Most Popular Pet Names by Country: Registry Data From 10 Countries

The Most Popular Pet Names in Each Country

Luna is the most popular pet name across the countries we compared. It appears in the top dog names of 8 of the 10 countries in our dataset and in the top cat names of all 7 countries where we found a cat list. Bella and Charlie follow for dogs, each in 7 of the 10 dog lists, and Leo is the second most widespread cat name.

We built the table below from registries and published name lists, preferring official sources where they exist: national or state pet registers in Australia, France, Sweden and Belgium, a council report in New Zealand, a county licensing office in the US and the TASSO register in Germany. Where no registry publishes names, we used the largest published list we could find and say so in the source column.

The New Zealand list ranks male and female names separately. We merged the two by count, so Bella (1,538 dogs) leads, followed by Charlie (1,048), Max (977), Luna (974) and Molly (933).

Pet Names That Cross Borders

We counted how many of the country lists include each name, treating spelling variants such as Charly and Charlie as one name., and the table shows the names that travel furthest between countries.

Two countries break the pattern clearly: France’s list is shaped by its letter-of-the-year tradition, and Japan’s top names are short, food-inspired words. Outside those two, the English-speaking countries and northern Europe share a small pool of names. Luna, Bella, Charlie and Milo appear almost everywhere, and Teddy has become common in the UK, Australia, New Zealand, the Netherlands and the US.

Cats share names with dogs more often than people expect. Luna, Milo, Charlie and Coco show up on both sides in several countries, and in Flanders the top three female names are identical for cats and dogs: Nala, Luna and Mila.

United States: Registration and Licence Data

The American Kennel Club’s 2025 list is built from purebred registrations and mixed-breed enrollments. Luna leads the girls’ names, followed by Bella, Daisy, Lucy, Ruby, Willow, Maggie, Penny, Nova and Sadie. Max leads the boys’, followed by Hank, Teddy, Cooper, Gus, Bear, Duke, Maverick, Charlie and Finn.

Local licence data gives real counts, and in King County, Washington, the currently licensed dogs on December 23, 2024 included 986 named Bella, 890 Luna, 801 Lucy, 763 Max and 742 Charlie. Among licensed cats, Luna led with 371, followed by Lucy (251), Bella (225), Max (189) and Shadow (186). Shadow and Kitty, at 159, are the only top-10 cat names in that list that are not also common human names.

Owners choosing a name for a new purebred can look at our guides to dog breeds that start with B and the Alsatian breed, and our comparison of the best dog food brands in the USA covers the first shopping list.

United Kingdom: Names From Pet Profiles

The UK has no public national register of pet names, so the best large dataset is the pet profiles on Rover’s platform, analyzed in September and October 2025. Luna, Bella, Milo, Teddy and Poppy lead, followed by Lola, Buddy, Daisy, Coco and Bailey. Lola appears only in the UK list among the countries we compared, and Poppy only in the UK and Auckland lists.

Australia and New Zealand: Registry Counts

Australia’s state and territory registers publish the most useful official data. The NSW Pet Registry for the 2025-26 financial year ranks Luna, Teddy, Daisy, Milo, Coco, Ruby, Charlie, Frankie, Bella and Molly as the top dog names. Those ten names account for about 8% of registered dogs, and almost 79% of dog names in the register appeared only once. That second figure is a useful reminder that most owners choose something unique.

In the ACT, registered dogs are led by Daisy, Luna, Charlie, Coco and Teddy, and registered cats by Luna, Milo, Willow, Jasper and Daisy. Mochi, ninth among ACT cats, is one of the few Japanese food names to appear on an English-speaking list.

Auckland Council’s report for 2022-23 gives counts by sex, so the gap between names is easy to see. Bella was the top female name with 1,538 dogs, and Charlie the top male name with 1,048. Rocky, Toby and Roxy appear in Auckland’s top 10 and in no other country’s list we compared.

France: Names Chosen by the Letter of the Year

France has a long tradition of naming pedigree animals by a letter assigned to each year, and the national identification file shows how strongly owners follow it for dogs. In 2025 the letter was A, and Aiko was the top dog name with 11,171 dogs identified, followed by Athena with 8,126 and Abby with 5,077. All ten of the top dog names start with A.

Cat owners follow the custom far less, and Nala led the cat list with 7,485 cats, ahead of Simba with 6,638 and Athena with 5,642, and only three of the top ten cat names start with A: Athena, Aiko and Arya. Our list of pets that start with A is a handy source of A names for anyone following the French custom.

