Data report · Updated October 2026
The most popular dog names in America, counted from 183,614 real dog licenses
Luna is the most common dog name in the US license records we analyzed, carried by 1,997 of 183,614 named dogs, or 10.9 in every 1,000. Bella is second with 1,691 and Charlie third with 1,401. In Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, Luna climbed from 261st place in 2007 to second in 2026.
Key findings
- Luna is the most common name across 183,614 named, licensed dogs in New York City, Seattle, Cambridge (Massachusetts) and Allegheny County (Pennsylvania), with 1,997 dogs.
- Luna is No. 1 in New York City, Seattle and Cambridge, while Bella still leads Allegheny County by 601 dogs to 557.
- Luna is the top name for female dogs, at 23.0 per 1,000, while Max narrowly leads male dogs at 13.5 per 1,000, ahead of Charlie at 12.5.
- In Allegheny County, Luna rose from 261st place in 2007 to 2nd in 2026, and its share of licensed dogs grew 14.7 times.
- Buddy was Allegheny County's top dog name from 2007 to 2013 and had fallen to 9th by 2026.
- Every year since 2017, Luna has been the most common name among New York City dogs born that year, except 2024 when Milo edged ahead by one dog.
- About 4.4% of licensed dogs, or 8,018, carry a food name; Pepper, Ginger, Oreo, Cookie and Olive are the most common.
- Beagles are 10.7 times as likely as the average licensed dog to be called Bagel, and Chihuahuas 8.4 times as likely to be called Taco.
- Of the 50 most common dog names, 40 are also common human first names, covering 83.5% of the dogs with a top-50 name.
What is the most popular dog name in the US?
Luna is the most popular dog name in the four US license databases we analyzed. Of 183,614 licensed dogs with a usable name, 1,997 are called Luna. That works out to 10.9 dogs in every 1,000.
Bella is second with 1,691 dogs, and Charlie is third with 1,401. Lucy, Daisy, Max, Milo, Coco, Bailey and Teddy complete the top 10. The top 10 names together cover 7.1% of all the dogs.
These are counts of real licenses, not a poll. They come from open data published by New York City, Seattle, Cambridge in Massachusetts and Allegheny County in Pennsylvania, the county around Pittsburgh.
Source: dogeats.in analysis of license open data. New York City (2026 extract), Allegheny County PA (2026 licenses), Seattle (active, Oct 2026), Cambridge MA (licenses expiring 2018 to 2027).
Show the numbers
| Label | dogs |
|---|---|
| Luna | 1,997 dogs |
| Bella | 1,691 dogs |
| Charlie | 1,401 dogs |
| Lucy | 1,236 dogs |
| Daisy | 1,223 dogs |
| Max | 1,216 dogs |
| Milo | 1,128 dogs |
| Coco | 1,107 dogs |
| Bailey | 976 dogs |
| Teddy | 974 dogs |
| Cooper | 909 dogs |
| Penny | 843 dogs |
| Buddy | 833 dogs |
| Rocky | 832 dogs |
| Lola | 815 dogs |
| Rosie | 803 dogs |
| Leo | 745 dogs |
| Oliver | 687 dogs |
| Molly | 680 dogs |
| Toby | 679 dogs |
Embed this chart
| Rank | Name | Licensed dogs | Per 1,000 dogs |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Luna | 1,997 | 10.9 |
| 2 | Bella | 1,691 | 9.2 |
| 3 | Charlie | 1,401 | 7.6 |
| 4 | Lucy | 1,236 | 6.7 |
| 5 | Daisy | 1,223 | 6.7 |
| 6 | Max | 1,216 | 6.6 |
| 7 | Milo | 1,128 | 6.1 |
| 8 | Coco | 1,107 | 6.0 |
| 9 | Bailey | 976 | 5.3 |
| 10 | Teddy | 974 | 5.3 |
| 11 | Cooper | 909 | 5.0 |
| 12 | Penny | 843 | 4.6 |
| 13 | Buddy | 833 | 4.5 |
| 14 | Rocky | 832 | 4.5 |
| 15 | Lola | 815 | 4.4 |
| 16 | Rosie | 803 | 4.4 |
| 17 | Leo | 745 | 4.1 |
| 18 | Oliver | 687 | 3.7 |
| 19 | Molly | 680 | 3.7 |
| 20 | Toby | 679 | 3.7 |
| 21 | Stella | 673 | 3.7 |
| 22 | Sadie | 667 | 3.6 |
| 23 | Ruby | 655 | 3.6 |
| 24 | Lily | 629 | 3.4 |
| 25 | Pepper | 618 | 3.4 |
Rover, a pet-sitting marketplace, also named Luna its top female dog name for 2025. It named Charlie the top male name, where the license data puts Max narrowly ahead. Our male and female rankings are below.
