boys' name ★ peaked 1990

Kyle

Meaning narrows Gender Boy · 2% girls Rank 2025 #509 Trend ↓ Falling 48%

From several places in Scotland and Northern Ireland, derived from Gaelic caol (“narrows”).

Rank 2025
#509
among boys · ↓70 vs 2024
Babies in 2025
611
named Kyle · -19% vs 2024
How common
1 in 2,876
boys born in 2025
Peak year
1990
22,947 babies
All-time total
494,713
#67 all-time among boys
First recorded
1881
in Social Security records

Kyle popularity over time

494,713 babies have been named Kyle 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
3.757.511.251518801900192019401960198020002020BoysGirls
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 – 19 19 2 – #730
1890s – 55 55 6 +189% #701
1900s – 79 79 8 +44% #786
1910s 5 449 454 45 +475% #703
1920s – 814 814 81 +79% #624
1930s 11 901 912 91 +12% #541
1940s 112 1,155 1,267 127 +39% #546
1950s 1,682 5,789 7,471 747 +490% #237
1960s 1,151 16,579 17,730 1,773 +137% #138
1970s 969 32,645 33,614 3,361 +90% #56
1980s 2,419 141,947 144,366 14,437 +329% #20
1990s 1,394 180,218 181,612 18,161 +26% #18
2000s 480 76,156 76,636 7,664 -58% #37
2010s 528 24,138 24,666 2,467 -68% #107
2020s (to 2025) 182 4,836 5,018 836 -66% #313

Where Kyle 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 531 0.31 outside top 500
2027 484 0.28 outside top 500
2028 446 0.26 outside top 500
2029 417 0.24 outside top 500
2030 393 0.23 outside top 500

Where Kyle is most popular

Boys named Kyle per 1,000 boys born in each state, 2021–2025. National average: 0.438 per 1,000. Strongest in Alaska, Hawaii, and New York.

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 Kyle 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
Alaska 15 1.26 +188%
Hawaii 12 0.773 +77%
New York 320 0.739 +69%
Massachusetts 95 0.691 +58%
Pennsylvania 176 0.663 +51%
New Jersey 133 0.661 +51%
Connecticut 44 0.650 +49%
Maryland 76 0.637 +46%
Ohio 165 0.623 +42%
Rhode Island 10 0.613 +40%
Arkansas 38 0.600 +37%
Indiana 91 0.568 +30%
California 512 0.560 +28%
Delaware 8 0.528 +21%
Michigan 107 0.522 +19%
Florida 246 0.520 +19%
Kentucky 52 0.518 +18%
Missouri 70 0.505 +15%
Louisiana 51 0.499 +14%
Virginia 91 0.480 +10%
Nevada 27 0.474 +8%
Minnesota 57 0.465 +6%
Georgia 115 0.454 ≈ national
Oklahoma 40 0.452 ≈ national
West Virginia 14 0.429 ≈ national
Illinois 109 0.426 ≈ national
South Carolina 44 0.426 ≈ national
Washington 68 0.416 -5%
Arizona 68 0.416 -5%
Kansas 28 0.408 -7%
Texas 333 0.378 -14%
Utah 34 0.356 -19%
North Carolina 89 0.349 -20%
Alabama 38 0.348 -21%
Tennessee 60 0.332 -24%
Wisconsin 39 0.329 -25%
Mississippi 17 0.299 -32%
Oregon 22 0.290 -34%
Montana 5 0.284 -35%
Colorado 36 0.279 -36%
Iowa 17 0.247 -44%
New Hampshire 5 0.225 -49%
New Mexico 5 0.152 -65%
Nebraska 5 0.115 -74%
District of Columbia – – –
Idaho – – –
Maine – – –
North Dakota – – –
South Dakota – – –
Vermont – – –
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 Kyle

Kyle is uncommon for boys in the United States, ranked #509 in 2025 with 594 babies given the name. It is currently declining compared with a decade ago.

Since 1881, 494,713 American babies have been named Kyle. Its peak came in 1990, when 22,947 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 Kyle stood among all boys' names in any year, or use the compare tool to plot it against other names.

How old are people named Kyle?