Germany, Belgium, the Netherlands and Sweden

Germany’s TASSO register, which describes itself as Europe’s largest free pet register, publishes cat names by sex. In 2025 the top female cat names were Luna, Nala, Lilly, Lucy and Mia, and the top male names were Simba, Leo, Charly, Milo and Balu. The female top five were unchanged from the year before.

Flanders publishes names from its DogID and CatID registers, which recorded 71,724 dogs and 77,804 cats in 2025. Max, Ollie and Marcel led for male dogs and Nala, Luna and Mila for females. Among cats, Simba, Leo and Milo led for males, and Nala, Luna and Mila for females.

The Dutch list comes from a 2024 survey of 67,000 dog owners. Luna, Teddy, Ollie, Moos and Bella lead, and Moos, Guus and Pip give the list a clearly Dutch character.

Sweden’s 2025 list, published by the Swedish Board of Agriculture, has the most distinctive names in northern Europe. Molly leads with 8,636 dogs, ahead of Bella (7,786) and Charlie (6,309). Doris, Sally, Bosse, Sigge and Ludde fill out the top ten, and Bosse, Sigge and Ludde are familiar Swedish nicknames for men.

Japan: Food Names for Dogs and Cats

Japan’s lists are built from 10,696 puppy and kitten sales through two breeder-matching sites between October 2024 and September 2025. Mugi, the Japanese word for wheat or barley, leads for dogs and shares first place for cats with Luna. Coco, Moco, Moka, Cocoa, Choco and Latte all appear in the dog top 10, so drinks and sweets dominate.

Japanese cat names lean a little more toward Western names, with Luna, Leo and Lulu near the top. Sora, meaning sky, and Kotetsu also make the cat top 10, alongside Meru, Beru and Maron, a word borrowed from the French marron for chestnut.

Choosing a Name That Works in Daily Life

Popular names are popular for practical reasons as well as fashion. Most of the names above have two syllables and end in a vowel sound, which makes them easy to call across a park. A few habits help when you are deciding between two or three favorites.

1. Pick a name of one or two syllables that you can call clearly and quickly.
2. Avoid names that sound like common commands, such as “Kit” and “sit” or “Bo” and “no”.
3. Check whether the name is shared by someone in your household or close family.
4. Say it in a happy voice and a firm voice, since you will use both.
5. If you register or license the pet, use the same spelling on the microchip record, the licence and the vet file.

Owners comparing cover for a new pet can also read our review of the best pet insurance in the USA.

Pet Name Questions From New Owners

What Is the Most Popular Pet Name in the World?

Luna is the most widespread name on the lists we compared, since it appears in the top dog names of 8 of 10 countries and the top cat names of all 7 countries with a cat list.

What Is the Most Popular Dog Name in Australia?

Luna is first in the NSW Pet Registry for 2025-26, while in the ACT’s 2025 registrations, Daisy ranked first and Luna second.

Why Do French Pet Names All Start With the Same Letter?

France assigns a letter to each year for naming pedigree animals, and many owners follow it. 2025 was the year of A, so all ten of the top French dog names start with A.

What Are Popular Pet Names in Japan?

Mugi, meaning wheat or barley, leads for both dogs and cats in a 2025 ranking, with food and drink names such as Coco, Moka, Choco and Latte close behind.

Registries and Name Lists Used

• American Kennel Club: most popular dog names of 2025, updated November 13, 2025.
• Regional Animal Services of King County: top 10 licensed pet names, December 23, 2024.
• Rover UK: top dog names of 2025, November 11, 2025.
• blogTO: popular dog and cat names in Toronto, 2026.
• NSW Government: Luna leads the pack as NSW’s most popular dog name, August 26, 2026.
• ACT City Services: Canberra’s most popular pet names for 2025.
• Auckland Council: Auckland’s favourite dog names, October 4, 2023.
• I-CAD: favourite dog and cat names of 2025, January 8, 2026.
• Stuttgarter Zeitung: TASSO cat name statistics 2025, April 7, 2026.
• VRT NWS: dog and cat registrations in Flanders, February 18, 2026.
• IamExpat: most popular dog names in the Netherlands for 2024, December 25, 2024.
• Swedish Board of Agriculture: the most popular dog names 2025.
• Kyodo News PR Wire: 2025 pet name ranking, December 26, 2025.