Unisex name · since 1880
Harley
Since 1880, U.S. Social Security records show 40,705 babies named Harley, peaking in 1994. See the year-by-year trend, decade totals, and state rankings below, sourced from federal birth data.
- #569 of 45,481
- all-time among boys
- #1,081 of 13,930
- 2025 SSA year
- 40,705
- born since 1880
- 1990s
- peak decade
Yes -- Harley is the #1081 most popular unisex name in the U.S. today, with 40,705 recorded since 1880.
According to the U.S. Social Security Administration, Harley has been recorded 40,705 times among boys since 1880, currently ranked #1081 nationally and more common than 92% of boys, with its heaviest use in the 1990s. This profile covers year-by-year birth trends, decade totals, and state-level distribution, all derived directly from SSA birth-registration files spanning 1880 to 2025.
- #569 of 45,481 all-time among boys
- #1,081 of 13,930 2025 SSA year
- 40,705 born since 1880
- 1990s peak decade
Data updated Aug 2026
The verdict
According to the U.S. Social Security Administration, Harley ranks #569 of 45,481 boys' names by all-time recorded births (highest first) and #1,081 of 13,930 among boys' names in 2025. 40,705 born since 1880, peaking in the 1990s.
- #569 of 45,481
- all-time among boys
- #1,081 of 13,930
- 2025 SSA year
- 40,705
- born since 1880
- 1990s
- peak decade
Harley's 40,705 recorded births place it above 98.74% of the 45,481 boys names in the full SSA archive.
47 jurisdictions carry state-level records, led by California.
How Harley compares
40,705 Top 5% higher than 95% of 13,930 names currently given to boys
Based on all-time total births among currently-ranked boys 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
Harley's all-time total is 110x the median boys name, and Liam still leads by a wide margin.
| Metric | Harley | Median boys name (Takari) | #1 boys name (Liam) |
|---|---|---|---|
| All-time total births | 40,705 | 369 | 358,536 |
| Peak-year births | 789 | 34 | 22,252 |
Harley's usage pattern, beyond the headline number
Harley splits its recorded history at 1953: 56% of all births land in the more recent half, 44% in the earlier half, an evenly balanced pattern over time. The single quietest year was 1885 (51 births) -- compare that against the 1994 peak of 789 for a sense of just how much the name's popularity has swung.
Harley popularity over time - boys
Annual U.S. births registered with the Social Security Administration · 1880–2025
- Peak year (1994)
- 789
- Annual births at peak, across 146 years of records
Harley popularity over time - girls
31,167 total births recorded since 1916 (Harley as girls' name)
Harley by decade
1990s is the heaviest window (5,578 births, 14% of the file).
1990s was Harley's strongest decade.
5,578 babies received the name during that ten-year window, about 14% of all-time use.
Harley births by decade
Total births in each ten-year window
- 1880s 685
1880s
685 births
- 1890s 690
1890s
690 births
- 1900s 686
1900s
686 births
- 1910s
1910s
3,161 births
- 1920s
1920s
4,867 births
- 1930s
1930s
3,781 births
- 1940s
1940s
3,215 births
- 1950s
1950s
2,343 births
- 1960s 1,382
1960s
1,382 births
- 1970s 1,677
1970s
1,677 births
- 1980s
1980s
2,309 births
- 1990s
1990s
5,578 births
- 2000s
2000s
5,114 births
- 2010s
2010s
3,778 births
- 2020s 1,439
2020s
1,439 births
What this shows Peak: 1990s at 5,578 births (14% of all-time use).
How Harley compares to similarly-sized names
Years in SSA records vs. share of all-time use concentrated in the single peak year, among 15 boys names closest to Harley's total volume
Harley by state
Where Harley concentrates geographically, total births since 1880
| Rank | State | Visual share | Births | Share of total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| #1 | California | | 2,505 | 6.2% |
| #2 | Ohio | | 2,430 | 6.0% |
| #3 | Texas | | 2,414 | 5.9% |
| #4 | Michigan | | 1,514 | 3.7% |
| #5 | Indiana | | 1,408 | 3.5% |
| #6 | Illinois | | 1,383 | 3.4% |
| #7 | North Carolina | | 1,352 | 3.3% |
| #8 | Oklahoma | | 1,331 | 3.3% |
2,505 of 40,705 births nationwide. Compared to a flat distribution across 47 reporting states.
Harley appears in 47 states. Explore state details →
Frequently Asked Questions
How popular is the name Harley? ▼
Where does Harley sit in the SSA name archive? ▼
When was Harley most popular? ▼
Where is Harley most popular? ▼
Is Harley a unisex name? ▼
How long has the name Harley been used? ▼
What names are similar to Harley? ▼
What to do with Harley's data
- Harley's decade-level peak was the 1990s (5,578 total births); usage has since declined to 1,439 in the 2020s -- if you're weighing a "classic revival" angle, the trend line argues against it.
- California records the most Harleys (2,505 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 Harley
Nearby Names Like Harley
Names with a similar sound, spelling, or feel to Harley
Compare Harley side by side: Harley vs Harold Harley vs Harry Harley vs Harvey
Related Names
Names with a similar popularity rank to Harley
Nationwide names with similar peak year or record span
Two nationwide peer axes for Harley: closest SSA peak year, and closest first→latest record span. Distinct from the spelling and current-rank neighborhoods above.
Similar peak year (~1994)
Similar record span (~145 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, 1880–2025 (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 Harley 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.