Michael

#7,885 for girls in 2025, 13 births · #21 for boys in 2025, 8,094 births
Given to boys 99.5% of the time

Showing
Show data for
Peak · boys
1957 · 92,781 births
Debut · boys
354 births
In top 100 · boys
146 yrs
of 146 years
Total births · boys
4,426,753
since 1880

Michael over time

boys

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

#1#10#100rank188019001920194019601980200020201941peak #1, 1957boys
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#7,88513#218,094
2024#6,93216#188,229
2023#5,96020#168,430
2022#6,22919#168,895
2021#4,83327#179,150
2020#5,16824#129,833
2019#4,26033#1410,619
2018#6,01020#1411,756
2017#4,22034#1212,726
2016#4,25034#814,145
2015#4,06936#914,504
2014#4,17835#715,505
2013#3,84939#715,544
2012#5,11427#716,211
2011#4,07236#616,823
2010#4,02337#317,387
2009#3,56145#318,964
2008#3,08455#220,652
2007#3,24752#222,027
2006#2,75764#222,653
2005#2,73161#223,828
2004#1,404148#225,470
2003#1,92594#227,129
2002#1,86695#228,258
2001#1,83396#229,689
2000#1,558114#232,045
1999#1,422123#233,915
1998#1,359128#136,618
1997#1,249142#137,562
1996#1,155157#138,373
1995#1,067167#141,409
1994#965192#144,477
1993#870223#149,571
1992#789258#154,410
1991#769267#160,810
1990#747277#165,321
1989#594363#165,415
1988#472480#164,171
1987#410544#163,664
1986#392590#164,235
1985#419531#164,934
1984#419508#167,735
1983#385577#168,004
1982#403576#168,216
1981#439487#168,750
1980#409546#168,683
1979#393554#167,713
1978#384545#167,127
1977#378560#167,587
1976#398515#166,915
1975#373557#168,418
1974#392525#167,534
1973#431451#167,797
1972#431452#171,393
1971#448459#177,577
1970#461457#185,266
1969#449459#185,162
1968#440471#181,968
1967#494373#182,411
1966#509346#179,985
1965#504355#180,992
1964#565303#182,617
1963#501376#183,771
1962#519356#185,059
1961#546324#186,974
1960#547316#284,153
1959#587285#185,294
1958#572295#190,604
1957#611255#192,781
1956#620238#190,691
1955#577250#188,355
1954#616217#188,568
1953#581232#384,198
1952#644190#479,037
1951#668172#472,807
1950#640179#465,136
1949#602188#560,047
1948#637170#652,566
1947#635173#750,506
1946#611169#741,194
1945#583158#929,902
1944#562168#926,717
1943#550188#1024,745
1942#593156#1321,728
1941#71397#1615,935
1940#79080#1813,228
1939#76381#1810,828
1938#93158#219,077
1937#1,03547#277,094
1936#1,11540#335,800
1935#1,26432#414,906
1934#1,69720#474,108
1933#1,44226#533,549
1932#1,75420#543,607
1931#1,54924#553,489
1930#1,25136#543,543
1929#1,30633#543,464
1928#1,33833#533,598
1927#1,52329#523,605
1926#1,41432#563,485
1925#1,37634#553,761
1924#1,35436#543,874
1923#1,52029#503,915
1922#1,46431#483,990
1921#1,76524#474,198
1920#1,81622#504,003
1919#1,64924#463,909
1918#1,41130#454,296
1917#2,55212#444,288
1916#1,86718#444,210
1915#2,14314#434,079
1914#1,66516#403,362
1913#1,76612#402,607
1912#2,1448#422,104
1911#1,9567#381,159
1910#1,6349#45844
1909#1,7637#47635
1908#44688
1907#48586
1906#1,9515#46531
1905#45513
1904#50462
1903#47466
1902#48460
1901#52384
1900#51495
1899#51375
1898#51434
1897#1,2637#57368
1896#53399
1895#52413
1894#50423
1893#49407
1892#59380
1891#54333
1890#48394
1889#51377
1888#46466
1887#48344
1886#53348
1885#46370
1884#51373
1883#55307
1882#57321
1881#54298
1880#46354
First appearance
1880

In the first year the SSA published name data, Michael was already there! It came in at #46, and was given to 354 baby boys.


Quietest stretch: 1880–1887, when fewer than 380 boys a year got the name.

