Charley
2025 SSA
2025 SSA
About Charley
Charley is, at this point, an old-fashioned spelling for the most popular short form of Charles, better known these days as Charlie. But Charley is a classic and relates more directly to Charles.
Charley for boys#1827 US
While the y ending may be more traditionally masculine than ie, girls named Charley outnumber boys four to one, while Charlie is split nearly evenly between the sexes. If you're considering naming your son Charles and styling his nickname Charley, be aware that with 20 times more male Charlies than Charleys, you and your child will face constant misspellings.
This spelling was used for characters by Victorian author Elizabeth Gaskell in her novel Sylvia's Lovers and by Brandon Thomas in his play Charley's Aunt.
Charley for girls#760 US
Charlie and its many forms are on the rise -- including Charley, which relates more directly to the male formal name Charles. Surprisingly, though, while the number of girls and boys named Charlie are nearly even, there are six times as many girls named Charley than boys.
The Charley spelling still ranks in the Top 1000 for girls, though it's fourth in popularity behind Charlie, Charlee, and Charli.
Pronounced CHAR-lee.
As of October 2026, Charley ranked #1827 in US births in 2025 SSA, peaked at #59 in 1880.
Popularity & trends
Data table
| Year | US rank · boys | Births · boys | US rank · girls | Births · girls |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2014 | #1,874 | 78 | #489 | 641 |
| 2015 | #1,780 | 85 | #520 | 603 |
| 2016 | #1,878 | 79 | #558 | 560 |
| 2017 | #1,648 | 96 | #513 | 611 |
| 2018 | #1,626 | 100 | #562 | 553 |
| 2019 | #1,791 | 86 | #551 | 552 |
| 2020 | #1,801 | 83 | #537 | 561 |
| 2021 | #1,854 | 83 | #617 | 480 |
| 2022 | #1,860 | 85 | #700 | 421 |
| 2023 | #1,728 | 96 | #726 | 387 |
| 2024 | #1,830 | 88 | #729 | 385 |
| 2025 | #1,827 | 87 | #760 | 356 |
World rankings
Charley for boys
Charley for girls
Similar names
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Charley on lists
Famous Charleys
- Charley KoontzBoy
American actor
- Charley Frank PrideBoy
American country music singer
- Charles Louis "Charley" TrippiBoy
American NFL football player
- Charles Robert "Charley" TaylorBoy
American NFL football player
- Charles Harris "Charley" SteinerBoy
American sportscaster
- Charley WinnerBoy
American NFL football coach
- Charley Lane JohnsonBoy
American NFL football player
- Charles Jacob "Charley" BrockBoy
American NFL football player
- Charley Chase (born Charles Joseph Parrott)Boy
American comedian, actor, screenwriter and film director
- Charley Elizabeth Gilbert (b. 2013)Girl
daughter of actress Martha Madison and A.J. Gilbert
- Charley NashGirl
daughter of youtuber and comedian Jason Nash
Charley in pop culture
- Charles "Charley" WykehamBoy
character in Brandon Thomas' play "Charley's Aunt"
- Charley FordBoy
character in movie "The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford"
- Charles "Charley" HardyBoy
character in G. A. Henty's "Out on the Pampas"
- Charley CrowderGirl
a character in NIL by Lynne Matson
- Charley DavidsonGirl
character in the Charley Davidson series by Darynda Jones
- Charlotte "Charley" PollardGirl
character in Doctor Who's Big Finish Audios
- CharleyGirl
female duck in Disney's "The Million Dollar Duck," 1971 film