Boys' name · peaked in 1951
Gary name popularity since 1925
904,124 babies born in the US from 1925 to 2025 were named Gary. Half of them were born in 1955 or earlier, so the typical Gary is about 71 years old in 2026. Gary peaked in 1951 as the #10 name for boys, and it was outside the top 1,000 in 2025.
Key facts
- US babies since 1925
- 904,124
- Named Gary, 1925–2025
- In 2025
- Not top 1,000
- #1,073 for boys in 2025
- Girls / boys
- 99.6% boys
- 3,234 girls · 900,890 boys
- Most popular in
- Montana
- 1.78× its national share
Peak year is the year Gary 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.
Gary births per year, 1925–2025
The biggest year by count was 1952. Measured as a share of all babies, Gary peaked in 1951.
- Fastest rise: Between 1928 and 1933, Gary became 11× more common.
- Steepest fall: Between 1990 and 1995, its share of baby boys fell by 43%, from 1 in 669 to 1 in 1,170.
Shaded on the chart. Both compare Gary's share of all US boys five years apart, counting only years with at least 100 babies named Gary.
Decade by decade
Babies named Gary 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 | 32 | 1,113 | – |
| 1930s | 220 | 43,596 | #44 |
| 1940s | 637 | 217,772 | #13 |
| 1950s | 757 | 329,933 | #12 |
| 1960s | 696 | 166,031 | #27 |
| 1970s | 486 | 68,261 | #50 |
| 1980s | 334 | 40,230 | #82 |
| 1990s | 72 | 19,194 | #190 |
| 2000s | 0 | 8,879 | #338 |
| 2010s | 0 | 4,512 | #581 |
| 2020–25 | 0 | 1,369 | #1,073 |
Ranks count every name given to at least 5 boys that year, so they can go past 1,000.
Generation fingerprint
60.5% of babies named Gary from 1925 to 2025 were born in the Baby Boom years (1946–1964). The full split by generation:
Where Gary is most popular
The index compares Gary'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 Gary.
| State | Index | Babies |
|---|---|---|
| Montana | 1.78× | 4,738 |
| West Virginia | 1.78× | 14,227 |
| Iowa | 1.77× | 20,488 |
| North Dakota | 1.76× | 5,056 |
| Wyoming | 1.68× | 2,063 |
Other spellings
Spellings that sound like Gary 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 |
|---|---|---|
| Gary (this page) | 900,890 | 1951 |
| Garry | 47,333 | 1954 |
| Garey | 1,457 | 1945 |
Names with a similar story
Of the other 499 names on this site, these six had the share of babies closest in shape to Gary's from 1925 to 2025, however common each one got. Each line is scaled to its own high; the dashed line is Gary.
Names from the same era
Other common names that peaked within two years of Gary (1951).
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