Unisex name ★ peaked 1998

Bailey

Meaning Bailey is a given name derived from the surname Bailey Gender Unisex · 84% girls Rank 2025 #209 Trend ↓ Falling 13%

Bailey is a given name derived from the surname Bailey.

Rank 2025
#209
among girls · ↓27 vs 2024
Babies in 2025
1,584
named Bailey · -12% vs 2024
How common
1 in 1,112
girls born in 2025
Peak year
1998
7,437 babies
All-time total
132,544
#348 all-time among girls
First recorded
1880
in Social Security records

Bailey popularity over time

132,544 babies have been named Bailey since 1880, according to official Social Security records. Switch measure to see births per year or the yearly rank.

Measure
Births per 1,000 babies of that sex, comparable across eras
123418801900192019401960198020002020GirlsBoys
GirlsBoys

By decade. Change compares yearly averages, so the current partial decade is on equal footing. Best rank is the name's best yearly rank within the decade.

Decade Girls Boys Total Per year Change Best rank
1880s – 78 78 8 – –
1890s – 116 116 12 +49% –
1900s – 111 111 11 -4% –
1910s 6 295 301 30 +171% #3,963
1920s 6 390 396 40 +32% #4,486
1930s – 367 367 37 -7% –
1940s – 301 301 30 -18% –
1950s 5 287 292 29 -3% #6,013
1960s – 197 197 20 -33% –
1970s 28 169 197 20 0% #4,244
1980s 4,082 477 4,559 456 +2214% #257
1990s 31,621 9,926 41,547 4,155 +811% #60
2000s 36,881 6,892 43,773 4,377 +5% #68
2010s 28,302 1,357 29,659 2,966 -32% #78
2020s (to 2025) 9,875 775 10,650 1,775 -40% #162

Where Bailey is heading

A five-year projection from the recent trend in births per 1,000 girls (damped so it flattens over time), converted to babies at today's birth totals. The implied rank places that projection in the 2025 field. A projection, not a promise: real trends bend.

Year Projected babies Per 1,000 girls Implied rank
2026 1,405 0.87 #218
2027 1,372 0.85 #222
2028 1,344 0.84 #227
2029 1,321 0.82 #235
2030 1,301 0.81 #240

Where Bailey is most popular

Girls named Bailey per 1,000 girls born in each state, 2021–2025. National average: 1.01 per 1,000. Strongest in New Hampshire, West Virginia, and Alaska.

Vs national average
well below below near national above well above no data

All 50 states and DC, sorted by rate. Counts are girls named Bailey born 2021–2025; the per-1,000 rate makes states of different sizes comparable, and the last column shows each state against the national average.

State Girls 2021–2025 Per 1,000 vs national
New Hampshire 75 4.06 +302%
West Virginia 74 2.82 +179%
Alaska 24 2.79 +176%
Maine 41 2.65 +162%
Hawaii 30 2.62 +159%
Mississippi 108 2.31 +128%
North Dakota 30 2.28 +126%
South Dakota 29 2.03 +101%
Kentucky 173 2.02 +100%
South Carolina 179 1.99 +97%
Louisiana 162 1.85 +83%
Alabama 171 1.82 +80%
Idaho 59 1.76 +74%
New Mexico 42 1.73 +71%
Delaware 19 1.67 +66%
Wyoming 7 1.64 +62%
Missouri 196 1.63 +61%
Wisconsin 166 1.61 +59%
Maryland 169 1.59 +58%
Michigan 290 1.59 +57%
Kansas 91 1.58 +56%
Georgia 354 1.56 +54%
Arkansas 82 1.55 +53%
Ohio 367 1.55 +53%
Virginia 262 1.54 +52%
Colorado 169 1.51 +50%
Pennsylvania 349 1.48 +46%
Oregon 96 1.47 +46%
North Carolina 329 1.45 +43%
Vermont 7 1.44 +43%
Tennessee 226 1.43 +41%
District of Columbia 16 1.35 +33%
Connecticut 76 1.31 +29%
Nebraska 46 1.28 +27%
Oklahoma 94 1.28 +26%
Nevada 59 1.27 +26%
Montana 17 1.26 +24%
Massachusetts 150 1.24 +23%
Indiana 173 1.23 +22%
Iowa 72 1.23 +22%
Minnesota 123 1.14 +13%
Utah 94 1.13 +12%
Arizona 155 1.10 +9%
Washington 159 1.10 +9%
Florida 414 0.968 ≈ national
Illinois 213 0.930 -8%
Texas 725 0.901 -11%
New York 336 0.848 -16%
California 703 0.836 -17%
New Jersey 143 0.792 -22%
Rhode Island – – –

State counts come from the Social Security Administration's state files, which omit any state-year with fewer than five babies of a name, so small states can undercount slightly.

The story of Bailey

Bailey is moderately common for girls in the United States, ranked #209 in 2025 with 1,446 babies given the name. It is currently declining compared with a decade ago.

