unisex name
Kei
- Origin Japanese
- Gender Unisex
- Letters 3
- Popularity Rare
- Births on record 971
Kei is a unisex name. It is given to both girls and boys — about 19% of recorded births with this name are girls. In 2025 it was given to 14 babies in the United States. It is a rare choice.
- Kei is a name of Japanese origin.
- Peaked in 2015, when 40 babies were given the name.
- Its usage has held steady over the past decade.
- Today about 1 in 236,855 babies in the United States is given this name.
- First appears in US birth records in 1920.
Kei over time
Births per decade in the United States, 1920s to 2020s. The striped bar is the 2020s, still in progress — it covers 2020 to 2025, not a full ten years.
Show the numbers
| Decade | Births |
|---|---|
| 1920s | 13 |
| 1970s | 26 |
| 1980s | 112 |
| 1990s | 150 |
| 2000s | 163 |
| 2010s | 254 |
| 2020s (to 2025) | 119 |
How popular is Kei?
In 2025, Kei was given to 14 babies in the United States. It is a rare choice.
Where Kei is used
US figures omit any name given to fewer than five babies in a year, so the rarest names are absent from the source rather than absent from use. Data & sources.
How Kei is spelled
Birth registers count each spelling separately, so every one has its own ranking.
| Spelling | What it is | Births on record |
|---|---|---|
| Keï | Keï is a rare spelling of Kei, written with a diaeresis and recorded about 5 times, mostly in France. | 5 |
Names that peaked alongside Kei
These names rose and fell in the same era, which is why they tend to sound like they belong together.
Parents who like Kei also like
Names whose popularity has risen and fallen in step with Kei over the last century — the same taste, a different name.
Sibling names for Kei
Names from the same era that won't rhyme or share an initial with Kei — the two things that make a sibling set grate.
Common questions about Kei
How popular is the name Kei?
In 2025, Kei was given to 14 babies in the United States. It is a rare choice.
Is Kei a girl's or a boy's name?
Kei is used for both girls and boys. About 19% of recorded births with this name are girls.
When was Kei most popular?
Kei peaked in 2015, when 40 babies were given the name. Its usage has held steady over the past decade.
Is Kei a good name?
That is not something records can settle, but they can tell you what you would be choosing. Kei currently ranks #6,267 in the United States. Its usage has held steady over the past decade. Everything else — how it sounds with your surname, who it reminds you of — is yours.