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#100rank188019001920194019601980200020201950peak #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.

Where Michael is popular in 1950

  • Rank in state
  • Top 10
  • 11–50
  • 51–100
  • 101–500
  • 501+
  • Not published
Alaska: #6 for boys · 51 births · 1 in 27 boysAKMaine: #4 for boys · 409 births · 1 in 23 boysMEVermont: #5 for boys · 172 births · 1 in 22 boysVTNew Hampshire: #5 for boys · 213 births · 1 in 25 boysNHWashington: #1 for boys · 1,394 births · 1 in 19 boysWAIdaho: #2 for boys · 288 births · 1 in 24 boysIDMontana: #5 for boys · 259 births · 1 in 26 boysMTNorth Dakota: #5 for boys · 225 births · 1 in 33 boysNDMinnesota: #1 for boys · 1,682 births · 1 in 21 boysMNIllinois: #4 for boys · 4,611 births · 1 in 20 boysILWisconsin: #2 for boys · 2,040 births · 1 in 19 boysWIMichigan: #3 for boys · 3,755 births · 1 in 21 boysMINew York: #4 for boys · 6,196 births · 1 in 24 boysNYMassachusetts: #7 for boys · 1,866 births · 1 in 25 boysMARhode Island: #4 for boys · 345 births · 1 in 23 boysRIOregon: #2 for boys · 800 births · 1 in 21 boysORNevada: #2 for boys · 81 births · 1 in 17 boysNVWyoming: #5 for boys · 120 births · 1 in 25 boysWYSouth Dakota: #4 for boys · 316 births · 1 in 26 boysSDIowa: #3 for boys · 1,317 births · 1 in 23 boysIAIndiana: #1 for boys · 2,346 births · 1 in 19 boysINOhio: #4 for boys · 4,009 births · 1 in 23 boysOHPennsylvania: #8 for boys · 3,697 births · 1 in 29 boysPANew Jersey: #7 for boys · 1,682 births · 1 in 27 boysNJConnecticut: #7 for boys · 700 births · 1 in 27 boysCTCalifornia: #2 for boys · 5,534 births · 1 in 22 boysCAUtah: #3 for boys · 381 births · 1 in 25 boysUTColorado: #4 for boys · 700 births · 1 in 23 boysCONebraska: #3 for boys · 656 births · 1 in 23 boysNEMissouri: #3 for boys · 2,001 births · 1 in 21 boysMOKentucky: #3 for boys · 1,264 births · 1 in 28 boysKYWest Virginia: #7 for boys · 810 births · 1 in 30 boysWVVirginia: #6 for boys · 1,055 births · 1 in 35 boysVAMaryland: #5 for boys · 978 births · 1 in 25 boysMDDelaware: #7 for boys · 106 births · 1 in 32 boysDEArizona: #5 for boys · 315 births · 1 in 32 boysAZNew Mexico: #6 for boys · 266 births · 1 in 37 boysNMKansas: #2 for boys · 897 births · 1 in 22 boysKSArkansas: #9 for boys · 477 births · 1 in 47 boysARTennessee: #8 for boys · 1,029 births · 1 in 38 boysTNNorth Carolina: #8 for boys · 1,132 births · 1 in 44 boysNCSouth Carolina: #10 for boys · 512 births · 1 in 56 boysSCDistrict of Columbia: #4 for boys · 649 births · 1 in 20 boysDCOklahoma: #3 for boys · 844 births · 1 in 28 boysOKLouisiana: #5 for boys · 1,041 births · 1 in 34 boysLAMississippi: #12 for boys · 407 births · 1 in 71 boysMSAlabama: #9 for boys · 782 births · 1 in 49 boysALGeorgia: #9 for boys · 911 births · 1 in 48 boysGAHawaii: #1 for boys · 219 births · 1 in 27 boysHITexas: #5 for boys · 2,726 births · 1 in 38 boysTXFlorida: #6 for boys · 870 births · 1 in 35 boysFL

Hover or tap a state for its numbers.

Top states · boys
  1. Indiana#1 · 1 in 19
  2. Washington#1 · 1 in 19
  3. Minnesota#1 · 1 in 21
  4. Hawaii#1 · 1 in 27
  5. Nevada#2 · 1 in 17

Best ever in a state: #1 in Hawaii, 1948.

