Sterling vs Stephen

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

Name A

Sterling

Boy name · Rank #370

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Name B

Stephen

Boy name · Rank #374

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Metric Sterling Stephen
Current Rank #370 #374
Total Births (all years) 37,474 864,739
Peak Year 2025 1952
Peak Year Births 944 23,055
Peak Decade 2010s 1950s
Gender Boy Boy
First Recorded Year 1880 1880

Births by Decade

Decade Sterling Stephen
1880s 168 1,684
1890s 233 1,733
1900s 352 2,247
1910s 1,608 13,502
1920s 2,533 15,556
1930s 1,904 18,272
1940s 2,334 106,812
1950s 2,570 207,276
1960s 2,496 152,240
1970s 2,072 107,804
1980s 2,968 113,631
1990s 4,709 75,160
2000s 3,027 28,902
2010s 5,464 14,422
2020s 5,036 5,498

Recent Annual Births (2014–present)

Year Sterling Stephen
2014 552 1,452
2015 595 1,497
2016 671 1,379
2017 713 1,334
2018 783 1,246
2019 753 1,095
2020 768 1,024
2021 844 958
2022 803 919
2023 792 898
2024 885 870
2025 944 829

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, 1880–2025.

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