Boys' name · since 1942
Alain
3,980 babies named Alain in U.S. Social Security records since 1942, with the highest year being 1988. Year-by-year trend, decade aggregates, and state-level rankings drawn from federal birth data.
- #2,099 of 45,481
- all-time among boys
- #2,849 of 13,930
- 2025 SSA year
- 3,980
- born since 1942
- 1980s
- peak decade
Alain currently ranks #2849 among boys' names in America, with 3,980 babies recorded since 1942.
Social Security Administration records show Alain recorded 3,980 times among boys since 1942, holding rank #2849 nationally today, ahead of 80% of boys, peaking in the 1980s. This profile derives year-by-year birth trends, decade totals, and state-level distribution directly from SSA birth-registration files spanning 1942 to 2025.
- #2,099 of 45,481 all-time among boys
- #2,849 of 13,930 2025 SSA year
- 3,980 born since 1942
- 1980s peak decade
Data updated Aug 2026
The verdict
According to the U.S. Social Security Administration, Alain ranks #2,099 of 45,481 boys' names by all-time recorded births (highest first) and #2,849 of 13,930 among boys' names in 2025. 3,980 born since 1942, peaking in the 1980s.
- #2,099 of 45,481
- all-time among boys
- #2,849 of 13,930
- 2025 SSA year
- 3,980
- born since 1942
- 1980s
- peak decade
Alain's 3,980 recorded births place it above 95.38% of the 45,481 boys names in the full SSA archive.
9 jurisdictions carry state-level records, led by Florida.
How Alain compares
3,980 Top 15% higher than 85% of 13,930 names currently given to boys
Based on all-time total births among currently-ranked boys names. Names with fewer occurrences are grouped into wider buckets on the right.
Source U.S. Social Security Administration, national baby name data
How the numbers stack up
Alain's all-time total is 11x the median boys name, and Liam still leads by a wide margin.
| Metric | Alain | Median boys name (Takari) | #1 boys name (Liam) |
|---|---|---|---|
| All-time total births | 3,980 | 369 | 358,536 |
| Peak-year births | 92 | 34 | 22,252 |
Alain's usage pattern, beyond the headline number
Splitting Alain's full recorded timeline at 1985, 66% of its total births fall in the more recent half of the record versus 34% in the earlier half -- usage has skewed toward the present, not a one-decade spike. Its quietest year on record was 1942, with just 5 recorded births -- worth weighing against the 1988 peak of 92 to see the full range of the name's swing in popularity.
Alain popularity over time - boys
Annual U.S. births registered with the Social Security Administration · 1942–2025
- Peak year (1988)
- 92
- Annual births at peak, across 84 years of records
Alain popularity over time - girls
6 total births recorded since 1976 (Alain as girls' name)
Alain by decade
1980s is the heaviest window (738 births, 19% of the file).
1980s was Alain's strongest decade.
738 babies received the name during that ten-year window, about 19% of all-time use.
Alain births by decade
Total births in each ten-year window
- 1940s 53
1940s
53 births
- 1950s 183
1950s
183 births
- 1960s
1960s
358 births
- 1970s
1970s
457 births
- 1980s
1980s
738 births
- 1990s
1990s
676 births
- 2000s
2000s
656 births
- 2010s
2010s
583 births
- 2020s 276
2020s
276 births
What this shows Peak: 1980s at 738 births (19% of all-time use).
How Alain compares to similarly-sized names
Years in SSA records vs. share of all-time use concentrated in the single peak year, among 15 boys names closest to Alain's total volume
Alain by state
Where Alain concentrates geographically, total births since 1942
| Rank | State | Visual share | Births | Share of total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| #1 | Florida | | 789 | 19.8% |
| #2 | California | | 608 | 15.3% |
| #3 | New York | | 579 | 14.5% |
| #4 | Texas | | 288 | 7.2% |
| #5 | New Jersey | | 46 | 1.2% |
| #6 | Arizona | | 10 | 0.3% |
| #7 | Massachusetts | | 10 | 0.3% |
| #8 | Illinois | | 5 | 0.1% |
789 of 3,980 births nationwide. Compared to a flat distribution across 9 reporting states.
Alain appears in 9 states. Explore state details →
Frequently Asked Questions
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What to do with Alain's data
- Alain's usage has stayed within range of its 1980s decade-level peak (738 total births) through the 2020s (276) -- a comparatively stable name, not a fading trend.
- Florida records the most Alains (789 births) -- see the full state breakdown if geography matters to your decision. Florida names
Figures reflect SSA-reported births only; see the methodology above for the privacy-suppression floor.
Keep exploring Alain
Nearby Names Like Alain
Names with a similar sound, spelling, or feel to Alain
Compare Alain side by side: Alain vs Alan Alain vs Alaric Alain vs Alastair
Related Names
Names with a similar popularity rank to Alain
Nationwide names with similar peak year or record span
Two nationwide peer axes for Alain: closest SSA peak year, and closest first→latest record span. Distinct from the spelling and current-rank neighborhoods above.
Similar peak year (~1988)
Similar record span (~83 yrs)
Peak year is the single SSA year with the most births for that name; record span is first-to-latest year in the national files, not a recommendation or shared origin claim.
Data Sources
Data as of August 2026. Source: U.S. Social Security Administration (SSA).
According to the Social Security Administration, this profile draws directly from the agency's public-use baby-name files (updated June 2026). See our methodology for the full extraction, aggregation, and privacy-suppression rules.
Primary: Source: U.S. Social Security Administration, Baby Names from Social Security Card Applications, National Data, 1942–2025 (ssa.gov/oact/babynames).
State-level: Source: U.S. Social Security Administration, Baby Names, State-Level Files (namesbystate.zip).
Name Almanac is rendered directly from the Social Security Administration's public baby-name files, no number is typed in by an editor. This profile for Alain draws directly on SSA national and state-level files, no figure is typed in by an editor. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error. Data current as of August 2026.