200 Pug Name Ideas
A trainer's list of pug names, grouped by funny, food, cute, regal, classic, and coat color, plus the one test that tells you whether a name will actually work on a food-mad little dog.
Pugs come with better naming lore than almost any small dog, so it’s worth a minute before the list. This is a breed that lived in the laps of Chinese emperors, kept behind the walls of the Forbidden City, then crossed to Europe and became the official dog of the Dutch House of Orange, all because a pug named Pompey supposedly barked a warning that saved Prince William’s life. Napoleon’s wife Josephine had a pug called Fortune that bit him on their wedding night and carried her letters when she was imprisoned. So if you want to name a pug after royalty, you’ve got real history to pull from, not just a cute idea.
But before you fall for any name because it looks sweet on a tiny tag, run it through one test: can your dog pick it out of a noisy room? That’s the whole job of a name. A lot of training later, I can tell you the names that stick share three things. They’re short, one or two syllables. They land on a bright or hard sound, a “k,” a “g,” an “o,” a “z,” something that carries. And they don’t sound like anything you’ll shout in the same breath. If you’re still picking a coat to match a name, or the other way round, the pug colors guide lays out the fawn shades and the black.
Funny and comical names
A pug is a natural clown, all grunts and snorts and a face built for comedy, so the joke names fit better here than on most breeds. One warning: these belong on the vet paperwork and the tag, not on the recall. Nobody yells “Sir Snores-a-Lot” across a park and gets a fast sit, so keep a short nickname for the real training. Sir Snores-a-Lot, Grumble, Pugsley, Winston Churpug, Snorticus, Puglet, Bark Twain, Chewbacca, Notorious P.U.G., Pugasso, Frank the Tank, Puggerton, Tank, Chunk, Sir Wrinkles, Pug Diesel, Hamlet, Snuffles, Sir Grunts-a-Lot.
Food and treat names
No breed earns a food name like the pug, because a pug thinks about food roughly all the time, and these run short, which I like for training. Say one at dinner and the tail goes. Meatball, Dumpling, Biscuit, Waffle, Nacho, Bao, Mochi, Nugget, Butterbean, Pretzel, Churro, Wonton, Miso, Tater, Peanut, Muffin, Bagel, Pickle, Gyoza, Croissant, Noodle, Cinnamon.
Cute and squishy names
A pug is a compact bundle of wrinkles and rolls, so the soft, squishy names land right. Most of these still pass the yard test too. Wrinkles, Squish, Pudding, Button, Biggie, Pumpkin, Bug, Bean, Chubs, Roly, Pip, Boo, Puff, Gizmo, Doodle, Snug, Poppet, Wiggles, Mugsy, Otis, Pumba, Bubba, Coco, Moo.
Regal and royal names
This is the pug’s real heritage, from the imperial palaces of China to the House of Orange, so a little pug wearing a grand name is a nice inside joke. Pompey is the Dutch hero pug; Fortune was Josephine’s. Pompey, Fortune, Emperor, Ming, Duchess, Dynasty, Willem, Nassau, Countess, Sultan, Caesar, Empress, Han, Regent, Sovereign, Majesty, Duke, Consort, Orange, Josephine.
Classic dog names
Nothing wrong with a plain, sturdy name that’s been working for generations. These age well and they call easy. Max, Buddy, Charlie, Bella, Daisy, Rocky, Toby, Molly, Lucy, Rufus, Bruno, Sadie, Gus, Baxter, Rosie, Frank, Winston, Hazel, Louie, Millie.
Names by coat color
A pug only comes in two colors, so the color-name shortcut is short and sweet. For a fawn pug, the warm tan body most people picture, I lean Honey, Caramel, Peaches, Butter, Nutmeg, Amber, Ginger, Butterscotch, Toffee, Tawny, Goldie, Copper, Sandy, Latte, Marigold, or Apricot. For a black pug, the glossy jet ones, try Shadow, Onyx, Midnight, Coal, Inky, Raven, Panther, Sable, Licorice, Domino, Jet, Ember, Guinness, or Bear. If you haven’t met your puppy yet and aren’t sure which you’re getting, the pug colors guide walks through the fawn shades and the black.
