Top Dog Names of 2021: Luna and Asher are the Most Popular Picks
Published: Last updated: by Jessi Larson
The results are in! We’re excited to announce the top dog names of 2021, as determined by the 5.1 million dog owners who used our site so far this year.
Luna is the most popular female dog name for the year, and Asher skyrocketed to number one for male dog names.
Curious to see what other names topped the charts? Check out the lists below and learn more about what is trending now.
The Top 100 Dog Names of 2021
Top Female Dog Names
- Luna
- Daisy
- Bella
- Lola
- Raven
- Aurora
- Athena
- Willow
- Olive
- Aspen
- Ash
- Dixie
- Roxy
- Nala
- Koda
- Poppy
- Gigi
- Hazel
- Yuki
- Moon
- Xena
- Lucy
- Violet
- Dakota
- Piper
- Harley
- Nyx
- Lady
- Gracie
- Harper
- Midnight
- Storm
- Pepper
- Abby (Abigail)
- Star
- Ava
- Dawn
- Sadie
- Zelda
- Stella
- Honey
- Angel
- Echo
- Fifi
- Nikita
- Sage
- Bailey
- Pearl
- Rogue
- Blizzard
Top Male Dog Names
- Asher
- Axel
- Buddy
- Finn
- Duke
- Milo
- Rocky
- Leo
- Charlie
- Apollo
- Bear
- Thor
- Max
- Echo
- Blue
- Diesel
- Cooper
- Shadow
- Hunter
- Scout
- King
- Bruno
- Fang
- Alaska
- Loki
- Blaze
- Alpha
- Lucky
- Gunner
- Bane
- Rex
- Kai
- Xerxes
- Chewie
- Barkley
- Brutus
- Alfie
- Atlas
- Tank
- Yoshi
- Dakota
- Blizzard
- Goliath
- Bolt
- Arlo
- Spike
- Archie
- Odin
- Gizmo
- Maverick
Most Popular Dog Names Video
About the 2021 Top Female Dog Names
Luna surpassed Daisy, last year’s winner, as the most popular female dog name. It shot up from fifth place in 2020.
Prior to 2020, Bella claimed first place for female dog names for an entire decade. Now Bella is the third most popular pick while Daisy moved down to second place.
Consistent favorites Lola, Willow, and Olive also stayed on the list of top 10 female dog names.
New to the chart are the names Raven, Aurora, Athena, and Aspen.
About the 2021 Top Male Dog Names
Asher exploded in popularity this year. In 2020 it cracked the list for the first time taking the 10th spot, and now it’s the most popular name for male dogs.
The previous winner, Buddy, moved down to the third spot.
Popular names Axel, Milo, Duke, Rocky, and Charlie stayed in the top 10 and were joined by newcomers Leo and Apollo.
Most Popular Dog Names by Category
My Dog’s Name gives you the ability to search categories that are relevant to you and your pup. Our goal is to create a better experience for new pet owners and let you search for your favorite styles and themes.
Let’s take a look at the most popular categories and which names rose to the top.
Top Cute Dog Names
Cute dog names is the most popular category. And it makes sense since adorable canines deserve a cute name.
Here are the most popular selections in this category.
- Willow
- Bear
- Scout
- Dixie
- Lucky
- Roxy
- Poppy
- Alfie
- Arlo
- Gigi
Top Tough Dog Names
The tough name category is also popular, especially for male names. Many dog owners like a strong-sounding name for their pup, and these were the top picks.
- Thor
- Koda
- Harley
- Max
- Echo
- Nyx
- Midnight
- Diesel
- Hunter
- Storm
Top Sports Dog Names
People love to watch and play sports, and this can be reflected with a sporty dog name. Sports lovers were big fans of these ideas in 2021.
- Barkley
- Aspen
- Tiger
- Blitz
- Archer
- Champ
- Huntress
- Knight
- Ranger
- Babe
Top Food Dog Names
The food dog name category is also popular, and new dog owners were inspired by these tasty ideas this year.
- Olive
- Biscuit
- Pepper
- Honey
- Spud
- Sage
- Bailey
- Coco
- Oreo
- Kona
Top TV & Movie Dog Names
TV shows and movies provide fun inspiration for dog names. The following names are the most popular picks of the year.
