boys' name ★ peaked 2025

Hayes

Meaning A male given name transferred from the surname Gender Boy · 4% girls Rank 2025 #162 Trend ↑ Rising 80%

A male given name transferred from the surname.

Rank 2025
#162
among boys · ↓2 vs 2024
Babies in 2025
2,327
named Hayes
How common
1 in 763
boys born in 2025
Peak year
2025
2,327 babies
All-time total
21,886
#820 all-time among boys
First recorded
1880
in Social Security records

Hayes popularity over time

21,886 babies have been named Hayes 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
0.380.751.131.518801900192019401960198020002020BoysGirls
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 – 67 67 7 – #530
1890s – 68 68 7 +1% #566
1900s – 124 124 12 +82% #513
1910s – 311 311 31 +151% #876
1920s – 400 400 40 +29% #949
1930s – 298 298 30 -25% #987
1940s – 301 301 30 +1% #1,110
1950s – 250 250 25 -17% #1,276
1960s – 167 167 17 -33% #1,501
1970s – 225 225 23 +35% #1,244
1980s – 182 182 18 -19% #2,382
1990s 18 405 423 42 +132% #1,685
2000s 82 1,127 1,209 121 +186% #954
2010s 355 5,918 6,273 627 +419% #296
2020s (to 2025) 506 11,082 11,588 1,931 +208% #160

Where Hayes 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 2,490 1.46 #143
2027 2,725 1.60 #132
2028 2,942 1.72 #122
2029 3,140 1.84 #111
2030 3,318 1.94 #105

Where Hayes is most popular

Boys named Hayes per 1,000 boys born in each state, 2021–2025. National average: 1.12 per 1,000. Strongest in Wyoming, North Dakota, and South Dakota.

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

All 50 states and DC, sorted by rate. Counts are boys named Hayes 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 Boys 2021–2025 Per 1,000 vs national
Wyoming 42 7.26 +551%
North Dakota 97 5.68 +410%
South Dakota 105 5.64 +406%
Montana 71 4.03 +261%
Nebraska 172 3.96 +255%
Utah 337 3.53 +217%
Louisiana 319 3.12 +180%
Kansas 210 3.06 +175%
Iowa 211 3.06 +174%
Arkansas 173 2.73 +145%
Idaho 104 2.54 +128%
Mississippi 134 2.36 +112%
Minnesota 277 2.26 +102%
Oklahoma 193 2.18 +96%
South Carolina 214 2.07 +86%
Tennessee 332 1.84 +65%
Alabama 200 1.83 +64%
Missouri 253 1.83 +64%
Wisconsin 213 1.80 +61%
Maine 33 1.70 +53%
Kentucky 170 1.69 +52%
North Carolina 427 1.67 +50%
West Virginia 53 1.62 +46%
Indiana 239 1.49 +34%
Oregon 113 1.49 +34%
Ohio 394 1.49 +33%
Colorado 181 1.40 +26%
Michigan 282 1.38 +23%
Georgia 333 1.31 +18%
Texas 1,108 1.26 +13%
Virginia 194 1.02 -8%
Pennsylvania 270 1.02 -9%
Illinois 252 0.986 -12%
Washington 157 0.960 -14%
Arizona 157 0.960 -14%
New Hampshire 20 0.901 -19%
Maryland 107 0.897 -20%
Massachusetts 117 0.851 -24%
Hawaii 12 0.773 -31%
Connecticut 48 0.709 -36%
Nevada 39 0.684 -39%
Florida 311 0.657 -41%
California 582 0.637 -43%
New York 187 0.432 -61%
New Jersey 82 0.407 -63%
District of Columbia 6 0.406 -64%
Delaware 6 0.396 -65%
New Mexico 10 0.303 -73%
Alaska – – –
Rhode Island – – –
Vermont – – –

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 Hayes

Hayes is moderately common for boys in the United States, ranked #162 in 2025 with 2,240 babies given the name. It is currently rising compared with a decade ago.

Since 1880, 21,886 American babies have been named Hayes. Its peak came in 2025, when 2,327 newborns received the name, the signature sound of the 2020s.

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

How old are people named Hayes?

The median living Hayes is about 5 years old; half are between 2 and 9. An estimated 20 thousand people named Hayes are alive in the United States today.

median 5 020406080100

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

Hayes 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 87 #2,143 2,240 #162
2024 71 #2,517 2,255 #160
2023 79 #2,321 1,755 #209
2022 87 #2,181 1,775 #212
2021 84 #2,218 1,606 #229
2020 98 #1,953 1,451 #245
2019 69 #2,545 1,165 #296
2018 71 #2,489 973 #343
2017 67 #2,615 766 #408
2016 25 #5,352 717 #432
2015 26 #5,191 531 #539
2014 24 #5,533 504 #546
2013 19 #6,567 418 #605
2012 23 #5,773 340 #697
2011 16 #7,561 289 #778
2010 15 #8,041 215 #937
2009 10 #10,960 211 #954
2008 15 #8,271 144 #1,223
2007 9 #11,987 146 #1,210
2006 10 #10,882 134 #1,250
2005 6 #15,181 108 #1,384
2004 10 #10,184 79 #1,637
2003 9 #10,744 91 #1,440
2002 – – 76 #1,599
2001 6 #14,152 61 #1,830
2000 7 #12,266 77 #1,557
1995 – – 49 #1,790
1990 – – 23 #2,813
1985 – – 16 #3,001
1980 – – 17 #2,771
1975 – – 21 #2,160
1970 – – 18 #2,159
1965 – – 15 #2,120
1960 – – 29 #1,501
1955 – – 19 #1,813
1950 – – 32 #1,276
1945 – – 35 #1,110
1940 – – 29 #1,261
1935 – – 26 #1,338
1930 – – 30 #1,315
1925 – – 51 #949
1920 – – 37 #1,191
1915 – – 41 #987
1910 – – 12 #953
1905 – – 20 #513
1900 – – 15 #659
1895 – – 8 #827
1890 – – – –
1885 – – 13 #530
1880 – – 8 #708

Famous people named Hayes

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

  1. 1 Hayes Alan Jenkins Hayes Alan Jenkins American figure skater b. 1933 · Contemporary
  2. 2 Hayes Jones Hayes Jones American athlete (born 1938) Contemporary

Portraits from Wikipedia (Wikimedia Commons).

Frequently asked questions

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

How old is the average Hayes?

The median living Hayes is about 5 years old. Half of all living Hayess are between 2 and 9 years old.

How many people named Hayes are alive today?

An estimated 20 thousand people named Hayes are alive in the United States, based on 21,886 recorded births and Social Security life tables.

What does the name Hayes mean?

A male given name transferred from the surname.

How popular is the name Hayes in 2025?

Hayes ranked #162 among boys' names in the United States in 2025, with 2,240 babies given the name, according to Social Security Administration data.

How many people are named Hayes?

21,886 babies have been named Hayes in the United States since 1880, based on Social Security card applications.

When was the name Hayes most popular?

Hayes peaked in 2025, when 2,327 newborns received the name.

Is Hayes a boy or girl name?

Hayes is overwhelmingly a boy's name: 96% of babies with the name.

Is the name Hayes rising or falling?

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

Will Hayes become more popular?

Hayes is trending upward. If the recent trend holds, we project roughly 3,318 boys named Hayes in 2030, which would rank around #105. Forecasts assume the current trend continues and become less certain further out.

Who are famous people named Hayes?

Well-known people named Hayes include Hayes Alan Jenkins (skater), Hayes Jones (athlete).

Names like Hayes

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

Compare Hayes with similar names → More names starting with H →