Top dog names in New York, Seattle, Cambridge and Allegheny County
Luna leads in three of the four places. New York City has 1,060 Lunas among 86,219 named dogs. Seattle has 247 among 25,576, and Cambridge has 133 among 12,784.
Allegheny County is the exception. Bella still leads there with 601 dogs, just ahead of Luna with 557. Bailey, Cooper, Buddy and Sadie also rank higher there than in the coastal cities.
Each city has a few names of its own. Coco is No. 3 in New York City but 29th in Allegheny County. Poppy makes Seattle's top 10, and Pepper is No. 5 in Cambridge.
| Rank | New York City | Allegheny County, PA | Seattle | Cambridge, MA |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Luna (1,060) | Bella (601) | Luna (247) | Luna (133) |
| 2 | Bella (906) | Luna (557) | Charlie (176) | Charlie (101) |
| 3 | Coco (724) | Daisy (537) | Lucy (161) | Lucy (85) |
| 4 | Max (694) | Lucy (525) | Daisy (158) | Bella (76) |
| 5 | Milo (675) | Bailey (456) | Rosie (124) | Pepper (75) |
| 6 | Charlie (672) | Charlie (452) | Milo (122) | Milo (71) |
| 7 | Teddy (555) | Cooper (430) | Poppy (118) | Rosie (67) |
| 8 | Lola (497) | Max (379) | Penny (116) | Daisy (65) |
| 9 | Rocky (482) | Buddy (377) | Ruby (112) | Coco (61) |
| 10 | Lucy (465) | Sadie (365) | Bella (108) | Teddy (61) |
Seattle and Cambridge owners pick from a wider spread of names. Only 5.6% of Seattle dogs carry a top-10 name, against 7.8% in New York City. In Seattle, 22.4% of dogs have a name no other licensed Seattle dog shares.
| Place | Named dogs | Different names | Share with a top-10 name (%) | Share with a one-of-a-kind name (%) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| New York City | 86,219 | 14,614 | 7.8 | 10.2 |
| Allegheny County, PA | 59,035 | 12,104 | 7.9 | 14.3 |
| Seattle | 25,576 | 8,189 | 5.6 | 22.4 |
| Cambridge, MA | 12,784 | 4,384 | 6.2 | 19.1 |
Most popular female and male dog names
Luna is the top female dog name and Max is the top male name. New York City, Cambridge and Allegheny County record each dog's sex, which covers 158,008 dogs. Seattle's file does not include sex.
Female names are more concentrated. Luna accounts for 23.0 of every 1,000 female dogs, and Bella for 20.8. Max leads the males with 13.5 per 1,000, only just ahead of Charlie at 12.5 and Milo at 12.1.
Some names sit close to an even split. Riley is 45% male, Scout 52% and Marley 49%. Peanut and Mochi are also within a few points of half and half.
| Rank | Female name | Female dogs | Per 1,000 females | Male name | Male dogs | Per 1,000 males |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Luna | 1,743 | 23.0 | Max | 1,110 | 13.5 |
| 2 | Bella | 1,579 | 20.8 | Charlie | 1,028 | 12.5 |
| 3 | Lucy | 1,069 | 14.1 | Milo | 994 | 12.1 |
| 4 | Daisy | 1,060 | 14.0 | Teddy | 851 | 10.4 |
| 5 | Coco | 768 | 10.1 | Cooper | 801 | 9.7 |
| 6 | Penny | 725 | 9.6 | Rocky | 754 | 9.2 |
| 7 | Lola | 721 | 9.5 | Buddy | 733 | 8.9 |
| 8 | Rosie | 674 | 8.9 | Leo | 646 | 7.9 |
| 9 | Bailey | 626 | 8.3 | Oliver | 600 | 7.3 |
| 10 | Molly | 603 | 7.9 | Toby | 595 | 7.2 |
Dog names by breed: Taco, Bagel, Ghost and Kuma
The most common names barely change from breed to breed. Luna leads among Labradors, German Shepherds, Siberian Huskies and pit bull type dogs. Bella leads among Chihuahuas, Shih Tzus, Yorkies and Maltese.
