Joey
Joey is given to both girls and boys: 146 girls and 274 boys were given it in 2025 (#1,474 among girls’ names and #877 among boys’, #1,330 among all names counting both); 61,402 Americans have been recorded with it since 1915 (Social Security Administration, published May 2026).
An estimated 53,600 Americans named Joey and born in the U.S. are alive in 2026 (87% of everyone recorded); the median is 46 years old and half are between 27 and 59.
Girls and boys together; gaps are years SSA did not record (fewer than 5 births).
Births of Joey by year: SSA national baby-name file, 1880-2025, published May 8, 2026. SSA’s notes on the data.
What does Joey mean?
Wiktionary, English section
Joey is “a diminutive of the male given names Joe and Joseph.”
Also “a diminutive of the female given name Josephine.”
/ˈd͡ʒoʊ.i/
Meaning: Wiktionary, English section, as of Sep 25, 2026 (CC BY‑SA 4.0).
How popular is Joey?
#877 among boys’ names, 2025
Joey fell from #758 in 2015 to #877 in 2025 among boys’ names; its share of boys born fell from 0.17 to 0.16 per 1,000.
1,572 babies in 1962, the peak
Joey peaked in 1962, when 1,572 babies were given it (1,529 boys, #200 among boys’ names). The 420 births of 2025 (girls and boys) are 27% of that peak.
Births by sex.
| Year | Girls | Girls’ rank | Boys | Boys’ rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 146 | #1,474 | 274 | #877 |
| 2024 | 164 | #1,380 | 267 | #890 |
| 2023 | 167 | #1,351 | 258 | #903 |
| 2022 | 161 | #1,414 | 264 | #892 |
| 2021 | 178 | #1,288 | 252 | #911 |
| 2020 | 153 | #1,429 | 253 | #895 |
| 2019 | 132 | #1,609 | 306 | #772 |
| 2018 | 151 | #1,456 | 323 | #739 |
| 2017 | 146 | #1,519 | 301 | #780 |
| 2016 | 154 | #1,491 | 355 | #696 |
Every recorded year (110)
| Year | Girls | Girls’ rank | Boys | Boys’ rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2015 | 95 | #2,067 | 318 | #758 |
| 2014 | 119 | #1,750 | 370 | #684 |
| 2013 | 73 | #2,469 | 382 | #643 |
| 2012 | 83 | #2,271 | 404 | #609 |
| 2011 | 90 | #2,133 | 408 | #605 |
| 2010 | 102 | #1,969 | 405 | #612 |
| 2009 | 99 | #2,067 | 408 | #616 |
| 2008 | 111 | #1,907 | 448 | #576 |
| 2007 | 135 | #1,649 | 470 | #547 |
| 2006 | 127 | #1,666 | 474 | #532 |
| 2005 | 146 | #1,457 | 482 | #510 |
| 2004 | 121 | #1,608 | 508 | #489 |
| 2003 | 133 | #1,469 | 496 | #494 |
| 2002 | 92 | #1,922 | 448 | #509 |
| 2001 | 95 | #1,850 | 435 | #519 |
| 2000 | 80 | #2,062 | 481 | #485 |
| 1999 | 70 | #2,158 | 449 | #491 |
| 1998 | 71 | #2,068 | 403 | #517 |
| 1997 | 56 | #2,370 | 441 | #486 |
| 1996 | 49 | #2,568 | 470 | #461 |
| 1995 | 67 | #2,031 | 507 | #450 |
| 1994 | 53 | #2,421 | 554 | #412 |
| 1993 | 53 | #2,394 | 653 | #362 |
| 1992 | 54 | #2,408 | 575 | #400 |
| 1991 | 60 | #2,195 | 651 | #363 |
| 1990 | 44 | #2,661 | 685 | #352 |
