Michael
Top 1000
About Michael
Michael was the Number 1 American boys' name for almost half a century. While Michael has moved out of the Top 10 baby boy names, it's still widely used.
How has Michael racked up this phenomenal record? Credit its use by parents of diverse ethnic and religious groups, and Michael's all-around likability, strength, and sincerity.
Michael was derived from the name Mikha’el, which comes from the rhetorical question mī kā’ēl, meaning "who is like God?" in Hebrew. In the Bible, Michael is the archangel who led the other angels to victory in a war against Satan, one of only two archangels (the other is Gabriel) recognized by Jews, Christians and Muslims alike.
Today, Michael may feel more like a dad name than a baby name. Substitutes you might consider include Micah, Malachi, Gabriel and Raphael.
Pronounced MY-kul.
As of October 2026, Michael ranked #21 in US births in 2025 SSA, peaked at #1 in 1954, Nameberry popularity #89.
Editor's take: The name Michael is a boy's name of Hebrew origin meaning "who is like God?".
Popularity & trends
Data table
| Year | US rank | Births | Per million |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2014 | #7 | 15,496 | 8,067.2 |
| 2015 | #9 | 14,497 | 7,563.4 |
| 2016 | #8 | 14,139 | 7,450.4 |
| 2017 | #12 | 12,723 | 6,873.7 |
| 2018 | #14 | 11,750 | 6,469.7 |
| 2019 | #14 | 10,614 | 5,915.7 |
| 2020 | #12 | 9,824 | 5,691.5 |
| 2021 | #17 | 9,136 | 5,222.1 |
| 2022 | #16 | 8,888 | 5,090.5 |
| 2023 | #16 | 8,416 | 4,920 |
| 2024 | #18 | 8,189 | 4,753.1 |
| 2025 | #21 | 8,094 | 4,738.7 |
World rankings
Similar names
These 20 names were selected by our users looking for other names like Michael.
- Adam
- Matthew
- Anthony
- Joshua
- Christopher
- Jonathan
- David
- Daniel
- Andrew
- Joseph
- Christian
- Nicholas
- Nathan
- Mark
- Zachary
- Eric
- Jacob
- Aaron
- Timothy
- Jason
Michael on lists
Famous Michaels
- Michael I
IX, Byzantine emperors
- Michael I
King of Romania
- Michael Asen I
III, Tsars of Bulgaria
- Michael
grandson of Uzzi, great,grandson of patriarch Issachar (1 Chr. 7:3)
- Michael
Biblical archangel
- Michael
descendant of patriarch Benjamin (1 Chr. 8:16)
- Michael
son of Judean King Jehoshaphat (2 Chr. 21:2)
- Michael Alexandrovich
Grand Duke of Russia
- Michael Nikolaevich
Grand Duke of Russia
- Michael the Brave
Prince of Wallachia
- Michael Joseph Jackson
American singer, dancer and songwriter
- Michael Jeffrey Jordan
American basketball player
- Michael Collins
American astronaut
- Michael Collins
Irish revolutionary leader
- Michael Kirk Douglas
American actor
- Michael Philip "Mick" Jagger
lead singer of English band The Rolling Stones
- Michael Landon (born Eugene Maurice Orowitz)
American actor
- Michael Mario Andretti
American racing driver
- Michael Stanley Dukakis
American politician, governor of Massachusetts
- Michael Steven Buble
Canadian singer
- Michael Dale "Mike" Huckabee
American politician, former governor of Arkansas
- Michael Richard "Mike" Pence
48th Vice President of the United States
- Michael Rubens Bloomberg
American politician, former mayor of New York City
- Michael Caine (born Maurice Joseph Micklewhite)
English actor
- Michael John Burkett aka Fat Mike
lead singer of American band NOFX
- Michael John Clarke
Australian cricketer
- Michael Francis Moore
American documentary filmmaker
- Michael Llodra
French tennis player
- Michael Clarke Duncan
American actor
- Michael Crabtree
American football player
- Michael John "Mike" Myers
Canadian,American actor/comedian
- Michael Carl "Mike" Bryan
American tennis player
- Michael Gerard "Mike" Tyson
American boxer
- Michael Gordon "Mike" Oldfield
English musician
- Michael Deane "Mike" Harris
Canadian politician, former premier of Ontario
- Michael Scudamore Redgrave
English actor
- (Robert) Michael Nesmith
American musician of The Monkees
- Michael Keaton (born Michael John Douglas)
American actor
- Michael Ealy
American actor
- Michael Emerson
American actor
- Michael Fassbender
German,Irish actor
- Michael J. (Andrew) Fox
Canadian,American actor
- Michael John Gambon
Irish actor
- Michael Carlyle Hall
American actor
- Michael Soren Madsen
American actor
- Michael J. Harney
American actor
- Michael Jones
American YouTuber
- Michael David Kors (born Karl Anderson Jr.)
American fashion designer
- Michael Omartian
American singer,songwriter and producer
- Michael Manning Weatherly Jr
American actor
- Michael Hazen James McIntyre
English comedian
- Michael Morpurgo (born Michael Andrew Bridge)
English children's author
- Michael John Nelson
American comedian
- Michael Edward Killeen Hussey
Australian cricketer
- Michael Nigro
American actor
- Michael Fred Phelps
American Olympic swimmer
- Michael "Mike" Pilavachi
British evangelist
- Michael Rooker
American actor
- Michael Schumacher
German racing driver
- Michael Scott
Irish author
- Michael Anthony Strahan
American NFL football player and talk show host
- Michael Dwayne Vick
American NFL football player
- Michael McDonald
American singer of The Doobie Brothers
- Michael Mackintosh Foot
British MP
- Michael Andrew Foster Jude Kerr
13th Marquess of Lothian, Baron Kerr of Monteviot, British MP
- Michael Terry Weiss
American actor
- Michael Austin Cera
American actor
- (John) Michael Stipe
lead singer of American band R.E.M.
