Girls' name · since 1917
Ashley
Since 1917, U.S. Social Security records show 859,857 babies named Ashley, peaking in 1987. See the year-by-year trend, decade totals, and state rankings below, sourced from federal birth data.
- #20 of 72,339
- all-time among girls
- #164 of 17,297
- 2025 SSA year
- 859,857
- born since 1917
- 1980s
- peak decade
Ashley currently ranks #164 among girls' names in America, with 859,857 babies recorded since 1917.
Social Security Administration records show Ashley recorded 859,857 times among girls since 1917, holding rank #164 nationally today, ahead of 99.1% of girls, peaking in the 1980s. This profile derives year-by-year birth trends, decade totals, and state-level distribution directly from SSA birth-registration files spanning 1917 to 2025.
- #20 of 72,339 all-time among girls
- #164 of 17,297 2025 SSA year
- 859,857 born since 1917
- 1980s peak decade
Data updated Aug 2026
The verdict
According to the U.S. Social Security Administration, Ashley ranks #20 of 72,339 girls' names by all-time recorded births (highest first) and #164 of 17,297 among girls' names in 2025. 859,857 born since 1917, peaking in the 1980s.
- #20 of 72,339
- all-time among girls
- #164 of 17,297
- 2025 SSA year
- 859,857
- born since 1917
- 1980s
- peak decade
Ashley's 859,857 recorded births place it above 99.97% of the 72,339 girls names in the full SSA archive.
51 jurisdictions carry state-level records, led by California.
How Ashley compares
859,857 Top 1% higher than 99% of 17,297 names currently given to girls
Based on all-time total births among currently-ranked girls names. Names with fewer occurrences are grouped into wider buckets on the right.
Source U.S. Social Security Administration, national baby name data
How the numbers stack up
Ashley's all-time total is 2,287x the median girls name, and Olivia still leads by a wide margin.
| Metric | Ashley | Median girls name (Kyann) | #1 girls name (Olivia) |
|---|---|---|---|
| All-time total births | 859,857 | 376 | 567,345 |
| Peak-year births | 54,856 | 21 | 19,840 |
Ashley's usage pattern, beyond the headline number
Splitting Ashley's full recorded timeline at 1982, 95% of its total births fall in the more recent half of the record versus 5% in the earlier half -- usage has skewed toward the present, not a one-decade spike. Its quietest year on record was 1917, with just 5 recorded births -- worth weighing against the 1987 peak of 54,856 to see the full range of the name's swing in popularity.
Ashley popularity over time - girls
Annual U.S. births registered with the Social Security Administration · 1917–2025
- Peak year (1987)
- 54,856
- Annual births at peak, across 109 years of records
Ashley popularity over time - boys
15,865 total births recorded since 1880 (Ashley as boys' name)
Ashley by decade
1980s is the heaviest window (352,185 births, 41% of the file).
1980s was Ashley's strongest decade.
352,185 babies received the name during that ten-year window, about 41% of all-time use.
Ashley births by decade
Total births in each ten-year window
- 1910s 5
1910s
5 births
- 1930s 7
1930s
7 births
- 1940s 86
1940s
86 births
- 1950s 221
1950s
221 births
- 1960s 2,566
1960s
2,566 births
- 1970s 21,053
1970s
21,053 births
- 1980s
1980s
352,185 births
- 1990s
1990s
301,820 births
- 2000s 133,051
2000s
133,051 births
- 2010s 37,237
2010s
37,237 births
- 2020s 11,626
2020s
11,626 births
What this shows Peak: 1980s at 352,185 births (41% of all-time use).
How Ashley compares to similarly-sized names
Years in SSA records vs. share of all-time use concentrated in the single peak year, among 15 girls names closest to Ashley's total volume
Ashley by state
Where Ashley concentrates geographically, total births since 1917
| Rank | State | Visual share | Births | Share of total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| #1 | California | | 98,011 | 11.4% |
| #2 | Texas | | 79,157 | 9.2% |
| #3 | New York | | 49,318 | 5.7% |
| #4 | Florida | | 46,736 | 5.4% |
| #5 | Ohio | | 36,905 | 4.3% |
| #6 | Illinois | | 35,259 | 4.1% |
| #7 | Pennsylvania | | 33,776 | 3.9% |
| #8 | Michigan | | 28,823 | 3.4% |
98,011 of 859,857 births nationwide. Compared to a flat distribution across 51 reporting states.
Ashley appears in 51 states. Explore state details →
Frequently Asked Questions
How popular is the name Ashley? ▼
Where does Ashley sit in the SSA name archive? ▼
When was Ashley most popular? ▼
Where is Ashley most popular? ▼
How long has the name Ashley been used? ▼
What names are similar to Ashley? ▼
What to do with Ashley's data
- Ashley's decade-level peak was the 1980s (352,185 total births); usage has since declined to 11,626 in the 2020s -- if you're weighing a "classic revival" angle, the trend line argues against it.
- California records the most Ashleys (98,011 births) -- see the full state breakdown if geography matters to your decision. California names
Figures reflect SSA-reported births only; see the methodology above for the privacy-suppression floor.
Keep exploring Ashley
Nearby Names Like Ashley
Names with a similar sound, spelling, or feel to Ashley
Compare Ashley side by side: Ashley vs Ashlyn Ashley vs Ashlee Ashley vs Ashleigh
Related Names
Names with a similar popularity rank to Ashley
Nationwide names with similar peak year or record span
Two nationwide peer axes for Ashley: closest SSA peak year, and closest first→latest record span. Distinct from the spelling and current-rank neighborhoods above.
Similar peak year (~1987)
Similar record span (~108 yrs)
Peak year is the single SSA year with the most births for that name; record span is first-to-latest year in the national files, not a recommendation or shared origin claim.
Data Sources
Data as of August 2026. Source: U.S. Social Security Administration (SSA).
According to the Social Security Administration, this profile draws directly from the agency's public-use baby-name files (updated June 2026). See our methodology for the full extraction, aggregation, and privacy-suppression rules.
Primary: Source: U.S. Social Security Administration, Baby Names from Social Security Card Applications, National Data, 1917–2025 (ssa.gov/oact/babynames).
State-level: Source: U.S. Social Security Administration, Baby Names, State-Level Files (namesbystate.zip).
Name Almanac is rendered directly from the Social Security Administration's public baby-name files, no number is typed in by an editor. This profile for Ashley draws directly on SSA national and state-level files, no figure is typed in by an editor. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error. Data current as of August 2026.