Girls' name · peaked in 1997
Michaela name popularity since 1925
53,692 babies born in the US from 1925 to 2025 were named Michaela. Half of them were born in 1998 or earlier, so the typical Michaela is about 28 years old in 2026. Michaela peaked in 1997 as the #100 name for girls, and it ranked #843 in 2025.
Key facts
- US babies since 1925
- 53,692
- Named Michaela, 1925–2025
- In 2025
- #843
- for girls in 2025 (323 babies)
- Girls / boys
- 99.9% girls
- 53,623 girls · 69 boys
- Most popular in
- Rhode Island
- 4.22× its national share
Peak year is the year Michaela made up the largest share of US girls, in records going back to 1880. Typical age is based on births from 1925 on, not on who is living today.
Michaela births per year, 1925–2025
1997 was the biggest year for Michaela both by count and as a share of all babies.
- Fastest rise: Between 1991 and 1996, Michaela became 4.3× more common, from 1 in 2,390 baby girls to 1 in 552.
- Steepest fall: Between 1998 and 2003, its share of baby girls fell by 60%, from 1 in 529 to 1 in 1,320.
Shaded on the chart. Both compare Michaela's share of all US girls five years apart, counting only years with at least 100 babies named Michaela.
Decade by decade
Babies named Michaela in each decade, and its rank among girls' names in the middle year of the decade (1935, 1945 … 2025).
| Decade | Girls | Boys | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1925–29 | 7 | 0 | – |
| 1930s | 58 | 0 | #4,078 |
| 1940s | 273 | 0 | #1,610 |
| 1950s | 640 | 0 | #1,162 |
| 1960s | 931 | 6 | #1,018 |
| 1970s | 1,455 | 0 | #1,010 |
| 1980s | 4,614 | 12 | #434 |
| 1990s | 23,173 | 45 | #107 |
| 2000s | 13,086 | 6 | #287 |
| 2010s | 6,737 | 0 | #496 |
| 2020–25 | 2,649 | 0 | #843 |
Ranks count every name given to at least 5 girls that year, so they can go past 1,000.
Generation fingerprint
46.2% of babies named Michaela from 1925 to 2025 were born in the Gen Z years (1997–2012). The full split by generation:
Where Michaela is most popular
The index compares Michaela'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 Michaela.
| State | Index | Babies |
|---|---|---|
| Rhode Island | 4.22× | 763 |
| Nebraska | 3.40× | 1,218 |
| Massachusetts | 1.84× | 2,233 |
| Colorado | 1.50× | 942 |
| Maine | 1.44× | 313 |
Other spellings
Spellings that sound like Michaela and were given to at least 1,000 girls from 1925 to 2025, with the year each one was most popular.
| Spelling | Girls | Peak year |
|---|---|---|
| Michaela (this page) | 53,623 | 1997 |
| Micaela | 14,612 | 1995 |
| Michaella | 2,309 | 1997 |
| Michela | 2,207 | 1998 |
| Michala | 1,545 | 1994 |
| Michayla | 1,399 | 1997 |
Names with a similar story
Of the other 1999 names on this site, these six had the share of babies closest in shape to Michaela's from 1925 to 2025, however common each one got. Each line is scaled to its own high; the dashed line is Michaela.
Names from the same era
Other common names that peaked within two years of Michaela (1997).
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