Boys' name · peaked in 1880
John name popularity since 1925
4,279,121 babies born in the US from 1925 to 2025 were named John. Half of them were born in 1958 or earlier, so the typical John is about 68 years old in 2026. John peaked in 1880 as the #1 name for boys, and it ranked #23 in 2025.
Key facts
- US babies since 1925
- 4,279,121
- Named John, 1925–2025
- Peak year
- 1880
- #1 for boys that year
- In 2025
- #23
- for boys in 2025 (8,027 babies)
- Girls / boys
- 99.6% boys
- 16,930 girls · 4,262,191 boys
- Most popular in
- Rhode Island
- 1.66× its national share
Peak year is the year John 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.
John births per year, 1925–2025
The biggest year on this chart was 1947. Measured as a share of all babies, John peaked earlier, in 1880.
Decade by decade
Babies named John 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 | 2,027 | 275,124 | – |
| 1930s | 2,581 | 487,950 | #3 |
| 1940s | 2,078 | 711,614 | #3 |
| 1950s | 1,996 | 797,922 | #5 |
| 1960s | 2,741 | 713,394 | #2 |
| 1970s | 2,393 | 402,612 | #7 |
| 1980s | 2,135 | 321,150 | #9 |
| 1990s | 494 | 240,151 | #13 |
| 2000s | 308 | 161,104 | #18 |
| 2010s | 133 | 102,800 | #26 |
| 2020–25 | 44 | 48,370 | #23 |
Ranks count every name given to at least 5 boys that year, so they can go past 1,000.
Generation fingerprint
35.7% of babies named John from 1925 to 2025 were born in the Baby Boom years (1946–1964). The full split by generation:
Where John is most popular
The index compares John'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 John.
| State | Index | Babies |
|---|---|---|
| Rhode Island | 1.66× | 25,403 |
| Massachusetts | 1.65× | 169,634 |
| District of Columbia | 1.60× | 31,928 |
| Delaware | 1.54× | 13,782 |
| Pennsylvania | 1.54× | 338,382 |
Other spellings
Spellings that sound like John 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 |
|---|---|---|
| John (this page) | 4,262,191 | 1880 |
| Jon | 167,691 | 1965 |
Names with a similar story
Of the other 499 names on this site, these six had the share of babies closest in shape to John's from 1925 to 2025, however common each one got. Each line is scaled to its own high; the dashed line is John.
Names from the same era
Other common names that peaked within two years of John (1880).
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