John

#13,208 for girls in 2025, 6 births · #23 for boys in 2025, 8,027 births
Given to boys 99.6% of the time

Showing
Show data for
Peak · boys
1921 · 58,216 births
Debut · boys
9,655 births
In top 100 · boys
146 yrs
of 146 years
Total births · boys
5,182,633
since 1880

John over time

boys

Rank among boys' names. Click any year to open it.

#1#10rank188019001920194019601980200020201988peak #1, 1921boys
Hover or use arrow keys to read values by year; click or press Enter to open that year.

Gaps mean fewer than 5 babies received the name that year, so the SSA doesn't publish it.

Show data table
Yeargirlsboys
rankbirthsrankbirths
2025#13,2086#238,027
2024#11,1228#218,087
2023#15,1945#267,804
2022#12,2437#268,001
2021#10,2929#278,186
2020#10,2509#278,265
2019#7,71614#288,863
2018#7,76214#269,204
2017#9,94310#279,536
2016#8,87512#2810,060
2015#9,48111#2610,423
2014#8,05314#2610,701
2013#7,37216#2710,739
2012#9,71111#2810,638
2011#6,14821#2711,068
2010#10,45110#2611,568
2009#9,97511#2612,133
2008#6,13022#2013,336
2007#6,09322#1914,447
2006#4,16535#1915,177
2005#3,87637#1815,796
2004#2,39671#1716,470
2003#4,30730#1717,249
2002#5,44421#1717,477
2001#3,94032#1418,904
2000#4,40027#1420,115
1999#3,24539#1520,366
1998#4,14227#1520,633
1997#3,81529#1521,386
1996#3,14937#1522,188
1995#2,68745#1323,244
1994#2,58548#1524,187
1993#2,01269#1624,996
1992#2,31856#1426,253
1991#2,11163#1027,809
1990#1,78181#1229,089
1989#1,204134#1229,853
1988#986167#1129,427
1987#861197#1129,555
1986#774220#1030,209
1985#742233#931,502
1984#698238#832,610
1983#646266#933,154
1982#730234#834,698
1981#816195#834,868
1980#689251#835,274
1979#696243#735,410
1978#711222#734,014
1977#710218#734,195
1976#703210#633,976
1975#657231#735,079
1974#612254#637,612
1973#654229#639,165
1972#667224#543,158
1971#620272#451,512
1970#600290#458,491
1969#583288#458,732
1968#557303#360,903
1967#554289#461,600
1966#565284#465,016
1965#613252#271,493
1964#619264#282,508
1963#627259#278,636
1962#584286#378,427
1961#617272#379,983
1960#646244#476,096
1959#663229#476,446
1958#690205#576,057
1957#656225#579,033
1956#638224#580,804
1955#688185#580,128
1954#690185#481,168
1953#713164#480,165
1952#627197#383,140
1951#604202#381,569
1950#636180#379,412
1949#587199#381,178
1948#603192#382,834
1947#599203#388,324
1946#548208#379,267
1945#520197#366,117
1944#539180#366,616
1943#490229#368,929
1942#475241#366,043
1941#472221#357,520
1940#463208#354,786
1939#445228#351,025
1938#457216#350,517
1937#445218#348,755
1936#446203#347,683
1935#448208#347,509
1934#408257#346,743
1933#430226#346,224
1932#374298#348,624
1931#356325#348,423
1930#327402#352,447
1929#321411#352,112
1928#321424#253,760
1927#318440#255,949
1926#339385#256,108
1925#355367#257,195
1924#347382#259,052
1923#362335#157,467
1922#385285#157,280
1921#401285#158,216
1920#395281#156,913
1919#369307#153,522
1918#417248#156,558
1917#397253#151,852
1916#411227#150,043
1915#429200#147,576
1914#407169#137,947
1913#449122#129,329
1912#445112#124,588
1911#50168#113,446
1910#42188#111,450
1909#45667#19,590
1908#47458#19,343
1907#44465#18,983
1906#52843#18,264
1905#51943#18,059
1904#52040#18,108
1903#49641#17,608
1902#51838#17,907
1901#48139#16,900
1900#49946#19,828
1899#46140#16,990
1898#41555#18,159
1897#43246#17,550
1896#40350#18,138
1895#35761#18,320
1894#35960#18,237
1893#34361#18,049
1892#36054#19,039
1891#37744#17,680
1890#34356#18,502
1889#34652#18,548
1888#33352#19,247
1887#28556#18,110
1886#30048#19,026
1885#29645#18,756
1884#30440#19,388
1883#27840#18,894
1882#27840#19,557
1881#31226#18,768
1880#22746#19,655
First appearance
1880

In the first year the SSA published name data, John was already there! It came in at #1, and was given to 9,655 baby boys.


Quietest stretch: 1880–1909, when fewer than 9,900 boys a year got the name.

