Mostly girls · peaked in 1969
Leslie name popularity since 1925
356,778 babies born in the US from 1925 to 2025 were named Leslie (75.2% girls, 24.8% boys). Half of them were born in 1968 or earlier, so the typical Leslie is about 58 years old in 2026. Leslie peaked in 1969 as the #64 name for girls, and it ranked #712 in 2025.
Key facts
- US babies since 1925
- 356,778
- Named Leslie, 1925–2025
- In 2025
- #712
- for girls in 2025 (393 babies)
- Girls / boys
- 75.2% girls
- 268,305 girls · 88,473 boys
- Most popular in
- Montana
- 1.52× its national share
Peak year is the year Leslie made up the largest share of US girls, in records going back to 1880. Typical age is based on births from 1925 on, not on who is living today.
Leslie births per year, 1925–2025
The biggest year by count was 1957. Measured as a share of all babies, Leslie peaked in 1969.
- Fastest rise: Between 1940 and 1945, Leslie became 5.9× more common, from 1 in 4,500 baby girls to 1 in 767.
- Steepest fall: Between 2006 and 2011, its share of baby girls fell by 54%, from 1 in 626 to 1 in 1,370.
Shaded on the chart. Both compare Leslie's share of all US girls five years apart, counting only years with at least 100 babies named Leslie.
Decade by decade
Babies named Leslie in each decade, and its rank among girls' names in the middle year of the decade (1935, 1945 … 2025).
| Decade | Girls | Boys | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1925–29 | 609 | 7,065 | – |
| 1930s | 1,447 | 12,242 | #502 |
| 1940s | 14,856 | 19,389 | #142 |
| 1950s | 43,049 | 21,381 | #99 |
| 1960s | 54,453 | 13,724 | #75 |
| 1970s | 44,839 | 7,194 | #71 |
| 1980s | 38,729 | 3,864 | #76 |
| 1990s | 26,769 | 1,960 | #137 |
| 2000s | 31,055 | 967 | #103 |
| 2010s | 9,752 | 482 | #371 |
| 2020–25 | 2,747 | 205 | #712 |
Ranks count every name given to at least 5 girls that year, so they can go past 1,000.
Generation fingerprint
33.2% of babies named Leslie from 1925 to 2025 were born in the Baby Boom years (1946–1964). The full split by generation:
Where Leslie is most popular
The index compares Leslie'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 Leslie.
| State | Index | Babies |
|---|---|---|
| Montana | 1.52× | 1,583 |
| Hawaii | 1.51× | 1,681 |
| District of Columbia | 1.48× | 2,419 |
| Wyoming | 1.42× | 681 |
| California | 1.31× | 49,280 |
Other spellings
Spellings that sound like Leslie and were given to at least 1,000 girls from 1925 to 2025, with the year each one was most popular.
| Spelling | Girls | Peak year |
|---|---|---|
| Leslie (this page) | 268,305 | 1969 |
| Lesley | 34,180 | 1979 |
| Lesly | 15,281 | 2003 |
| Lesli | 5,799 | 2001 |
| Leslee | 4,897 | 1973 |
| Leslye | 2,441 | 2002 |
| Lezlie | 2,399 | 1962 |
Names with a similar story
Of the other 499 names on this site, these six had the share of babies closest in shape to Leslie's from 1925 to 2025, however common each one got. Each line is scaled to its own high; the dashed line is Leslie.
Names from the same era
Other common names that peaked within two years of Leslie (1969).
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