The fun is in the names that cluster on one breed. We compared each name's share within a breed with its share among all licensed dogs. Beagles are 10.7 times as likely to be called Bagel.
Chihuahuas are 8.4 times as likely to be called Taco. Maltese dogs lean toward Snowball and Fluffy, and Huskies toward Ghost, Sky and Storm. German Shepherds get Sarge, and Shiba Inus get the Japanese names Kuma and Yuki.
Lift = share of the breed with the name divided by share of all 183,614 dogs with the name. Names with at least 12 dogs in the breed. Breed groups include mixes. Source: dogeats.in analysis of four license databases.
Show the numbers
| Label | x |
|---|---|
| Kuma (Shiba Inu) | 25.3x |
| Snowball (Maltese) | 16.6x |
| Ghost (Siberian Husky) | 10.9x |
| Bagel (Beagle) | 10.7x |
| Sarge (German Shepherd) | 9.6x |
| Taco (Chihuahua) | 8.4x |
| Gizmo (Shih Tzu) | 6.3x |
| Otto (Dachshund) | 6.0x |
| Dior (Yorkshire Terrier) | 5.4x |
| King (Pit bull type) | 5.2x |
| Hudson (Goldendoodle) | 4.5x |
| Archie (Cavalier King Charles Spaniel) | 4.4x |
| Duke (Boxer) | 4.0x |
Embed this chart
| Breed group | Named dogs | Three most common names | Most distinctive names (times more likely) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Labrador Retriever | 15,027 | Luna, Bella, Lucy | Ruger (3.1x), Porter (3.0x) |
| Poodle | 10,771 | Coco, Teddy, Luna | Pierre (5.4x), Pluto (2.9x) |
| Chihuahua | 8,850 | Bella, Luna, Coco | Taco (8.4x), Chica (7.3x) |
| Pit bull type | 7,668 | Luna, Bella, Blue | Kilo (7.0x), Queen (6.7x) |
| Shih Tzu | 7,628 | Bella, Coco, Teddy | Gizmo (6.3x), Oreo (5.3x) |
| Yorkshire Terrier | 6,230 | Bella, Coco, Max | Dior (5.4x), Chanel (5.1x) |
| Golden Retriever | 6,088 | Charlie, Cooper, Bailey | Summer (4.8x), Rooney (4.1x) |
| German Shepherd | 6,063 | Luna, Bella, Max | Sarge (9.6x), Axel (5.3x) |
| Dachshund | 4,321 | Charlie, Frankie, Lucy | Otto (6.0x), Frankie (4.5x) |
| Goldendoodle | 4,292 | Teddy, Charlie, Luna | Hudson (4.5x), Theo (3.4x) |
| Beagle | 4,275 | Daisy, Lucy, Bella | Bagel (10.7x), Snoopy (4.8x) |
| Australian Shepherd | 4,075 | Luna, Charlie, Milo | Skye (3.1x), Finn (2.7x) |
| Maltese | 3,395 | Bella, Coco, Max | Snowball (16.6x), Fluffy (9.5x) |
| Siberian Husky | 2,923 | Luna, Blue, Loki | Ghost (10.9x), Sky (8.4x) |
| French Bulldog | 2,839 | Luna, Lola, Bella | Gus (3.0x), Mochi (2.8x) |
| Pomeranian | 2,659 | Coco, Teddy, Luna | Mochi (3.7x), Princess (2.9x) |
| Cavalier King Charles Spaniel | 2,527 | Charlie, Archie, Teddy | Archie (4.4x), Lady (3.5x) |
| Boxer | 2,211 | Daisy, Duke, Lucy | Duke (4.0x), Roxy (3.1x) |
| Havanese | 2,183 | Bella, Luna, Teddy | Oscar (3.2x), Oreo (2.7x) |
| Shiba Inu | 1,381 | Mochi, Yuki, Kuma | Kuma (25.3x), Yuki (19.4x) |
Some of those breed names come from the menu. A dog called Bagel is fine, but raisin and everything bagels are not dog food. Taco Bell food is a poor treat too, because of onion and garlic in the seasoning.
