ninan.org

Bradley

Boys' name · Late 20th-century

Living in the US
~281,900 survival-weighted estimate
2025 rank
#403 among boys
Births in 2025
830 314,957 since 1880
Typical age
42 years, median

Bradley popularity over time

Bradley rank by birth year, 1880–2025Bradley ranked #909 in 1880 and #403 in 2025. Its best rank in the period was #47, in 1970.#100#1,000#403best #47 in 197018901920195019802010
Rank among US baby names by birth year, 1880–2025. Lower is more popular; the scale is logarithmic so the top of the chart is not compressed.

More children were named Bradley in 1980 than in any other year — 7,262 of them. The name is already in use in 1880, where the data begins. Across the record, 38 years put Bradley in the top 100.

In 2025 it ranked #403 with 830 births. The ten-year change is -66%. Year on year the rank dropped by 41.

Babies named Bradley per yearPeaks at 7,262 births in 1980.7,262 in 1980018901920195019802010
Recorded US births by year. The peak is labelled; the axis starts at zero.

How many people are named Bradley?

About 281,900 people named Bradley are alive in the United States today. That is out of 314,957 recorded births since 1880.

This is a survival-weighted estimate, not a headcount: every recorded birth year is multiplied by the chance someone born that year is still alive, using the SSA period life table. How the estimate works.

How old is the average Bradley?

Half of living Bradleys are older than 42, half younger. The 1980s produced the largest surviving cohort. By the site’s era rules that makes Bradley a late 20th-century name.

Your Bradley

Ages of living people named BradleyHalf of living Bradleys are older than 42 and half younger.median 42020406080100
Estimated living bearers by age today. Each bar is a birth year, weighted by the chance someone born then is still alive.

Where Bradley is most common

Bradley is 2.4× as common in Maine as it is nationally. New Hampshire, Mississippi and West Virginia follow.

Where Bradley is used more than average5 states use the name Bradley more than the national average.Alaska: not over-representedAKMaine: 2.4× the national rateMEVermont: not over-representedVTNew Hampshire: 2.1× the national rateNHWashington: not over-representedWAIdaho: not over-representedIDMontana: 1.7× the national rateMTNorth Dakota: not over-representedNDMinnesota: not over-representedMNIllinois: not over-representedILWisconsin: not over-representedWIMichigan: not over-representedMINew York: not over-representedNYOregon: not over-representedORNevada: not over-representedNVWyoming: not over-representedWYSouth Dakota: not over-representedSDIowa: not over-representedIAIndiana: not over-representedINOhio: not over-representedOHPennsylvania: not over-representedPANew Jersey: not over-representedNJConnecticut: not over-representedCTRhode Island: not over-representedRICalifornia: not over-representedCAUtah: not over-representedUTColorado: not over-representedCONebraska: not over-representedNEMissouri: not over-representedMOKentucky: not over-representedKYWest Virginia: 1.8× the national rateWVVirginia: not over-representedVAMaryland: not over-representedMDDelaware: not over-representedDEMassachusetts: not over-representedMAArizona: not over-representedAZNew Mexico: not over-representedNMKansas: not over-representedKSArkansas: not over-representedARTennessee: not over-representedTNNorth Carolina: not over-representedNCSouth Carolina: not over-representedSCDistrict of Columbia: not over-representedDCOklahoma: not over-representedOKLouisiana: not over-representedLAMississippi: 1.8× the national rateMSAlabama: not over-representedALGeorgia: not over-representedGAHawaii: not over-representedHITexas: not over-representedTXFlorida: not over-representedFL
Same as national3× or more
Location quotient, 2016–2025. Shaded states use the name more than the country does, relative to their own births. Exact figures are in the table below.
States where Bradley is over-represented, 2016–2025. The location quotient compares the state's share of the name with the national share.
StateBirthsvs national rate
Maine 67 2.4×
New Hampshire 63 2.1×
Mississippi 155 1.8×
West Virginia 86 1.8×
Montana 41 1.7×

Bradley in England and Wales

ONS recorded 119 births named Bradley in 2025, ranking it #352. That is 29% lower than five years earlier.

Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Counts below three are suppressed by ONS.

Where the name Bradley comes from

Ultimately from Old English brād (“broad”) + lēah (“woodland”).

Etymology summarised from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0. Wiktionary entry.

Notable people named Bradley

Ordered by how many Wikipedia language editions have an article about them — a measure of reach, not of importance.
NameKnown forYearsEditions
Bradley Cooper American actor 1975 135
Bradley Barcola French footballer 2002 48
Bradley Wiggins British former professional road and track racing cyclist 1980 47
Bradley Whitford American actor 1959 39
Bradley James British actor 1983 35
Bradley Steven Perry American actor 1998 34
Bradley Beal American basketball player 1993 31
Bradley McGee Australian cyclist 1976 23
Photo credits (7)

The sharpest rise. Births under this name jumped from 310 in 1945 to 561 in 1946 — 1.8 times over in a single year.

Birth records contain the rise and nothing about its cause. This site does not supply one.

People and dates from Wikidata (CC0), limited to those with an English Wikipedia article who are known by this name as their first name.

Related pages

Get this data

Every number on this page is available as JSON: /api/name/bradley.json. Free to use with attribution (CC BY 4.0).