girls' name ★ peaked 1993

Hayley

Meaning hay Gender Girl Rank 2025 #1,251 Trend ↓ Falling 47%

Localities in England, from Old English hēg (“hay”) + lēah (“wood, clearing”).

Rank 2025
#1,251
among girls · ↓180 vs 2024
Babies in 2025
179
named Hayley · -23% vs 2024
How common
1 in 8,979
girls born in 2025
Peak year
1993
2,624 babies
All-time total
51,449
#577 all-time among girls
First recorded
1960
in Social Security records

Hayley popularity over time

51,449 babies have been named Hayley since 1960, 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
0.511.5218801900192019401960198020002020GirlsBoys
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 – – – – – –
1890s – – – – – –
1900s – – – – – –
1910s – – – – – –
1920s – – – – – –
1930s – – – – – –
1940s – – – – – –
1950s – – – – – –
1960s 634 – 634 63 – #1,024
1970s 1,304 – 1,304 130 +106% #676
1980s 6,109 6 6,115 612 +369% #278
1990s 21,859 22 21,881 2,188 +258% #120
2000s 13,949 18 13,967 1,397 -36% #149
2010s 5,701 – 5,701 570 -59% #430
2020s (to 2025) 1,847 – 1,847 308 -46% #674

Where Hayley 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 161 0.10 outside top 500
2027 147 0.09 outside top 500
2028 136 0.08 outside top 500
2029 127 0.08 outside top 500
2030 120 0.07 outside top 500

Where Hayley is most popular

Girls named Hayley per 1,000 girls born in each state, 2021–2025. National average: 0.176 per 1,000. Strongest in Massachusetts, New York, and New Hampshire.

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 Hayley 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
Massachusetts 52 0.430 +145%
New York 139 0.351 +100%
New Hampshire 6 0.325 +85%
Maryland 34 0.321 +83%
New Jersey 57 0.316 +80%
Pennsylvania 65 0.275 +57%
Virginia 45 0.264 +50%
Florida 106 0.248 +41%
Nevada 11 0.237 +35%
California 190 0.226 +29%
Connecticut 12 0.206 +18%
North Carolina 45 0.198 +13%
Wisconsin 20 0.194 +11%
Texas 138 0.172 ≈ national
Arizona 24 0.171 ≈ national
Washington 23 0.159 -9%
Georgia 36 0.158 -10%
Ohio 37 0.156 -11%
Minnesota 16 0.148 -16%
Tennessee 23 0.145 -17%
Illinois 33 0.144 -18%
Louisiana 12 0.137 -22%
Colorado 13 0.116 -34%
Kansas 6 0.104 -41%
Alabama 6 0.064 -64%
Utah 5 0.060 -66%
Kentucky 5 0.058 -67%
Indiana 8 0.057 -68%
Michigan 10 0.055 -69%
Missouri 5 0.041 -76%
Alaska – – –
Arkansas – – –
District of Columbia – – –
Delaware – – –
Hawaii – – –
Iowa – – –
Idaho – – –
Maine – – –
Mississippi – – –
Montana – – –
North Dakota – – –
Nebraska – – –
New Mexico – – –
Oklahoma – – –
Oregon – – –
Rhode Island – – –
South Carolina – – –
South Dakota – – –
Vermont – – –
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 Hayley

Hayley is uncommon for girls in the United States, ranked #1,251 in 2025 with 179 babies given the name. It is currently declining compared with a decade ago.

Since 1960, 51,449 American babies have been named Hayley. Its peak came in 1993, when 2,624 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 Hayley stood among all girls' names in any year, or use the compare tool to plot it against other names.

How old are people named Hayley?

The median living Hayley is about 27 years old; half are between 21 and 33. An estimated 51 thousand people named Hayley are alive in the United States today.

median 27 020406080100

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

Hayley 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 179 #1,251 – –
2024 232 #1,071 – –
2023 266 #971 – –
2022 338 #829 – –
2021 409 #704 – –
2020 423 #674 – –
2019 415 #697 – –
2018 472 #632 – –
2017 496 #612 – –
2016 479 #623 – –
2015 566 #548 – –
2014 598 #517 – –
2013 546 #544 – –
2012 678 #459 – –
2011 728 #431 – –
2010 723 #430 – –
2009 756 #423 – –
2008 851 #381 – –
2007 1,110 #306 – –
2006 1,077 #305 – –
2005 1,234 #265 – –
2004 1,297 #247 13 #5,928
2003 1,867 #174 – –
2002 1,670 #192 – –
2001 1,787 #183 – –
2000 2,300 #149 5 #11,018
1995 2,359 #135 5 #9,373
1990 1,053 #267 – –
1985 664 #357 – –
1980 229 #728 – –
1975 98 #1,180 – –
1970 82 #1,310 – –
1965 71 #1,280 – –
1960 9 #4,577 – –
1955 – – – –
1950 – – – –
1945 – – – –
1940 – – – –
1935 – – – –
1930 – – – –
1925 – – – –
1920 – – – –
1915 – – – –
1910 – – – –
1905 – – – –
1900 – – – –
1895 – – – –
1890 – – – –
1885 – – – –
1880 – – – –

Famous people named Hayley

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

  1. 1 Hayley Atwell Hayley Atwell British American actress (born 1982) Contemporary
  2. 2 Hayley Mills Hayley Mills English actress (born 1946) Contemporary
  3. 3 Hayley Kiyoko Hayley Kiyoko American actress (born 1991) Contemporary
  4. 4 Hayley Wickenheiser Hayley Wickenheiser Canadian ice hockey player (born 1978) Contemporary
  5. 5 Hayley McFarland Hayley McFarland American actress (b. 1991) Contemporary
  6. 6 Hayley Westenra Hayley Westenra New Zealand singer (born 1987) Contemporary

Portraits from Wikipedia (Wikimedia Commons).

Frequently asked questions

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

How old is the average Hayley?

The median living Hayley is about 27 years old. Half of all living Hayleys are between 21 and 33 years old.

How many people named Hayley are alive today?

An estimated 51 thousand people named Hayley are alive in the United States, based on 51,449 recorded births and Social Security life tables.

What does the name Hayley mean?

Localities in England, from Old English hēg (“hay”) + lēah (“wood, clearing”).

How popular is the name Hayley in 2025?

Hayley ranked #1,251 among girls' names in the United States in 2025, with 179 babies given the name, according to Social Security Administration data.

How many people are named Hayley?

51,449 babies have been named Hayley in the United States since 1960, based on Social Security card applications.

When was the name Hayley most popular?

Hayley peaked in 1993, when 2,624 newborns received the name.

Is Hayley a boy or girl name?

Hayley is overwhelmingly a girl's name: 100% of babies with the name.

Is the name Hayley rising or falling?

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

Will Hayley become more popular?

Hayley is trending downward. If the recent trend holds, we project roughly 120 girls named Hayley 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 Hayley?

Well-known people named Hayley include Hayley Atwell (actor), Hayley Mills (actor), Hayley Kiyoko (actor).

Names like Hayley

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

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