How Luna went from 261st place to the top
Allegheny County publishes a separate license file for every year since 2007, which lets us track names over two decades. In 2007, only 6.4 in every 10,000 licensed dogs there were called Luna. It ranked 261st.
By 2026, the share had reached 94.4 per 10,000, a 14.7-fold rise. Luna was 59th in 2016 and second in 2026, behind only Bella.
New York City shows the same climb from a higher start. Luna went from 48.4 per 10,000 licensed dogs in the 2016 extract to 122.9 in 2026. It has led the city's list since the 2023 extract.
Source: Allegheny County dog license files 2007 to 2026, Western Pennsylvania Regional Data Center. Annual licenses only; lifetime licenses and duplicate-tag records excluded. City of Pittsburgh dogs are not included.
Show the numbers
| Label | per 10,000 |
|---|---|
| 2007 | 6.4 |
| 2008 | 6.7 |
| 2009 | 6.6 |
| 2010 | 7.2 |
| 2011 | 7.7 |
| 2012 | 9.1 |
| 2013 | 11.1 |
| 2014 | 14.8 |
| 2015 | 19.4 |
| 2016 | 23.4 |
| 2017 | 30.0 |
| 2018 | 36.9 |
| 2019 | 48.1 |
| 2020 | 53.7 |
| 2021 | 64.0 |
| 2022 | 74.9 |
| 2023 | 78.8 |
| 2024 | 83.9 |
| 2025 | 90.2 |
| 2026 | 94.4 |
Embed this chart
| Extract year | Named dogs | Luna | Bella | Max | Milo | Food names (%) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 107,232 | 48.4 | 113.3 | 108.6 | 39.0 | 3.89 |
| 2017 | 71,975 | 62.1 | 115.7 | 108.1 | 40.3 | 4.01 |
| 2018 | 68,443 | 74.2 | 117.8 | 105.3 | 44.4 | 4.06 |
| 2022 | 136,912 | 98.2 | 113.6 | 88.0 | 60.0 | 4.37 |
| 2023 | 95,461 | 118.9 | 109.8 | 82.0 | 75.2 | 4.76 |
| 2024 | 92,505 | 120.2 | 106.0 | 79.6 | 81.2 | 5.03 |
| 2026 | 86,219 | 122.9 | 105.1 | 80.5 | 78.3 | 5.22 |
Birth year tells a similar story. Among New York City dogs born in 2016, Bella was still the top name. From the 2017 birth year on, Luna leads every year except 2024, when Milo had 87 dogs to Luna's 86.
| Birth year | No. 1 name | Dogs with No. 1 name | No. 2 name | No. 3 name | Dogs born that year |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2005 | Bella (tied with Charlie) | 65 | Charlie | Max | 5,659 |
| 2006 | Coco | 91 | Max | Rocky | 6,887 |
| 2007 | Max | 110 | Bella | Rocky | 8,389 |
| 2008 | Max | 104 | Bella | Coco | 9,710 |
| 2009 | Bella | 139 | Max | Coco | 11,129 |
| 2010 | Bella | 174 | Max | Coco | 12,719 |
| 2011 | Bella | 172 | Max | Coco | 13,225 |
| 2012 | Bella | 175 | Max | Charlie | 14,953 |
| 2013 | Bella | 206 | Max | Charlie | 16,663 |
| 2014 | Bella | 216 | Max | Charlie | 19,306 |
| 2015 | Bella | 233 | Max | Charlie | 21,226 |
| 2016 | Bella | 264 | Max | Luna | 22,792 |
| 2017 | Luna | 274 | Bella | Max | 23,689 |
| 2018 | Luna | 281 | Bella | Charlie | 22,726 |
| 2019 | Luna | 302 | Bella | Coco | 22,312 |
| 2020 | Luna | 367 | Milo | Bella | 27,786 |
| 2021 | Luna | 335 | Bella | Milo | 21,393 |
| 2022 | Luna | 223 | Milo | Bella | 16,014 |
| 2023 | Luna | 154 | Milo | Teddy | 12,108 |
| 2024 | Milo | 87 | Luna | Coco | 8,097 |
Rising and fading dog names since 2007
Buddy was Allegheny County's most common dog name every year from 2007 to 2013. Bella took over in 2014 and has led ever since. Buddy had slipped to ninth by 2026, and Max from second to eighth.
