Karlene vs Karen

Side-by-side comparison of Karlene and Karen — popularity rank, total births, peak decade, and historical trends from Social Security Administration data.

Name A

Karlene

Girl name · Rank #12186

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Name B

Karen

Girl name · Rank #1260

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Which name is more popular?

Metric Karlene Karen
Current Rank #12186 #1260
Total Births (all years) 4,167 987,811
Peak Year 1959 1957
Peak Year Births 104 40,590
Peak Decade 1950ss 1950ss
Gender Girl Girl
First Recorded Year 1913 1881

Births by Decade

Decade Karlene Karen
1880ss — 49
1890ss — 79
1900ss — 98
1910ss 24 304
1920ss 87 564
1930ss 408 16,692
1940ss 741 167,699
1950ss 853 332,533
1960ss 798 286,054
1970ss 372 95,173
1980ss 344 34,917
1990ss 255 24,515
2000ss 176 20,608
2010ss 71 7,357
2020ss 38 1,169

Recent Annual Births (2014–present)

Year Karlene Karen
2014 6 633
2015 — 627
2016 8 617
2017 13 554
2018 5 470
2019 5 439
2020 11 331
2021 7 229
2022 5 199
2023 8 226
2024 7 184

Data Sources

Source: U.S. Social Security Administration, Baby Names from Social Security Card Applications — National Data, ssa.gov/oact/babynames.
Source: SSA Annual Name Rankings, 1913–2024.

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