How Many People Are Named Shelley?
An estimated 59,656 people in the United States have the first name Shelley. It is predominantly female (97.6%). The average bearer is 58 years old, and Shelley peaked in popularity in 1964 with 2,845 births that year.
Below you will find a full statistical profile of Shelley 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 Shelley paired with any surname.
Key Insights
- While Shelley is overwhelmingly female, 1,753 male births have been registered with this name since 1880.
- Shelley has fallen dramatically from its peak in the 1960s. Recent registrations are less than 5% of what they were at the name's height.
Estimated Living Americans
59,656
About 1 in 5,746 people in the U.S.
Rarity
Uncommon
Predicted Gender
Female
97.6% confidence
Average Age
58
years old
Peak Year
1964
2,845 births
Total Registered
74,326
since 1880
Gender Distribution for Shelley
Shelley is predominantly female (97.6%), though 1,753 male births have been registered. It functions as a unisex name for a small percentage of bearers.
Shelley as a male name
Ranked #12,036 in 2001
5 male births in 2001
Peak: 1951 (46 births)
Shelley as a female name
Ranked #9,430 in 2024
11 female births in 2024
Peak: 1964 (2,821 births)
Shelley: Popularity Over Time
SSA records for Shelley span from the 1890s to the 2020s, covering 14 decades of naming data. The most popular decade for this name was the 1960s, when 25,089 babies were registered. Shelley has declined significantly from its peak in the 1960s. Recent registrations are a fraction of what they were at the name's height.
Shelley by Decade
How has Shelley 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.
Shelley by State
Birth registrations for Shelley span all 51 states and territories in the SSA database. The highest counts are in California, Texas, New York. The lowest are in Delaware, Alaska, Nevada. On average, about 1,372 Shelleys were registered per state.
Shelley + Last Name Combinations
How many people share a full name with Shelley as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Names Similar to Shelley
Other first names starting with S with a similar number of bearers.
Shelley: Questions and Answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Shelley?
We estimate approximately 59,656 people named Shelley 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 5,746 Americans share this first name.
Is Shelley a common name?
Shelley is classified as "Uncommon" and is more popular than 99.2% of all first names in the SSA database. A total of 74,326 births have been registered with this name since 1880.
When was Shelley most popular?
Shelley reached peak popularity in 1964, when 2,845 babies were given this name. The average age of a living person named Shelley is approximately 58 years old, reflecting when the name was most commonly given.
Is Shelley a female name?
Shelley is predominantly female. 97.6% of people with this name are female. See the gender breakdown above for full details.
How many Shelley Smiths are there?
To find how many people share a specific full name, we combine first name and surname frequencies. Try: Shelley Smith, Shelley Johnson, Shelley 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.
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