The median living Kyle is about 33 years old; half are between 26 and 39. An estimated 472 thousand people named Kyle are alive in the United States today.

median 33 020406080100

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

Kyle 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 17 #6,701 594 #509
2024 32 #4,435 721 #439
2023 30 #4,615 758 #417
2022 24 #5,405 808 #394
2021 33 #4,288 899 #363
2020 46 #3,366 1,056 #313
2019 43 #3,588 1,386 #262
2018 65 #2,667 1,682 #223
2017 48 #3,333 1,842 #210
2016 43 #3,625 2,039 #199
2015 60 #2,911 2,394 #174
2014 68 #2,602 2,388 #179
2013 58 #2,923 2,589 #155
2012 52 #3,196 2,968 #127
2011 58 #2,976 3,269 #120
2010 33 #4,453 3,581 #107
2009 34 #4,427 4,180 #99
2008 30 #4,961 4,705 #97
2007 42 #3,822 5,355 #86
2006 47 #3,447 6,150 #81
2005 38 #3,845 6,688 #69
2004 74 #2,333 7,826 #55
2003 61 #2,624 8,651 #53
2002 45 #3,178 10,064 #40
2001 56 #2,680 10,568 #40
2000 53 #2,763 11,969 #37
1995 124 #1,332 16,761 #24
1990 237 #829 22,710 #18
1985 303 #620 16,523 #27
1980 173 #888 5,775 #57
1975 89 #1,259 2,833 #88
1970 91 #1,231 2,763 #120
1965 90 #1,115 1,169 #210
1960 223 #682 1,263 #220
1955 134 #839 404 #360
1950 102 #879 239 #431
1945 5 #4,908 81 #670
1940 – – 94 #614
1935 – – 114 #541
1930 – – 89 #660
1925 – – 84 #706
1920 – – 85 #702
1915 5 #4,619 65 #745
1910 – – 15 #803
1905 – – 9 #880
1900 – – 7 #1,113
1895 – – 7 #937
1890 – – 5 #1,086
1885 – – – –
1880 – – – –

Famous people named Kyle

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

  1. 1 Kyle Chandler Kyle Chandler American actor (born 1965) Contemporary
  2. 2 Kyle MacLachlan Kyle MacLachlan American actor (born 1959) Contemporary
  3. 3 Kyle Richards Kyle Richards American actress and television personality (born 1969) Contemporary
  4. 4 Kyle Lowry Kyle Lowry American basketball player (born 1986) Contemporary
  5. 5 Kyle Gallner Kyle Gallner American actor (born 1986) Contemporary
  6. 6 Kyle Kuzma Kyle Kuzma American basketball player (born 1995) Contemporary
  7. 7 Kyle Eastwood Kyle Eastwood American jazz bassist and composer (born 1968) Contemporary
  8. 8 Kyle Singler Kyle Singler American basketball player (born 1988) Contemporary
  9. 9 Kyle Massey Kyle Massey American actor (born 1991) Contemporary
  10. 10 Kyle Gass Kyle Gass American musician (born 1960) Contemporary
  11. 11 Kyle Schmid Kyle Schmid Canadian actor b. 1984 · Contemporary
  12. 12 Kyle Anderson Kyle Anderson American-Chinese basketball player (born 1993) Contemporary
  13. 13 Kyle Korver Kyle Korver American basketball player (born 1981) Contemporary
  14. 14 Kyle Snyder Kyle Snyder American freestyle wrestler (born 1995) Contemporary
  15. 15 Kyle Walker-Peters Kyle Walker-Peters English footballer (born 1997) Contemporary
  16. 16 Kyle O'Reilly Kyle O'Reilly Canadian professional wrestler (born 1987) Contemporary
  17. 17 Kyle Lafferty Kyle Lafferty Northern Irish footballer b. 1987 · Contemporary
  18. 18 Kyle Edmund Kyle Edmund British tennis player b. 1995 · Contemporary
  19. 19 Kyle Chalmers Australian swimmer (born 1998) Contemporary
  20. 20 Kyle Bartley Kyle Bartley English footballer (born 1991) Contemporary

Portraits from Wikipedia (Wikimedia Commons).

Frequently asked questions

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

How old is the average Kyle?

The median living Kyle is about 33 years old. Half of all living Kyles are between 26 and 39 years old.

How many people named Kyle are alive today?

An estimated 472 thousand people named Kyle are alive in the United States, based on 494,713 recorded births and Social Security life tables.

What does the name Kyle mean?

From several places in Scotland and Northern Ireland, derived from Gaelic caol (“narrows”).

How popular is the name Kyle in 2025?

Kyle ranked #509 among boys' names in the United States in 2025, with 594 babies given the name, according to Social Security Administration data.

How many people are named Kyle?

494,713 babies have been named Kyle in the United States since 1881, based on Social Security card applications.

When was the name Kyle most popular?

Kyle peaked in 1990, when 22,947 newborns received the name.

Is Kyle a boy or girl name?

Kyle is overwhelmingly a boy's name: 98% of babies with the name.

Is the name Kyle rising or falling?

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

Will Kyle become more popular?

Kyle is trending downward. If the recent trend holds, we project roughly 393 boys named Kyle 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 Kyle?

Well-known people named Kyle include Kyle Chandler (actor), Kyle MacLachlan (actor), Kyle Richards (actor).

Names like Kyle

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

Compare Kyle with similar names → More names starting with K →