Gail
Gail was the 8535th most popular name for girls in 2025, given to 12 babies. Its best year was 1951, when it ranked 36th with 9,886 babies. Over the last ten years it has moved down 782 places. More babies were named Gail in the 1950s than in any other decade.
Meaning Not yet researched how we research meanings
- Rank in 2025
- #8,535 girls, down 2,377 places since 2020
- Babies in 2025
- 12girls
- Girls and boys
- Almost always a girl’s name2021–2025
- Peak year
- 19519,886 babies
- Total since 1880
- 210,698babies recorded
Gail popularity since 1880
A few boys are given the name too: 8,952 since 1882.
| Year | Rank (girls) | Babies (girls) |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | #8,535 | 12 |
| 2020 | #6,158 | 19 |
| 2010 | #8,030 | 15 |
| 2000 | #3,543 | 37 |
| 1990 | #1,282 | 127 |
| 1980 | #605 | 303 |
| 1970 | #222 | 1,424 |
| 1960 | #90 | 5,428 |
| 1950 | #42 | 8,350 |
| 1940 | #65 | 3,621 |
| 1930 | #476 | 198 |
| 1920 | #525 | 181 |
| 1910 | #743 | 33 |
| 1900 | #680 | 28 |
| 1890 | #588 | 20 |
| 1880 | — | — |
How popular is Gail, counting every spelling?
Gail is a spelling of Gaelle, a name family that had 36 girls in 2025 across its spellings. Together these spellings went to 36 girls in 2025.
| Spelling | Babies 2025 | Official rank | Babies 2021–2025 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gaelle | 24 | #5,297 | 84 |
| Gail | 12 | #8,535 | 83 |
| Gayle | — | — | 30 |
Spellings count together when they sound the same in American English and are used for the same sex; nicknames and forms that sound different (such as Theo and Theodore) are kept apart. How we group spellings.
How many kids will share the name Gail?
12 of the 3,606,400 babies born in the US in 2025 were named Gail (0.00 per 1,000 births). For a girl named Gail born in 2025, the chance that another child with the same name is in a class of 20 children the same age is under 1 in 50. If every grade liked the name as much as the 2025 babies do, only about one elementary school in 705 (of 430 pupils) would have a child named Gail.
Shares of all registered births (NCHS); classes assumed to be children born the same year. How we estimate this.
How old are people named Gail?
About 140,700 people born in the US named Gail are alive today, with a median age of 72; half are between 66 and 77. That makes Gail a name most people associate with older generations.
Babies given the name each year (SSA) times the share of that birth year still alive (SSA life tables). Counts people born in the US only. Method.
Gail by state
How common Gail was among girls born in each state in 2021–2025. In 50 states fewer than five girls a year got the name, too few for SSA to publish, so those states show as zero.
Names with a similar history
These names rose and fell in step with Gail: their share of US girls followed the most similar curve since 1880. If you like Gail, they share its era and feel.
Gail is also a nickname for Abigail.
Questions about the name Gail
How popular is the name Gail?
Gail was the 8535th most popular name for girls in 2025, given to 12 babies. Its best year was 1951, when it ranked 36th with 9,886 babies. Over the last ten years it has moved down 782 places. More babies were named Gail in the 1950s than in any other decade.
Is Gail a boy or girl name?
In 2021–2025, almost always a girl’s name given the name Gail in the US.
Where is Gail most popular?
In 2021–2025, Gail was most common in New York (0.01 per 1,000 girls).