Any Scout may earn any merit badge at any time. There is no rank or age requirement, and no time limit, except that the work must be finished before you turn 18.
The steps are the same on a paper blue card and in Scoutbook Plus. Meet with the Scoutmaster before you contact a counselor. That meeting is written down on the blue card or in Scoutbook Plus, and then you work with a registered counselor. The steps are on How to start a merit badge, and they follow section 7 of the Guide to Advancement.
Requirements. Do exactly what the requirement says. The current wording is on the Merit Badge Hub. An older handbook or pamphlet may be out of date. If the requirements change after you have started, you may finish the old ones or switch to the new ones (Guide to Advancement, section 7.0.4.3).
Merit Badge Requirements
Please see a list of Merit Badges in alphabetical order with up-to-date requirements at Scouting.org.
All Merit Badges
- American Business
- American Cultures
- American Heritage
- American Indian Culture
- American Labor
- Animal Science
- Animation
- Archaeology
- Archery
- Architecture
- Art
- Artificial Intelligence
- Astronomy
- Athletics
- Automotive Maintenance
- Aviation
- Backpacking
- Basketry
- Bird Study
- Bugling
- Camping
- Canoeing
- Chemistry
- Chess
- Citizenship in Society
- Citizenship in the Community
- Citizenship in the Nation
- Citizenship in the World
- Climbing
- Coin Collecting
- Collections
- Communication
- Competitive Gaming
- Composite Materials
- Cooking
- Crime Prevention
- Cybersecurity
- Cycling
- Dentistry
- Digital Technology
- Disabilities Awareness
- Dog Care
- Drafting
- Electricity
- Electronics
- Emergency Preparedness
- Energy
- Engineering
- Entrepreneurship
- Environmental Science
- Exploration
- Family Life
- Farm Mechanics
- Fingerprinting
- Fire Safety
- First Aid
- Fish & Wildlife Management
- Fishing
- Fly Fishing
- Forestry
- Game Design
- Gardening
- Genealogy
- Geocaching
- Geology
- Golf
- Graphic Arts
- Health Care Professions
- Hiking
- Home Repairs
- Horsemanship
- Insect Study
- Inventing
- Journalism
- Kayaking
- Landscape Architecture
- Law
- Leatherwork
- Lifesaving
- Mammal Study
- Metalwork
- Mining in Society
- Model Design and Building
- Motorboating
- Moviemaking
- Multisport
- Music
- Nature
- Nuclear Science
- Oceanography
- Orienteering
- Painting
- Personal Fitness
- Personal Management
- Pets
- Photography
- Pioneering
- Plant Science
- Plumbing
- Pottery
- Programming
- Public Health
- Public Speaking
- Pulp and Paper
- Radio
- Railroading
- Reading
- Reptile and Amphibian Study
- Rifle Shooting
- Robotics
- Rowing
- Safety
- Salesmanship
- Scholarship
- Scouting Heritage
- Scuba Diving
- Sculpture
- Search and Rescue
- Shotgun Shooting
- Signs, Signals, and Codes
- Skating
- Small-Boat Sailing
- Snow Sports
- Soil and Water Conservation
- Space Exploration
- Sports
- Stamp Collecting
- Surveying
- Sustainability
- Swimming
- Textile
- Theater
- Traffic Safety
- Truck Transportation
- Veterinary Medicine
- Water Sports
- Weather
- Welding
- Whitewater
- Wilderness Survival
- Wildland Fire Management
- Wood Carving
- Woodwork