---
title: "The Dogs of NYC: Names, Breeds, Trends"
description: "NYC Dog Licensing Dataset, published by NYC Department of Health and Mental Hygiene as open government data, records 686,595 licenses issued since 2016 in New York City."
url: https://www.pawsitivid.com/dog-names/us/new-york
last_updated: 2026-07-01
---

# The Dogs of New York City

NYC Dog Licensing Dataset, published by NYC Department of Health and Mental Hygiene as open government data, records 686,595 licenses issued since 2016 in New York City. Owners have registered 31,846 distinct names across 1,377 breeds. Bella is the top name, appearing on 7,551 records, and Yorkshire Terrier is the most common breed.

## At a glance

- **686,595** Licenses issued (since 2016)
- **31,846** Distinct names
- **1,377** Distinct breeds
- **173** Areas covered

## Most popular dog names in New York City

| # | Name | Licenses issued since 2016 |
| --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | Bella | 7,551 |
| 2 | Max | 6,198 |
| 3 | Luna | 6,044 |
| 4 | Charlie | 5,489 |
| 5 | Coco | 5,216 |
| 6 | Lola | 4,594 |
| 7 | Rocky | 4,331 |
| 8 | Teddy | 3,936 |
| 9 | Milo | 3,913 |
| 10 | Lucy | 3,872 |
| 11 | Daisy | 3,669 |
| 12 | Lucky | 3,439 |
| 13 | Buddy | 3,436 |
| 14 | Bailey | 3,339 |
| 15 | Toby | 2,933 |
| 16 | Leo | 2,735 |
| 17 | Princess | 2,719 |
| 18 | Chloe | 2,688 |
| 19 | Oliver | 2,481 |
| 20 | Cooper | 2,476 |
| 21 | Penny | 2,468 |
| 22 | Mia | 2,409 |
| 23 | Molly | 2,394 |
| 24 | Oreo | 2,361 |
| 25 | Rosie | 2,137 |

## Most common dog breeds in New York City

| # | Breed | Licenses issued since 2016 |
| --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | Yorkshire Terrier | 37,915 |
| 2 | Shih Tzu | 34,976 |
| 3 | Chihuahua | 26,262 |
| 4 | Labrador Retriever | 20,585 |
| 5 | Maltese | 19,531 |
| 6 | Labrador Retriever Crossbreed | 18,484 |
| 7 | American Pit Bull Mix / Pit Bull Mix | 16,130 |
| 8 | Shih Tzu Crossbreed | 14,344 |
| 9 | Poodle Crossbreed | 13,266 |
| 10 | Pomeranian | 13,265 |
| 11 | American Pit Bull Terrier/pit Bull | 11,849 |
| 12 | Havanese | 11,714 |
| 13 | Chihuahua Crossbreed | 11,328 |
| 14 | French Bulldog | 10,468 |
| 15 | Golden Retriever | 10,320 |
| 16 | Goldendoodle | 10,084 |
| 17 | German Shepherd Dog | 9,610 |
| 18 | Beagle | 9,525 |
| 19 | Terrier Mix | 9,384 |
| 20 | Poodle | 8,890 |
| 21 | Shiba Inu | 8,370 |
| 22 | Cavalier King Charles Spaniel | 8,108 |
| 23 | Miniature Schnauzer | 7,719 |
| 24 | Jack Russell Terrier | 7,453 |
| 25 | Toy Poodle | 7,274 |

## Common questions

**What is the most popular dog name in New York City?**

Bella is the most popular dog name in New York City, accounting for 7,551 of 686,595 licenses issued since 2016 (1.1%).

**What is the most common dog breed in New York City?**

Yorkshire Terrier is the most common dog breed in New York City, with 37,915 recorded among the licenses issued since 2016.

**How many dog licenses have been issued in New York City?**

The dataset lists 686,595 licenses issued since 2016 in New York City, across 1,377 breeds.

**Where does this data come from?**

These figures come from NYC Dog Licensing Dataset, published by NYC Department of Health and Mental Hygiene under NYC Open Data (public domain). Only aggregate counts are shown here — no individual license records are published.

**How rare is the name Bella in New York City?**

Bella is everywhere in New York City: about one in every 91 licenses issued since 2016 is named Bella.

---

Data: [NYC Dog Licensing Dataset](https://data.cityofnewyork.us/Health/NYC-Dog-Licensing-Dataset/nu7n-tubp) — NYC Department of Health and Mental Hygiene. NYC Open Data (public domain). 686,595 licenses issued since 2016.