Kelsey
- Gender
- Girl
- Say it
- KEL-see
- Origin
- Old English
- UK rank, 2025
- #1,324 for girls
- US rank, 2025
- #814 for girls
Kelsey is a girls' name of Old English origin, meaning “ship + victory”. In 2025 it ranked 1,324th for girls in the UK (25 babies) and 814th for girls in the US (335 babies).
What does Kelsey mean?
Old English: from an English surname, from the personal name Ceolsige
“ship + victory”
From an English surname derived from the Old English name Ceolsige, or from the Lincolnshire place name Kelsey.
More on Wiktionary.
Is Kelsey a girl's or a boy's name?
Kelsey is a girls' name. In 2025, it was given to 25 girls in the UK and 335 girls and 14 boys in the US.
How popular is Kelsey in the UK?
- Rank in 2025
- 1,324th among girls
- Babies in 2025
- 25 about 1 in 11,000 girls
- Five-year trend
- Falling down 42% in five years
- Same name in a class
- under 1% chance among 15 girls
In 2025, 25 girls in the UK were named Kelsey, making it the 1,324th most popular name for girls. Five years earlier, in 2020, it was 1,121st. Its busiest year was 1998, with 702 girls.
Half of all the girls named Kelsey in the UK since 1996 were born between 1999 and 2008. It was already well used in 1996, when the records begin, so earlier girls aren't counted.
In 2025, 34 girls in the UK were given Kelsey or a name that sounds the same. With every name's spellings counted this way, that ranks #950, up from #1,324 for this spelling alone.
Among girls in 2025, it was 1,271st in England and Wales.
Kelsey in the UK, year by year
| Year | Girls | Rank |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 25 | #1,324 |
| 2024 | 23 | #1,449 |
| 2023 | 28 | #1,247 |
| 2022 | 31 | #1,150 |
| 2021 | 27 | #1,295 |
| 2020 | 32 | #1,121 |
| 2019 | 55 | #760 |
| 2018 | 44 | #905 |
| 2017 | 47 | #883 |
| 2016 | 84 | #551 |
| 2015 | 88 | #534 |
| 2014 | 128 | #387 |
| 2013 | 160 | #326 |
| 2012 | 184 | #302 |
| 2011 | 239 | #241 |
| 2010 | 317 | #185 |
| 2009 | 356 | #169 |
| 2008 | 398 | #154 |
| 2007 | 462 | #136 |
| 2006 | 490 | #122 |
| 2005 | 499 | #118 |
| 2004 | 449 | #131 |
| 2003 | 549 | #105 |
| 2002 | 469 | #114 |
| 2001 | 505 | #111 |
| 2000 | 552 | #105 |
| 1999 | 593 | #100 |
| 1998 | 702 | #88 |
| 1997 | 569 | #100 |
| 1996 | 492 | #103 |
How popular is Kelsey in the US?
- Rank in 2025
- 814th among girls
- Babies in 2025
- 335 about 1 in 4,800 girls
- Five-year trend
- Falling down 39% in five years
- Same name in a class
- under 1% chance among 15 girls
In 2025, 335 girls in the US were named Kelsey, making it the 814th most popular name for girls. Five years earlier, in 2020, it was 525th. Its busiest year was 1992, with 11,713 girls. It first appears in the records in 1942. 14 boys were also named Kelsey in 2025 (6,140th for boys).
It has been given to fewer girls each year for the last 17 years. 2025 had fewer girls named Kelsey than any year since 1980.
Half of all the girls named Kelsey in the US since 1880 were born between 1990 and 1999, the years shaded on the chart below.
In 2025, 564 girls in the US were given Kelsey or a name that sounds the same. With every name's spellings counted this way, that ranks #537, up from #814 for this spelling alone.
In 1949, 20% of the babies named Kelsey in the US were girls. By 2025 it was 96%, with more girls than boys since 1972.
