What are Medals used for in Helldivers 2?

Medals are mainly used to unlock items in Warbonds.

A Warbond is basically a progression page full of equipment unlocks. You spend Medals to claim items on each page, and after you unlock enough items, you can access the next page.

Medals do not upgrade your weapons. They don’t increase stats directly. Their job is simple: they unlock new gear options.

In practice, Medals are what decide how quickly you expand your loadout choices.

Where do you spend Medals?

You spend Medals in the Acquisition Center, inside the Warbond menu.

Each Warbond is split into pages. Items on later pages are usually stronger or more specialized, but you can’t just skip ahead. You have to unlock a certain number of items on your current page before the next page becomes available.

This means Medals are tied to progression pacing. Even if you have a lot saved up, you’re still limited by the page unlock system.

How do you earn Medals during missions?

Most Medals come from three main sources:

1. Mission completion rewards

Almost every mission gives Medals for successful extraction. Higher difficulty missions generally give more, but the reward is not always worth the extra risk if your squad fails often.

2. Major Orders and Personal Orders

Major Orders are community-wide goals. These often give a big chunk of Medals. Personal Orders are smaller daily challenges, and they’re one of the most reliable ways to build up Medals quickly.

A lot of regular players log in mainly to knock out Personal Orders because they’re fast and consistent.

3. Finding Medal pickups in missions

You can find Medal caches on the map, usually at points of interest. These are often guarded or hidden, but once you know what to look for, it becomes routine.

In practice, squads that fully clear maps and search side locations earn Medals noticeably faster than squads that rush objectives.

Are higher difficulties the best way to farm Medals?

Not always.

Higher difficulty missions can reward more Medals, but the mission takes longer, enemy pressure is higher, and extraction failures are more common. If your team wipes, you waste time and gain nothing.

Most experienced players farm Medals in the difficulty range where they can consistently extract. That usually means playing one or two levels below their maximum comfort level.

If you want steady Medal income, reliability beats “highest possible reward.”

How many Medals can you hold?

Medals have a cap, meaning you can’t stockpile them forever. If you hit the maximum, any extra Medals you earn are wasted until you spend some.

In real gameplay, this matters because players who ignore Warbonds for too long sometimes lose Medals without realizing it, especially after completing Major Orders.

If you’re near the cap, it’s smarter to spend Medals even if you’re not sure what you want yet.

What should you unlock first with Medals?

This depends on your playstyle, but there are some common priorities experienced players follow.

Should you unlock weapons first?

Usually yes.

Weapons change your effectiveness immediately, especially early on when your options are limited. A better primary weapon can make higher difficulties easier, which indirectly helps you earn more Medals faster.

Should you unlock armor first?

Armor matters, but it’s not always the best first investment.

Armor perks can be useful, but many players stick with a few favorites for a long time. Weapons and boosters tend to have a bigger impact on mission success.

Should you unlock boosters early?

Boosters are underrated, especially in team play.

Boosters affect the whole squad and help every mission type. Many experienced players prioritize unlocking strong boosters early because they provide value even if your loadout changes.

Do Medals unlock Stratagems?

No.

Stratagems are unlocked using Requisition Slips, not Medals. This is a common point of confusion for new players.

A simple way to remember it:

• Medals = Warbond equipment (weapons, armor, boosters, cosmetics)

• Requisition = Stratagem unlocks

• Samples = Ship module upgrades

• Super Credits = Premium Warbond access and store cosmetics

Medals are only tied to Warbond progression.

How do Warbond page requirements affect Medal spending?

The page unlock requirement is one of the most important parts of Medal strategy.

You often have to buy items you don’t really want just to move forward. This is normal, and most players do it. You’ll see a lot of people unlocking capes, emotes, or secondary cosmetics simply because they’re cheaper Medal options.

In practice, experienced players usually do this:

• Buy the cheapest items first to unlock the next page

• Save Medals for the gear they actually want later

• Only go back and fill in expensive cosmetic items if they have extra Medals

This approach speeds up access to better weapons and boosters.

Are Medals hard to earn later in the game?

Not really, but they can feel slow if you only play a few missions a week.

For regular players, the biggest Medal gains come from:

• consistently finishing missions

• completing Personal Orders

• contributing to Major Orders

If you skip orders and only run random missions, your Medal income will feel much slower.

Also, later Warbond items can cost a lot, so even if Medal income stays steady, the unlock pace naturally slows down.

Should you save Medals for future Warbonds?

Sometimes, yes.

Warbonds regularly expand over time, and new equipment can be worth saving for. A lot of veteran players keep a reserve of Medals so they can immediately unlock key items when a new Warbond page becomes available.

That said, saving too much can backfire if you hit the Medal cap.

The practical approach is:

• spend Medals if you’re near the cap

• otherwise, keep a buffer so you’re ready for new gear

What’s the fastest practical way to earn Medals without burning out?

If you want a routine that works without turning the game into a grind, this is what most players do:

• Log in and check Personal Orders

• Play missions that match the order requirements

• Clear side objectives and points of interest while moving toward the main objective

• Extract consistently instead of chasing maximum difficulty

This style of play earns Medals at a steady pace without needing extreme farming methods.

Do you need to spend money to unlock Medal gear faster?

Medals themselves are earned through gameplay. You cannot directly buy Medals in a normal, official way.

However, some players look for shortcuts by buying Super Credits to access premium Warbonds faster, or they look for cheap helldivers 2 items to speed up getting specific equipment. Whether that’s worth it depends on the player, but in normal gameplay, Medals are meant to be earned through missions and orders.

Most squads will unlock gear naturally just by playing regularly and completing challenges.

What mistakes do players make with Medals?

A few common ones show up all the time:

Spending Medals randomly

New players often unlock items without thinking about page progression, then later realize they could have reached better gear faster.

Ignoring boosters

Boosters often help more than cosmetics or niche weapons, but many players skip them until later.

Farming too high difficulty

Playing difficulty levels that lead to frequent failures slows Medal progress dramatically.

Sitting at the Medal cap

Some players stockpile and forget. If you’re capped, you’re wasting potential rewards.

What role do Medals play in long-term progression?

Medals are the main long-term unlock currency tied to your personal loadout growth.

Stratagems give you mission tools, ship modules improve your efficiency, but Medals are what give you new ways to fight. New weapons, boosters, and armor perks can completely change how effective you are against specific enemy factions.

Over time, Medals don’t just unlock equipment. They shape what kind of Helldiver you become, because your unlocked options determine what strategies you can realistically run.