🇺🇸 Most Popular Baby Names in the USA (2025)
The Social Security Administration has recorded given names since 1880, making this the longest continuous naming record anywhere in the world. It covers close to three and a half million births a year, so the American list is both the deepest on this site and the most varied. It also travels. Names that rise in the United States tend to surface in Europe within a few years, which is how Liam, Noah and Olivia ended up in rankings from Oslo to Madrid.
Data source: Social Security Administration (SSA) · Year: 2025 · 50 girl names, 50 boy names
Before you settle on a name, it helps to know what the register will accept. Baby naming rules in United States: the legal basis, the deadline and what a registrar may refuse.
Names Used Only in United States
United States has 23 names in its 2025 ranking that appear in none of the other twelve countries on this site. Most European top tens have converged on the same handful of names over the past twenty years. These are the ones that stayed put.
Girls: 12 names
AilanyCamilaLucyLaineyScarlettGiannaAveryMadisonNaomiRileyEloiseSadie
Boys: 11 names
MichaelJohnCooperAsherJosephMatthewLukeWyattBennettCarterAnthony
2024 to 2025: What Moved
Set the two most recent rankings side by side and the movement is easy to read. Some names climbed, others slipped, and a few appeared or vanished outright.
Girls
Biggest climbers: Valentina (#47 → #35, +12), Lucy (#34 → #24, +10), Eliana (#18 → #10, +8), Lainey (#38 → #30, +8), Isla (#35 → #28, +7)
Biggest drops: Luna (#13 → #27, -14), Gianna (#23 → #33, -10), Mila (#33 → #43, -10), Emily (#25 → #34, -9), Abigail (#32 → #41, -9)
New in the ranking: Ailany, Eloise, Sadie
Dropped out: Victoria, Stella, Delilah
Boys
Biggest climbers: Cooper (#50 → #27, +23), Elias (#25 → #13, +12), Luca (#23 → #14, +9), Gabriel (#43 → #37, +6), Hudson (#22 → #17, +5)
Biggest drops: Dylan (#28 → #41, -13), Maverick (#36 → #49, -13), Asher (#20 → #28, -8), Ezra (#13 → #20, -7), Miles (#37 → #44, -7)
New in the ranking: Bennett, Roman, Charles, Thiago
Dropped out: Logan, Aiden, Grayson, Caleb
Steady Through 2021–2025
Olivia tops the girl's ranking in United States, and has done so 5 years running.
43 girls' names appear in every year from 2021–2025 without a gap. The 30 highest placed:
OliviaCharlotteEmmaAmeliaSophiaMiaIsabellaEvelynSofiaElianaAvaEleanorVioletAuroraHarperElizabethLilyCamilaNoraHazelPenelopeChloeLucyEllieAriaLunaIslaEllaZoeScarlett
Liam tops the boy's ranking in United States, and has done so 5 years running.
43 boys' names appear in every year from 2021–2025 without a gap. The 30 highest placed:
LiamNoahOliverTheodoreHenryJamesElijahMateoWilliamLucasBenjaminLeviEliasLucaJackSebastianHudsonSamuelLeoEzraMichaelDanielJohnEthanJulianAsherJosephAlexanderOwenMatthew
👧 Most Popular Girl Names in United States (2025)
#1OliviaLatin
Meaning: Olive tree
Olivia was first popularised by Shakespeare in Twelfth Night and is now consistently ranked among the top girl's names in the English-speaking world.
#2CharlotteGermanicFrench
Meaning: Free woman
Charlotte is the French feminine form of Charles, meaning free woman, and is a royal name borne by princesses in Britain, Sweden and Monaco.
#3EmmaGermanic
Meaning: Whole, universal
Emma is a Germanic name that was popular among medieval queens and has remained a top choice across Europe and North America for over a century.
#4AmeliaGermanic
Meaning: Work, industrious
Amelia is a blend of the Germanic Amalia and the Latin Aemilia, meaning industrious, and has been a top name in the UK and Australia for over a decade.
#5SophiaGreek
Meaning: Wisdom
Sophia is a timeless Greek name meaning wisdom, carried by Byzantine empresses and saints, and one of the most popular girl's names globally.
