Masterpiece Generator Name Generator
How popular is the name Neal?
Births per year, rank history and how many Neals are alive today.
Neal (male) is a rare spelling of the boys' name Neil in England and Wales, ranked 4275th in 2025 and given to 4 babies. This spelling of the name peaked in 1996, when 24 babies were given the name, the 654th most popular that year. It has declined since 1996; the 2025 figure is roughly 17% of its peak.
Across all spellings of the name, the Neil you are most likely to meet is around 61 years old. Half of all Neils born in England and Wales are between 49 and 63, and there are at least 140,000 of them alive today. If you walk into a room of 100 males, there's roughly a 37% chance that at least one of them will be called Neil.
How many babies are named Neal each year?
Includes all spellings: Neal, Neel, Neil. Figures before 1996 are estimates.
Where does the Neal spelling rank?
Where does the Neel spelling rank?
Where does the Neil spelling rank?
Where this data comes from
Figures from 1996 onwards are the Office for National Statistics' annual baby-name registrations for England and Wales, which record every name given to three or more babies in a year. Figures before 1996 are estimates: the ONS published only top-100 rankings at ten-year intervals back to 1904, so counts for those years are modelled from the rankings, calibrated against Douglas Galbi's long-run research into English name frequencies, and shown with an uncertainty band. Estimates of living bearers combine these birth figures with national life tables and ONS mid-year population estimates.
One limit worth naming: these figures count names as registered at birth. Anyone who changes their name later in life - including trans people, and anyone who adopts a different name by deed poll or simply by use - is not reflected here. Birth registrations record where a name began, not the name a person lives with.
Common questions
When was the name Neal most popular?
The most popular form of the name, Neil, peaked in 1964, when around 6,300 babies in England and Wales were given the name. The Neal spelling itself peaked in 1996, with 24 babies.
How many people are called Neal?
At least 140,000 people named Neal in any spelling born in England and Wales are alive today.
How old is the typical Neal?
Most living Neals are between 49 and 63; the most common age is about 61.
Is Neal becoming more or less popular?
Well past its peak: today's figures are a fraction of the 1964 peak, though numbers have levelled off in recent years.