| Bavarian Order of Merit | |
| Awarded By: | the Minister-President of Bavaria |
| Country: | Bavaria, Germany |
| Type: | Order of Merit |
| Eligibility: | Men and women without distinction of nationality or class |
| For: | Outstanding contributions to the Free State of Bavaria and the Bavarian people |
| Head Title: | Ordensherr |
| Head: | Markus Söder |
| Status: | Currently awarded |
| Founder: | Wilhelm Hoegner |
| Established: | 11 June 1957 |
| Total: | 5,602 (as of August 2018)[1] |
| Related: | Order of Merit of the Bavarian Crown Order of the Lion of Bavaria |
The Bavarian Order of Merit (de|Bayerischer Verdienstorden) is the Order of Merit of the Free State of Bavaria. It is awarded by the Minister-President of Bavaria as a "recognition of outstanding contributions to the Free State of Bavaria and the Bavarian people".[2]
The order was instituted by law on 11 June 1957. The Prime Minister and the Cabinet can nominate awardees.
Hemmerle,[3] a German jewellery house based in Munich founded in 1893, is the exclusive maker of the Bavarian Order of Merit since it was instituted in 1957.