Head to head · Boys' names
Jeremy vs Reid
#292 vs #293 in 2025
Jeremy is a whisker ahead (#292 vs #293 in 2025), but the curves point different ways: Jeremy is stepping back from its peak, Reid is holding its place on the charts. On momentum, Reid 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, Jeremy leads 4 measures of 6; Reid leads 2.
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: Jeremy —, Reid #938 — Reid higher
- 1890s: Jeremy —, Reid #748 — Reid higher
- 1900s: Jeremy —, Reid #956 — Reid higher
- 1910s: Jeremy —, Reid #990 — Reid higher
- 1920s: Jeremy #2633, Reid #780 — Reid higher
- 1930s: Jeremy #1512, Reid #889 — Reid higher
- 1940s: Jeremy #910, Reid #703 — Reid higher
- 1950s: Jeremy #728, Reid #550 — Reid higher
- 1960s: Jeremy #463, Reid #661 — Jeremy higher
- 1970s: Jeremy #30, Reid #646 — Jeremy higher
- 1980s: Jeremy #29, Reid #522 — Jeremy higher
- 1990s: Jeremy #54, Reid #458 — Jeremy higher
- 2000s: Jeremy #112, Reid #421 — Jeremy higher
- 2010s: Jeremy #173, Reid #280 — Jeremy higher
- 2020s: Jeremy #253, Reid #308 — Jeremy higher
Reid stood higher in 8 of 15 decades; Jeremy has held the lead since the 1960s.
Rank by decade
| Decade | Jeremy | Reid |
|---|---|---|
| 1880s | — | #938 |
| 1890s | — | #748 |
| 1900s | — | #956 |
| 1910s | — | #990 |
| 1920s | #2633 | #780 |
| 1930s | #1512 | #889 |
| 1940s | #910 | #703 |
| 1950s | #728 | #550 |
| 1960s | #463 | #661 |
| 1970s | #30 | #646 |
| 1980s | #29 | #522 |
| 1990s | #54 | #458 |
| 2000s | #112 | #421 |
| 2010s | #173 | #280 |
| 2020s | #253 | #308 |
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
Jeremy
the Lord will raise up
Hebrew Yirmeyahu. The verb is usually read as to lift or exalt, though a minority reading takes it as to loosen or set free. The divine element at the end is the standard one, the same that closes Isaiah and Zechariah.
Yirmeyahu → Ieremias → Jeremy → Jeremiah
How it traveled
The prophet gave English a word for a kind of writing. A jeremiad is a long, mournful complaint about the state of the world, and it is named directly for the tone of Lamentations, the book traditionally ascribed to him.
Reid
red-haired or ruddy-complexioned
From Middle English read (Scots reid), 'red' — originally a descriptive byname for hair or complexion, which then hardened into a family name.
rēad (Old English, 'red') → read / reid (Middle English and Scots byname) → Reid (Scottish surname) → Reid (given name)
How it traveled
The word behind it is Old English rēad, 'red', which became read in Middle English and reid in Scots. Used first as a nickname for a red-haired or high-colored person, it became a hereditary surname across Scotland and northern England, where the -ei- spelling took hold while England kept Read, Reade and Reed.
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
Jeremy
JERR-uh-mee
Three syllables with the stress at the front and a middle vowel reduced almost to nothing. Spelling and sound agree throughout, and the name is never mispronounced.
- Jem — Cut from the front; warm, literary and much commoner in Britain.
- Jez — Informal and British; carries a considerably cheekier tone than the full name.
- Remy — Taken from the back of the name; a standing French name in its own right.
- Jerry — The older short form, shared with Gerald and Gerard and dated by that company.
Reid
REED
One syllable, rhyming with need. Identical in sound to the word reed and to read in the present tense.
- Reidy — Informal, mostly a schoolyard or teammate form built off the surname pattern; not used as a name in its own right.
Is it right for you
The differences that decide it, laid out by what you want
Choose by what you want
Choose Jeremy if you want…
- a name past its most crowded yearsJeremy is stepping back from its peak
- a name with more sound in itJeremy runs 3 syllables, Reid 1
- plenty of nickname options4 recorded short forms — Jem, Jez and Remy
Choose Reid if you want…
- a name on the way upup 23 places on the charts in five years
- a name with fewer syllablesReid is 1 syllable to Jeremy's 3
- a name that stays wholeone recorded short form for Reid (Reidy)
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
Jeremy
Strengths
- It has been in continuous English use for something like eight centuries.
- The short forms are unusually varied, from literary to blunt to French.
- It is familiar to everyone while remaining well clear of the current crowd.
To consider
- Its peak generation is recent enough to date the name clearly to most ears.
- Jeremiah is currently the fuller and more fashionable of the two forms.
- A well-read stranger may reach for jeremiad, which is not a flattering word.
Reid
Strengths
- One syllable and four letters — nothing to shorten, and it fits comfortably in front of long or short surnames alike.
- Said the same way by everyone at first sight; the only question is ever the spelling, not the sound.
- A documented line from Old English rēad through Scots reid to the modern surname, in continuous use for centuries.
To consider
- The spelling will need saying aloud for life. Reed is the more expected American form, and Read and Reade are also in circulation, so 'Reid, R-E-I-D' becomes a reflex.
- There is no built-in short form. If you like having an affectionate alternative on hand, this name doesn't supply one.
- It is a homophone of the verb read, which occasionally makes for a pun on report cards and in classroom jokes. It passes quickly.
Documented properties of each name — how it spells, travels and shortens — not opinions about the child.
How each is likely to age
Jeremy
25%chance Jeremy feels dated by 2040
Jeremy peaked long ago yet still holds steady — names that survive their own wave usually settle into quiet, durable classics.
Reid
40%chance Reid feels dated by 2040
Reid 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.
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 Jeremy and Reid 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 Jeremy and Reid?
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More head-to-heads
Same measures, different pair. Sixty more are dealt daily in the arena.
Lists these names appear on
- Generation X names (born 1965–1980)
- Millennial names (born 1981–1996)
- Names ending in -y
- One-syllable names: said in a single beat
- all guides
Where Jeremy and Reid each sit in the library — alternatives in the same style, ranked by the same records.
Jeremy or Reid — the short answers
- Which is more popular, Jeremy or Reid?
- Jeremy, in 2025: Jeremy ranked #292 with 1,152 babies; Reid ranked #293 with 1,150 babies.
- Which name is rising faster, Jeremy or Reid?
- Reid. Over the last five years Jeremy moved down 60 places; Reid moved up 23 places.
- Which is the older name, Jeremy or Reid?
- Jeremy entered the US charts in 1923; Reid entered the US charts in 1886. On the American record, Reid is the older name.
- How many people are named Jeremy and Reid?
- About 421,000 people named Jeremy are estimated to be alive in the US today. About 37,500 people named Reid are estimated to be alive in the US today.
- Will there be other Jeremys or Reids in the classroom?
- Jeremy will almost certainly be the only one in school. Reid 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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