Carly

Did you know?

A few things about Carly you might not know, from US birth records and Wikipedia. Handy for convincing a partner, or a grandparent.

⭐ Famous Carly

Carly Rae Jepsen

Canadian singer (born 1985)

Choose Carly and your child shares a first name with Carly Rae Jepsen, a Canadian singer. A ready-made answer when someone asks “Carly, like who?” Carly Rae Jepsen's Wikipedia article is available in 61 languages, a good sign of just how widely known they are.

Read about Carly Rae Jepsen on Wikipedia ↗ (opens in a new tab)

Photo: Justin Higuchi, CC BY 4.0 (opens in a new tab), via Wikimedia Commons

• 👶How commonAbout 1 in every 6,481 baby girls born in the US in 2025 was named Carly, 248 babies in all. In a typical school of 500 kids, your Carly would very likely be the only one.
• 📜HistoryCarly first shows up in US birth records in 1951, the first year at least 5 babies got it. It has been in use for 74 years since.
• 🏆Best yearIt was far more popular in 1995, when it ranked #122. Today it's #1,008, so it could be due a comeback.
• 📉Then vs nowCarly was 7.0× more common in 2000 than it is today. In 2000 it was given to about 1 in 926 baby girls; in 2025, about 1 in 6,481.
• 🍂TrendCarly has slipped 387 places over the last five years and now sits at #1,008. Good news if you want a familiar name that fewer kids will share.
• 📍Where it's lovedCarly is most popular in Ohio, where it ranks #592, followed by Oklahoma (#619) and Colorado (#634). It's in the top 1,000 in 15 states.
• 💬MeaningCarly is an English form of Carla, which means “free one”. Our records link it to American, English and French roots.

About the name Carly

Carly is a girl name of American, English and French origin meaning “free one”. It has 5 letters and 2 syllables, starting with C and ending in “-rly”. US birth records list Carly for girls from 1951 to 2025, in 60 of those 75 years. Its best year was 1995, when it ranked #122 among girl names. In 2025 it ranked #1,008, with 248 babies.

Origin:American namesEnglish namesFrench namesGerman namesLatin namesScandinavian names