All-time most popular US baby names
By total births across SSA years, 1880–2025.
Among the names we track, the all-time most-given girl name is Mary (about 4,141,481 babies) and the most-given boy name is James (about 5,250,638 babies), summing U.S. Social Security Administration birth counts across the years tracked here. These long-standing classics far outlast any single year's trend. The top 50 of each sex, with each name's all-time total and historical peak, are below.
Source: U.S. Social Security Administration, Popular Baby Names. Data as of SSA national data through 2025, state data through 2025, retrieved June 2026.
Top 50 girl names (all-time)
| # | Name | Babies (all-time) | Peak |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Mary | 4,141,481 | #1 (1880) |
| 2 | Elizabeth | 1,688,757 | #3 (1887) |
| 3 | Patricia | 1,573,623 | #3 (1937) |
| 4 | Jennifer | 1,471,703 | #1 (1970) |
| 5 | Linda | 1,455,143 | #1 (1947) |
| 6 | Barbara | 1,436,695 | #2 (1937) |
| 7 | Margaret | 1,264,774 | #3 (1891) |
| 8 | Susan | 1,123,481 | #2 (1957) |
| 9 | Dorothy | 1,112,231 | #2 (1920) |
| 10 | Sarah | 1,098,498 | #3 (1993) |
| 11 | Jessica | 1,050,729 | #1 (1985) |
| 12 | Helen | 1,024,202 | #2 (1900) |
| 13 | Nancy | 1,004,448 | #6 (1950) |
| 14 | Betty | 1,001,238 | #2 (1928) |
| 15 | Karen | 987,989 | #3 (1965) |
| 16 | Lisa | 967,229 | #1 (1962) |
| 17 | Anna | 914,859 | #2 (1880) |
| 18 | Emily | 896,487 | #1 (1996) |
| 19 | Sandra | 875,531 | #5 (1947) |
| 20 | Ashley | 859,857 | #1 (1991) |
| 21 | Kimberly | 846,393 | #2 (1966) |
| 22 | Ruth | 836,122 | #3 (1893) |
| 23 | Donna | 831,641 | #5 (1959) |
| 24 | Carol | 816,928 | #4 (1941) |
| 25 | Michelle | 816,510 | #2 (1968) |
| 26 | Laura | 801,811 | #10 (1969) |
| 27 | Amanda | 790,638 | #2 (1980) |
| 28 | Emma | 776,439 | #1 (2008) |
| 29 | Melissa | 760,128 | #2 (1977) |
| 30 | Rebecca | 755,992 | #10 (1973) |
| 31 | Stephanie | 745,148 | #6 (1984) |
| 32 | Deborah | 742,820 | #2 (1955) |
| 33 | Sharon | 723,024 | #8 (1943) |
| 34 | Kathleen | 713,645 | #9 (1949) |
| 35 | Cynthia | 711,453 | #7 (1957) |
| 36 | Amy | 701,631 | #2 (1973) |
| 37 | Shirley | 686,383 | #2 (1935) |
| 38 | Angela | 673,257 | #5 (1974) |
| 39 | Catherine | 667,789 | #18 (1914) |
| 40 | Virginia | 652,959 | #6 (1921) |
| 41 | Katherine | 650,926 | #25 (1991) |
| 42 | Evelyn | 639,756 | #8 (2024) |
| 43 | Brenda | 608,478 | #11 (1961) |
| 44 | Frances | 595,697 | #8 (1918) |
| 45 | Pamela | 595,076 | #10 (1953) |
| 46 | Nicole | 594,500 | #6 (1982) |
| 47 | Samantha | 592,847 | #3 (1998) |
| 48 | Alice | 588,147 | #8 (1880) |
| 49 | Christine | 586,465 | #14 (1967) |
| 50 | Rachel | 573,957 | #9 (1996) |
Source: U.S. Social Security Administration, Popular Baby Names. Data as of SSA national data through 2025, state data through 2025, retrieved June 2026.
