Unisex name ★ peaked 1990

Courtney

Meaning short Gender Unisex · 92% girls Rank 2025 #2,335 Trend ↓ Falling 47%

Variant of Courtenay, an aristocratic Norman surname derived from place names in Normandy, from Latin Curtenus, a personal name from curtus (“short”).

Rank 2025
#2,335
among girls · ↓352 vs 2024
Babies in 2025
116
named Courtney · -15% vs 2024
How common
1 in 20,606
girls born in 2025
Peak year
1990
16,055 babies
All-time total
281,432
#159 all-time among girls
First recorded
1881
in Social Security records

Courtney popularity over time

281,432 babies have been named Courtney since 1881, 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
2.557.51018801900192019401960198020002020GirlsBoys
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 37 30 67 7 – #754
1890s 46 53 99 10 +48% #1,185
1900s 44 64 108 11 +9% #1,177
1910s 120 297 417 42 +286% #1,496
1920s 147 468 615 62 +47% #1,829
1930s 102 398 500 50 -19% #2,037
1940s 302 627 929 93 +86% #1,373
1950s 449 775 1,224 122 +32% #1,266
1960s 3,239 1,604 4,843 484 +296% #339
1970s 23,991 4,554 28,545 2,855 +489% #68
1980s 84,309 7,745 92,054 9,205 +222% #21
1990s 113,290 3,522 116,812 11,681 +27% #17
2000s 26,979 1,530 28,509 2,851 -76% #59
2010s 4,661 1,079 5,740 574 -80% #354
2020s (to 2025) 683 287 970 162 -72% #1,392

Where Courtney 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 70 0.04 outside top 500
2027 64 0.04 outside top 500
2028 59 0.04 outside top 500
2029 56 0.03 outside top 500
2030 53 0.03 outside top 500

Where Courtney is most popular

Girls named Courtney per 1,000 girls born in each state, 2021–2025. National average: 0.065 per 1,000. Strongest in Missouri, Virginia, and Pennsylvania.

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 Courtney 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
Missouri 16 0.133 +105%
Virginia 21 0.123 +90%
Pennsylvania 21 0.089 +37%
Georgia 16 0.070 +9%
Texas 53 0.066 ≈ national
Utah 5 0.060 -7%
Louisiana 5 0.057 -12%
Illinois 13 0.057 -12%
Alabama 5 0.053 -18%
New York 21 0.053 -18%
Maryland 5 0.047 -27%
Florida 19 0.044 -32%
Ohio 10 0.042 -35%
California 32 0.038 -41%
Indiana 5 0.036 -45%
New Jersey 5 0.028 -57%
North Carolina 5 0.022 -66%
Alaska – – –
Arkansas – – –
Arizona – – –
Colorado – – –
Connecticut – – –
District of Columbia – – –
Delaware – – –
Hawaii – – –
Iowa – – –
Idaho – – –
Kansas – – –
Kentucky – – –
Massachusetts – – –
Maine – – –
Michigan – – –
Minnesota – – –
Mississippi – – –
Montana – – –
North Dakota – – –
Nebraska – – –
New Hampshire – – –
New Mexico – – –
Nevada – – –
Oklahoma – – –
Oregon – – –
Rhode Island – – –
South Carolina – – –
South Dakota – – –
Tennessee – – –
Vermont – – –
Washington – – –
Wisconsin – – –
West Virginia – – –
Wyoming – – –

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 Courtney

Courtney is rare for girls in the United States, ranked #2,335 in 2025 with 78 babies given the name. It is currently declining compared with a decade ago.

Since 1881, 281,432 American babies have been named Courtney, about 92% girls and 8% boys, making it a genuinely unisex name. Its peak came in 1990, when 16,055 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 Courtney stood among all girls' names in any year, or use the compare tool to plot it against other names.

How old are people named Courtney?