#6MiaHebrewScandinavian
Meaning: Mine; wished-for child
Mia began as a Scandinavian pet form of Maria and has become an international favourite, topping charts from Norway to the United States.
#7IsabellaHebrewItalian
Meaning: My God is an oath
#8EvelynHebrewFrench
Meaning: Wished-for child
#9SofiaGreek
Meaning: Wisdom
Sofia is the Slavic and southern European form of Sophia, meaning wisdom in Greek, and is the most popular girl's name in Italy and Spain.
#10ElianaHebrew
Meaning: My God has answered
Eliana is read in Hebrew as joining el meaning God with a root meaning to answer. A separate Latin Aeliana, from the Roman family name Aelius, shares the spelling.
#11AvaGermanicHebrew
Meaning: Life, bird-like
#12EleanorGreekFrench
Meaning: Bright, shining
Eleanor is of Old French and Old Provençal origin, meaning bright or shining, and has been borne by queens of England, France and Castile.
#13VioletLatin
Meaning: Violet flower
#14Ailany
#15AuroraLatin
Meaning: Dawn
Aurora is the Roman goddess of the dawn; the name has been popular in Italy and Spain for generations and is now rising across northern Europe.
#16HarperEnglish
Meaning: Harp player
#17ElizabethHebrew
Meaning: My God is an oath
#18LilyLatin
Meaning: Lily flower
#19CamilaLatin
Meaning: Helper of the priest
#20NoraLatinIrish
Meaning: Honour
Nora arose as a short form of Honora or Eleanor and has become an independently popular name across Ireland, Scandinavia and central Europe.
#21HazelEnglish
Meaning: Hazelnut tree
Hazel is an English nature name referring to the hazelnut tree, part of the modern trend for botanical names, popular in the UK and USA.
#22PenelopeGreek
Meaning: Weaver
Penelope is a Greek name meaning weaver, most famous as the faithful wife of Odysseus in Homer's Odyssey, and enjoying a strong modern revival.
#23ChloeGreek
Meaning: Blooming, verdant
#24LucyLatin
Meaning: Light
Lucy is the English form of Lucia, from the Latin lux meaning light. It has been in continuous English use since the Middle Ages.
#25EllieGreek
Meaning: Bright, shining
#26AriaItalian
Meaning: Air, song
#27LunaLatin
Meaning: Moon
Luna is the Latin name for the moon goddess and has risen rapidly in popularity across Europe and North America since the 2010s.
#28IslaScottish Gaelic
Meaning: From the river Isla
Isla is taken from the Scottish river Isla and the island of Islay. It became a common given name in Britain only in the last thirty years.
#29EllaGermanic
Meaning: All, completely
Ella developed as a short form of Eleanor or Elisabeth and has surged in popularity across Europe and North America since the early 2000s.
#30LaineyGreek
Meaning: Torch, bright
Lainey is an English pet form of Elaine, which came through Old French from Helen, generally connected with the Greek word for torch.
#31ZoeGreek
Meaning: Life
#32ScarlettEnglish
Meaning: Scarlet, bright red
Scarlett began as an occupational surname for dyers of scarlet cloth and became a given name through Margaret Mitchell's character Scarlett O'Hara.
#33GiannaHebrewItalian
Meaning: God is gracious
#34EmilyLatin
Meaning: Rival, industrious
#35ValentinaLatin
Meaning: Strong, healthy
Valentina is the feminine form of the Roman Valentinus, rooted in the Latin word for strong and healthy, and widely popular in southern Europe.
#36LaylaArabic
Meaning: Night
#37AveryGermanic
Meaning: Elf ruler
#38GraceLatin
Meaning: Grace, God's favour
#39IvyEnglish
Meaning: Ivy
Ivy is the English plant name, from the Old English ifig. It joined the Victorian fashion for flower and plant names.
#40MadisonEnglish
Meaning: Son of Maud
Madison is an English surname meaning son of Maud. It became a girls' first name in the United States after the 1984 film Splash.
#41AbigailHebrew
Meaning: My father is joy
Abigail appears in the Books of Samuel as the wife of Nabal and later of David. The Hebrew joins av meaning father with a root meaning joy.
