Hayley
- Gender
- Girl
- Say it
- HAY-lee
- Origin
- English
- UK rank, 2025
- #407 for girls
- US rank, 2025
- #1,250 for girls
- Style
- Big in Scotland, big in Northern Ireland
Hayley is a girls' name of English origin, meaning “hay clearing”. In 2025 it ranked 407th for girls in the UK (116 babies) and 1,250th for girls in the US (179 babies).
What does Hayley mean?
English: English surname from a place name
“hay clearing”
Rare as a first name until the 1960s, when the child star Hayley Mills, named after her mother Mary Hayley Bell, made it known.
More on Wiktionary.
Is Hayley a girl's or a boy's name?
Hayley is a girls' name. In 2025, it was given to 116 girls in the UK and 179 girls in the US. Too few boys were given it to be listed.
How popular is Hayley in the UK?
- Rank in 2025
- 407th among girls
- Babies in 2025
- 116 about 1 in 2,400 girls
- Five-year trend
- Steady up 1% in five years
- Same name in a class
- under 1% chance among 15 girls
In 2025, 116 girls in the UK were named Hayley, making it the 407th most popular name for girls. Five years earlier, in 2020, it was 443rd. Its busiest year was 1996, with 1,276 girls.
Half of all the girls named Hayley in the UK since 1996 were born between 1997 and 2010. It was already well used in 1996, when the records begin, so earlier girls aren't counted.
In 2025, 315 girls in the UK were given Hayley or a name that sounds the same. With every name's spellings counted this way, that ranks #199, up from #407 for this spelling alone.
Among girls in 2025, it was 478th in England and Wales, 172nd in Scotland and 191st in Northern Ireland.
In the England and Wales top 100 for girls, which the ONS has published every ten years since 1904: 1974 (#53), 1984 (#19) and 1994 (#43).
Hayley in the UK, year by year
| Year | Girls | Rank |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 116 | #407 |
| 2024 | 101 | #458 |
| 2023 | 118 | #394 |
| 2022 | 113 | #421 |
| 2021 | 111 | #437 |
| 2020 | 104 | #443 |
| 2019 | 126 | #382 |
| 2018 | 102 | #478 |
| 2017 | 89 | #526 |
| 2016 | 119 | #422 |
| 2015 | 118 | #426 |
| 2014 | 132 | #376 |
| 2013 | 164 | #321 |
| 2012 | 162 | #331 |
| 2011 | 171 | #318 |
| 2010 | 176 | #297 |
| 2009 | 181 | #287 |
| 2008 | 212 | #259 |
| 2007 | 229 | #250 |
| 2006 | 300 | #194 |
| 2005 | 296 | #191 |
| 2004 | 233 | #221 |
| 2003 | 307 | #176 |
| 2002 | 350 | #147 |
| 2001 | 208 | #220 |
| 2000 | 247 | #195 |
| 1999 | 272 | #186 |
| 1998 | 575 | #105 |
| 1997 | 1,076 | #62 |
| 1996 | 1,276 | #56 |
How popular is Hayley in the US?
- Rank in 2025
- 1,250th among girls
- Babies in 2025
- 179 about 1 in 9,000 girls
- Five-year trend
- Falling down 48% in five years
- Same name in a class
- under 1% chance among 15 girls
In 2025, 179 girls in the US were named Hayley, making it the 1,250th most popular name for girls. Five years earlier, in 2020, it was 674th. Its busiest year was 1993, with 2,618 girls. It first appears in the records in 1960.
It has been given to fewer girls each year for the last 5 years. 2025 had fewer girls named Hayley than any year since 1976.
Half of all the girls named Hayley in the US since 1880 were born between 1992 and 2004, the years shaded on the chart below.
In 2025, 3,349 girls in the US were given Hayley or a name that sounds the same. With every name's spellings counted this way, that ranks #90, up from #1,250 for this spelling alone.
Hayley in the US, year by year
| Year | Girls | Rank |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 179 | #1,250 |
| 2024 | 232 | #1,070 |
| 2023 | 266 | #971 |
| 2022 | 338 | #829 |
| 2021 | 409 | #704 |
| 2020 | 423 | #674 |
| 2019 | 415 | #697 |
| 2018 | 472 | #632 |
| 2017 | 496 | #611 |
| 2016 | 479 | #623 |
| 2015 | 566 | #548 |
| 2014 | 598 | #517 |
| 2013 | 546 | #544 |
| 2012 | 678 | #459 |
| 2011 | 728 | #431 |
| 2010 | 723 | #430 |
| 2009 | 756 | #423 |
| 2008 | 851 | #380 |
| 2007 | 1,110 | #306 |
| 2006 | 1,077 | #305 |
| 2005 | 1,234 | #265 |
| 2004 | 1,297 | #247 |
| 2003 | 1,867 | #174 |
| 2002 | 1,670 | #192 |
| 2001 | 1,787 | #183 |
| 2000 | 2,300 | #149 |
| 1999 | 2,261 | #144 |
| 1998 | 2,084 | #151 |
| 1997 | 2,353 | #136 |
| 1996 | 2,577 | #120 |
| 1995 | 2,359 | #135 |
| 1994 | 2,362 | #136 |
| 1993 | 2,618 | #126 |
| 1992 | 2,437 | #135 |
| 1991 | 1,755 | #170 |
| 1990 | 1,053 | #267 |
| 1989 | 932 | #285 |
| 1988 | 801 | #309 |
| 1987 | 884 | #278 |
| 1986 | 868 | #282 |
| 1985 | 664 | #357 |
| 1984 | 433 | #475 |
| 1983 | 364 | #522 |
| 1982 | 494 | #437 |
| 1981 | 440 | #480 |
| 1980 | 229 | #728 |
| 1979 | 243 | #696 |
| 1978 | 236 | #675 |
| 1977 | 218 | #710 |
| 1976 | 91 | #1,237 |
| 1975 | 98 | #1,175 |
| 1974 | 101 | #1,143 |
| 1973 | 70 | #1,399 |
| 1972 | 74 | #1,353 |
| 1971 | 91 | #1,228 |
| 1970 | 82 | #1,306 |
| 1969 | 87 | #1,193 |
| 1968 | 103 | #1,022 |
| 1967 | 62 | #1,399 |
| 1966 | 85 | #1,153 |
| 1965 | 71 | #1,274 |
| 1964 | 82 | #1,219 |
| 1963 | 71 | #1,305 |
| 1962 | 46 | #1,671 |
| 1961 | 18 | #2,956 |
| 1960 | 9 | #4,436 |
Names like Hayley
Names given in the same years and the same naming tradition, with a similar sound.
Holly, Harley, Hannah, Sydney, Zoe, Amber, Honey, Molly, Jasmine, Riley, Marley, Emily
Other spellings of Hayley
Hailey, Hailie, Hailee, Hayleigh, Haylie, Haylee, Heily, Haleigh, Haily, Heyli, Halie
Names related to Hayley
More English names
Lily, Evelyn, Hudson, Ivy, Harper, Grace, Violet, Willow, Daisy, Poppy, Oakley, Mason, Cooper, Ruby, Hallie, Hazel
Sources
Figures from Baby names in England and Wales (Office for National Statistics), Babies' first names (National Records of Scotland), Baby names (Northern Ireland Statistics and Research Agency) and Popular Baby Names (US Social Security Administration). Nameling last updated them on 20 October 2026. How the figures are worked out, and the data to download.
To cite this page: Nameling, “Hayley: name meaning, origin and popularity”, https://www.nameling.co.uk/names/hayley, updated 20 October 2026.