How Many People Are Named Selby?
An estimated 569 people in the United States have the first name Selby. It is used for both genders, with 70.0% male. The average bearer is 43 years old, and Selby peaked in popularity in 1993 with 26 births that year.
Below you will find a full statistical profile of Selby as a first name in the United States, including gender data, a year-by-year popularity timeline going back to 1880, a decade breakdown, and state-by-state birth registrations. You can also check how many people share the full name Selby paired with any surname.
Key Insights
- Selby has undergone a significant gender shift. Originally given predominantly to boys, it is now more commonly a girls' name.
Estimated Living Americans
569
About 1 in 602,380 people in the U.S.
Rarity
Very Rare
Predicted Gender
Male
70.0% confidence
Average Age
43
years old
Peak Year
1993
26 births
Total Registered
976
since 1880
Gender Distribution for Selby
Selby is a genuinely unisex name, used for both males (70.0%) and females (30.0%). Out of 976 total births registered, 683 were male and 293 were female.
Selby as a male name
Ranked #13,728 in 2014
5 male births in 2014
Peak: 1922 (24 births)
Selby as a female name
Ranked #14,943 in 2024
6 female births in 2024
Peak: 1997 (15 births)
Selby: Popularity Over Time
SSA records for Selby span from the 1900s to the 2020s, covering 13 decades of naming data. The most popular decade for this name was the 1920s, when 142 babies were registered. Selby has declined significantly from its peak in the 1920s. Recent registrations are a fraction of what they were at the name's height.
Selby by Decade
How has Selby tracked across different eras? The table below groups all SSA birth registrations into 10-year periods, with separate male and female counts. The colored bar shows each decade's share relative to the peak.
Selby by State
Selby + Last Name Combinations
How many people share a full name with Selby as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Names Similar to Selby
Other first names starting with S with a similar number of bearers.
Selby: Questions and Answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Selby?
We estimate approximately 569 people named Selby are alive in the United States today. This is based on SSA birth records from 1880 to 2024, adjusted for mortality using CDC life tables. About 1 in 602,380 Americans share this first name.
Is Selby a common name?
Selby is classified as "Very Rare" and is more popular than 85.7% of all first names in the SSA database. A total of 976 births have been registered with this name since 1880.
When was Selby most popular?
Selby reached peak popularity in 1993, when 26 babies were given this name. The average age of a living person named Selby is approximately 43 years old, reflecting when the name was most commonly given.
Is Selby a male name?
Selby is predominantly male. 70.0% of people with this name are male. See the gender breakdown above for full details.
How many Selby Smiths are there?
To find how many people share a specific full name, we combine first name and surname frequencies. Try: Selby Smith, Selby Johnson, Selby Williams. You can also search any combination on our homepage.
Where does this data come from?
Our estimates use Social Security Administration birth records (1880 to 2024), adjusted for survival using CDC 2023 life tables broken down by sex. The U.S. population figure (342,754,338) is from the Census Bureau's July 2025 estimate. Full methodology.
Search for a full name combination
How Many of Me