The median living Courtney is about 35 years old; half are between 29 and 41. An estimated 273 thousand people named Courtney are alive in the United States today.

median 35 020406080100

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

Courtney 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 78 #2,335 38 #3,141
2024 99 #1,983 38 #3,174
2023 105 #1,891 38 #3,187
2022 121 #1,721 57 #2,444
2021 123 #1,684 54 #2,470
2020 157 #1,392 62 #2,214
2019 190 #1,234 52 #2,531
2018 202 #1,187 77 #1,924
2017 277 #954 82 #1,821
2016 349 #822 110 #1,524
2015 374 #754 111 #1,496
2014 419 #679 132 #1,323
2013 558 #534 123 #1,370
2012 639 #481 137 #1,280
2011 753 #418 129 #1,321
2010 900 #354 126 #1,350
2009 1,062 #308 137 #1,282
2008 1,268 #270 147 #1,199
2007 1,514 #233 155 #1,149
2006 1,835 #191 169 #1,060
2005 2,195 #157 141 #1,144
2004 2,763 #121 143 #1,103
2003 3,348 #103 135 #1,126
2002 3,580 #88 143 #1,062
2001 4,175 #73 175 #897
2000 5,239 #59 185 #860
1995 12,775 #17 275 #621
1990 15,380 #17 675 #357
1985 7,531 #43 731 #281
1980 5,618 #48 860 #256
1975 2,775 #102 409 #386
1970 783 #334 209 #560
1965 252 #613 184 #560
1960 62 #1,394 116 #723
1955 48 #1,466 74 #857
1950 38 #1,502 64 #854
1945 29 #1,521 73 #712
1940 16 #2,048 35 #1,110
1935 8 #3,211 43 #969
1930 14 #2,333 38 #1,136
1925 13 #2,645 50 #960
1920 22 #1,829 48 #991
1915 11 #2,572 44 #942
1910 8 #1,807 11 #993
1905 11 #1,177 – –
1900 10 #1,246 10 #854
1895 8 #1,216 7 #897
1890 6 #1,242 – –
1885 8 #800 5 #970
1880 – – – –

Famous people named Courtney

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

  1. 1 Courtney Love Courtney Love American rock musician (born 1964) Contemporary
  2. 2 Courtney B. Vance Courtney B. Vance American actor (born 1960) Contemporary
  3. 3 Courtney Thorne-Smith Courtney Thorne-Smith American actress (born 1966 or 1967) Contemporary
  4. 4 Courtney Ford Courtney Ford American actress b. 1978 · Contemporary
  5. 5 Courtney Eaton Courtney Eaton Australian actress (born 1996) Contemporary
  6. 6 Courtney Barnett Courtney Barnett Australian singer-songwriter and rock guitarist (born 1987) Contemporary
  7. 7 Courtney Hodges Courtney Hodges United States Army general (1887–1966) 19th century
  8. 8 Courtney Jines American actress, producer and screenwriter b. 1992 · Contemporary
  9. 9 Courtney Lee Courtney Lee American basketball player (born 1985) Contemporary
  10. 10 Courtney Okolo Courtney Okolo American sprinter (born 1994) Contemporary
  11. 11 Courtney Hurley Courtney Hurley American fencer (born 1990) Contemporary

Portraits from Wikipedia (Wikimedia Commons).

Frequently asked questions

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

How old is the average Courtney?

The median living Courtney is about 35 years old. Half of all living Courtneys are between 29 and 41 years old.

How many people named Courtney are alive today?

An estimated 273 thousand people named Courtney are alive in the United States, based on 281,432 recorded births and Social Security life tables.

What does the name Courtney mean?

Variant of Courtenay, an aristocratic Norman surname derived from place names in Normandy, from Latin Curtenus, a personal name from curtus (“short”).

How popular is the name Courtney in 2025?

Courtney ranked #2,335 among girls' names in the United States in 2025, with 78 babies given the name, according to Social Security Administration data.

How many people are named Courtney?

281,432 babies have been named Courtney in the United States since 1881, based on Social Security card applications.

When was the name Courtney most popular?

Courtney peaked in 1990, when 16,055 newborns received the name.

Is Courtney a boy or girl name?

Courtney is used for both: about 92% of babies named Courtney have been girls and 8% boys.

Is the name Courtney rising or falling?

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

Will Courtney become more popular?

Courtney is trending downward. If the recent trend holds, we project roughly 53 girls named Courtney 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 Courtney?

Well-known people named Courtney include Courtney Love (singer), Courtney B. Vance (actor), Courtney Thorne-Smith (actor).

Names like Courtney

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

Compare Courtney with similar names → More names starting with C →