Kelly

#851 for girls in 2025, 319 births · #1,867 for boys in 2025, 84 births
Given to girls 85.2% of the time

Showing
Show data for
Peak · girls
1977 · 18,234 births
Debut · girls
5 births
In top 100 · girls
41 yrs
of 146 years
Total births · girls
473,965
since 1907

Kelly over time

girlsboys

Rank within each sex, plotted together. Click any year to open it.

#1#10#100#1,000rank188019001920194019601980200020201963peak #10, 1977peak #97, 1968girlsboys
Hover or use arrow keys to read values by year; click or press Enter to open that year.

Gaps mean fewer than 5 babies received the name that year, so the SSA doesn't publish it.

Show data table
Yeargirlsboys
rankbirthsrankbirths
2025#851319#1,86784
2024#867312#1,583109
2023#779362#1,74494
2022#808347#1,479122
2021#850324#1,538114
2020#745366#1,518110
2019#652448#1,564107
2018#618486#1,593103
2017#597504#1,467115
2016#515605#1,456118
2015#480675#1,555104
2014#432740#1,526105
2013#368849#1,540103
2012#357892#1,514106
2011#336944#1,495108
2010#3061,061#1,565101
2009#2611,251#1,257140
2008#2481,399#1,452113
2007#2221,569#1,152154
2006#2121,611#1,202139
2005#1751,952#1,245127
2004#1382,357#1,022160
2003#1252,736#1,060146
2002#1192,852#884185
2001#1242,814#902174
2000#1113,077#799202
1999#953,420#786195
1998#893,703#696240
1997#834,064#616284
1996#734,734#551339
1995#645,398#534357
1994#625,446#513385
1993#516,295#455475
1992#477,012#417534
1991#427,515#367642
1990#418,137#351687
1989#378,759#299811
1988#328,917#307740
1987#309,866#280786
1986#2910,411#255873
1985#2811,031#254890
1984#2711,216#228985
1983#2611,586#2171,055
1982#2512,170#1971,270
1981#2311,873#2091,181
1980#1913,710#2101,183
1979#1615,296#1991,208
1978#1216,976#1801,308
1977#1018,234#1621,484
1976#1911,791#1581,540
1975#1611,735#1501,644
1974#1510,851#1431,758
1973#1810,512#1461,702
1972#2310,944#1401,917
1971#2212,599#1362,266
1970#2014,607#1352,494
1969#1516,328#1152,791
1968#1217,138#973,059
1967#2313,717#1023,093
1966#2613,242#1112,784
1965#3012,763#1362,258
1964#3512,470#1322,492
1963#3212,550#1262,729
1962#3811,530#1252,855
1961#459,642#1253,011
1960#528,673#1282,934
1959#746,380#1432,438
1958#1084,471#1482,299
1957#1871,903#1671,875
1956#309830#1901,468
1955#380539#2041,250
1954#406453#224965
1953#590226#232845
1952#490296#235805
1951#683163#252701
1950#90097#307488
1949#804117#299510
1948#95583#346379
1947#1,03873#368351
1946#1,20851#389283
1945#1,10051#385240
1944#1,00560#363275
1943#1,36736#369275
1942#1,34936#385249
1941#1,47228#470160
1940#1,59124#483142
1939#2,73610#466153
1938#1,87318#495137
1937#2,19614#513126
1936#2,26313#480138
1935#2,30513#514125
1934#2,56711#471144
1933#2,40412#515120
1932#2,23514#579105
1931#2,9729#506129
1930#2,42513#556117
1929#2,73711#494141
1928#2,76811#537128
1927#3,05310#532132
1926#2,70812#548123
1925#2,37815#562121
1924#3,14410#568125
1923#3,12510#600111
1922#2,61213#520141
1921#2,37815#541133
1920#2,89911#566121
1919#3,4528#496144
1918#2,37614#552118
1917#3,3448#501131
1916#3,0319#61590
1915#4,2745#562101
1914#2,12511#50892
1913#54563
1912#2,3607#52157
1911#2,4635#45741
1910#2,1406#38346
1909#1,7637#50526
1908#2,1015#49925
1907#2,0615#42929
1906#50320
1905#74111
1904#64713
1903#45121
1902#53616
1901#59612
1900#38533
1899#7149
1898#70110
1897#51515
1896#55114
1895#39923
1894#59412
1893#39121
1892#45818
1891#6359
1890#60311
1889#44617
1888#64810
1887#48813
1886#45116
1885#48015
1884#61310
1883#52712
1882#51413
1881#6538
1880#9095
First appearance
1907

The first year at least five girls were named Kelly! It came in at #2,061, and was given to 5 baby girls.


Quietest stretch: 1913, when fewer than 5 girls a year got the name.

