Head to head · Girls' names
Dakota vs Maggie
#295 vs #294 in 2025 · both holding its place on the charts
Maggie is a whisker ahead (#294 vs #295 in 2025) and both are holding its place on the charts. The records will not split these two — sound, story and your own last name will.
Cast your vote
Which one would you pick?
Your gut first, the numbers after — the split shows once you pick.
The tale of the tape
On the charts, Maggie leads 5 measures of 6; Dakota leads 0.
Ranks, counts and years are measured in the official US birth record; the classroom and living figures are estimates computed from it. The dot marks the side each measure favours on the charts — more common, not better.
What the records say
146 years of US births, drawn on one scale
Two curves, one scale
Who owned which decade
- 1880s: Dakota —, Maggie #52 — Maggie higher
- 1890s: Dakota —, Maggie #67 — Maggie higher
- 1900s: Dakota —, Maggie #85 — Maggie higher
- 1910s: Dakota #3134, Maggie #137 — Maggie higher
- 1920s: Dakota #4464, Maggie #184 — Maggie higher
- 1930s: Dakota —, Maggie #238 — Maggie higher
- 1940s: Dakota —, Maggie #319 — Maggie higher
- 1950s: Dakota #3172, Maggie #485 — Maggie higher
- 1960s: Dakota #4802, Maggie #667 — Maggie higher
- 1970s: Dakota #5265, Maggie #554 — Maggie higher
- 1980s: Dakota #2870, Maggie #331 — Maggie higher
- 1990s: Dakota #329, Maggie #262 — Maggie higher
- 2000s: Dakota #276, Maggie #199 — Maggie higher
- 2010s: Dakota #267, Maggie #249 — Maggie higher
- 2020s: Dakota #269, Maggie #297 — Dakota higher
Maggie stood higher in 14 of 15 decades; Dakota took the 2020s.
Rank by decade
| Decade | Dakota | Maggie |
|---|---|---|
| 1880s | — | #52 |
| 1890s | — | #67 |
| 1900s | — | #85 |
| 1910s | #3134 | #137 |
| 1920s | #4464 | #184 |
| 1930s | — | #238 |
| 1940s | — | #319 |
| 1950s | #3172 | #485 |
| 1960s | #4802 | #667 |
| 1970s | #5265 | #554 |
| 1980s | #2870 | #331 |
| 1990s | #329 | #262 |
| 2000s | #276 | #199 |
| 2010s | #267 | #249 |
| 2020s | #269 | #297 |
Average national rank across each decade. A dash means the name sat outside the recorded top of that decade.
The names themselves
Meaning, roots, sound and the people who carried each
Where each name comes from
Dakota
friend, ally
From Dakȟóta, the self-designation of the Dakota people, one of the divisions of the Očhéthi Šakówiŋ (commonly called Sioux).
Dakȟóta → Dakota Territory → Dakota
How it traveled
Dakota is the name the Dakota people use for themselves, and the word carries the sense of allies or friends — kin bound to one another. English speakers borrowed it as a geographic label: Dakota Territory was organized in 1861, and in 1889 it was divided into the two states that keep the name today.
Maggie
Pearl
From Greek margarítēs, "pearl", which reached English through Latin margarita. Maggie is the short form of Margaret and shares that meaning.
Margarítēs → Margarita → Margaret → Maggie
How it traveled
The line starts with Greek margarítēs, "pearl", which the Romans took up as Margarita and early Christians attached to Saint Margaret of Antioch — the reason the name spread so widely through medieval Europe. English turned Margarita into Margaret, and Scotland in particular took to it, producing a whole family of pet forms: Meg, Peg, Maisie, and Maggie.
Where a reading is contested the note says so — this page does not turn a guess into a fact. The chain is each name's recorded forms, oldest first; the story is its opening, told in full on the name's own page.
Out loud, and in short
Dakota
duh-KOH-tuh
Three syllables, stress on the second — identical to the two states, so it needs no explaining in the US.
- Kota — The most-used short form for either sex; also given occasionally as a standalone name.
- Dak — Clipped, informal, more often heard for boys.
- Kodi — A phonetic short form some families use; overlaps in sound with the separate name Cody.
Maggie
MAG-ee
Two syllables, stress on the first, with the short a of "bag". Said the same way in American, British and Irish English.
- Mags — The most common informal shortening, used mostly among friends and family.
- Meg — Another short form of Margaret; also stands alone as a given name.
- Mag — An older, plainer clipping, more common in earlier generations than now.
- Margaret — Used the other way round: the formal name some families put on the certificate with Maggie for daily use.