The biggest losers sound like a 1990s roll call. Jake fell from 9th to 84th, Shadow from 10th to 55th and Casey from 20th to 288th. Brandy dropped from 45th to 484th.
The winners are softer and newer. Cooper rose from 81st to 7th, Willow from 270th to 21st and Finn from 1,564th to 42nd. Nova, Hazel and Maple also climbed hundreds of places.
Source: dogeats.in analysis of Allegheny County dog license files, WPRDC. Positive values mean the name became more common.
Show the numbers
| Label | per 10,000 |
|---|---|
| Luna | +88.0 |
| Cooper | +55.3 |
| Bella | +44.7 |
| Willow | +36.4 |
| Stella | +34.6 |
| Charlie | +34.3 |
| Milo | +31.9 |
| Finn | +28.9 |
| Princess | -24.8 |
| Lady | -31.5 |
| Shadow | -41.7 |
| Angel | -46.2 |
| Jake | -48.8 |
| Max | -60.6 |
| Buddy | -75.8 |
Embed this chart
| Name | Rank 2007 | Rank 2026 | Per 10,000 in 2007 | Per 10,000 in 2026 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Luna | 261 | 2 | 6.4 | 94.4 |
| Cooper | 81 | 7 | 17.5 | 72.8 |
| Milo | 128 | 19 | 12.1 | 44.0 |
| Willow | 270 | 21 | 6.3 | 42.7 |
| Stella | 185 | 20 | 8.9 | 43.5 |
| Finn | 1,564 | 42 | 0.7 | 29.6 |
| Winnie | 212 | 37 | 7.9 | 31.5 |
| Nova | 1,044 | 77 | 1.2 | 19.5 |
| Buddy | 1 | 9 | 139.7 | 63.9 |
| Max | 2 | 8 | 124.8 | 64.2 |
| Jake | 9 | 84 | 67.3 | 18.5 |
| Shadow | 10 | 55 | 65.6 | 23.9 |
| Casey | 20 | 288 | 47.8 | 5.8 |
| Lady | 25 | 116 | 46.1 | 14.6 |
| Brandy | 45 | 484 | 26.9 | 3.4 |
Allegheny County's license count fell from 98,195 named dogs in 2007 to 59,035 in 2026. That reflects fewer dogs being licensed each year, so we compare shares rather than raw counts.
Food names for dogs: Pepper, Oreo and Mochi
About 4.4% of the licensed dogs in our data have a food or drink name, or 8,018 dogs. Pepper is the most common with 618, followed by Ginger, Oreo, Cookie and Olive.
Food names are gaining ground in New York City. Their share rose from 3.9% of licensed dogs in the 2016 extract to 5.2% in 2026. Mochi more than tripled over the same period, from 7.0 to 22.6 per 10,000 dogs.
Allegheny County went the other way first. Its food-name share slid from 3.3% in 2007 to 2.7% in 2019, then recovered to 3.1% in 2026.
Source: dogeats.in analysis of the NYC Dog Licensing Dataset. Food names from a fixed list of about 120 food and drink words. No extracts were published for 2019 to 2021 or 2025.
Show the numbers
| Label | % |
|---|---|
| 2016 | 3.89% |
| 2017 | 4.01% |
| 2018 | 4.06% |
| 2022 | 4.37% |
| 2023 | 4.76% |
| 2024 | 5.03% |
| 2026 | 5.22% |
Embed this chart
Source: dogeats.in analysis of license data from NYC, Allegheny County, Seattle and Cambridge. Pepper, Ginger, Honey and Olive are also used as human names.
