Boys' name · peaked in 2020
Axel name popularity since 1925
71,826 babies born in the US from 1925 to 2025 were named Axel. Half of them were born in 2017 or earlier, so the typical Axel is about 9 years old in 2026. Axel peaked in 2020 as the #72 name for boys, and it ranked #79 in 2025.
Key facts
- US babies since 1925
- 71,826
- Named Axel, 1925–2025
- In 2025
- #79
- for boys in 2025 (4,140 babies)
- Girls / boys
- 99.7% boys
- 209 girls · 71,617 boys
- Most popular in
- Nevada
- 3.46× its national share
Peak year is the year Axel made up the largest share of US boys, in records going back to 1880. Typical age is based on births from 1925 on, not on who is living today.
Axel births per year, 1925–2025
2020 was the biggest year for Axel both by count and as a share of all babies.
- Fastest rise: Between 1996 and 2001, Axel became 7.7× more common, from 1 in 11,800 baby boys to 1 in 1,530.
Shaded on the chart. This compares Axel's share of all US boys five years apart, counting only years with at least 100 babies named Axel.
Decade by decade
Babies named Axel in each decade, and its rank among boys' names in the middle year of the decade (1935, 1945 … 2025).
| Decade | Girls | Boys | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1925–29 | 0 | 95 | – |
| 1930s | 0 | 89 | #1,843 |
| 1940s | 0 | 81 | #2,579 |
| 1950s | 0 | 85 | #3,532 |
| 1960s | 0 | 168 | #2,095 |
| 1970s | 0 | 222 | #2,456 |
| 1980s | 0 | 446 | #1,699 |
| 1990s | 0 | 1,534 | #917 |
| 2000s | 57 | 10,613 | #314 |
| 2010s | 88 | 31,809 | #123 |
| 2020–25 | 64 | 26,475 | #79 |
Ranks count every name given to at least 5 boys that year, so they can go past 1,000.
Generation fingerprint
70.9% of babies named Axel from 1925 to 2025 were born in the Gen Alpha years (2013–2025). The full split by generation:
Where Axel is most popular
The index compares Axel's share of babies in each state with its share nationwide, 1925–2025 (1.50× = 50% more common). States with at least 300 babies named Axel.
| State | Index | Babies |
|---|---|---|
| Nevada | 3.46× | 872 |
| Arizona | 2.49× | 2,275 |
| Texas | 2.08× | 11,518 |
| Colorado | 1.76× | 1,536 |
| Utah | 1.64× | 988 |
Other spellings
Spellings that sound like Axel and were given to at least 1,000 boys from 1925 to 2025, with the year each one was most popular.
| Spelling | Boys | Peak year |
|---|---|---|
| Axel (this page) | 71,617 | 2020 |
| Axell | 1,125 | 2021 |
Names with a similar story
Of the other 1999 names on this site, these six had the share of babies closest in shape to Axel's from 1925 to 2025, however common each one got. Each line is scaled to its own high; the dashed line is Axel.
Names from the same era
Other common names that peaked within two years of Axel (2020).
Source: U.S. Social Security Administration national and state baby-name data, which covers names given to at least 5 babies of one sex in a year. About the data