Wells

#7,491 for girls in 2025, 14 births · #345 for boys in 2025, 944 births
Given to boys 97.6% of the time

Showing
Show data for
Peak · boys
2025 · 944 births
Debut · boys
5 births
In top 100 · boys
never
of 146 years
Total births · boys
6,989
since 1881

Wells over time

boys

Rank among boys' names. Wells has never cracked the top 300 here.

#1#10#100#1,000#10,000rank188019001920194019601980200020201881boysat peak
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#7,49114#345944
2024#8,44312#377869
2023#6,40918#447696
2022#7,28115#467659
2021#6,69117#482621
2020#9,54610#545521
2019#6,41418#626432
2018#8,14613#730327
2017#9,94310#916233
2016#8,87512#1,413124
2015#13,0067#1,72989
2014#13,0697#1,71488
2013#14,5826#2,18260
2012—#2,44851
2011#16,7645#3,04637
2010#14,9596#3,37732
2009—#4,92219
2008—#5,24917
2007—#5,21017
2006—#5,07217
2005—#4,06222
2004—#4,00522
2003—#4,42618
2002—#6,52210
2001—#6,9359
2000—#4,78515
1999—#6,04210
1998#14,1225#4,65014
1997—#5,28811
1996—#7,9716
1995—#5,9289
1994—#5,8689
1993—#5,36010
1992—#4,87211
1991—#4,00514
1990—#5,3829
1989—#6,2297
1988—#5,2008
1987—#5,4597
1986—#3,88211
1985—#4,3339
1984—#3,70111
1983—#4,9077
1982——
1981—#5,4686
1980—#6,2505
1979—#3,81010
1978—#4,1578
1977—#5,1236
1976—#3,09512
1975—#4,7976
1974—#3,5589
1973—#2,71613
1972——
1971—#3,14610
1970—#2,62113
1969—#3,3148
1968—#2,44512
1967—#3,2317
1966—#3,9485
1965——
1964—#4,0395
1963—#3,3187
1962—#3,3057
1961—#3,3567
1960—#2,68510
1959—#3,6196
1958—#3,2757
1957—#3,2577
1956—#3,5356
1955—#2,30212
1954—#2,04415
1953—#3,1437
1952—#3,0957
1951—#2,49510
1950—#2,11113
1949—#2,8028
1948—#1,94315
1947—#2,35611
1946—#1,94914
1945—#2,00912
1944—#2,8627
1943—#1,98614
1942—#2,38610
1941—#2,33310
1940—#2,4789
1939—#2,05012
1938—#1,81815
1937—#2,19711
1936——
1935—#2,24611
1934—#1,86015
1933—#2,5429
1932—#2,10113
1931—#1,84316
1930—#1,82117
1929—#2,9808
1928—#1,96016
1927—#1,69221
1926—#2,07415
1925—#2,19314
1924—#1,67522
1923—#2,12315
1922—#1,43427
1921—#1,17837
1920—#1,88518
1919—#1,40826
1918—#1,90517
1917—#1,69319
1916—#1,54921
1915—#1,41023
1914—#1,34220
1913—#1,58012
1912—#1,02320
1911—#1,2908
1910—#1,4216
1909——
1908——
1907——
1906——
1905——
1904——
1903——
1902——
1901——
1900—#1,1626
1899——
1898——
1897——
1896——
1895—#1,0795
1894——
1893——
1892——
1891——
1890——
1889——
1888——
1887——
1886—#8456
1885——
1884—#9715
1883——
1882——
1881—#8665
1880——
First appearance
1881

The first year at least five boys were named Wells! It came in at #866, and was given to 5 baby boys.


Quietest stretch: 1881–1885, when fewer than 6 boys a year got the name.

Where Wells is popular in 1881

The SSA only publishes names by state from 1910 on.

See more about Wells
Momentum · boys
Rising
  • 32 spots since 2024 (#377 → #345)
  • 200 spots since 2020 (#545 → #345)
  • 1,384 spots since 2015 (#1,729 → #345)
  • Biggest jump: 497 spots in 2017 (#1,413 → #916)
Rise & fade · boys
144 yrs to peak
  • Debuted 1881
  • Peaked 2025 at #345 (944 births)
  • Not yet halved from its peak
Top of the charts · boys
Top 1,000 for 12 yrs
  • Top 10: never
  • Top 100: never
  • Top 1,000: 12 yrs · run 2017–2025
Share of babies · boys
1 in 1,809
  • Highest: 1 in 1,809 boys born in 2025 were named Wells (0.06%)
Era · boys
The 2020s
  • 61.7% of all boys named Wells (4,310) were born in this decade
Show by decade
DecadeBirthsBest rankAvg rank
1880s16#845 (1886)#894
1890s5#1,079 (1895)#1,079
1900s6#1,162 (1900)#1,162
1910s172#1,023 (1912)#1,462
1920s193#1,178 (1921)#1,919
1930s119#1,818 (1938)#2,053
1940s110#1,943 (1948)#2,310
1950s90#2,044 (1954)#2,888
1960s68#2,445 (1968)#3,293
1970s87#2,621 (1970)#3,669
1980s71#3,701 (1984)#5,048
1990s103#4,005 (1991)#5,537
2000s166#4,005 (2004)#5,119
2010s1,473#626 (2019)#1,818
2020s4,310#345 (2025)#444

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.

Wells in 1881

boys
#866
5 births · 1 in 20,147 boys

Top boys' names in 1881

  1. #1John8,768
  2. #2William8,524
  3. #3James5,441
  4. #4George4,664
  5. #5Charles4,636
  6. #6Frank2,834
  7. #7Joseph2,456
  8. #8Henry2,339
  9. #9Thomas2,282
  10. #10Edward2,177
  11. #866Wells5
More about 1881

boys

100,735 boys got a published name in 1881; 1 in 20,147 of them was named Wells, which outranked 13.1% of the 996 boys' names that year. The ten most popular names covered 43.8% of boys (44.2% in 1880, 8.0% in 2025).

Ranked beside Wells
  1. #781Webb6
  2. #781Whit6
  3. #781Yee6
  4. #866Wells5
  5. #866Adrien5
  6. #866Albin5
  7. #866Alf5

Tied with 130 names at #866; 3 shown. Tied names share a rank, as in SSA's lists.

Biggest movers since 1880
Risers
  1. ↑ 491Noble#809 → #318
  2. ↑ 449Ivy#909 → #460
  3. ↑ 449Buck#909 → #460
  4. ↑ 376Chin#909 → #533
  5. ↑ 376Ransom#909 → #533
Fallers
  1. ↓ 431Neil#350 → #781
  2. ↓ 378Alvah#403 → #781
  3. ↓ 361Webster#505 → #866
  4. ↓ 356Melville#425 → #781
  5. ↓ 316Hector#465 → #781

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

See the top 100 for 1881 →