US rank #837 Boys' name Peak 1928 243,558 births

Alfred — #837 US boys' name

243,558 babies named Alfred in U.S. Social Security records since 1880, with the highest year being 1928. Year-by-year trend, decade aggregates, and state-level rankings drawn from federal birth data.

1880s48371890s53731900s63561910s326351920s501561930s343921940s319971950s297511960s186531970s105311980s74531990s47282000s29232010s24422020s1331
#837
of 14,243 boys in use

More common than 94% of names given to boys today.

1920s
Peak decade

21% of everyone ever named Alfred was born in this single decade.

1928
Single peak year

6,252 babies were named Alfred in 1928 — its busiest year on record.

What the Data Says About Alfred

The Social Security Administration has registered 243,558 babies named Alfred between 1880 and 2024, spanning 145 consecutive years of U.S. birth records. As a boy's name, Alfred currently holds the #837 rank among boys for 2024. The name reached its historical peak in 1928, when 6,252 babies received it in a single year.

Decade-level aggregation shows that Alfred performed strongest in the 1920s, accumulating 50,156 births during that ten-year window. Across the 15 decades of recorded activity, Alfred shows a clear decline from its mid-century high. Geographically, the name is most concentrated in New York, which accounts for 30,088 births — the largest state-level total in the dataset — followed by California and Pennsylvania. In total, SSA state-level files list Alfred in 51 of the 51 U.S. reporting jurisdictions.

No etymological entry is currently available for Alfred in our reference dataset. These figures derive from SSA's annual national and state-level name files, which include any name appearing at least five times in a given year or state-year; names below that threshold are suppressed for privacy and therefore excluded from the totals shown here. The 243,558 total represents a lower bound — actual usage may be higher in years or states where the count fell below the disclosure floor. This page is provided for informational and research purposes only and does not constitute personal, legal, or naming advice.

Alfred at a glance

Top 1,000 boys' name

Total births

243,558

Since 1880

145 years of records

Peak year

1928

6,252 births that year

Strongest decade: 1920s

Current rank

#837

Among boys

As of 2024

Active since

1880

Recorded for 145 years

Last year on file: 2024

Alfred popularity over time — boys

Annual U.S. births registered with the Social Security Administration · 2024–1880

Top 1,000 boys' name
Peak year (1928)
6,252
Annual births at peak — across 145 years of records
-2,00002,0004,0006,0008,000 202420051986196719481929191018911880 469

Alfred popularity over time — girls

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

Unisex variant — 1,292 births
01020304050 199419771966195519441933192219111898 6

Alfred by decade

Total births in each ten-year window — peak vs trough at a glance

Peak: 1920s
Peak decade
1920s
50,156 births that decade — 21% of Alfred's all-time total
1880s48371890s53731900s63561910s326351920s501561930s343921940s319971950s297511960s186531970s105311980s74531990s47282000s29232010s24422020s1331

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
30,088 12.4%
#2 California
16,668 6.8%
#3 Pennsylvania
14,955 6.1%
#4 Texas
13,910 5.7%
#5 Massachusetts
12,458 5.1%
#6 New Jersey
10,166 4.2%
#7 Illinois
8,928 3.7%
#8 Ohio
7,275 3.0%
New York share of Alfred's total US births 12.4%
Even split

30,088 of 243,558 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?
243,558 babies have been named Alfred since 1880. It currently ranks #837 among boys. The peak year was 1928 with 6,252 births.
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 (30,088 births), California (16,668 births), Pennsylvania (14,955 births).
How long has the name Alfred been used?
Alfred has been recorded in Social Security data since 1880, spanning 145 years of data through 2024.
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.

Keep exploring Alfred

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Data Sources

Data as of 2024. Source: U.S. Social Security Administration (SSA).

Primary: Source: U.S. Social Security Administration, Baby Names from Social Security Card Applications — National Data, 1880–2024 (ssa.gov/oact/babynames). National-level data includes all names with 5 or more occurrences in a given year.

State-level: Source: U.S. Social Security Administration, Baby Names — State-Level Files (namesbystate.zip). Includes all names with 5 or more occurrences per state per year; rarer names are excluded for privacy.