Boys' name · since 1880

Alfred

Since 1880, U.S. Social Security records show 243,861 babies named Alfred, peaking in 1928. See the year-by-year trend, decade totals, and state rankings below, sourced from federal birth data.

#161 of 45,481
all-time among boys
#840 of 13,930
2025 SSA year
243,861
born since 1880
1920s
peak decade

Alfred currently ranks #840 among boys' names in America, with 243,861 babies recorded since 1880.

According to the U.S. Social Security Administration, Alfred has been recorded 243,861 times among boys since 1880, currently ranked #840 nationally and more common than 94% of boys, with its heaviest use in the 1920s. This profile covers year-by-year birth trends, decade totals, and state-level distribution, all derived directly from SSA birth-registration files spanning 1880 to 2025.

  • #161 of 45,481 all-time among boys
  • #840 of 13,930 2025 SSA year
  • 243,861 born since 1880
  • 1920s peak decade

Data updated Aug 2026

The verdict

According to the U.S. Social Security Administration, Alfred ranks #161 of 45,481 boys' names by all-time recorded births (highest first) and #840 of 13,930 among boys' names in 2025. 243,861 born since 1880, peaking in the 1920s.

#161 of 45,481
all-time among boys
#840 of 13,930
2025 SSA year
243,861
born since 1880
1920s
peak decade
0%100%Median name50%93.9%
Alfred vs. every other boys name in current SSA rankings
Upper archive tier
All-time archive position

Alfred's 243,861 recorded births place it above 99.64% of the 45,481 boys names in the full SSA archive.

51 jurisdictions
State-record footprint

51 jurisdictions carry state-level records, led by New York.

How Alfred compares

243,861 Top 2% higher than 98% 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

Alfred's all-time total is 661x the median boys name, and Liam still leads by a wide margin.

Metric Alfred Median boys name (Takari) #1 boys name (Liam)
All-time total births 243,861 369 358,536
Peak-year births 6,252 34 22,252

Alfred's usage pattern, beyond the headline number

Divide Alfred's SSA record in two at 1953 and the more recent half accounts for 28% of all births, the earlier half the remaining 72%, consistent with a name more common in the past than in recent years. Its calmest year was 2013, with only 208 births recorded -- set against the 1928 peak of 6,252, that's the full swing in one name's fortunes.

Alfred popularity over time - boys

Annual U.S. births registered with the Social Security Administration · 1880–2025

Top 1,000 boys' name
Peak year (1928)
6,252
Annual births at peak, across 146 years of records
02,0004,0006,0008,000 188018991918193719561975199420132025 293

Alfred popularity over time - girls

1,292 total births recorded since 1898 (Alfred as girls' name)

Unisex variant - 1,292 births
01020304050 189819151926193719481959197019811994 5

Alfred by decade

1920s is the heaviest window (50,156 births, 21% of the file).

1920s was Alfred's strongest decade.

50,156 babies received the name during that ten-year window, about 21% of all-time use.

Alfred births by decade

Total births in each ten-year window

births

What this shows Peak: 1920s at 50,156 births (21% of all-time use).

Source U.S. Social Security Administration · Baby Names As of August 2026

How Alfred 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 Alfred's total volume

Alfred vs 15 similarly-sized boys names Scatter plot of 16 data points. 0%2%4%6%8% 050100150200 New & already peakedOld name, single-era peakNew & still diversifyingLong history, steady all along Years in SSA records % of total births in the single peak year -146, 2.6%-146, 1.7%-146, 4.2%-146, 2.5%-146, 4.6%-112, 5.6%-146, 4.5%-146, 1.5%-146, 2.3%-146, 3%-102, 3.5%-146, 3.3%-146, 2.2%-113, 4.3%-49, 6.8%Alfred-146, 2.6%Alfred
Alfred vs 15 similarly-sized boys names

Alfred by state

Where Alfred concentrates geographically, total births since 1880

Geographically diffuse
Top 8 states by recorded births for the name Alfred
Rank State Visual share Births Share of total
#1 New York
30,110 12.3%
#2 California
16,706 6.9%
#3 Pennsylvania
14,970 6.1%
#4 Texas
13,933 5.7%
#5 Massachusetts
12,465 5.1%
#6 New Jersey
10,172 4.2%
#7 Illinois
8,943 3.7%
#8 Ohio
7,286 3.0%
New York share of Alfred's total US births 12.3%
Even split

30,110 of 243,861 births nationwide. Compared to a flat distribution across 51 reporting states.

Alfred appears in 51 states. Explore state details →

Frequently Asked Questions

How popular is the name Alfred?
243,861 babies have been named Alfred since 1880. All-time, it sits at #161 of 45,481 boys' names by recorded births. In 2025, it ranks #840 of 13,930 among boys. The peak year was 1928 with 6,252 births.
Where does Alfred sit in the SSA name archive?
According to the U.S. Social Security Administration, Alfred ranks #161 of 45,481 boys' names by all-time recorded births (highest first) and #840 of 13,930 among boys' names in 2025. All-time ordinal matches browse popularity (total births DESC); the current ordinal uses the 2025 SSA file. See /methodology#corpus-placement.
When was Alfred most popular?
Alfred was most popular in the 1920s decade with 50,156 total births. The single peak year was 1928.
Where is Alfred most popular?
The top states for the name Alfred are New York (30,110 births), California (16,706 births), Pennsylvania (14,970 births).
How long has the name Alfred been used?
Records for Alfred go back to 1880, giving 146 years of history through 2025.
What names are similar to Alfred?
Names with a similar sound or spelling include Alfredo, Alfonso, Alfonzo, Alford, and 4 more. These share a common prefix and are also used for boys.

What to do with Alfred's data

  • Alfred's decade-level peak was the 1920s (50,156 total births); usage has since declined to 1,630 in the 2020s -- if you're weighing a "classic revival" angle, the trend line argues against it.
  • New York records the most Alfreds (30,110 births) -- see the full state breakdown if geography matters to your decision. New York names

Figures reflect SSA-reported births only; see the methodology above for the privacy-suppression floor.

Keep exploring Alfred

Nearby Names Like Alfred

Names with a similar sound, spelling, or feel to Alfred

Names with a similar popularity rank to Alfred

Nationwide names with similar peak year or record span

Two nationwide peer axes for Alfred: closest SSA peak year, and closest first→latest record span. Distinct from the spelling and current-rank neighborhoods above.

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, 1880–2025 (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 Alfred 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.