Show every state
StateRankBirthsShare
Hawaii#12191 in 27
Indiana#12,3461 in 19
Minnesota#11,6821 in 21
Washington#11,3941 in 19
California#25,5341 in 22
Idaho#22881 in 24
Kansas#28971 in 22
Nevada#2811 in 17
Oregon#28001 in 21
Wisconsin#22,0401 in 19
Iowa#31,3171 in 23
Kentucky#31,2641 in 28
Michigan#33,7551 in 21
Missouri#32,0011 in 21
Nebraska#36561 in 23
Oklahoma#38441 in 28
Utah#33811 in 25
Colorado#47001 in 23
District of Columbia#46491 in 20
Illinois#44,6111 in 20
Maine#44091 in 23
New York#46,1961 in 24
Ohio#44,0091 in 23
Rhode Island#43451 in 23
South Dakota#43161 in 26
Arizona#53151 in 32
Louisiana#51,0411 in 34
Maryland#59781 in 25
Montana#52591 in 26
New Hampshire#52131 in 25
North Dakota#52251 in 33
Texas#52,7261 in 38
Vermont#51721 in 22
Wyoming#51201 in 25
Alaska#6511 in 27
Florida#68701 in 35
New Mexico#62661 in 37
Virginia#61,0551 in 35
Connecticut#77001 in 27
Delaware#71061 in 32
Massachusetts#71,8661 in 25
New Jersey#71,6821 in 27
West Virginia#78101 in 30
North Carolina#81,1321 in 44
Pennsylvania#83,6971 in 29
Tennessee#81,0291 in 38
Alabama#97821 in 49
Arkansas#94771 in 47
Georgia#99111 in 48
South Carolina#105121 in 56
Mississippi#124071 in 71

Ranks are within each state; “1 in N” is out of the boys born there that year. The SSA only publishes a name in a state when 5 or more babies of one sex got it.

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 1950

girls
#640
179 births · 1 in 9,570 girls
boys
#4
65,136 births · 1 in 27 boys

Top girls' names in 1950

  1. #1Linda80,433
  2. #2Mary65,481
  3. #3Patricia47,944
  4. #4Barbara41,556
  5. #5Susan38,017
  6. #6Nancy29,617
  7. #7Deborah29,063
  8. #8Sandra28,896
  9. #9Carol26,163
  10. #10Kathleen25,706
  11. #640Michael179

Top boys' names in 1950

  1. #1James86,228
  2. #2Robert83,553
  3. #3John79,412
  4. #4Michael65,136
  5. #5David60,729
  6. #6William60,680
  7. #7Richard51,003
  8. #8Thomas45,596
  9. #9Charles39,095
  10. #10Gary33,737
More about 1950

girls

1,713,054 girls got a published name in 1950; 1 in 9,570 of them was named Michael, which outranked 89.5% of the 6,109 girls' names that year. The ten most popular names covered 24.1% of girls (24.6% in 1880, 7.0% in 2025).

Ranked beside Michael
  1. #636Dian180
  2. #636John180
  3. #636Madonna180
  4. #640Michael179
  5. #640Freida179
  6. #640Mercedes179
  7. #643Katheryn178
  8. #643Maryjane178
  9. #643Tracy178

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

Biggest movers since 1949
Risers
  1. ↑ 1,242Mindy#2,013 → #771
  2. ↑ 649Geralyn#1,627 → #978
  3. ↑ 636Kyle#1,512 → #876
  4. ↑ 416Debrah#1,109 → #693
  5. ↑ 405Debbra#1,353 → #948
Fallers
  1. ↓ 241Luana#823 → #1,064
  2. ↓ 231Christene#930 → #1,161
  3. ↓ 216Pearline#785 → #1,001
  4. ↓ 210Ingrid#518 → #728
  5. ↓ 201Dayle#982 → #1,183

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

boys

1,790,262 boys got a published name in 1950; 1 in 27 of them was named Michael, which outranked 99.9% of the 4,196 boys' names that year. The ten most popular names covered 33.8% of boys (44.2% in 1880, 8.0% in 2025).

Ranked beside Michael
  1. #1James86,228
  2. #2Robert83,553
  3. #3John79,412
  4. #4Michael65,136
  5. #5David60,729
  6. #6William60,680
  7. #7Richard51,003
Biggest movers since 1949
Risers
  1. ↑ 744Ezzard#1,616 → #872
  2. ↑ 510Kelvin#1,085 → #575
  3. ↑ 447Nancy#1,297 → #850
  4. ↑ 420Samual#1,380 → #960
  5. ↑ 376Shaun#1,275 → #899
Fallers
  1. ↓ 371Sharon#885 → #1,256
  2. ↓ 369Melvyn#770 → #1,139
  3. ↓ 367Les#997 → #1,364
  4. ↓ 351Delmas#905 → #1,256
  5. ↓ 315Denzil#808 → #1,123

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

See the top 100 for 1950 →