In 1777, the French ancien régime-era army had used Galons d'ancienneté, or "Seniority Braid" (cloth braid chevrons nicknamed brisures > "breaks") worn on the upper sleeves awarded for each seven years of enlistment.

The practice was continued in Napoleon Bonaparte's army in which they were awarded for 10, 15, and 20 years of service.

In the United States, the concept of a service stripe dates back to 1782 when, during the American Revolution, George Washington ordered that enlisted men who had served for three years "with bravery, fidelity and good conduct" should wear "a narrow piece of white cloth, of angular form" on the left sleeve of the uniform coat.

[4] In the U.S. Army, sleeve stripes denoted a successful completion of a standard enlistment.

They were the same color as the enlisted rank stripes and were "half-chevrons" (angled strips of cloth).

U.S. Army soldiers, U.S. Navy sailors and U.S. Coast Guardsmen wear their stripes on the bottom cuff of the left sleeve,[2] where U.S. Marines wear them at the bottom cuff of both sleeves.

Female navy sailors wear service stripes 5.25 inches long and a quarter-inch wide.

In many civilian law enforcement agencies in the United States, policemen, troopers, constables, and sheriff's deputies will often be awarded service stripes for wear on their long-sleeved uniforms, usually on the lower left sleeve.