See more about John
Momentum · boys
Holding steady
  • 2 spots since 2024 (#21#23)
  • 4 spots since 2020 (#27#23)
  • 3 spots since 2015 (#26#23)
  • Biggest jump: 5 spots in 2024 (#26#21)
  • Biggest drop: 6 spots in 2009 (#20#26)
Rise & fade · boys
41 yrs to peak
  • Debuted 1880
  • Peaked 1921 at #1 (58,216 births)
  • Births halved by 1990, 69 yrs later
Top of the charts · boys
Top 10 for 108 yrs
  • Top 10: 108 yrs · run 1880–1986
  • Top 100: 146 yrs · run 1880–2025
  • Top 1,000: 146 yrs · run 1880–2025
Share of babies · boys
1 in 11
  • Highest: 1 in 11 boys born in 1880 were named John (8.7%)
  • Latest: 1 in 213 boys born in 2025 (0.47%)
  • Its best rank, #1 in 1921, was only 1 in 19 (5.3%) — a smaller share of a much bigger birth year
Era · boys
The 1950s
  • 15.4% of all boys named John (797,922) were born in this decade
Show by decade
DecadeBirthsBest rankAvg rank
1880s89,949#1 (1880)#1
1890s80,664#1 (1892)#1
1900s84,590#1 (1900)#1
1910s376,311#1 (1918)#1
1920s564,052#1 (1921)#2
1930s487,950#3 (1930)#3
1940s711,614#3 (1947)#3
1950s797,922#3 (1952)#4
1960s713,394#2 (1964)#3
1970s402,612#4 (1970)#6
1980s321,150#8 (1980)#9
1990s240,151#10 (1991)#14
2000s161,104#14 (2000)#18
2010s102,800#26 (2010)#27
2020s48,370#21 (2024)#25

All figures count published births only (names given to at least 5 boys in a year). Registrations before 1937 are incomplete, so early shares and totals run low.

John in 1988

girls
#986
167 births · 1 in 10,664 girls
boys
#11
29,427 births · 1 in 65 boys

Top girls' names in 1988

  1. #1Jessica51,556
  2. #2Ashley49,977
  3. #3Amanda39,459
  4. #4Sarah28,374
  5. #5Jennifer27,893
  6. #6Brittany26,816
  7. #7Stephanie22,843
  8. #8Samantha20,700
  9. #9Nicole20,315
  10. #10Elizabeth20,042
  11. #986John167

Top boys' names in 1988

  1. #1Michael64,171
  2. #2Christopher53,014
  3. #3Matthew45,876
  4. #4Joshua42,653
  5. #5Andrew35,745
  6. #6David35,329
  7. #7Justin35,055
  8. #8Daniel34,718
  9. #9James32,523
  10. #10Robert30,319
  11. #11John29,427
More about 1988

girls

1,780,854 girls got a published name in 1988; 1 in 10,664 of them was named John, which outranked 92.9% of the 13,883 girls' names that year. The ten most popular names covered 17.3% of girls (24.6% in 1880, 7.0% in 2025).

Ranked beside John
  1. #979Tiarra169
  2. #984Ivette168
  3. #984Magdalena168
  4. #986John167
  5. #986Ava167
  6. #986Emilia167
  7. #986Grecia167
  8. #990Brandon166
  9. #990Jeanine166
  10. #990Ladonna166

Tied names share a rank, as in SSA's lists.

Biggest movers since 1987
Risers
  1. 2,890Jalissa#3,857#967
  2. 2,381Taja#3,101#720
  3. 1,710Whitley#2,156#446
  4. 1,225Jalisa#1,662#437
  5. 883Jaleesa#1,227#344
Fallers
  1. 620Channing#590#1,210
  2. 346Denisse#954#1,300
  3. 319Jeana#966#1,285
  4. 314Eliana#826#1,140
  5. 311Nakia#893#1,204

Among names in the top 1,000 of either year.

boys

1,914,283 boys got a published name in 1988; 1 in 65 of them was named John, which outranked 99.9% of the 8,495 boys' names that year. The ten most popular names covered 21.4% of boys (44.2% in 1880, 8.0% in 2025).

Ranked beside John
  1. #8Daniel34,718
  2. #9James32,523
  3. #10Robert30,319
  4. #11John29,427
  5. #12Joseph29,019
  6. #13Ryan27,747
  7. #14Nicholas25,303
Biggest movers since 1987
Risers
  1. 3,252Nico#4,239#987
  2. 1,245Ridge#2,215#970
  3. 668Colten#1,484#816
  4. 600Brantley#1,587#987
  5. 518Long#1,337#819
Fallers
  1. 362Cordaro#908#1,270
  2. 246Ramsey#884#1,130
  3. 241Yaakov#974#1,215
  4. 233Adrain#990#1,223
  5. 230Kiel#846#1,076

Among names in the top 1,000 of either year.

See the top 100 for 1988