#42ElenaGreek
Meaning: Bright, shining
#43MilaSlavic
Meaning: Gracious, dear
Mila began as a Slavic diminutive meaning gracious or dear and has spread widely across Europe and the Americas in recent decades.
#44WillowEnglish
Meaning: Willow tree
#45EmiliaLatin
Meaning: Rival, industrious
Emilia derives from the Latin Aemilia, the name of an ancient Roman family, and has been among the most popular girl's names in Austria and Germany for years.
#46NovaLatin
Meaning: New
#47NaomiHebrew
Meaning: Pleasantness
Naomi is Ruth's mother-in-law in the Hebrew Bible. The root means pleasant, and in the story she asks to be called Mara, meaning bitter, after her losses.
#48RileyIrishEnglish
Meaning: Courageous; rye clearing
#49EloiseGermanic
Meaning: Disputed, healthy or famous in battle
Eloise is the English form of Héloïse, a medieval French name of Germanic origin. Its elements are disputed, and it is best known from the twelfth-century letters of Heloise and Abelard.
#50SadieHebrew
Meaning: Princess
Sadie began as an English pet form of Sarah, from the Hebrew sarah meaning princess.
👦 Most Popular Boy Names in United States (2025)
#1LiamIrishGermanic
Meaning: Resolute protector
Liam is the Irish short form of William, meaning resolute protector, and has been the most popular boy's name in the USA and Canada for over a decade.
#2NoahHebrew
Meaning: Rest, comfort
Noah is a Hebrew name meaning rest or comfort, famous as the biblical patriarch who built the ark, and the most popular boy's name across much of Europe.
#3OliverLatinNorse
Meaning: Olive tree
Oliver has Norse and Latin roots linked to the olive tree and ancestor-descendants, and has been the top boy's name in England and Wales for several years.
#4TheodoreGreek
Meaning: Gift of God
Theodore is derived from the Greek Theodoros, meaning gift of God, and has seen a remarkable revival in the UK, USA and Australia.
#5HenryGermanic
Meaning: Home ruler
Henry is the English form of the Germanic Heimirich, meaning home ruler, and has been borne by eight kings of England.
#6JamesHebrew
Meaning: Supplanter
James is the English form of the Late Latin Jacomus, derived from the Hebrew Jacob, meaning supplanter, and has been borne by six kings of Scotland.
#7ElijahHebrew
Meaning: My God is Yahweh
Elijah is the Hebrew original of Elias, meaning my God is Yahweh, and is currently one of the fastest-rising boy's names in the United States.
#8MateoHebrewSpanish
Meaning: Gift of God
Mateo is the Spanish form of Matthew, meaning gift of God in Hebrew, and is currently one of the fastest-rising names in the USA and Spain.
#9WilliamGermanic
Meaning: Resolute protector
William comes from the Germanic Willahelm, meaning resolute protector, and remains one of the most enduring royal names in the English-speaking world.
#10LucasLatinGreek
Meaning: Bringer of light
Lucas is the Latin form of Luke, meaning bringer of light, and ranks highly across Europe and the Americas.
#11BenjaminHebrew
Meaning: Son of the right hand
Benjamin is a Hebrew name meaning son of the right hand, the youngest son of Jacob in the Bible, and a perennial favourite across Europe.
#12LeviHebrew
Meaning: Joined, attached
#13EliasHebrew
Meaning: My God is Yahweh
Elias is the Greek and Latin form of the Hebrew Elijah, meaning my God is Yahweh, and is a top name across Austria, Scandinavia and the Netherlands.
#14LucaLatinItalian
Meaning: Bringer of light
Luca is the Italian form of Luke, meaning bringer of light in Greek, and is among the most popular boy's names in Italy, Switzerland and Germany.
#15JackHebrewEnglish
Meaning: God is gracious
Jack began as a medieval English pet form of John and is now one of the most popular boy's names in England, Ireland and Australia.
#16SebastianGreek
Meaning: From Sebastia; venerable
Sebastian comes from the Greek Sebastianos, meaning from Sebastia, and was the name of a 3rd-century Roman soldier venerated as a martyr.
