Head to head · Boys' names
Elliott vs Hayes
#160 vs #162 in 2025
Elliott is a whisker ahead (#160 vs #162 in 2025), but the curves point different ways: Elliott is holding its place on the charts, Hayes is climbing the charts fast. On momentum, Hayes has the edge.
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, Elliott leads 4 measures of 6; Hayes leads 1.
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: Elliott #413, Hayes #700 — Elliott higher
- 1890s: Elliott #383, Hayes #773 — Elliott higher
- 1900s: Elliott #396, Hayes #751 — Elliott higher
- 1910s: Elliott #427, Hayes #1002 — Elliott higher
- 1920s: Elliott #435, Hayes #1141 — Elliott higher
- 1930s: Elliott #429, Hayes #1242 — Elliott higher
- 1940s: Elliott #389, Hayes #1276 — Elliott higher
- 1950s: Elliott #475, Hayes #1573 — Elliott higher
- 1960s: Elliott #500, Hayes #2074 — Elliott higher
- 1970s: Elliott #526, Hayes #2134 — Elliott higher
- 1980s: Elliott #391, Hayes #2830 — Elliott higher
- 1990s: Elliott #455, Hayes #2145 — Elliott higher
- 2000s: Elliott #451, Hayes #1404 — Elliott higher
- 2010s: Elliott #227, Hayes #558 — Elliott higher
- 2020s: Elliott #164, Hayes #203 — Elliott higher
Elliott stood higher in every recorded decade — 15 of 15.
Rank by decade
| Decade | Elliott | Hayes |
|---|---|---|
| 1880s | #413 | #700 |
| 1890s | #383 | #773 |
| 1900s | #396 | #751 |
| 1910s | #427 | #1002 |
| 1920s | #435 | #1141 |
| 1930s | #429 | #1242 |
| 1940s | #389 | #1276 |
| 1950s | #475 | #1573 |
| 1960s | #500 | #2074 |
| 1970s | #526 | #2134 |
| 1980s | #391 | #2830 |
| 1990s | #455 | #2145 |
| 2000s | #451 | #1404 |
| 2010s | #227 | #558 |
| 2020s | #164 | #203 |
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
Elliott
From a medieval English form of Elias — that is, Elijah, Hebrew for "my God is Yahweh"
The main line is clear: the surname Elliott comes from Elyot/Eliot, a medieval English pet form of Elias, the Greek and Latin spelling of Elijah. A smaller share of Elliott families trace instead to the Old English personal name Ælfwald, "elf-ruler." Both routes are documented, and a given Elliott today can honestly claim either.
Eliyahu → Elias → Elyot → Eliot → Elliott
How it traveled
Elijah reached western Europe as Elias, through the Greek translation of the Hebrew Bible and then the Latin one, and medieval English speakers clipped and softened it into Elyot. Names like that hardened into hereditary surnames in England and along the Scottish border, where Elliot became one of the great riding-clan names of the frontier country.
Hayes
"hedge, enclosure" (English) or "descendant of Aodh" (Irish)
Two well-documented origins share the spelling. The English Hayes is topographic, from Old English hæg, a hedge or fenced enclosure, used of people who lived by one. The Irish Hayes is an anglicization of Ó hAodha, from the personal name Aodh, meaning "fire" — the same root that produced the surname Hughes. Neither reading cancels the other; which one a family carries depends on where the family came from.
hæg (Old English) → atte Hay / de la Haye → Hayes
How it traveled
Both lines are surnames first. In medieval England, people recorded as atte Hay or de la Haye were identified by the hedge or enclosure they lived beside, and the name settled into Hayes.
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
Elliott
EL-ee-ut
Stress on the first syllable. All three spellings — Elliott, Elliot, Eliot — are said the same way, and the final syllable is a light "ut," not "ott."
- Eli — The most common short form, and a fully established given name in its own right, so an Elliott who uses it will meet others who were christened Eli.
