Total births
163,723
Girls' name · since 1880
Alma
163,723 babies named Alma in U.S. Social Security records since 1880, with the highest year being 1918. Year-by-year trend, decade aggregates, and state-level rankings drawn from federal birth data.
- #471
- among girls today
- 163,723
- born since 1880
- 1920s
- peak decade
- 97%
- more common than other girls
Yes -- Alma is the #471 most popular girls' name in the U.S. today, with 163,723 recorded since 1880.
Alma has 163,723 recorded births among girls since 1880, per the U.S. Social Security Administration, ranked #471 as of the latest data, more common than 97% of girls, busiest in the 1920s -- see the year-by-year trends, decade totals, and state-level distribution below, all drawn directly from SSA birth-registration files spanning 1880 to 2025.
- #471 among girls today
- 163,723 born since 1880
- 1920s peak decade
- 97% more common than other girls
Data updated Jun 2026
The verdict
Alma is currently the #471 girls' name in America, more common than 97% of girls - 163,723 born since 1880, peaking in the 1920s.
- #471
- among girls today
- 163,723
- born since 1880
- 1920s
- peak decade
- 97%
- more common than other girls
Alma vs. every other girls name in current SSA rankings
#471
of 17,726 girls in use
More common than 97% of names given to girls today.
1920s
Peak decade
19% of everyone ever named Alma was born in this single decade.
1918
Single peak year
3,650 babies were named Alma in 1918 - its busiest year on record.
How Alma compares
163,723 Top 1% higher than 99% of 17,726 names currently given to girls
Based on all-time total births among currently-ranked girls 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
Alma's all-time total is 429x the median girls name, and Olivia still leads by a wide margin.
| Metric | Alma | Median girls name (Emerly) | #1 girls name (Olivia) |
|---|---|---|---|
| All-time total births | 163,723 | 382 | 567,345 |
| Peak-year births | 3,650 | 48 | 19,840 |
Alma's usage pattern, beyond the headline number
Alma splits its recorded history at 1953: 26% of all births land in the more recent half, 74% in the earlier half, leaning more toward its earlier era than today's. The single quietest year was 1880 (277 births) -- compare that against the 1918 peak of 3,650 for a sense of just how much the name's popularity has swung.
Alma at a glance
Top 1,000 girls' namePeak year
1918
Current rank
#471
Active since
1880
Alma popularity over time - girls
Annual U.S. births registered with the Social Security Administration · 1880–2025
- Peak year (1918)
- 3,650
- Annual births at peak, across 146 years of records
Alma popularity over time - boys
2,219 total births recorded since 1880 (Alma as boys' name)
Alma by decade
Total births in each ten-year window, peak vs trough at a glance
1920s was Alma's strongest decade.
30,434 babies received the name during that ten-year window, about 19% of all-time use.
Alma births by decade
Total births in each ten-year window
- 1880s 5,190
1880s
5,190 births
- 1890s 11,184
1890s
11,184 births
- 1900s
1900s
13,092 births
- 1910s
1910s
27,515 births
- 1920s
1920s
30,434 births
- 1930s
1930s
18,251 births
- 1940s
1940s
12,401 births
- 1950s 9,637
1950s
9,637 births
- 1960s 6,382
1960s
6,382 births
- 1970s 5,592
1970s
5,592 births
- 1980s 5,688
1980s
5,688 births
- 1990s 6,030
1990s
6,030 births
- 2000s 4,553
2000s
4,553 births
- 2010s 3,965
2010s
3,965 births
- 2020s 3,809
2020s
3,809 births
What this shows Peak: 1920s at 30,434 births (19% of all-time use).
How Alma compares to similarly-sized names
Years in SSA records vs. share of all-time use concentrated in the single peak year, among 15 girls names closest to Alma's total volume
Alma vs 15 similarly-sized girls names
Alma by state
Where Alma concentrates geographically, total births since 1880
| Rank | State | Visual share | Births | Share of total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| #1 | Texas | | 16,206 | 9.9% |
| #2 | California | | 13,182 | 8.1% |
| #3 | North Carolina | | 6,177 | 3.8% |
| #4 | Pennsylvania | | 6,101 | 3.7% |
| #5 | New York | | 5,523 | 3.4% |
| #6 | Kentucky | | 5,420 | 3.3% |
| #7 | Georgia | | 5,194 | 3.2% |
| #8 | Tennessee | | 4,868 | 3.0% |
Texas share of Alma's total US births 9.9%
Even split
16,206 of 163,723 births nationwide. Compared to a flat distribution across 50 reporting states.
Alma appears in 50 states. Explore state details →
Frequently Asked Questions
How popular is the name Alma? ▼
Alma has been given to 163,723 babies in the U.S. since 1880, according to SSA data. Among girls, it ranks #471 as of the latest data. 3,650 babies were born in 1918, its single highest year.
When was Alma most popular? ▼
Alma was most popular in the 1920s decade with 30,434 total births. The single peak year was 1918.
Where is Alma most popular? ▼
The top states for the name Alma are Texas (16,206 births), California (13,182 births), North Carolina (6,177 births).
How long has the name Alma been used? ▼
The SSA has tracked Alma since 1880 -- 146 years through the most recent 2025 data.
What names are similar to Alma? ▼
Names with a similar sound or spelling include Almeda, Almeta, Almira, Almedia, and 4 more. These share a common prefix and are also used for girls.
What to do with Alma's data
- Alma's decade-level peak was the 1920s (30,434 total births); usage has since declined to 3,809 in the 2020s -- if you're weighing a "classic revival" angle, the trend line argues against it.
- Texas records the most Almas (16,206 births) -- see the full state breakdown if geography matters to your decision. Texas names
- Weighing it against an alternative? Put two names side by side. Compare names
Figures reflect SSA-reported births only; see the methodology above for the privacy-suppression floor.
Keep exploring Alma
Nearby Names Like Alma
Names with a similar sound, spelling, or feel to Alma
Almeda Girl
4,402 births
Almeta Girl
2,241 births
Almira Girl
#7972 1,821 births
Almedia Girl
530 births
Almetta Girl
372 births
Compare Alma side by side: Alma vs Almeda Alma vs Almeta Alma vs Almira
Related Names
Names with a similar popularity rank to Alma
Everlee #470
7,343 births · Peak 2022
Adhara #472
2,154 births · Peak 2025
Brooklynn #469
38,132 births · Peak 2011
Macie #473
23,472 births · Peak 2011
Miracle #468
21,471 births · Peak 2016
Clementine #474
13,676 births · Peak 2025
Anahi #467
19,359 births · Peak 2006
Murphy #475
4,688 births · Peak 2025
Data Sources
Data as of June 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).
Cite this page
NameAlmanac Editorial. "Alma: #471 Girls' Name - 163,723 Births, Peak 1918." NameAlmanac. Accessed via https://namealmanac.com/name/alma. Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.
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 Alma 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 June 2026.