Most decorated US Naval vessels of World War II

This list catalogs the most honored US Naval vessels of the Second World War. It is placed in descending order of earned Battle Stars; descending accorded unit recognitions; descending ship size by type; and ascending hull number. It contains only vessels that earned fifteen or more Battle Stars for World War II service.

Honors awarded that are not listed may include:

• Honors awarded by countries other than the United States (e.g., Philippine Presidential Unit Citation, British Admiralty Pennant)
• Honors awarded to all units for serving active duty during World War II; including active duty before US entry in the war (e.g., American Defense Service Medal, American Campaign Medal, Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Medal, World War II Victory Medal)
• Honors awarded to vessels for campaigns other than World War II service (e.g. Korean War service, Vietnam War service).

Vessel	World War II Service Awards
USS Enterprise (CV-6)	20 Battle Stars Presidential Unit Citation Navy Unit Commendation[1]
USS San Diego (CL-53)	18 Battle Stars[2][3] though the Naval Historical center only lists 15 battle stars.[4]
USS San Francisco (CA-38)	17 Battle Stars Presidential Unit Citation[5]
USS O'Bannon (DD-450)	17 Battle Stars Presidential Unit Citation[6]
USS New Orleans (CA-32)	17 Battle Stars,[7] though the Naval Historical center lists 16 battle stars.[8]
USS Minneapolis (CA-36)	17 Battle Stars[9]
USS Maury (DD-401)	16 Battle Stars Presidential Unit Citation[10]
USS Nicholas (DD-449)	16 Battle Stars Presidential Unit Citation[11]
USS Buchanan (DD-484)	16 Battle Stars Presidential Unit Citation[12]
USS Portland (CA-33)	16 Battle Stars Navy Unit Commendation[13]
USS Russell (DD-414)	16 Battle Stars[14]
USS Saufley (DD-465)	16 Battle Stars[15]
USS Taylor (DD-468)	15 Battle Stars (Naval History and Heritage Command only lists 14 Battle stars for USS Taylor.[16]) Navy Unit Commendation[17]
USS Thresher (SS-200)	15 Battle Stars Navy Unit Commendation[18]
USS North Carolina (BB-55)	15 Battle Stars[19]
USS Morris (DD-417)	15 Battle Stars[20]
USS Fletcher (DD-445)	15 Battle Stars[21]
USS Narwhal (SS-167)	15 Battle Stars[22]