See more about Michael
Momentum · boys
Falling
  • 3 spots since 2024 (#18#21)
  • 9 spots since 2020 (#12#21)
  • 12 spots since 2015 (#9#21)
  • Biggest jump: 10 spots in 1893 (#59#49)
  • Biggest drop: 8 spots in 1881 (#46#54)
Rise & fade · boys
77 yrs to peak
  • Debuted 1880
  • Peaked 1957 at #1 (92,781 births)
  • Births halved by 1994, 37 yrs later
Top of the charts · boys
Top 10 for 74 yrs
  • Top 10: 74 yrs · run 1943–2016
  • Top 100: 146 yrs · run 1880–2025
  • Top 1,000: 146 yrs · run 1880–2025
Share of babies · boys
1 in 21
  • Highest: 1 in 21 boys born in 1969 were named Michael (4.8%)
  • Latest: 1 in 211 boys born in 2025 (0.47%)
  • Its best rank, #1 in 1957, was only 1 in 23 (4.3%) — a smaller share of a much bigger birth year
Era · boys
The 1950s
  • 18.9% of all boys named Michael (837,471) were born in this decade
Show by decade
DecadeBirthsBest rankAvg rank
1880s3,558#46 (1888)#51
1890s3,926#48 (1890)#52
1900s5,220#44 (1908)#48
1910s30,858#38 (1911)#43
1920s37,893#47 (1921)#52
1930s56,001#18 (1939)#40
1940s336,568#5 (1949)#10
1950s837,471#1 (1957)#2
1960s833,092#1 (1961)#1
1970s707,327#1 (1970)#1
1980s663,807#1 (1981)#1
1990s462,466#1 (1990)#1
2000s250,715#2 (2000)#2
2010s145,220#3 (2010)#9
2020s52,631#12 (2020)#17

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.

Michael in 1941

girls
#713
97 births · 1 in 12,455 girls
boys
#16
15,935 births · 1 in 77 boys

Top girls' names in 1941

  1. #1Mary58,048
  2. #2Barbara39,543
  3. #3Patricia36,905
  4. #4Carol24,187
  5. #5Linda23,721
  6. #6Judith23,320
  7. #7Betty20,905
  8. #8Nancy20,885
  9. #9Sandra19,500
  10. #10Shirley16,954
  11. #713Michael97

Top boys' names in 1941

  1. #1James66,751
  2. #2Robert64,247
  3. #3John57,520
  4. #4William47,798
  5. #5Richard39,112
  6. #6Charles32,742
  7. #7David30,553
  8. #8Thomas26,641
  9. #9Ronald24,407
  10. #10Donald22,641
  11. #16Michael15,935
More about 1941

girls

1,208,119 girls got a published name in 1941; 1 in 12,455 of them was named Michael, which outranked 86.0% of the 5,085 girls' names that year. The ten most popular names covered 23.5% of girls (24.6% in 1880, 7.0% in 2025).

Ranked beside Michael
  1. #707Shirlee98
  2. #707Tanya98
  3. #707Velda98
  4. #713Michael97
  5. #713Aline97
  6. #713Ardis97
  7. #713Lea97
  8. #719Benita96
  9. #719Dessie96
  10. #719Enid96

Tied with 5 names at #713; 3 shown. Tied names share a rank, as in SSA's lists.

Biggest movers since 1940
Risers
  1. 2,130Jerilyn#2,737#607
  2. 1,258Trina#2,109#851
  3. 372Karan#1,347#975
  4. 371Kristine#1,313#942
  5. 356Sherri#1,186#830
Fallers
  1. 447Kenneth#971#1,418
  2. 421Janna#997#1,418
  3. 366Beatriz#989#1,355
  4. 338Merna#997#1,335
  5. 337Eldora#957#1,294

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

boys

1,228,318 boys got a published name in 1941; 1 in 77 of them was named Michael, which outranked 99.6% of the 4,002 boys' names that year. The ten most popular names covered 33.6% of boys (44.2% in 1880, 8.0% in 2025).

Ranked beside Michael
  1. #13George19,260
  2. #14Jerry16,799
  3. #15Kenneth16,143
  4. #16Michael15,935
  5. #17Edward15,580
  6. #18Paul15,166
  7. #19Gary14,568
Biggest movers since 1940
Risers
  1. 586Gay#1,573#987
  2. 375Issac#1,251#876
  3. 363Otho#1,334#971
  4. 338Lawrance#1,208#870
  5. 313Ford#1,251#938
Fallers
  1. 508Wilkie#792#1,300
  2. 452Arlis#994#1,446
  3. 394Ruby#939#1,333
  4. 359Gonzalo#850#1,209
  5. 325Lenord#929#1,254

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

See the top 100 for 1941