Head to head · Boys' names
Giovanni vs Greyson
#123 vs #149 in 2025
Giovanni is ahead (#123 vs #149 in 2025), but the curves point different ways: Giovanni is holding its place on the charts, Greyson is stepping back from its peak.
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, Giovanni leads 4 measures of 6; Greyson 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
- 1900s: Giovanni #975, Greyson — — Giovanni higher
- 1910s: Giovanni #1446, Greyson — — Giovanni higher
- 1920s: Giovanni #2407, Greyson — — Giovanni higher
- 1930s: Giovanni #2826, Greyson — — Giovanni higher
- 1940s: Giovanni #3654, Greyson — — Giovanni higher
- 1950s: Giovanni #2301, Greyson — — Giovanni higher
- 1960s: Giovanni #1054, Greyson #3801 — Giovanni higher
- 1970s: Giovanni #700, Greyson #4272 — Giovanni higher
- 1980s: Giovanni #493, Greyson #3092 — Giovanni higher
- 1990s: Giovanni #270, Greyson #1120 — Giovanni higher
- 2000s: Giovanni #168, Greyson #562 — Giovanni higher
- 2010s: Giovanni #131, Greyson #135 — Giovanni higher
- 2020s: Giovanni #122, Greyson #109 — Greyson higher
Giovanni stood higher in 12 of 13 decades; Greyson took the 2020s.
Rank by decade
| Decade | Giovanni | Greyson |
|---|---|---|
| 1900s | #975 | — |
| 1910s | #1446 | — |
| 1920s | #2407 | — |
| 1930s | #2826 | — |
| 1940s | #3654 | — |
| 1950s | #2301 | — |
| 1960s | #1054 | #3801 |
| 1970s | #700 | #4272 |
| 1980s | #493 | #3092 |
| 1990s | #270 | #1120 |
| 2000s | #168 | #562 |
| 2010s | #131 | #135 |
| 2020s | #122 | #109 |
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
Giovanni
God is gracious
From the Hebrew name Yohanan, 'Yahweh is gracious' — the same root that gives English John, Spanish Juan and French Jean.
Yohanan → Iōannēs → Iohannes → Giovanni
How it traveled
The name begins as Hebrew Yohanan and reaches Italy by way of Greek Iōannēs and Latin Iohannes, spread through Christian Europe by the two Johns of the New Testament — the Baptist and the Evangelist. Italian reshaped Iohannes into Giovanni, and it became a standard of the peninsula: Giovanni Boccaccio, author of The Decameron, and Giovanni Bellini, the great Venetian painter, both carried it in the centuries when it was already ordinary.
Greyson
son of the steward, or son of Gray
The main reading traces the surname to Middle English greyve, a steward or bailiff who managed land for a lord — so 'son of the greyve'. A second reading takes it simply as 'son of Gray', from the older surname Gray. Both are serious; reference works differ on which came first, and in some families both roads may have ended at the same spelling.
greyve (Middle English: steward, bailiff) → Grayson (English surname) → Grayson (given name) → Greyson
How it traveled
The surname belongs to northern England, where greyve — a steward or overseer — was a working title long before it was anybody's name. Patronymic surnames of that kind (son of the greyve, son of Gray) settled into hereditary use in the late medieval period, and crossed the Atlantic with ordinary families rather than famous ones.
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
Giovanni
joh-VAH-nee
In Italian the opening 'Gio' is a single syllable, giving three beats: joh-VAH-nee. Many American speakers say four, jee-oh-VAH-nee, and both are widely heard here.
- Gio — The most common everyday short form in the US; also used for Giorgio and Giovanna, so it is shared.
- Gianni — A long-established Italian contraction that stands fully on its own as a given name.
- Vanni — Clipped from the end rather than the front; more familiar in Italy than in the US.
- Nino — An affectionate Italian form, traditionally used within the family.
- Also Giovannino.
Greyson
GRAY-sun
Two syllables, stress on the first, identical in sound to Grayson. The ey spelling never changes how it is said.
