Unisex name · since 1979
Atari
Since 1979, U.S. Social Security records show 95 babies named Atari, peaking in 1982. See the year-by-year trend, decade totals, and state rankings below, sourced from federal birth data.
- #17,740 of 45,481
- all-time among boys
- #12,425 of 13,930
- 2025 SSA year
- 95
- born since 1979
- 1980s
- peak decade
Atari currently ranks #12425 among unisex names in America, with 95 babies recorded since 1979.
Social Security Administration records show Atari recorded 95 times among boys since 1979, holding rank #12425 nationally today, ahead of 11% 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 1979 to 2025.
- #17,740 of 45,481 all-time among boys
- #12,425 of 13,930 2025 SSA year
- 95 born since 1979
- 1980s peak decade
Data updated Aug 2026
The verdict
According to the U.S. Social Security Administration, Atari ranks #17,740 of 45,481 boys' names by all-time recorded births (highest first) and #12,425 of 13,930 among boys' names in 2025. 95 born since 1979, peaking in the 1980s.
- #17,740 of 45,481
- all-time among boys
- #12,425 of 13,930
- 2025 SSA year
- 95
- born since 1979
- 1980s
- peak decade
Atari's 95 recorded births place it above 60.87% of the 45,481 boys names in the full SSA archive.
No state rows cleared SSA’s public reporting threshold for this name.
How Atari compares
95 25th percentile among 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
Atari's all-time total is 74% below the median boys name, and Liam still leads by a wide margin.
| Metric | Atari | Median boys name (Takari) | #1 boys name (Liam) |
|---|---|---|---|
| All-time total births | 95 | 369 | 358,536 |
| Peak-year births | 16 | 34 | 22,252 |
Atari's usage pattern, beyond the headline number
Atari splits its recorded history at 2008: 43% of all births land in the more recent half, 57% in the earlier half, an evenly balanced pattern over time. The single quietest year was 1983 (5 births) -- compare that against the 1982 peak of 16 for a sense of just how much the name's popularity has swung.
Atari popularity over time - boys
Annual U.S. births registered with the Social Security Administration · 1979–2025
- Peak year (1982)
- 16
- Annual births at peak, across 47 years of records
Atari popularity over time - girls
58 total births recorded since 1980 (Atari as girls' name)
Atari by decade
1980s is the heaviest window (44 births, 46% of the file).
1980s was Atari's strongest decade.
44 babies received the name during that ten-year window, about 46% of all-time use.
Atari births by decade
Total births in each ten-year window
- 1970s 10
1970s
10 births
- 1980s
1980s
44 births
- 2000s 17
2000s
17 births
- 2010s 14
2010s
14 births
- 2020s 10
2020s
10 births
What this shows Peak: 1980s at 44 births (46% of all-time use).
Frequently Asked Questions
How popular is the name Atari? ▼
Where does Atari sit in the SSA name archive? ▼
When was Atari most popular? ▼
Is Atari a unisex name? ▼
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What to do with Atari's data
- Atari's decade-level peak was the 1980s (44 total births); usage has since declined to 10 in the 2020s -- if you're weighing a "classic revival" angle, the trend line argues against it.
Figures reflect SSA-reported births only; see the methodology above for the privacy-suppression floor.
Keep exploring Atari
Nearby Names Like Atari
Names with a similar sound, spelling, or feel to Atari
Compare Atari side by side: Atari vs Atanacio Atari vs Ata Atari vs Atal
Related Names
Names with a similar popularity rank to Atari
Nationwide names with similar peak year or record span
Two nationwide peer axes for Atari: closest SSA peak year, and closest first→latest record span. Distinct from the spelling and current-rank neighborhoods above.
Similar peak year (~1982)
Similar record span (~46 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, 1979–2025 (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 Atari 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.