- Michael Anthony Beach
American actor
- Michael Ian Black
American actor/comedian
- Michael Willy Schenker
German guitarist of band UFO
- Michael James Owen
English footballer
- Michael Medved
American radio host
- Michael Donald Kirby
former Australian High Court justice
- Michael Leonard Brecker
American jazz saxophonist
- Michael Rex Giles
drummer of English band King Crimson
- Michael Laudrup
Danish footballer
- Michael Grant
American novelist
- (George) Michael Sinclair Kennedy
English biographer and music critic
- Michael Ryan Pritchard
birth name of Mike Dirnt, bassist for American band Green DayDa
- Michael James "Mikey" Way
bassist for American rock band My Chemical Romance
- Michael Gordon Clifford
musician of Australian band 5 Seconds Of Summer
- Michael Raymond
James, American actor
- Michael Whitaker Smith
American Christian Musician
- Michael Stevens
American vlogger & creator of science channel brand Vsauce
- Michael Daniel Higgins
9th President of Ireland
- Michael Parsons
American ice dancer
- Michael Jung
German horse rider
- Michael Dorn
American actor and voice artist
- Michael Richards
American actor, writer, television producer and comedian
- Michael Bay
American filmmaker
- Michael Chertoff
2nd United States Secretary of Homeland Security
- Michael Buffer
American ring announcer for boxing and proffesional wrestling
- Michael Zazarino
actor
- Johann Michael Haydn
Austrian composer
- Michael "Mike" Christopher Fuentes
drummer of band Pierce the Veil
- Michael Bakari Jordan
American actor
- Michael Robert Wahlberg
son of American actor Mark Wahlberg
- Michael Richard Wayans
son of actor Damon Wayans
- Michael James Duggar (b. 2011)
son of reality TV personalities Josh and Anna Duggar
- Michael "Mike" Shinoda
of band Linkin Park
- Michael Kucharski
Australian YouTuber, also known as Slazo
- Michael "Mike" Zapcic
star of AMC's Comic Book Men
- Michael Campion
American actor
- Michael Knowles
American commentator
Michael in pop culture
- Michael Poole
a character in Stephen Baxter's "Xeelee Sequence"
- Michael Corleone
main character in "The Godfather" trilogy
- Michael Langdon
character in "American Horror Story"
- Ponyboy Michael Curtis
main character in S.E. Hinton's "The Outsiders"
- Michael "Mike" Wazowski
main character in Pixar's "Monsters, Inc."
- Michael Scott
character on American TV's version of "The Office"
- Michael Bluth
character on TV's "Arrested Development"
- Michael Kelso
character on TV's "That '70s Show"
- Michael Weaver
character in Myra McEntire's Hourglass series
- Michael Samuelle
character on TV's "La Femme Nikita"
- Michael James "Mike" Ross
character on TV's "Suits"
- Michael gray
character on bbc’s Peaky blinders
- Michael Glass
character in "Morganville Vampires" series
- Michael Aaron "Mike" Seaver
character on TV's "Growing Pains"
- Michael Scofield
main character on TV's "Prison Break"
- Michael Vaughn
character on TV's "Alias" played by Michael Vartan
- Michael Moscovitz
character in "The Princess Diaries" series
- Michael De Santa
character in video game "Grand Theft Auto 5"
- Michael J. Caboose
character in web series "Red vs Blue"
- Michael
archangel on TV's "Supernatural"
- Michael Hobbs
character in movie "Elf"
- Michael Roberts
character in movie "Small Island"
- Michael Tietjens
character in movie "Parade's End"
- Michael Newman
character in movie "Click"
- Michael Edward Moon
character on British soap "EastEnders"
- Michael Dawson
character on TV's "Lost"
- Michael Zhang
character in video game "The Sims"
- Michael Bachelor
character in video game "The Sims"
- Michael McCarthy
character in video game "The Sims"
- Michael "Mick" Taylor
character in "Wolf Creek"
- Michael Vey
main character Richard Paul Evans' book series
- Michael Becket
character in the video game series "F.E.A.R."
- Michael "Mike" Rollins / Steel
character in the book "After the Hole" and it's film adaptation "The Hole"
- Michael Corinthos III
character on soap "General Hospital"
- Michael Myers
main character in the "Halloween" movie series
- Michael
character in Barney's Backyard Gang
- Michael "Mike" Munroe
character in video game "Until Dawn"
- Michael Jon Carter aka Booster Gold
character in DC Unierse
- Michael Patterson
character in comic strip "For Better or for Worse"
- Michael "Mike" Wheeler
character in "Stranger Things"
- Michael Deets
character in "South Park"
- Michael
character in "South Park"
- "Michael
" movie about the angel starring John Travolta
- "Michael
Row the Boat Ashore," gospel song
- "Michael
" song by Scottish rock band Franz Ferdinand
- Michael King
pseudonym used early in the career of real life
- Brooklyn Born Political Leader Rabbi Meir Kahane (1932
90)
- Michael "Mike" Crew
character on "The Magnus Archives"
- Michael
a different character on "The Magnus Archives"
- "Michael, a Pastoral"
A ballad in William Wordsworth's collection of poems, "Lyrical Ballads"