Top 50 boy names (all-time)
| # | Name | Babies (all-time) | Peak |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | James | 5,250,638 | #1 (1940) |
| 2 | John | 5,182,633 | #1 (1880) |
| 3 | Robert | 4,849,730 | #1 (1924) |
| 4 | Michael | 4,426,753 | #1 (1954) |
| 5 | William | 4,199,696 | #2 (1880) |
| 6 | David | 3,676,654 | #1 (1960) |
| 7 | Joseph | 2,669,490 | #5 (1912) |
| 8 | Richard | 2,577,552 | #5 (1930) |
| 9 | Charles | 2,434,659 | #4 (1880) |
| 10 | Thomas | 2,358,576 | #8 (1880) |
| 11 | Christopher | 2,069,596 | #2 (1972) |
| 12 | Daniel | 1,982,812 | #5 (1985) |
| 13 | Matthew | 1,654,075 | #2 (1995) |
| 14 | Anthony | 1,488,042 | #7 (2007) |
| 15 | George | 1,487,297 | #4 (1881) |
| 16 | Donald | 1,414,824 | #6 (1934) |
| 17 | Paul | 1,398,293 | #12 (1916) |
| 18 | Mark | 1,362,176 | #6 (1959) |
| 19 | Andrew | 1,329,454 | #5 (1988) |
| 20 | Edward | 1,303,594 | #8 (1912) |
| 21 | Steven | 1,293,124 | #10 (1955) |
| 22 | Kenneth | 1,283,974 | #13 (1939) |
| 23 | Joshua | 1,248,929 | #3 (2002) |
| 24 | Kevin | 1,184,507 | #11 (1963) |
| 25 | Brian | 1,173,735 | #8 (1970) |
| 26 | Timothy | 1,084,192 | #11 (1960) |
| 27 | Ronald | 1,082,247 | #9 (1941) |
| 28 | Jason | 1,052,030 | #2 (1974) |
| 29 | Jacob | 988,227 | #1 (1999) |
| 30 | Jeffrey | 979,601 | #9 (1966) |
| 31 | Ryan | 964,123 | #11 (1986) |
| 32 | Nicholas | 926,047 | #5 (1999) |
| 33 | Frank | 915,978 | #6 (1880) |
| 34 | Gary | 902,152 | #9 (1954) |
| 35 | Eric | 888,891 | #13 (1973) |
| 36 | Jonathan | 870,866 | #15 (1988) |
| 37 | Stephen | 864,739 | #19 (1949) |
| 38 | Benjamin | 826,830 | #6 (2016) |
| 39 | Samuel | 820,196 | #17 (1880) |
| 40 | Larry | 807,588 | #10 (1947) |
| 41 | Justin | 790,469 | #7 (1988) |
| 42 | Raymond | 779,794 | #14 (1919) |
| 43 | Scott | 774,997 | #10 (1971) |
| 44 | Brandon | 770,509 | #6 (1992) |
| 45 | Henry | 768,945 | #5 (2025) |
| 46 | Jack | 756,943 | #11 (2021) |
| 47 | Alexander | 736,123 | #4 (2009) |
| 48 | Gregory | 711,893 | #21 (1962) |
| 49 | Patrick | 686,590 | #30 (1964) |
| 50 | Walter | 631,172 | #10 (1914) |
Source: U.S. Social Security Administration, Popular Baby Names. Data as of SSA national data through 2025, state data through 2025, retrieved June 2026.
Totals cover the years we track (recent years plus decade anchors). See any name's full history page, or the top names of 2025.
Frequently asked questions
What is the most popular baby name of all time?
Among the 661 names we track, the most-given girl name across all SSA years is Mary (about 4,141,481 babies) and the most-given boy name is James (about 5,250,638 babies). These totals sum the years SSA reports (national data from 1880).
How is the all-time total calculated?
We add up the SSA birth counts for each name across every year in our tracked window (recent years plus decade anchors back to 1880). Because SSA only publishes counts of 5 or more, very small early-year counts are excluded - so totals are a close lower bound, not an exact lifetime sum.
Source
U.S. Social Security Administration, Popular Baby Names, national data 1880–2025. SSA national data through 2025, state data through 2025, retrieved June 2026. Public domain. See our methodology.
Last updated: 2026-06-22