Since 1880, 132,544 American babies have been named Bailey, about 84% girls and 16% boys, making it a genuinely unisex name. Its peak came in 1998, when 7,437 newborns received the name, the signature sound of the 1990s.

The chart above shows the full history: the popularity view (births per 1,000 babies) is the honest comparison across generations, since total US births have changed enormously since 1880. Switch to the rank view to see where Bailey stood among all girls' names in any year, or use the compare tool to plot it against other names.

How old are people named Bailey?

The median living Bailey is about 22 years old; half are between 13 and 27. An estimated 130 thousand people named Bailey are alive in the United States today.

median 22 020406080100

Estimated from births per year and Social Security period life tables; an approximation of the living age distribution, by age in years.

Bailey year by year

Every year since 2001, and five-year steps back to 1880. Rank is within each sex.

Year Girls Girls rank Boys Boys rank
2025 1,446 #209 138 #1,358
2024 1,652 #182 155 #1,271
2023 1,683 #172 151 #1,274
2022 1,649 #182 119 #1,517
2021 1,775 #162 119 #1,497
2020 1,670 #172 93 #1,688
2019 1,819 #157 120 #1,451
2018 2,181 #133 128 #1,377
2017 2,433 #125 144 #1,265
2016 2,712 #116 110 #1,523
2015 2,853 #107 111 #1,494
2014 2,951 #104 135 #1,308
2013 3,019 #105 124 #1,361
2012 3,418 #81 121 #1,384
2011 3,318 #88 168 #1,101
2010 3,598 #78 196 #997
2009 3,643 #85 219 #938
2008 3,907 #82 277 #792
2007 3,934 #84 355 #673
2006 2,980 #112 366 #637
2005 2,991 #108 477 #515
2004 3,309 #100 599 #433
2003 3,467 #98 759 #357
2002 3,662 #84 851 #325
2001 4,339 #69 1,234 #266
2000 4,649 #68 1,755 #202
1995 3,488 #96 1,010 #277
1990 1,260 #227 87 #1,166
1985 309 #612 39 #1,620
1980 56 #1,907 30 #1,855
1975 5 #9,196 13 #2,920
1970 – – 20 #1,994
1965 – – 15 #2,096
1960 – – 15 #2,129
1955 – – 28 #1,461
1950 – – 35 #1,221
1945 – – 31 #1,184
1940 – – 31 #1,210
1935 – – 37 #1,060
1930 – – 42 #1,071
1925 6 #4,486 30 #1,334
1920 – – 48 #989
1915 – – 34 #1,102
1910 – – 10 #1,046
1905 – – 10 #793
1900 – – 19 #557
1895 – – 10 #690
1890 – – 13 #536
1885 – – 7 #767
1880 – – 12 #532

Famous people named Bailey

The most globally famous bearers of the name, ranked by fame across Wikipedia editions (Pantheon project, MIT).

  1. 1 Bailey Jay Bailey Jay American pornographic actress b. 1988 · Contemporary
  2. 2 Bailey Wright Bailey Wright Australian soccer player (born 1992) Contemporary
  3. 3 Bailey Olter Bailey Olter President of Federated States of Micronesia (1933–1999) 1932–1999 · Contemporary

Portraits from Wikipedia (Wikimedia Commons).

Frequently asked questions

Quick answers about Bailey, drawn from the same Social Security data as the charts above.

How old is the average Bailey?

The median living Bailey is about 22 years old. Half of all living Baileys are between 13 and 27 years old.

How many people named Bailey are alive today?

An estimated 130 thousand people named Bailey are alive in the United States, based on 132,544 recorded births and Social Security life tables.

What does the name Bailey mean?

Bailey is a given name derived from the surname Bailey.

How popular is the name Bailey in 2025?

Bailey ranked #209 among girls' names in the United States in 2025, with 1,446 babies given the name, according to Social Security Administration data.

How many people are named Bailey?

132,544 babies have been named Bailey in the United States since 1880, based on Social Security card applications.

When was the name Bailey most popular?

Bailey peaked in 1998, when 7,437 newborns received the name.

Is Bailey a boy or girl name?

Bailey is used for both: about 84% of babies named Bailey have been girls and 16% boys.

Is the name Bailey rising or falling?

Bailey is declining, less popular now than a decade ago.

Will Bailey become more popular?

Bailey is trending downward. If the recent trend holds, we project roughly 1,301 girls named Bailey in 2030, which would rank around #240. Forecasts assume the current trend continues and become less certain further out.

Who are famous people named Bailey?

Well-known people named Bailey include Bailey Jay (pornographic actor), Bailey Wright (soccer player), Bailey Olter (politician).

Names like Bailey

Names that sound and feel close to Bailey: shared sounds, similar era, similar popularity. Each links to its full history.

Compare Bailey with similar names → More names starting with B →