- Nala
- Shadow
- Bruno
- Xena
- Fang
- Lucy
- Lady
- Maverick
- Harper
- Rambo
Geeky Dog Names
Last – but not least – are nerdy dog names. Star Wars names are always a favorite, and this again proved to be true with Finn, Chewie, and Leia all in the top 10.
- Finn
- Zelda
- Alpha
- Chewie
- Akira
- Yoshi
- Gizmo
- Princess
- Gidget
- Leia
Top Dog Names Infographic
Here’s our infographic from all the data we gathered. Feel free to reuse this with a link back to mydogsname.com.
What To Do With These Top Dog Names
Picking a name for your dog is quite a fun process, between searching through name options, brainstorming ideas, and discussing the best choices with your family and friends.
It’s also a very important decision since your new dog will have this name for the rest of its life.
The purpose of our list is to give you insight into what’s popular these days and share trends you can use. Or if you want a completely unique dog name that no one else has, you’ll know to avoid these options.
Most Popular Dog Breeds
The AKC released their 2020 list of the most popular dog breeds which included:
For a record 30th year, the Labrador Retriever claimed the number one spot. The energetic, social breed is beloved by millions and doesn’t show any sign of decreasing in popularity.
The French Bulldog rose to number two on the list, up from the fourth spot last year. This pushed the German Shepherd and Golden Retriever each down a spot.
The Bulldog remained in fifth place yet again.
If you’re interested in finding the perfect breed for you and learning more about breed traits, check out our dog breed selector.
More Great Ideas
Use our dog name search to find thousands of unique names!
As always, we thank you for using My Dog’s Name! We’re proud of our site and love helping new pup parents find the perfect name for their new dogs.
About My Dog’s Name
Founded in October 2013, My Dog’s Name provides a fun, interactive experience for new dog owners looking for just the right pet name. The site allows users to sort names by preferred style and interests. More than 5 million people use My Dog’s Name each year when picking a name for their dog.
Teach Your Dog Its Name!
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18 Comments
Lindsay Pevny
Interesting! I’d have guessed Bella and Cocoa, I didn’t realize names like Buddy and Max were still popular.
ruth glasberg
my girlies name was not there ,Truffles
Kathi Parks
My puppy’s name is Boomer but not sure why it’s a sports name. Boomer is an 9 month old Shichon.
Kyle Larson
Boomer is in the sports category because of the famous NFL quarterback & announcer Boomer Esiason… but it’s a great name regardless of the sports affiliation!
Carol Lynn Layman
My beautiful German Shepherd was named Raquel Denise Layman-yes I gave her our last name as she was a member of our family
Trudi
My doxies name is Gus. (Gustav Oskar… long haired black/tan Tweenie dachshund). Guess that’s not a popular name.
Evie M Harbord
My two shepherds are mako and blue, after sharks:)
Asoka W
My male dog is Pele and female is Mel ,but their names weren’t on the list .
Beth Rosin
Diva Doodlebug – My 5lb Mi-Ki (Maltese/Papillon/Japanese Chin. Check them out!!)
Sir Sebastian of Waddles-A-Lot. – A Pembroke Welsh Corgi. R.I.P.)
Haku
I named my dog Tiger, because he looks like one!
Denise
I have Alaskan malamute/husky mixes. Bear and Sasha.
CanadaVet
This reminds me of my friend who named his pet dog based on the color… since it’s black.. he used to name his pet as “blackie”
minmarketing
My male dog is Pele and female is Mel ,but their names weren’t on the list .
Haley
My Dog is named Zero!
Alan D Learned
We just lost the love of our lives, a red-beaver-colored Pom with a paint-brush tail named Schatzi. She lived up to her German name which translates to “Darling” and/or “Treasure”. I was somewhat surprised I did not see this name included in your site’s collection of Pommy names…
Richard Paolucci
Thank you for sharing your post about top dog names of 2020. Great selection of names for different categories. Nice pictures and diagrams also. I will bookmark this site for reference.
PCCC5A
I named my male dog is Mouse because he was as small as a mouse.
dog hotel
Thank! I’ve been looking for cool names for dogs for 3 days now and I never thought it could be so difficult … Well, really, how people can quickly choose a beautiful and suitable name. This should be right for your dog. I have already chosen 3 names, but it’s hard for me to stop between them. But you have a really really cool list, I liked a lot of names from it. And it’s also very nice that this year our statistics on how many dogs are taken from shelters has risen so much) This is very cool!