Popular boy names
These are the ones I hear most on the little males, and there’s a reason. They’re crisp and they land. Milo, Otto, Marlon, Frankie, Diesel, Rocco, Bentley, Bruce, Ozzy, Moose, Hank, Rollo, Buster, Chico, Zeke, Wally, Bobo, Enzo.
Popular girl names
Same idea for the girls. Sweet enough for a squishy pug, sharp enough to call across the yard. Luna, Poppy, Ruby, Lola, Stella, Nala, Winnie, Mabel, Gracie, Piper, Cleo, Nova, Belle, Zoe, Mia, Fifi, Dixie, Pearl.
A few unisex picks
If you haven’t met the puppy yet, or you just don’t care about pink and blue, these go either way. Scout, Sunny, Juno, Remy, Ziggy, Pepper, Ollie, Sushi, Taco, Cricket, Suki, Bao.
How to test a pug name before you commit
Once you’ve got a shortlist, do this before it goes on a tag. Stand across a room and say each name once, in a normal happy voice, the way you’d actually call the dog. The right one feels easy in your mouth and cuts clean. The wrong one makes you raise your voice or say it twice, and that’s your answer. Then say it back to back with the words “no,” “sit,” “stay,” and “down,” plus your other pets’ and kids’ names. If it clashes or blurs with any of them, cross it off, because you’ll be saying all of those in the same five minutes for the next dozen years. “Beau” and “no” are a coin flip across a kitchen. “Kit” blurs into “sit.” A short, bright name like Otto, Gizmo, or Winnie sidesteps all of it.
The good news with a pug is that the name does most of the work itself, because this breed is so food-driven and so keen to be near you that pairing a name with a treat lands fast. If you’ve taken on an older rescue pug with a name you don’t love, you can change it. Pick the new one, say it once and pay up with a crumb of kibble every single time for a week or two, and even an adult pug learns to whip its head around. Just count that kibble against the day’s ration, because this is an easy breed to overfeed, which I get into in the pug size guide.
Whatever you land on, the name only earns its keep when the dog comes running to it. Choose the one you like, then spend the first week saying it once and paying every time, never burning it as a scold and never repeating it five times when the dog ignores you. That happy sound is the first brick in a recall, which is the real work with this breed and the heart of the pug training guide.
For everything else about living with one, start with the full pug breed guide. Naming a different flat-faced companion dog? The same short-and-bright rule works across the whole Toy Group, and if you’re weighing a fluffier small breed instead, the maltipoo name list runs a bit longer on the cute and coat-color picks. You can also browse the rest of the dog breeds if you’re still deciding what’s coming home.
What are good pug names?
Short, easy-to-call names suit them best, like Otto, Gizmo, Winnie, or Biscuit. Pugs are comical, food-obsessed little dogs, so funny, food, and cute names fit their personality, as long as the name carries across a room and doesn’t sound like a command.
What are some royal or historical pug names?
Pugs have real royal history, so Pompey (the Dutch House of Orange hero pug), Fortune (Empress Josephine’s pug), Emperor, Ming, Duchess, and Caesar all fit. The breed lived with Chinese emperors and Dutch and French royalty, which gives you plenty of grand names for a small dog.
Should a pug's name be one or two syllables?
Yes, keep it to one or two. A short name is easier for a small dog to hear and pick out of background noise, and it makes recall training faster than a long name you’ll end up shortening anyway. Save the long, funny names for the tag and the vet paperwork.
Can I change my rescue pug's name?
You can, and it usually goes smoothly. Pugs are so food-motivated and people-focused that pairing a new name with a treat for a week or two teaches even an adult to answer to it quickly. Count that kibble against the daily ration, since pugs are easy to overfeed.
What names should I avoid for a pug I want to train?
Skip names that sound like commands. “Beau” blurs with “no,” “Kit” with “sit,” “Shay” with “stay,” and “Brown” with “down,” which muddies both your recall and your cues. Also avoid names that rhyme with your other pets’ names.
Aaron has trained hundreds of dogs, fostered more than 50, and volunteered with rescues across Northern California. Every grade on The Pet Zone comes from hands-on experience, not a content brief.