Michelle
Michelle was the 465th most popular name for girls in 2025, given to 661 babies. Its best year was 1968, when it ranked 2nd; the most babies were born in 1969 (34,319). Over the last ten years it has moved down 273 places. More babies were named Michelle in the 1970s than in any other decade.
Meaning who is like God? (feminine of Michael) · Hebrew, French
Say it mih-SHEL /mɪˈʃɛl/
- Rank in 2025
- #465 girls, down 129 places since 2020
- Babies in 2025
- 661girls
- Girls and boys
- Almost always a girl’s name2021–2025
- Peak year
- 196934,319 babies
- Total since 1880
- 819,760babies recorded
What does the name Michelle mean?
Michelle is the French feminine of Michel, the French form of Michael. DMNES and Harrison (1918) derive Michael from Hebrew Mikha'el, "who is like God?", a question implying that no one is. DMNES records Michelle in French and Walloon records of the 1560s-1590s. Wiktionary notes Michelle was popular in English-speaking countries from the 1960s to the 1990s.
מִיכָאֵל (Biblical Hebrew, “who is like God?”)
How sure is this? Well established.
Related names: Michael, Michaela, Michele, Shelly.
See also: Hebrew names, names that mean God.
Sources for this meaning
- Wiktionary, entry 'Michelle', Wiktionary (Wikimedia Foundation)
- Dictionary of Medieval Names from European Sources (ed. S. L. Uckelman), Edition 2023 no. 1, s.v. 'Michaela', DMNES, Durham University
- Henry Harrison, Surnames of the United Kingdom: A Concise Etymological Dictionary, vol. 2 (1918), s.v. 'MICHAEL', Morland Press (public domain; Internet Archive scan)
Nicknames for Michelle
The usual nicknames for Michelle are Shelly, Chelle and Mish. Some parents skip the long form: for every 100 girls named Michelle in the last five years, 3 were named Shelly, against 2 twenty years earlier.
| Nickname | Kind | Rank 2025 | Girls, 5 years |
|---|---|---|---|
| Shelly · also for Sheldon | Traditional | #5,884 | 129 |
| Chelle | Modern | — | — |
| Mish | Modern | — | — |
Nicknames reviewed by our editors; counts are girls given the nickname as their legal first name. Nobody records how many Michelles go by each one.
Michelle popularity since 1880
A few boys are given the name too: 3,250 since 1946.
| Year | Rank (girls) | Babies (girls) |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | #465 | 661 |
| 2020 | #336 | 923 |
| 2010 | #125 | 2,510 |
| 2000 | #52 | 5,545 |
| 1990 | #22 | 13,425 |
| 1980 | #10 | 19,119 |
| 1970 | #4 | 34,047 |
| 1960 | #39 | 9,893 |
| 1950 | #174 | 1,633 |
| 1940 | #728 | 92 |
| 1930 | #2,514 | 13 |
| 1920 | #3,522 | 9 |
| 1910 | — | — |
| 1900 | — | — |
| 1890 | — | — |
| 1880 | — | — |
How popular is Michelle, counting every spelling?
Michelle is the most common spelling of a name family that ranked #463 for girls in 2025 once every spelling is counted together, compared with #465 for Michelle on its own. Together these spellings went to 689 girls in 2025.
| Spelling | Babies 2025 | Official rank | Babies 2021–2025 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Michelle | 661 | #465 | 3,828 |
| Michele | 28 | #4,837 | 142 |
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 Michelle?
661 of the 3,606,400 babies born in the US in 2025 were named Michelle (0.18 per 1,000 births). For a girl named Michelle 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 13 (of 430 pupils) would have a child named Michelle.
Shares of all registered births (NCHS); classes assumed to be children born the same year. How we estimate this.
How old are people named Michelle?
About 758,200 people born in the US named Michelle are alive today, with a median age of 51; half are between 40 and 58. That makes Michelle mostly worn by adults in their thirties to fifties.
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.
Michelle by state
How common Michelle was among girls born in each state in 2021–2025. It is notably more common than nationally in Maryland (2.1×), New Jersey (1.9×), California (1.8×), New York (1.7×), Illinois (1.6×). It is least common, relative to the national rate, in Louisiana, Nebraska, Iowa.
Names with a similar history
These names rose and fell in step with Michelle: their share of US girls followed the most similar curve since 1880. If you like Michelle, they share its era and feel.
Middle names for Michelle · Sibling names for Michelle
Questions about the name Michelle
What does Michelle mean?
Michelle means “who is like God? (feminine of Michael)” (Hebrew, French origin). Certainty: well established.
How popular is the name Michelle?
Michelle was the 465th most popular name for girls in 2025, given to 661 babies. Its best year was 1968, when it ranked 2nd; the most babies were born in 1969 (34,319). Over the last ten years it has moved down 273 places. More babies were named Michelle in the 1970s than in any other decade.
Is Michelle a boy or girl name?
In 2021–2025, almost always a girl’s name given the name Michelle in the US.
Where is Michelle most popular?
In 2021–2025, Michelle was most common in Maryland (0.97 per 1,000 girls), followed by New Jersey and California.