- Grey — The standard short form, and a given name in its own right for both boys and girls.
- Greys — Informal, mostly among friends and teammates.
- G — Casual initial-only nickname, common in American schools and sports.
Who has carried each name
Giovanni
Giovanni Boccaccio (b. 1313) — Wrote The Decameron
Giovanni Bellini (b. 1430) — Master of the Venetian Renaissance
Greyson
Greyson Chance (b. 1997) — YouTube piano prodigy turned pop artist
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 Giovanni if you want…
- a name most people already know#123 in 2025, 2,939 babies that year
- a name with more sound in itGiovanni runs 4 syllables, Greyson 2
- plenty of nickname options5 recorded short forms — Gio, Gianni and Vanni
- a name that ages quietlyan estimated 40% chance of feeling dated by 2040, against 70% for Greyson
Choose Greyson if you want…
- a name fewer children share#149 in 2025 — greyson will almost certainly be the only one in school
- a name past its most crowded yearsGreyson is stepping back from its peak
- a name with fewer syllablesGreyson is 2 syllables to Giovanni's 4
- a name that feels very nowGreyson is stepping back from its peak
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
Giovanni
Strengths
- Belongs to the John family, so it has a recognizable relative in nearly every European language — John, Juan, Jean, Ivan, Johannes.
- Two ready-made short forms, Gio and Gianni, both in real use and both able to stand alone.
- A documented record stretching back to medieval Italy, with no gap since it first appeared in US records.
To consider
- The spelling trips people: one v, two n's. Expect Giovani and Giovannie on forms and name tags for life, and a short correction habit that becomes automatic.
- Three syllables in Italian, four in most American mouths. Your family may say it one way and the school another, and both will feel correct to whoever is speaking.
- It signals Italian heritage clearly and immediately — a pleasure if that is your family's story, worth a thought if it isn't.
Greyson
Strengths
- Pronounced correctly on sight by almost any English speaker — the ey spelling does not change the sound.
- Has a ready short form in Grey, which also works as a standalone name on adult documents.
- Sits inside a family of names Americans already know well — Grayson, Bryson, Mason — so it needs no explaining.
To consider
- Grayson with an a is the more common spelling in the US, so expect a lifetime of gentle correcting — on forms, in emails, at the coffee counter. Worth deciding now whether that trade is one you want.
- The name's wave is very recent, so it reads clearly as a name of the current generation of children rather than a family heirloom. That also means very few adult Greysons to point to.
- It sounds close to several popular classmates' names — Bryson, Mason, Jackson — and can blur in a noisy room even while remaining the only Greyson on the roster.
Documented properties of each name — how it spells, travels and shortens — not opinions about the child.
How each is likely to age
Giovanni
40%chance Giovanni feels dated by 2040
Giovanni 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.
Greyson
70%chance Greyson feels dated by 2040
Greyson is coming down from a big peak (#77 in 2018). This is the stretch of the cycle where a name starts to sound like the decade it ruled.
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 Giovanni and Greyson 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
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More head-to-heads
Same measures, different pair. Sixty more are dealt daily in the arena.
Lists that carry both names
Every list here names both Giovanni and Greyson — the same style, ranked by the same records.
Giovanni or Greyson — the short answers
- Which is more popular, Giovanni or Greyson?
- Giovanni, in 2025: Giovanni ranked #123 with 2,939 babies; Greyson ranked #149 with 2,439 babies.
- Which name is rising faster, Giovanni or Greyson?
- Neither is rising. Over the last five years Giovanni moved down 3 places; Greyson moved down 68 places.
- Which is the older name, Giovanni or Greyson?
- Giovanni entered the US charts in 1907; Greyson entered the US charts in 1965. On the American record, Giovanni is the older name.
- How many people are named Giovanni and Greyson?
- About 87,500 people named Giovanni are estimated to be alive in the US today. About 59,500 people named Greyson are estimated to be alive in the US today.
- Will there be other Giovannis or Greysons in the classroom?
- Giovanni will almost certainly be the only one in school. Greyson 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
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