Billy

“Variant of William — Will and helmet” — Germanic via Norman French origin

Boy's name · #1068 in the US (2025) · Vintage

Billy has appeared in US records since 1880 — best rank #19 (1931) · 384,233 babies named Billy all-time · 1 in 8,300 boys born in 2025.

Around the world: #37 in Australia (VIC) (2025) · #38 in Australia (QLD) (2025) · #39 in Ireland (2025) · #44 in Australia (NSW) (2025) · #84 in New Zealand (2025).

Appears in 2020-2025 birth records of 22 states. See the full state-by-state map on this page.

Famous Billys

Billy Graham — American Baptist evangelist (1918–2018)
Billy Wilder — Austrian-born American filmmaker and screenwriter (1906-2002)
Billy the Kid — American outlaw and gunfighter (1859–1881)
Billy Joel — American singer, songwriter, and pianist (born 1949)
Billy Connolly — Scottish actor and comedian

In stories & tradition

Billy (Captain Marvel) — Batman: The Brave and the Bold · Justice League Unlimited
Billy — Saw
Billy Bones — Treasure Island

What Billys become

Among 2,852 notable people named Billy:

Athletes appear 2.96× more often than among typical names — e.g. Billy Celeski, Australian association football player.

Browse more boy names — popularity, trends and eras for 5,700+ American names, free.