- Ell — Informal, family-and-friends use; works equally for a boy or a girl.
- Ellie — Used mainly for girls named Elliott; almost always informal.
- Elliott — Frequently used in full, including in casual speech — the name resists shortening more than most three-syllable names.
Hayes
HAYZ
One syllable, rhyming with "days." The final s is voiced, like a z. Almost no one hesitates over it on first reading.
- Hay — The only natural clipping; used informally within families rather than as a standalone given name.
- H — Initial-as-nickname, common among schoolmates and teammates for one-syllable names.
Who has carried each name
Elliott
Elliott Smith (b. 1969) — Indie songwriting legend ("Miss Misery")
Elliott Gould (b. 1938) — M*A*S*H star
Hayes
No documented entry for Hayes yet.
Source: Wikidata — the one source on this page that is not an official agency.
Is it right for you
The differences that decide it, laid out by what you want
Choose by what you want
Choose Elliott if you want…
- a name holding steadyElliott is holding its place on the charts
- a name with more sound in itElliott runs 3 syllables, Hayes 1
- plenty of nickname options4 recorded short forms — Eli, Ell and Ellie
Choose Hayes if you want…
- a name on the way upup 83 places on the charts in five years
- a name with fewer syllablesHayes is 1 syllable to Elliott's 3
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
Elliott
Strengths
- An unbroken presence in American records since counting began, without ever spiking into a fashion — the curve beside you is unusually level for a name this familiar.
- Instantly recognizable and easy to say on first hearing, with no pronunciation to teach anyone.
- Eli is a ready-made short form that stands on its own, so the name comes with a built-in casual register.
To consider
- Three spellings compete — Elliott, Elliot, Eliot — and all three are legitimate. Expect a lifetime of "two Ls and two Ts," and of mail arriving with one of each.
- For a girl, this is the same surname traveling the other way rather than a separate name, and most people will assume a boy on paper. That is workable, but worth deciding on deliberately rather than being surprised by it.
- The short form Eli sits in a crowded neighborhood with Eli, Elijah and Elias, so an Elliott who goes by Eli may not be the only one in the room even if the full name is.
Hayes
Strengths
- One syllable and one obvious pronunciation — people say it right the first time and rarely ask again.
- A spelling already familiar to Americans as a surname, so it looks like a real name on a form rather than an invention.
- Two separate documented heritages, English and Irish, which lets a family claim whichever line is actually theirs.
To consider
- It is still read as a surname by many people, and Hayes as a first name is a recent American development. Expect the occasional assumption that it is your family name, especially from older generations.
- There is nowhere to go with it. Hayes is already as short as it gets, so a child who wants a nickname will have to invent one, and the closest option, Hay, doesn't do much.
- Hays, Haze and Hayes all sound identical aloud, so spelling it out over the phone will be a lifelong small habit.
Documented properties of each name — how it spells, travels and shortens — not opinions about the child.
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 Elliott and Hayes 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 Elliott and Hayes?
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
- Vowel names: soft starts from A to O
- The steadiest names in America
- Three-syllable names with room to move
- Seven-letter names, ranked by real use
- all guides
Where Elliott and Hayes each sit in the library — alternatives in the same style, ranked by the same records.
Elliott or Hayes — the short answers
- Which is more popular, Elliott or Hayes?
- Elliott, in 2025: Elliott ranked #160 with 2,287 babies; Hayes ranked #162 with 2,240 babies.
- Which name is rising faster, Elliott or Hayes?
- Hayes. Over the last five years Elliott moved down 2 places; Hayes moved up 83 places.
- Which is the older name, Elliott or Hayes?
- The US record cannot say: both were already in use when it began in 1880.
- How many people are named Elliott and Hayes?
- About 54,000 people named Elliott are estimated to be alive in the US today. About 19,500 people named Hayes are estimated to be alive in the US today.
- Will there be other Elliotts or Hayess in the classroom?
- Elliott will almost certainly be the only one in school. Hayes 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
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