Boys' name · peaked in 1934
Billy name popularity since 1925
374,994 babies born in the US from 1925 to 2025 were named Billy (1.3% girls, 98.7% boys). Half of them were born in 1949 or earlier, so the typical Billy is about 77 years old in 2026. Billy peaked in 1934 as the #20 name for boys, and it was outside the top 1,000 in 2025.
Key facts
- US babies since 1925
- 374,994
- Named Billy, 1925–2025
- Peak year
- 1934
- #20 for boys that year
- In 2025
- Not top 1,000
- #1,068 for boys in 2025
- Girls / boys
- 98.7% boys
- 4,764 girls · 370,230 boys
- Most popular in
- Arkansas
- 5.28× its national share
Peak year is the year Billy 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.
Billy births per year, 1925–2025
1934 was the biggest year for Billy both by count and as a share of all babies.
- Fastest rise: Between 1925 and 1930, Billy became 2.2× more common.
- Steepest fall: Between 1981 and 1986, its share of baby boys fell by 43%, from 1 in 621 to 1 in 1,090.
Shaded on the chart. Both compare Billy's share of all US boys five years apart, counting only years with at least 100 babies named Billy.
Decade by decade
Babies named Billy 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 | 744 | 31,480 | – |
| 1930s | 1,102 | 88,341 | #19 |
| 1940s | 608 | 67,833 | #42 |
| 1950s | 483 | 59,277 | #69 |
| 1960s | 488 | 48,472 | #77 |
| 1970s | 710 | 33,217 | #84 |
| 1980s | 360 | 20,650 | #150 |
| 1990s | 128 | 10,942 | #264 |
| 2000s | 33 | 5,670 | #456 |
| 2010s | 35 | 3,099 | #810 |
| 2020–25 | 73 | 1,249 | #1,068 |
Ranks count every name given to at least 5 boys that year, so they can go past 1,000.
Generation fingerprint
39.4% of babies named Billy from 1925 to 2025 were born in the Silent Generation years (1928–1945). The full split by generation:
Where Billy is most popular
The index compares Billy'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 Billy.
| State | Index | Babies |
|---|---|---|
| Arkansas | 5.28× | 20,277 |
| Oklahoma | 4.60× | 22,442 |
| Mississippi | 3.53× | 15,988 |
| Tennessee | 3.49× | 27,453 |
| Alabama | 3.38× | 22,396 |
Names with a similar story
Of the other 499 names on this site, these six had the share of babies closest in shape to Billy's from 1925 to 2025, however common each one got. Each line is scaled to its own high; the dashed line is Billy.
Names from the same era
Other common names that peaked within two years of Billy (1934).
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