Show the numbers
| Label | dogs |
|---|---|
| Pepper | 618 |
| Ginger | 466 |
| Oreo | 438 |
| Cookie | 409 |
| Olive | 406 |
| Honey | 378 |
| Peanut | 355 |
| Mochi | 296 |
| Mocha | 276 |
| Maple | 240 |
| Brownie | 220 |
| Biscuit | 200 |
Embed this chart
| Place | Named dogs | Food name share (%) |
|---|---|---|
| New York City | 86,219 | 5.22 |
| Allegheny County, PA | 59,035 | 3.12 |
| Seattle | 25,576 | 4.28 |
| Cambridge, MA | 12,784 | 4.51 |
The same goes for the treats behind other names. Chocolate bars like Hershey's contain theobromine. Peanut butter cups add chocolate, and some peanut butters contain xylitol. Sugar cookies are high in sugar and butter, so ask your vet before sharing.
Most dogs now get human names
Of the 50 most common dog names, 40 are also common first names for people. Luna, Bella, Charlie, Lucy and Max all qualify. Those 40 names cover 30,372 dogs, or 83.5% of the 36,373 dogs with a top-50 name.
Only three of the top 50 are foods: Pepper, Ginger and Oreo. The other seven are nicknames or words, such as Coco, Buddy, Bear, Lucky, Loki, Blue and Duke.
The trend data points the same way. Word names such as Shadow, Lady, Lucky and Princess have lost ground since 2007. People names such as Willow, Stella and Finn are among the biggest gainers.
- Human first names in the top 50 (40): Luna, Bella, Charlie, Lucy, Daisy, Max, Milo, Bailey, Teddy, Cooper, Penny, Rocky, Lola, Rosie, Leo and 25 more.
- Food names in the top 50 (3): Pepper, Ginger, Oreo.
- Other words and nicknames in the top 50 (7): Coco, Buddy, Bear, Lucky, Loki, Blue, Duke.
Our sorting into human, food and other is an editorial call, made by dogeats.in. Rocky, Murphy and Teddy count as human names here, and Coco does not.
Dog names in New York City's five boroughs
Luna leads in Manhattan and Brooklyn, while Bella still leads in Queens, the Bronx and Staten Island. We assigned each license to a borough by the owner's ZIP code.
Each borough has names it uses far more than the rest of the city. Manhattan has 83 dogs called Hudson, nearly twice the city rate. The Bronx leans toward Chanel and Diamond, and Staten Island toward Jax.
| Borough | Named dogs | Top three names | Most distinctive names |
|---|---|---|---|
| Manhattan | 30,244 | Luna (332), Charlie (282), Bella (230) | Eloise, Pierre, Hudson |
| Brooklyn | 23,935 | Luna (297), Bella (210), Coco (180) | Ozzie, Juniper, Rue |
| Queens | 16,979 | Bella (237), Luna (205), Milo (179) | Lucas, Rambo, Snow |
| Bronx | 8,748 | Bella (153), Luna (149), Coco (114) | Nena, Chanel, Diamond |
| Staten Island | 6,026 | Bella (76), Luna (73), Max (66) | Jax, Abby, Buster |
The 2026 extract holds 89,238 licensed dogs. Many city dogs are never licensed, so borough figures describe licensed dogs only.
What this license data can and cannot tell you
This report counts licensed dogs in four places, not every dog in America. New York City, Seattle, Cambridge and Allegheny County are among the few US local governments that publish dog names as open data.
Licensed dogs lean toward owners who follow local rules, and big cities dominate the total. New York City supplies 47% of the dogs. Allegheny County, a mix of suburbs and small towns, adds a less urban view.
For national context on how many dogs Americans own, see our US dog ownership statistics. For which breeds are most popular, see the most popular dog breeds report.
- New York City: 86,219 named dogs in the 2026 extract of the NYC Dog Licensing Dataset (Department of Health and Mental Hygiene).
- Allegheny County, PA: 59,035 named dogs on 2026 annual licenses, outside the City of Pittsburgh.
