Mostly boys · peaked in 1961
Chris name popularity since 1925
167,169 babies born in the US from 1925 to 2025 were named Chris (13.7% girls, 86.3% boys). Half of them were born in 1964 or earlier, so the typical Chris is about 62 years old in 2026. Chris peaked in 1961 as the #57 name for boys, and it ranked #646 in 2025.
Key facts
- US babies since 1925
- 167,169
- Named Chris, 1925–2025
- In 2025
- #646
- for boys in 2025 (431 babies)
- Girls / boys
- 86.3% boys
- 22,877 girls · 144,292 boys
- Most popular in
- Iowa
- 1.49× its national share
Peak year is the year Chris made up the largest share of US boys, in records going back to 1880. Typical age is based on births from 1925 on, not on who is living today.
Chris births per year, 1925–2025
1961 was the biggest year for Chris both by count and as a share of all babies.
- Fastest rise: Between 1954 and 1959, Chris became 3× more common, from 1 in 1,130 baby boys to 1 in 376.
- Steepest fall: Between 1971 and 1976, its share of baby boys fell by 58%, from 1 in 412 to 1 in 982.
Shaded on the chart. Both compare Chris's share of all US boys five years apart, counting only years with at least 100 babies named Chris.
Decade by decade
Babies named Chris in each decade, and its rank among boys' names in the middle year of the decade (1935, 1945 … 2025).
| Decade | Girls | Boys | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1925–29 | 71 | 838 | – |
| 1930s | 203 | 1,899 | #404 |
| 1940s | 1,576 | 7,166 | #242 |
| 1950s | 6,368 | 25,897 | #139 |
| 1960s | 11,274 | 56,338 | #60 |
| 1970s | 2,299 | 24,855 | #132 |
| 1980s | 590 | 6,513 | #325 |
| 1990s | 252 | 5,143 | #462 |
| 2000s | 135 | 7,671 | #396 |
| 2010s | 63 | 5,585 | #506 |
| 2020–25 | 46 | 2,387 | #646 |
Ranks count every name given to at least 5 boys that year, so they can go past 1,000.
Generation fingerprint
46.6% of babies named Chris from 1925 to 2025 were born in the Baby Boom years (1946–1964). The full split by generation:
Where Chris is most popular
The index compares Chris's share of babies in each state with its share nationwide, 1925–2025 (1.50× = 50% more common). States with at least 300 babies named Chris.
| State | Index | Babies |
|---|---|---|
| Iowa | 1.49× | 3,077 |
| Kansas | 1.44× | 2,388 |
| New Mexico | 1.44× | 1,297 |
| Washington | 1.39× | 3,775 |
| Louisiana | 1.37× | 4,003 |
Other spellings
Spellings that sound like Chris and were given to at least 1,000 boys from 1925 to 2025, with the year each one was most popular.
| Spelling | Boys | Peak year |
|---|---|---|
| Chris (this page) | 144,292 | 1961 |
| Cris | 2,982 | 1960 |
Names with a similar story
Of the other 499 names on this site, these six had the share of babies closest in shape to Chris's from 1925 to 2025, however common each one got. Each line is scaled to its own high; the dashed line is Chris.
Names from the same era
Other common names that peaked within two years of Chris (1961).
Source: U.S. Social Security Administration national and state baby-name data, which covers names given to at least 5 babies of one sex in a year. About the data