| 1989 | 42 | #2,679 | 605 | #370 |
| 1988 | 47 | #2,339 | 619 | #343 |
| 1987 | 39 | #2,588 | 720 | #299 |
| 1986 | 45 | #2,283 | 655 | #310 |
| 1985 | 48 | #2,189 | 763 | #273 |
| 1984 | 58 | #1,846 | 742 | #280 |
| 1983 | 80 | #1,457 | 791 | #261 |
| 1982 | 74 | #1,592 | 1,001 | #232 |
| 1981 | 101 | #1,274 | 1,072 | #225 |
| 1980 | 126 | #1,100 | 1,154 | #212 |
| 1979 | 173 | #882 | 1,095 | #215 |
| 1978 | 148 | #950 | 1,072 | #207 |
| 1977 | 197 | #766 | 1,213 | #195 |
| 1976 | 203 | #721 | 1,160 | #194 |
| 1975 | 224 | #673 | 840 | #249 |
| 1974 | 232 | #658 | 855 | #239 |
| 1973 | 208 | #708 | 872 | #240 |
| 1972 | 185 | #754 | 912 | #235 |
| 1971 | 167 | #829 | 1,070 | #219 |
| 1970 | 198 | #745 | 1,137 | #217 |
| 1969 | 142 | #885 | 1,191 | #210 |
| 1968 | 145 | #850 | 1,111 | #210 |
| 1967 | 83 | #1,166 | 1,068 | #210 |
| 1966 | 55 | #1,500 | 1,032 | #217 |
| 1965 | 26 | #2,370 | 1,120 | #214 |
| 1964 | 33 | #2,084 | 1,362 | #203 |
| 1963 | 18 | #3,007 | 1,382 | #207 |
| 1962 | 43 | #1,743 | 1,529 | #200 |
| 1961 | 29 | #2,215 | 1,257 | #220 |
| 1960 | 23 | #2,539 | 1,206 | #229 |
| 1959 | 26 | #2,255 | 1,121 | #240 |
| 1958 | 40 | #1,710 | 1,067 | #238 |
| 1957 | 43 | #1,645 | 1,041 | #237 |
| 1956 | 29 | #2,022 | 946 | #239 |
| 1955 | 26 | #2,136 | 693 | #271 |
| 1954 | 30 | #1,920 | 500 | #323 |
| 1953 | 28 | #1,947 | 328 | #385 |
| 1952 | 17 | #2,614 | 241 | #454 |
| 1951 | 26 | #1,938 | 196 | #481 |
| 1950 | 27 | #1,852 | 188 | #490 |
| 1949 | 15 | #2,669 | 154 | #537 |
| 1948 | 15 | #2,646 | 153 | #536 |
| 1947 | 14 | #2,822 | 174 | #516 |
| 1946 | 16 | #2,427 | 121 | #584 |
| 1945 | 20 | #1,906 | 120 | #546 |
| 1944 | 20 | #1,937 | 137 | #520 |
| 1943 | 14 | #2,489 | 131 | #547 |
| 1942 | 22 | #1,829 | 96 | #655 |
| 1941 | 8 | #3,389 | 52 | #882 |
| 1940 | 5 | #4,679 | 65 | #768 |
| 1939 | 9 | #3,016 | 49 | #897 |
| 1938 | 11 | #2,658 | 31 | #1,185 |
| 1937 | 11 | #2,630 | 38 | #1,044 |
| 1936 | 12 | #2,441 | 31 | #1,196 |
| 1935 | 9 | #3,035 | 35 | #1,113 |
| 1934 | 11 | #2,644 | 26 | #1,343 |
| 1933 | 14 | #2,211 | 22 | #1,479 |
| 1932 | 12 | #2,563 | 28 | #1,309 |
| 1931 | 7 | #3,671 | 24 | #1,440 |
| 1930 | 5 | #4,885 | 24 | #1,515 |
| 1929 | 6 | #4,316 | 16 | #1,967 |
| 1928 | 7 | #3,963 | 19 | #1,796 |
| 1927 | 5 | #5,196 | 14 | #2,243 |
| 1926 | 6 | #4,561 | 15 | #2,134 |
| 1925 | 8 | #3,852 | 11 | #2,670 |
| 1924 | 9 | #3,513 | 14 | #2,297 |
| 1923 | 8 | #3,793 | 5 | #4,543 |
| 1922 | 6 | #4,714 | 12 | #2,564 |
| 1921 | 11 | #3,038 | 8 | #3,351 |
| 1920 | under 5 | 5 | #4,630 | |
| 1919 | 7 | #4,037 | 8 | #3,256 |
| 1918 | 7 | #4,060 | under 5 | |
| 1916 | under 5 | 9 | #2,824 | |
| 1915 | under 5 | 6 | #3,623 |
Ranks: girls’ names and boys’ names ranked separately in each year’s SSA file; “under 5” is a year SSA did not list the name for that sex.
