Baby Names US
boys' name ★ peaked 1935

Buddy

Meaning A male given name from English Gender Boy Rank 2025 #4,418 Trend ↑ Rising 43%

A male given name from English.

Rank 2025
#4,418
among boys · ↓607 vs 2024
Babies in 2025
23
named Buddy · -21% vs 2024
How common
1 in 74,264
boys born in 2025
Peak year
1935
604 babies
All-time total
22,585
#779 all-time among boys
First recorded
1893
in Social Security records

Buddy popularity over time

22,585 babies have been named Buddy since 1893, 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
0.190.380.560.7518801900192019401960198020002020BoysGirls
BoysGirls

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 – – – – – –
1890s – 33 33 3 – #678
1900s – 121 121 12 +267% #561
1910s – 604 604 60 +399% #431
1920s 12 1,912 1,924 192 +219% #295
1930s 12 5,104 5,116 512 +166% #202
1940s 15 4,000 4,015 402 -22% #262
1950s – 3,449 3,449 345 -14% #346
1960s – 2,744 2,744 274 -20% #406
1970s – 1,889 1,889 189 -31% #516
1980s 6 1,291 1,297 130 -31% #660
1990s – 583 583 58 -55% #1,074
2000s – 357 357 36 -39% #2,383
2010s – 271 271 27 -24% #3,011
2020s (to 2025) – 182 182 30 +12% #3,125

Where Buddy is heading

A five-year projection from the recent trend in births per 1,000 boys (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 boys Implied rank
2026 24 0.01 outside top 500
2027 25 0.01 outside top 500
2028 26 0.02 outside top 500
2029 27 0.02 outside top 500
2030 27 0.02 outside top 500

The story of Buddy

Buddy is rare for boys in the United States, ranked #4,418 in 2025 with 23 babies given the name. It is currently rising compared with a decade ago.

Since 1893, 22,585 American babies have been named Buddy. Its peak came in 1935, when 604 newborns received the name, the signature sound of the 1930s.

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 Buddy stood among all boys' names in any year, or use the compare tool to plot it against other names.

How old are people named Buddy?

The median living Buddy is about 63 years old; half are between 48 and 75. An estimated 12 thousand people named Buddy are alive in the United States today.

median 63 020406080100

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

Buddy 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 – – 23 #4,418
2024 – – 29 #3,811
2023 – – 39 #3,125
2022 – – 32 #3,549
2021 – – 35 #3,312
2020 – – 24 #4,159
2019 – – 18 #5,190
2018 – – 23 #4,381
2017 – – 28 #3,785
2016 – – 30 #3,604
2015 – – 27 #3,896
2014 – – 35 #3,163
2013 – – 23 #4,200
2012 – – 38 #3,011
2011 – – 27 #3,806
2010 – – 22 #4,382
2009 – – 43 #2,805
2008 – – 28 #3,751
2007 – – 32 #3,384
2006 – – 25 #3,904
2005 – – 41 #2,665
2004 – – 37 #2,794
2003 – – 40 #2,548
2002 – – 35 #2,696
2001 – – 36 #2,625
2000 – – 40 #2,383
1995 – – 41 #2,032
1990 – – 98 #1,074
1985 – – 116 #832
1980 6 #9,230 139 #744
1975 – – 179 #607
1970 – – 188 #592
1965 – – 259 #483
1960 – – 356 #424
1955 – – 356 #380
1950 – – 379 #346
1945 – – 322 #332
1940 5 #4,437 448 #264
1935 – – 604 #202
1930 – – 437 #269
1925 6 #4,504 172 #462
1920 – – 103 #623
1915 – – 64 #753
1910 – – 40 #431
1905 – – 8 #936
1900 – – 10 #847
1895 – – – –
1890 – – – –
1885 – – – –
1880 – – – –

Famous people named Buddy

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

  1. 1 Buddy Holly Buddy Holly American musician (1936–1959) Contemporary
  2. 2 Buddy Guy Buddy Guy American blues guitarist and singer (born 1936) Contemporary
  3. 3 Buddy Ebsen Buddy Ebsen American actor and dancer (1908–2003) Contemporary
  4. 4 Buddy Hackett Buddy Hackett American actor (1924–2003) Contemporary
  5. 5 Buddy Rich Buddy Rich American jazz drummer and bandleader (1917–1987) Contemporary
  6. 6 Buddy Hield Buddy Hield Bahamian basketball player (born 1992) Contemporary
  7. 7 Buddy Miles Buddy Miles American drummer and singer (1947–2008) Contemporary
  8. 8 Buddy Rogers Buddy Rogers American professional wrestler (1921–1992) Contemporary
  9. 9 Buddy Bolden Buddy Bolden American cornetist and jazz pioneer (1877–1931) 19th century
  10. 10 Buddy MacKay Buddy MacKay American politician (1933–2024) Contemporary
  11. 11 Buddy Murphy Buddy Murphy Australian professional wrestler (born 1988) Contemporary
  12. 12 Buddy Adler Buddy Adler American film producer 1906–1960 · Contemporary
  13. 13 Buddy DeFranco Buddy DeFranco American jazz clarinetist (1923–2014) Contemporary

Portraits from Wikipedia (Wikimedia Commons).

Frequently asked questions

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

How old is the average Buddy?

The median living Buddy is about 63 years old. Half of all living Buddys are between 48 and 75 years old.

How many people named Buddy are alive today?

An estimated 12 thousand people named Buddy are alive in the United States, based on 22,585 recorded births and Social Security life tables.

What does the name Buddy mean?

A male given name from English.

How popular is the name Buddy in 2025?

Buddy ranked #4,418 among boys' names in the United States in 2025, with 23 babies given the name, according to Social Security Administration data.

How many people are named Buddy?

22,585 babies have been named Buddy in the United States since 1893, based on Social Security card applications.

When was the name Buddy most popular?

Buddy peaked in 1935, when 604 newborns received the name.

Is Buddy a boy or girl name?

Buddy is overwhelmingly a boy's name: 100% of babies with the name.

Is the name Buddy rising or falling?

Buddy is on the rise, noticeably more popular now than a decade ago.

Will Buddy become more popular?

Buddy is trending upward. If the recent trend holds, we project roughly 27 boys named Buddy in 2030, which would rank outside the top 500. Forecasts assume the current trend continues and become less certain further out.

Who are famous people named Buddy?

Well-known people named Buddy include Buddy Holly (musician), Buddy Guy (musician), Buddy Ebsen (actor).

Names like Buddy

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

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