Sinnoh Ribbon
Gerbera Ribbon	A Breed Stampede!	Gerbera Town	Kenny	Kenny's third Sinnoh Ribbon
Beach Rose Ribbon	A Breed Stampede!	Beach Rose Town	Nando	Nando's fourth Sinnoh Ribbon
Chocovine Ribbon	Another One Gabites the Dust!	Chocovine Town	Dawn	Dawn's fourth Sinnoh Ribbon
Sandalstraw Ribbon	Old Rivals, New Tricks!	Sandalstraw Town	Kenny	Kenny's fourth Sinnoh Ribbon
	Old Rivals, New Tricks!	Unknown	Zoey	Zoey's first four Sinnoh Ribbons
Lilypad Ribbon	Dressed for Jess Success!	Lilypad Town	Jessilina	won by James in disguise; Jessilina's third Sinnoh Ribbon
Brussel Ribbon	Double-Time Battle Training!	Brussel Town	Zoey	Zoey's fifth Sinnoh Ribbon
Daybreak Ribbon	Yes in Dee Dee, It's Dawn! Playing the Performance Encore!	Daybreak Town	Dawn	Dawn's fifth Sinnoh Ribbon
Neighborly Ribbon	Teaching the Student Teacher!	Neighborly Town	Jessilina	Jessilina's fourth Sinnoh ribbon
Arrowroot Ribbon	Dawn of a Royal Day!	Arrowroot Town	Jessilina	Won by Princess Salvia disguised as Dawn; gave up the Ribbon to Jessilina; Jessilina's fifth Sinnoh Ribbon

Johto Ribbons

Ribbon	Episode	Location	Owner	Details
	A Full Course Tag Battle!	Unknown	May	May's three Johto Ribbons

Other Ribbons

• 

  Jessie's fake ribbon in Cruisin' for a Losin'

• 

  Decorative Ribbon shown in Hi Ho Silver Wind!

• 

  Merchandise Ribbon made by Team Rocket in What I Did for Love!

In the manga

Pokémon Adventures

Ruby's Pokémon with their Contest Ribbons in Pokémon Adventures

Two Pokédex holders, Ruby and Platinum, have obtained Ribbons, although only Ruby has actively collected them. In addition to the main characters, some other characters have been seen with Ribbons in their possession.

Ruby & Sapphire arc

Over the course of the chapter, Ruby obtained the 20 Hoenn Pokémon Contest Ribbons as a part of a bet with Sapphire. He had also obtained eleven unknown Ribbons outside of Hoenn prior to the events of the chapter.

Courtney was seen burning a Ribbon in Going to Eleven with Loudred and Exploud I.

A Champion Ribbon appeared in a fantasy in The Beginning of the End with Kyogre & Groudon XIII.

Diamond & Pearl arc

In Perturbed by Pachirisu, Platinum won herself a Normal Rank Cool Ribbon.

In Dramatic Drapion & Crafty Kricketune II, Dr. Footstep gave Platinum, as well as Diamond and Pearl, a Footprint Ribbon as a sign of the bond between them and their Pokémon.

Gallery

• 

  A Champion Ribbon

• 

  A Cool Ribbon

• 

  A Footprint Ribbon

In other languages

Language Title Chinese Cantonese 獎章 Jéungjēung * 緞帶聖章 Dyuhndáai Singjēung * Mandarin 獎章 / 奖章 Jiǎngzhāng * 緞帶徽章 Duàndài Huīzhāng * 緞帶勳章 Duàndài Xūnzhāng * 緞帶 Duàndài * 绶带 Shòudài * Danish Ribbon Bånd Ordensbånd* Finnish Ruusuke* Nauha* European French Ruban German Bänder Indonesian Pita Italian Fiocchi Korean 리본 Ribbon Polish Wstążka* Kokarda* Rozeta* Portuguese Fita Spanish Latin America Listón Spain Cinta Swedish Band* Medalj* Prisplakett* Vietnamese Ruy-băng

See also

• Mark
• List of Ribbons in the games
• Award items
• Episodes in which May gets a Ribbon
• Episodes in which Dawn gets a Ribbon
• Episodes in which Jessie gets a Ribbon

This item article is part of Project ItemDex, a Bulbapedia project that aims to write comprehensive articles on all items.