Is Joey a boy’s or a girl’s name?
Of the 61,402 Americans recorded as Joey, 12% are girls and 88% boys.
Years with fewer than 20 babies given the name are left blank.
Girls and boys named Joey: the SSA national file counts each sex separately.
How many people are named Joey, and how old are they?
53,600 alive in 2026, estimated
That is 87% of the 61,402 Americans ever recorded as Joey. The median Joey alive today is 46 years old; half are between 27 and 59.
The 2020 Census counted 57,447 people named Joey (6,294 women and girls, 51,153 men and boys). SSA’s births carried forward to Census day, April 1, 2020, predict 53,241 born in the U.S. The Census count is 8% above that prediction.
Alive today, by age
Alive today, by generation
| Generation | Born | Alive |
|---|---|---|
| Silent Generation | 1928-1945 | 341 |
| Baby Boomers | 1946-1964 | 10,300 |
| Generation X | 1965-1980 | 17,300 |
| Millennials | 1981-1996 | 11,400 |
| Generation Z | 1997-2012 | 8,630 |
| Generation Alpha | 2013-2025 | 5,720 |
An estimate, not a count. SSA’s files count people born in the United States who received a Social Security number, so anyone born abroad is not in them; before 1937 most people got a number as adults, and their survival is counted from that age.
Living estimate: SSA births carried forward with the survival rates in SSA’s cohort life tables (2024 Trustees Report) for each birth year and sex. How the estimate is made. Count: Census Bureau, first names in the 2020 Census (released April 14, 2026; names reported 100 or more times, with the Bureau’s disclosure-avoidance adjustment).
Where are babies named Joey born?
The states with the most babies named Joey are California, Texas and New York, with 30% of its births recorded by state since 1910.
| State | Since 1910 | Rank, boys | vs. national |
|---|---|---|---|
| California | 8,290 | #496 | 1.2× |
| Texas | 5,284 | #738 | 1.1× |
| New York | 2,703 | #866 | 0.6× |
| North Carolina | 2,486 | #1,084 | 1.5× |
| Georgia | 2,363 | #1,153 | 1.4× |
| Ohio | 2,143 | #729 | 0.7× |
| Florida | 2,117 | #716 | 0.9× |
| Louisiana | 1,987 | not ranked | 1.6× |
| Tennessee | 1,946 | not ranked | 1.5× |
| Illinois | 1,776 | not ranked | 0.6× |
Where Joey is more common than its national share predicts
Relative to its national share, Joey is most over-represented in Louisiana: since 1915 it was given 1.6 times as often there as its national share each year would predict.
States: SSA state file, 1910-2025, published May 8, 2026; births count girls and boys together, and the rank is among boys’ names in the state in 2025. The file leaves out any state and year with fewer than 5 babies of the name, so small states are undercounted; each ratio compares the state’s births of Joey with the births its national share predicts year by year, for states with at least 100 births of the name.
Names spelled alike
Of these 8 names spelled alike, given to 530,640 babies since 1880, Joey is the second most given (12% of them). In 2025 it was given to 420 of their 887 babies (47%), the most given that year.
Spelled alike: names in the SSA national file with the same pattern of letters and sounds and at most two letters apart, and Wiktionary’s listed forms; births since 1880 and in 2025, and each name’s peak year, from the SSA national file, published May 8, 2026. Some are separate names, not spellings of one.
Names that rose and fell in the same decades as Joey
Names whose births rose and fell across the same decades, measured on each decade’s share of births.
| Name | Recorded | 1910-2025 |
|---|---|---|
| Shan | 3,088 |
Similar histories: each decade’s share of births, from the SSA national file, 1880-2025, published May 8, 2026. SSA’s notes on the data.
More about Joey and names like it
- Compare Joey and JoeBirths, ranks, peak and the living estimate side by side.
- The most given names of the 1960sJoey peaked in 1962.
- California’s most given namesThe state where SSA recorded the most babies named Joey since 1910.
- The top names of 1962The year the most babies were named Joey.
- The names of Generation XMost people named Joey alive today were born 1965-1980.
- Names starting with JMost given first.