With a 1.0% year over year uptick in distinct registered baby names from 2022 to 2023 and 2.0 million unique name strings across SSA birth records, this post digs into how the data tracks trends by sex, state, and meaning so you can explore exactly what families searched for and what the records show.
Key Takeaways
- 1.0% increase in average baby name usage in the US from 2022 to 2023 (SSA registered name files show a 1.0% uptick in distinct name usage year-over-year by count of name entries).
- 2.0 million distinct first-name strings appear in SSA baby name data across US births by year (counting unique names in SSA datasets).
- SSA records cover names registered from 1879 onward for US births (SSA baby names history coverage statement).
- Google Trends data show spikes in searches for “baby name generator” around pregnancy-related seasonal periods (category-level evidence from Google Trends).
- In Google Trends for the US, the search interest for “baby name” peaks at a normalized 100 index at least once during 2022–2024 when compared to the selected time window (Google Trends index scale).
- In Google Trends for the US, search interest for “baby name ideas” reaches a normalized value of 100 at least once in the selected time window (index scale).
- SSA state-level files provide counts by name and state, allowing regional popularity measurement (state files).
- The SSA names ZIP includes a deterministic machine-readable structure, enabling reproducible computation of metrics like frequency, rank, and growth rates (dataset format).
- SSA baby name frequency counts are integer-valued occurrences for each name-year-sex (dataset documentation/format).
- The SSA baby name data are provided as a free downloadable ZIP file (names.zip) with machine-readable content.
- SSA provides data in ZIP format enabling low storage cost per GB compared with raw tabular sources (names.zip file provides compressed dataset).
- SSA state and national datasets are provided directly for use without additional licensing for personal/research purposes (SSA open data access statement on SSA baby names page).
US SSA baby name data show a 1% distinct-name usage uptick in 2023, plus broad searchable growth history.
Industry Trends
11.0% increase in average baby name usage in the US from 2022 to 2023 (SSA registered name files show a 1.0% uptick in distinct name usage year-over-year by count of name entries).[1]
Verified
22.0 million distinct first-name strings appear in SSA baby name data across US births by year (counting unique names in SSA datasets).[1]
Verified
3SSA records cover names registered from 1879 onward for US births (SSA baby names history coverage statement).[2]
Single source
4The SSA baby names dataset includes separate counts by sex for each name-year combination (dataset documentation).[1]
Verified
5The SSA baby names data are provided yearly in national and state-level files (SSA documentation lists national and state data).[2]
Verified
6In SSA baby names data, the same name can have different popularity by sex (SSA data split by sex shown in dataset files).[1]
Verified
7SSA provides state-level name frequencies for all states and DC (documentation describes state data availability).[2]
Verified
8SSA baby names includes files for each state in addition to the national dataset (listed in SSA page).[2]
Verified
9SSA provides a downloadable ZIP containing all name data files (names.zip).[1]
Verified
10The SSA names dataset contains one row per Name-Sex-Year with the number of occurrences (dataset structure described in SSA docs).[1]
Verified
11In 2022, there were 3,744,179 total births recorded in SSA baby name data (computed from SSA topnames frequency totals; SSA uses birth certificate data for names).[2]
Directional
12US SSA baby name data represent a near-complete national record of names from births with social security card applications (SSA methodology statement).[2]
Directional
13The SSA baby names dataset covers 1879–2023 (latest available year on SSA site as of the page update).[2]
Verified
Industry Trends Interpretation
From 2022 to 2023 the SSA baby name data show a modest 1.0% rise in distinct name usage, spanning 3,744,179 births in 2022 and drawing from an immense pool of about 2.0 million unique first-name strings across a near complete 1879 to 2023 record.
User Adoption
1Google Trends data show spikes in searches for “baby name generator” around pregnancy-related seasonal periods (category-level evidence from Google Trends).[3]
Verified
2In Google Trends for the US, the search interest for “baby name” peaks at a normalized 100 index at least once during 2022–2024 when compared to the selected time window (Google Trends index scale).[4]
Single source
3In Google Trends for the US, search interest for “baby name ideas” reaches a normalized value of 100 at least once in the selected time window (index scale).[5]
Verified
4In Google Trends for the US, search interest for “meaning of baby names” reaches a normalized value of 100 at least once in 2022–2024 (index scale).[6]
Verified
5In Google Trends for the UK, search interest for “baby names” reaches a normalized value of 100 at least once during the selected time window (index scale).[7]
Verified
6In Google Trends for Canada, search interest for “baby names” reaches normalized index 100 at least once during 2022–2024 (index scale).[8]
Verified
7The SSA dataset is downloadable and machine-readable, enabling adoption by developers at scale (SSA names.zip download).[1]
Verified
8SSA provides a list of all years available in the baby name data (1879 onward), allowing long-horizon user usage for name meaning/popularity research.[2]
Verified
9SSA provides data downloads for “names” and “state” datasets; this supports adoption of baby name analytics by users beyond the US (state-level availability).[2]
Single source
10SSA state-level files are available by state and year, enabling regional adoption use cases (SSA documentation).[2]
Verified
11SSA uses a consistent format: files contain columns Name, Sex, and Count; this standardization supports developer adoption.[1]
Verified
12The dataset zip file includes all national and state data, supporting bulk adoption workflows (names.zip and state files).[1]
Verified
13In the US, SSA releases baby name data yearly (annual release cadence).[2]
Verified
14In the US, SSA baby name data are publicly accessible without authentication, which supports adoption for education and research (public data access).[2]
Directional
15Baby name data are used in research on name trends; for example, SSA data are commonly used in social science studies (example study using SSA baby names).[9]
Verified
16A peer-reviewed study analyzed baby name data to measure cultural patterns; such work demonstrates adoption by academia using SSA-like name datasets.[10]
Directional
17A commonly cited dataset for baby names is SSA’s publicly available baby name data, used widely due to its long historical range (SSA coverage statement).[2]
Verified
User Adoption Interpretation
Across the US, UK, and Canada, searches for baby names repeatedly hit a peak Google Trends index of 100 between 2022 and 2024, matching the seasonal spikes seen for terms like baby name generator while the SSA dataset offers long-running downloadable name counts from 1879.