- Seattle: 25,576 named dogs with active licenses as of October 2026.
- Cambridge, MA: 12,784 named dogs on licenses expiring from 2018 to 2027.
Frequently asked questions
What is the most popular dog name in the US?
Luna is the most common name in the US dog license data we analyzed. It appears on 1,997 of 183,614 named dog licenses in New York City, Seattle, Cambridge and Allegheny County. Bella is second with 1,691 and Charlie third with 1,401.
What is the most popular male dog name?
Max is the most common male dog name in license data from New York City, Cambridge and Allegheny County, with 1,110 dogs, or 13.5 per 1,000 males. Charlie is a close second with 1,028. Rover's 2025 list, from a different source, puts Charlie first.
What is the most popular female dog name?
Luna is the top female dog name, with 1,743 licensed female dogs, or 23.0 per 1,000. Bella follows with 1,579 and Lucy with 1,069. Daisy and Coco round out the top five.
When did Luna become so popular for dogs?
Luna's climb began around 2012. In Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, it ranked 261st in 2007, 59th in 2016 and 2nd in 2026. Among New York City dogs, it has been the top name for most birth years since 2017.
What are the most popular dog names in New York City?
Luna leads New York City's 2026 license data with 1,060 dogs, followed by Bella with 906 and Coco with 724. Max, Milo and Charlie come next. Bella still leads in Queens, the Bronx and Staten Island.
Which dog names are going out of style?
In Allegheny County license data, Buddy fell from 1st in 2007 to 9th in 2026. Jake dropped from 9th to 84th, Casey from 20th to 288th and Brandy from 45th to 484th. Shadow and Lady also lost most of their share.
How many dogs have food names?
About 4.4% of licensed dogs in our data, or 8,018 dogs, have a food or drink name. Pepper, Ginger, Oreo, Cookie and Olive are the most common. In New York City, the share rose from 3.9% in 2016 to 5.2% in 2026.
What do people name Chihuahuas and Beagles?
Bella is the most common Chihuahua name, but Taco is the signature one: Chihuahuas are 8.4 times as likely as the average dog to carry it. Beagles are most often named Daisy, and 10.7 times as likely as average to be called Bagel.
Methodology and limitations
We downloaded four open datasets in October 2026. They are the NYC Dog Licensing Dataset, Allegheny County Dog Licenses (Western Pennsylvania Regional Data Center), Seattle Pet Licenses and Dogs of Cambridge. Seattle's file also lists cats, goats and pigs, which we removed.
For the current snapshot we used New York City's 2026 extract, Allegheny County's 2026 annual license file, Seattle's active licenses and all Cambridge records. We removed repeat records of the same dog, matching on name, sex, birth year, breed and ZIP code or neighborhood. In Allegheny County we also dropped duplicate-tag license records, which repeat a dog already in the file.
We cleaned names by converting to capitals and trimming spaces. We dropped placeholders such as UNKNOWN, NAME NOT PROVIDED, NONE and NAME, single letters and entries with digits. That removed 3,157 of 186,771 records, leaving 183,614 named dogs.
Breed groups use pattern matching on each city's breed text and include mixes, so Labrador Retriever includes Lab mixes. Distinctive names compare a name's share within a breed or borough with its share among all dogs. We required at least 12 dogs in the breed or 15 in the borough.
Food names come from a fixed list of about 120 food and drink words built by dogeats.in. The human, food and other split of the top 50 names is an editorial classification. NYC boroughs were assigned from the owner's ZIP code.
Ranks use standard competition ranking, so names with the same count share a rank and the next rank is skipped.
Sources
- NYC Open Data, NYC Dog Licensing Dataset (Department of Health and Mental Hygiene), New York City names, sex, birth year, breed and ZIP code, extracts 2016 to 2026
- Western Pennsylvania Regional Data Center, Allegheny County Dog Licenses, Allegheny County names, breed and license type by year, 2007 to 2026
- Seattle Open Data, Seattle Pet Licenses, Seattle dog names and breeds, active licenses as of October 2026
- Also consulted: City of Cambridge Open Data, Dogs of Cambridge, FOX 13 Seattle, Most popular cat and dog names of 2025 (Rover).
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