#17HudsonEnglish
Meaning: Son of Hudd
#18SamuelHebrew
Meaning: Name of God; God has heard
Samuel is a Hebrew name meaning name of God or God has heard, and was the last of the great judges of Israel in the Old Testament.
#19LeoLatin
Meaning: Lion
Leo is the Latin word for lion and the name of thirteen popes, making it both a timeless classic and a modern favourite across Europe.
#20EzraHebrew
Meaning: Help
#21MichaelHebrew
Meaning: Who is like God?
#22DanielHebrew
Meaning: God is my judge
#23JohnHebrew
Meaning: God is gracious
#24EthanHebrew
Meaning: Firm, enduring
Ethan appears in the Hebrew Bible as a name for wise men, and the root means firm, solid or enduring. Its modern currency began in the United States.
#25JulianLatin
Meaning: Youthful
Julian derives from the Roman family name Julius and has been steadily popular across Germany, Austria and the English-speaking world.
#26SantiagoSpanishHebrew
Meaning: Saint James
Santiago is a contraction of Sant Iago, meaning Saint James, the apostle whose shrine at Compostela drew medieval Europe across northern Spain.
#27CooperEnglish
Meaning: Barrel maker
Cooper is an English occupational surname for a maker of barrels and casks, from the Middle English couper. It moved into use as a first name in the United States.
#28AsherHebrew
Meaning: Happy, blessed
Asher is one of the twelve sons of Jacob in Genesis, and the Hebrew root means happy or fortunate. His mother names him with a word for good luck at his birth.
#29JosephHebrew
Meaning: He will add
Joseph is the son of Jacob sold into Egypt in Genesis, and in the New Testament the husband of Mary. The Hebrew yosef means he will add.
#30AlexanderGreek
Meaning: Defender of men
Alexander is the Latinised form of the Greek Alexandros, meaning defender of men, and was the name of the Macedonian king who conquered the ancient world.
#31OwenWelshLatin
Meaning: Young warrior; well-born
#32MatthewHebrew
Meaning: Gift of God
#33LukeLatin
Meaning: Bringer of light
#34ThomasAramaic
Meaning: Twin
#35DavidHebrew
Meaning: Beloved
David is a Hebrew name meaning beloved and was the name of the biblical king of Israel, the most celebrated monarch in Jewish history.
#36JacksonEnglish
Meaning: Son of Jack
#37GabrielHebrew
Meaning: God is my strength
Gabriel is the Hebrew name of the archangel who announced the birth of Jesus, meaning God is my strength, popular across southern Europe and Latin America.
#38WyattEnglish
Meaning: Brave in battle
#39MasonEnglish
Meaning: Stone worker
#40BennettLatin
Meaning: Blessed
Bennett is the medieval English form of Benedict, from the Latin benedictus meaning blessed. It survived as a surname and returned to use as a first name in the United States.
#41DylanWelsh
Meaning: Son of the sea
#42RomanLatin
Meaning: From Rome
Roman comes from the Latin Romanus, meaning a Roman. It has been used in the Slavic countries and in France for centuries.
#43JacobHebrew
Meaning: Supplanter
Jacob is the third patriarch of Genesis, who takes his brother Esau's birthright. The Hebrew Yaakov is traditionally read from the word for heel, hence one who supplants.
#44MilesLatinGermanic
Meaning: Soldier; mild
#45CarterEnglish
Meaning: Cart driver
#46AnthonyLatin
Meaning: Of inestimable worth
#47IsaacHebrew
Meaning: He will laugh
#48CharlesGermanic
Meaning: Free man
Charles comes from the Germanic karl, meaning a free man as distinct from a serf. Charlemagne turned it into one of the standard names of European monarchy.
#49MaverickEnglish
Meaning: Independent, unbranded
Maverick comes from Samuel Maverick, a nineteenth-century Texas rancher who left his cattle unbranded. His surname became the word for an unbranded animal and then for an independent person.
#50ThiagoSpanishHebrew
Meaning: Saint James
Thiago is a Portuguese and Spanish form derived from Santiago, itself a contraction of Sant Iago, meaning Saint James.
Data: Social Security Administration (SSA). Rankings reflect official birth registrations for 2025. Retrieved automatically each week from the statistics office. Browse all countries →