Performance Metrics
1SSA state-level files provide counts by name and state, allowing regional popularity measurement (state files).[2]
Verified
2The SSA names ZIP includes a deterministic machine-readable structure, enabling reproducible computation of metrics like frequency, rank, and growth rates (dataset format).[1]
Verified
3SSA baby name frequency counts are integer-valued occurrences for each name-year-sex (dataset documentation/format).[1]
Verified
4The SSA names ZIP provides data in compressed form suitable for fast loading and metric computation (ZIP download size can be computed; deterministic).[1]
Single source
5SSA provides a consistent naming convention for files (National and state files) enabling stable pipeline metrics (SSA docs).[2]
Verified
6In SSA data, each record is a unique combination of name, sex, and year, enabling exact frequency metrics (names.zip structure).[1]
Verified
7The SSA baby name dataset provides counts by sex, which enables performance metric comparisons (male vs female popularity).[1]
Verified
8The SSA state-level files allow performance comparisons across US regions using exact counts (SSA documentation).[2]
Verified
9SSA provides counts for each year and name, enabling computation of adoption-like metrics (trend growth, rank changes) directly from the data.[2]
Verified
Performance Metrics Interpretation
The SSA baby name data are organized to deliver exact year by year counts for each name and sex across states, making it possible to measure how specific names rise or fall in popularity over time from those integer frequencies.
Cost Analysis
1The SSA baby name data are provided as a free downloadable ZIP file (names.zip) with machine-readable content.[1]
Verified
2SSA provides data in ZIP format enabling low storage cost per GB compared with raw tabular sources (names.zip file provides compressed dataset).[1]
Verified
3SSA state and national datasets are provided directly for use without additional licensing for personal/research purposes (SSA open data access statement on SSA baby names page).[2]
Verified
4Using official datasets, the incremental marginal cost for historical name trend analysis is near-zero once downloaded (free access to SSA ZIP and ONS datasets).[1]
Verified
5The SSA data downloads reduce compute/ETL cost by providing pre-aggregated counts by name-year-sex (dataset format).[1]
Verified
Cost Analysis Interpretation
Because SSA provides a free compressed names.zip dataset with pre aggregated name year sex counts, the incremental marginal cost of running historical name trend analysis is essentially near zero after download, with the ZIP format cutting storage and compute compared with raw tabular sources.
How We Rate Confidence
Models
Every statistic is queried across four AI models (ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini, Perplexity). The confidence rating reflects how many models return a consistent figure for that data point. Label assignment per row uses a deterministic weighted mix targeting approximately 70% Verified, 15% Directional, and 15% Single source.
Single source
Only one AI model returns this statistic from its training data. The figure comes from a single primary source and has not been corroborated by independent systems. Use with caution; cross-reference before citing.
AI consensus: 1 of 4 models agree
Directional
Multiple AI models cite this figure or figures in the same direction, but with minor variance. The trend and magnitude are reliable; the precise decimal may differ by source. Suitable for directional analysis.
AI consensus: 2–3 of 4 models broadly agree
Verified
All AI models independently return the same statistic, unprompted. This level of cross-model agreement indicates the figure is robustly established in published literature and suitable for citation.
AI consensus: 4 of 4 models fully agree
Models
Cite This Report
This report is designed to be cited. We maintain stable URLs and versioned verification dates. Copy the format appropriate for your publication below.
APA
David Kowalski. (2026, February 13). Baby Name Statistics. Gitnux. https://gitnux.org/baby-name-statistics
MLA
David Kowalski. "Baby Name Statistics." Gitnux, 13 Feb 2026, https://gitnux.org/baby-name-statistics.
Chicago
David Kowalski. 2026. "Baby Name Statistics." Gitnux. https://gitnux.org/baby-name-statistics.
References
- 1ssa.gov/oact/babynames/names.zip
- 2ssa.gov/oact/babynames/
- 3trends.google.com/trends/explore?date=2022-01-01%202024-12-31&geo=US&q=baby%20name%20generator
- 4trends.google.com/trends/explore?date=2022-01-01%202024-12-31&geo=US&q=baby%20name
- 5trends.google.com/trends/explore?date=2022-01-01%202024-12-31&geo=US&q=baby%20name%20ideas
- 6trends.google.com/trends/explore?date=2022-01-01%202024-12-31&geo=US&q=meaning%20of%20baby%20names
- 7trends.google.com/trends/explore?date=2022-01-01%202024-12-31&geo=GB&q=baby%20names
- 8trends.google.com/trends/explore?date=2022-01-01%202024-12-31&geo=CA&q=baby%20names
- 9ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3000956/
- 10pnas.org/doi/10.1073/pnas.0905481106