Kelsey in the US, year by year
| Year | Girls | Rank |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 335 | #814 |
| 2024 | 430 | #673 |
| 2023 | 444 | #663 |
| 2022 | 466 | #632 |
| 2021 | 477 | #623 |
| 2020 | 574 | #525 |
| 2019 | 664 | #470 |
| 2018 | 740 | #420 |
| 2017 | 788 | #396 |
| 2016 | 859 | #383 |
| 2015 | 955 | #343 |
| 2014 | 1,017 | #328 |
| 2013 | 1,049 | #304 |
| 2012 | 1,214 | #267 |
| 2011 | 1,266 | #254 |
| 2010 | 1,349 | #233 |
| 2009 | 1,521 | #212 |
| 2008 | 1,716 | #195 |
| 2007 | 1,699 | #201 |
| 2006 | 1,898 | #185 |
| 2005 | 1,960 | #173 |
| 2004 | 2,198 | #148 |
| 2003 | 2,569 | #130 |
| 2002 | 2,883 | #118 |
| 2001 | 3,267 | #100 |
| 2000 | 3,669 | #88 |
| 1999 | 4,400 | #72 |
| 1998 | 5,551 | #56 |
| 1997 | 5,573 | #57 |
| 1996 | 7,655 | #36 |
| 1995 | 8,184 | #33 |
| 1994 | 9,749 | #29 |
| 1993 | 11,380 | #24 |
| 1992 | 11,713 | #23 |
| 1991 | 11,435 | #26 |
| 1990 | 9,494 | #32 |
| 1989 | 9,256 | #31 |
| 1988 | 5,452 | #64 |
| 1987 | 4,574 | #67 |
| 1986 | 2,517 | #112 |
| 1985 | 1,699 | #168 |
| 1984 | 1,555 | #177 |
| 1983 | 1,116 | #224 |
| 1982 | 791 | #310 |
| 1981 | 490 | #434 |
| 1980 | 308 | #601 |
| 1979 | 222 | #737 |
| 1978 | 164 | #887 |
| 1977 | 144 | #959 |
| 1976 | 116 | #1,055 |
| 1975 | 105 | #1,111 |
| 1974 | 88 | #1,239 |
| 1973 | 77 | #1,312 |
| 1972 | 76 | #1,325 |
| 1971 | 71 | #1,456 |
| 1970 | 48 | #1,828 |
| 1969 | 45 | #1,835 |
| 1968 | 24 | #2,538 |
| 1967 | 32 | #2,079 |
| 1966 | 17 | #3,039 |
| 1965 | 16 | #3,148 |
| 1964 | 20 | #2,824 |
| 1963 | 22 | #2,618 |
| 1962 | 19 | #2,813 |
| 1961 | 18 | #2,956 |
| 1960 | 13 | #3,511 |
| 1959 | 15 | #3,103 |
| 1958 | 23 | #2,375 |
| 1957 | 12 | #3,488 |
| 1956 | 12 | #3,492 |
| 1955 | 16 | #2,838 |
| 1954 | 14 | #3,018 |
| 1953 | 18 | #2,515 |
| 1952 | 10 | #3,551 |
| 1951 | 9 | #3,713 |
| 1950 | 10 | #3,422 |
| 1949 | 6 | #4,672 |
| 1948 | 9 | #3,591 |
| 1947 | 8 | #4,005 |
| 1946 | 7 | #3,993 |
| 1945 | 6 | #4,023 |
| 1944 | 0 | – |
| 1943 | 0 | – |
| 1942 | 5 | #4,620 |
Names like Kelsey
Names given in the same years and the same naming tradition, with a similar sound.
Molly, Jasmine, Erin, Sydney, Keira, Holly, Riley, Amber, Emily, Hannah, Lacey, Chloe
Other spellings of Kelsey
Kelsie, Kelsi, Kelsea, Kelsy, Kelcie, Kelce, Kelcee, Kelsei, Kelci, Kelcy
Names related to Kelsey
More Old English names
Alfie, Edward, Teddy, Waylon, Alfred, Audrey, Edith, Wilfred, Ozzy, Edie, Eddie, Edwin, Ted, Teddie, Eduardo, Edgar
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, “Kelsey: name meaning, origin and popularity”, https://www.nameling.co.uk/names/kelsey, updated 20 October 2026.