1886, Marlborough Provincial Scholar; 1889, Junior Scholar (Univ. of N.Z.); 1892, Senior Scholar and B.A. degree; 1893, M.A. with double first-class Honours (physics and mathematics) and B.Sc.; 1895, 1851 Exhibition Science Research Scholar; 1897, B.A. Research Degree (Cambr.) and Coutts Trotter Student (Trinity College); 1900, Elected Fellow, Royal Society of Canada; 1901, D.Sc. (Univ. of N.Z.); 1903, Elected Fellow, Royal Society (F.R.S.); 1904, Elected Hon. Member, Royal Society of New Zealand; 1905, Rumford Medallist, Royal Society and Silliman Lecturer, Yale University; 1908, Nobel Laureate in Chemistry, and Bressa Prizeman, Turin Academy of Science, Italy; 1910, Barnard Medallist, Columbia University; 1914, Created Knight Bachelor (New Year's Honours) and Matteucci Medallist, Italian Society of Scientists; 1919 Elected Fellow, Trinity College, Cambridge; 1921–37, Professor of Natural Philosophy, The Royal Institution, London; 1922, Copley Medallist, Royal Society; 1923, President, British Association for the Advancement of Science; 1924, Franklin Medallist, Franklin Institute of Philadelphia; 1925, Order of Merit (O.M.); 1925–30, President, Royal Society (P.R.S.); 1927, Guthrie Lecturer, Physical Society of London; 1928, Albert Medallist, Royal Society of Arts; 1929–37, Chairman, Advisory Council of the Department of Scientific and Industrial Research: 1930, Faraday Medallist, Institute of Electrical Engineers; 1931, Created Baron Rutherford of Nelson, and Hon. D.Sc. Univ. of N.Z.; 1931–33, President, Institute of Physics; 1936, Faraday Lecturer, Chemical Society; 1937, President-elect, Joint Meeting in India (1938) of the British Association and the Indian Science Congress (presidential address read posthumously).

In addition to these major honours, Rutherford was awarded honorary doctorates by the Universities of Birmingham, Bristol, Cambridge, Clark, Cape Town, Copenhagen, Dublin, Durham, Edinburgh, Giessen, Glasgow, Leeds, Liverpool, London, McGill, Melbourne, Oxford, Paris, Pennsylvania, Toronto, and Yale. He was also elected an honorary member of at least 17 scientific institutions, societies, and the like, and was a corresponding member of no less than 14 others.