Top 20 Most Common Dog Names

While dog names such as Fido and Rover were once incredibly common, they’re not the most popular among the goldendoodles and dachshunds of today. The American Kennel Club tracks the most common dog names on its rolls, and many of the most widely used dog names now are also frequently used as human names, outside of a few exceptions. Here’s the organization’s list of the top 10 most popular girl and boy dog names from 2025, and a quick look at what each of those names means.

1. Luna
2. Bella
3. Daisy
4. Lucy
5. Ruby
6. Willow
7. Maggie
8. Penny
9. Nova
10. Sadie

Luna — Latin for “the moon.” It’s a common term in other Romance languages as well, such as Spanish and Italian.

Bella — A shortened version of the name Isabella. It’s often associated with the Italian term bella, meaning “beautiful.”

Daisy — Derived from the Old English dægeseage, meaning “day eye.” It refers to white and yellow flowers commonly called daisies.

Lucy — The English form of the name Lucia, or the feminine form of the name Lucius. It comes from the Latin lux, meaning “light.”

Ruby — From the Latin rubeus, meaning “red.” It’s widely used to refer to the red precious stone known as a ruby.

Willow — A name originally coined for willow trees. It comes from the Old English word welig, meaning “willow tree.” 

Maggie — The diminutive form of the name Margaret. It’s derived from the Greek μαργαρίτης (margarites), meaning “pearl.”

Penny — The diminutive form of the name Penelope. It’s derived from the Greek πηνέλοψ (penelope), referring to a type of duck.

Nova — Derived from the Latin term novus, meaning “new.” It’s often used today to refer to celestial objects such as supernovae.

Sadie — The diminutive form of the name Sarah. It comes from the Hebrew שָׂרָה (sara), meaning “lady” or “noblewoman.”

1. Max
2. Hank
3. Teddy
4. Cooper
5. Gus
6. Bear
7. Duke
8. Maverick
9. Charlie
10. Finn

Max — A shortened form of the name Maximilian. It comes from the Latin maximus, meaning “greatest.”

Hank — A shortened version of Hankin, which was once a nickname for the name John in the medieval era. It’s more commonly used as a diminutive for the name Henry today.

Teddy — A nickname for people named Edward (which comes from the Old English ead, meaning “wealth”) or Theodore (from the Greek Theodoros, meaning “gift of god”).

Cooper — Derived from the Middle English “couper.” It was once a common surname for barrel makers, as people in that profession were known as coopers.

Gus — The diminutive form of Augustus (a name meaning “exalted” that comes from the Latin augeo) or Angus (from the Old Irish ÓengusI, which likely means “one strength”).

Bear — Likely derived from the Old English bera, meaning “brown.”

Duke — A term of nobility derived from the Latin dux, meaning “leader.”

Maverick — An English word meaning “independent” that was taken from the surname of a 19th-century Texas rancher who let his cattle roam freely.

Charlie — The diminutive form of Charles, which is the English form of the Latin name Carolus, which itself comes from the Germanic Karl, meaning “man.”

Finn — A name that comes from the Old Irish language, meaning “blessed.”