See more about Kelly
Momentum · girls
Holding steady
  • 16 spots since 2024 (#867#851)
  • 106 spots since 2020 (#745#851)
  • 371 spots since 2015 (#480#851)
  • Biggest jump: 217 spots in 1951 (#900#683)
  • Biggest drop: 105 spots in 2021 (#745#850)
Rise & fade · girls
70 yrs to peak
  • Debuted 1907
  • Peaked 1977 at #10 (18,234 births)
  • Births halved by 1988, 11 yrs later
Top of the charts · girls
Top 10 for 1 yr
  • Top 10: 1 yr · 1977
  • Top 100: 41 yrs · run 1959–1999
  • Top 1,000: 78 yrs · run 1948–2025
Share of babies · girls
1 in 84
  • Highest: 1 in 84 girls born in 1977 were named Kelly (1.2%)
  • Latest: 1 in 5,038 girls born in 2025 (0.02%)
Era · girls
The 1970s
  • 28.2% of all girls named Kelly (133,545) were born in this decade
Girls or boys?
Flipped in 1957
  • Mostly boys until 1956, mostly girls since
all girlsall boys
Show by decade
DecadeBirthsBest rankAvg rank
1900s17#1,763 (1909)#1,975
1910s73#2,125 (1914)#2,841
1920s118#2,378 (1921)#2,780
1930s127#1,873 (1938)#2,398
1940s559#804 (1949)#1,189
1950s15,358#74 (1959)#413
1960s128,053#12 (1968)#31
1970s133,545#10 (1977)#17
1980s109,539#19 (1980)#28
1990s55,724#41 (1990)#65
2000s21,618#111 (2000)#174
2010s7,204#306 (2010)#466
2020s2,030#745 (2020)#817

All figures count published births only (names given to at least 5 girls in a year). Registrations before 1937 are incomplete, so early shares and totals run low.

Kelly in 1963

girls
#32
12,550 births · 1 in 154 girls
boys
#126
2,729 births · 1 in 744 boys

Top girls' names in 1963

  1. #1Lisa56,047
  2. #2Mary41,546
  3. #3Susan33,991
  4. #4Karen32,492
  5. #5Linda27,727
  6. #6Donna25,405
  7. #7Patricia25,374
  8. #8Lori23,899
  9. #9Sandra21,621
  10. #10Cynthia21,589
  11. #32Kelly12,550

Top boys' names in 1963

  1. #1Michael83,771
  2. #2John78,636
  3. #3David78,444
  4. #4James71,294
  5. #5Robert70,007
  6. #6Mark49,342
  7. #7William44,453
  8. #8Richard40,772
  9. #9Thomas35,490
  10. #10Jeffrey31,701
  11. #126Kelly2,729
More about 1963

girls

1,927,507 girls got a published name in 1963; 1 in 154 of them was named Kelly, which outranked 99.6% of the 7,661 girls' names that year. The ten most popular names covered 16.1% of girls (24.6% in 1880, 7.0% in 2025).

Ranked beside Kelly
  1. #29Christine13,387
  2. #30Angela13,277
  3. #31Diane13,193
  4. #32Kelly12,550
  5. #33Carol12,492
  6. #34Kathy12,215
  7. #35Tina12,157
Biggest movers since 1962
Risers
  1. 631Zena#1,323#692
  2. 623Zina#992#369
  3. 540Trisha#1,020#480
  4. 457Shirl#1,304#847
  5. 396Glynis#992#596
Fallers
  1. 1,195Marnita#727#1,922
  2. 255Velvet#623#878
  3. 235Delphine#904#1,139
  4. 224Rosita#934#1,158
  5. 197Lindy#885#1,082

Among names in the top 1,000 of either year.

boys

2,031,078 boys got a published name in 1963; 1 in 744 of them was named Kelly, which outranked 97.3% of the 4,621 boys' names that year. The ten most popular names covered 28.7% of boys (44.2% in 1880, 8.0% in 2025).

Ranked beside Kelly
  1. #123Marc2,893
  2. #124Dan2,823
  3. #125Brent2,815
  4. #126Kelly2,729
  5. #127Mitchell2,710
  6. #128Jerome2,663
  7. #129Brett2,610
Biggest movers since 1962
Risers
  1. 1,551Tal#2,364#813
  2. 1,141Jaimie#1,962#821
  3. 540Stoney#1,038#498
  4. 364Pamela#1,311#947
  5. 331Giovanni#1,242#911
Fallers
  1. 324Olin#871#1,195
  2. 295Enoch#984#1,279
  3. 285Rand#953#1,238
  4. 283Vernell#996#1,279
  5. 269Bentley#926#1,195

Among names in the top 1,000 of either year.

See the top 100 for 1963