Is it right for you
The differences that decide it, laid out by what you want
Choose by what you want
Choose Dakota if you want…
- a name holding steadyDakota is holding its place on the charts
- a name with more sound in itDakota runs 3 syllables, Maggie 2
- a newer arrivalDakota entered the US charts in 1915
Choose Maggie if you want…
- a name with fewer syllablesMaggie is 2 syllables to Dakota's 3
- a long American recordMaggie was already in use when US records began in 1880
Each line is a measured difference between the two names — a rank, a count, a recorded form — never a judgement of either. Save the one that answers your question; it lands on your shortlist.
The trade-offs, name by name
Dakota
Strengths
- Spelling and pronunciation are already known to nearly every American, thanks to the two states — rarely misheard, rarely respelled.
- Works unchanged for a boy or a girl, with no separate feminine or masculine form to choose between.
- Has real short forms in use — Kota, Dak — for the times a three-syllable name is one syllable too many.
To consider
- The near-even gender split means the name alone won't tell a teacher, a coach or a form-reader which child is coming. Some parents like that; others find themselves clarifying often, and it tends to fall harder on whichever side is smaller in a given town.
- This is the living name of a living nation, not a decorative word. Some Dakota people have written about non-Native use of it. That is worth reading about honestly before you decide, rather than after.
- In much of the country the name still reads as a place first — the state, the plains, the highway sign. That association is warm for many people, but it is unlikely to fade.
Maggie
Strengths
- Spelled the way it sounds, and known to nearly everyone — rarely needs repeating or clarifying.
- Backed by Margaret, so a longer, more formal version is available on paper if it is ever wanted.
- Part of a name family found in Spanish, French, Italian and German, which travels well.
To consider
- It is a nickname that became a name. If you use Maggie alone, there is no longer form to fall back on for a résumé or a diploma — some families put Margaret on the certificate for exactly that reason.
- Maggie is still strongly represented among older generations in the US, so it may read as a grandmother's name to some ears and as a fresh revival to others.
- It sits close to Maddie and Mattie in speech, and gets misheard as one of them often enough to notice.
Documented properties of each name — how it spells, travels and shortens — not opinions about the child.
How each is likely to age
Dakota
40%chance Dakota feels dated by 2040
Dakota sits in the calm middle of the cycle — neither chasing a wave nor sliding off one. Middle-of-the-cycle names age slowly and predictably.
Maggie
25%chance Maggie feels dated by 2040
Maggie peaked long ago yet still holds steady — names that survive their own wave usually settle into quiet, durable classics.
A reading of where each name sits on the long naming cycle — computed, not measured, and explained on the data page.
With your last name
Say both in full. The notes are facts about letters and sound — a rhyme, a shared initial, the monogram — not a verdict on either name.
Type a last name to hear Dakota and Maggie in full.
Weighing the whole shortlist? Run the full comparison — up to eight names with your last name, initials, classroom projections and a printable report.
Decide together
Nobody names a baby alone
Still torn between Dakota and Maggie?
Put both to the vote.
One link to your partner, your parents, your sister. Each of them gets the two names, a one-tap answer and room to say why — and every reply lands in one place.
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More than two in the running? Settle it with a bracket or run the full comparison with your last name.
More head-to-heads
Same measures, different pair. Sixty more are dealt daily in the arena.
Lists these names appear on
- Place names on the map and the birth certificate
- Western names with dust on their boots
- Map names: states and countries as first names
- The steadiest names in America
- all guides
Where Dakota and Maggie each sit in the library — alternatives in the same style, ranked by the same records.
Dakota or Maggie — the short answers
- Which is more popular, Dakota or Maggie?
- Maggie, in 2025: Maggie ranked #294 with 1,041 babies; Dakota ranked #295 with 1,035 babies.
- Which name is rising faster, Dakota or Maggie?
- Neither is rising. Over the last five years Dakota moved down 38 places; Maggie moved down 1 place.
- Which is the older name, Dakota or Maggie?
- Dakota entered the US charts in 1915; Maggie was already in use when US records began in 1880. On the American record, Maggie is the older name.
- How many people are named Dakota and Maggie?
- About 41,000 people named Dakota are estimated to be alive in the US today. About 68,000 people named Maggie are estimated to be alive in the US today.
- Will there be other Dakotas or Maggies in the classroom?
- Dakota will almost certainly be the only one in school. Maggie will almost certainly be the only one in school.
US figures from the Social Security Administration, 1880–2025. Votes are battle voters on this site, not the birth record. Data & methodology
Keep playing
Sixty more head-to-heads are dealt in the arena every day — or line up Dakota, Maggie and the rest of your shortlist with your last name in one printable report.
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