Benson
Benson was given to 1,214 boys in 2025, #279 among boys’ names; 14,344 Americans have been recorded with it since 1887 (Social Security Administration, published May 2026).
An estimated 12,700 Americans named Benson and born in the U.S. are alive in 2026 (88% of everyone recorded); the median is 11 years old and half are between 5 and 20.
Benson came back: it left the boys’ top 1,000 after 1969 and returned in 2010.
Girls and boys together; gaps are years SSA did not record (fewer than 5 births).
Births of Benson by year: SSA national baby-name file, 1880-2025, published May 8, 2026. SSA’s notes on the data.
What does Benson mean?
Wiktionary, English section
Benson is “a male given name transferred from the surname.”
Ultimately from Old English Benesingtūn.
/ˈbɛn.sən/
Meaning: Wiktionary, English section, as of Sep 25, 2026 (CC BY‑SA 4.0).
How popular is Benson?
#279 among boys’ names, 2025
Benson rose from #472 in 2015 to #279 in 2025 among boys’ names; its share of boys born rose from 0.33 to 0.71 per 1,000.
1,227 babies in 2025, the peak
Benson peaked in 2025, when 1,227 babies were given it (1,214 boys, #279 among boys’ names). In 2024 it went to 729 boys.
| Year | Births | Rank | Per 1,000 boys |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 1,214 | #279 | 0.71 |
| 2024 | 729 | #436 | 0.42 |
| 2023 | 454 | #617 | 0.27 |
| 2022 | 428 | #645 | 0.25 |
| 2021 | 479 | #582 | 0.27 |
| 2020 | 514 | #552 | 0.30 |
| 2019 | 566 | #507 | 0.32 |
| 2018 | 621 | #468 | 0.34 |
| 2017 | 625 | #475 | 0.34 |
| 2016 | 729 | #428 | 0.38 |
Every recorded year (128)
| Year | Births | Rank | Per 1,000 boys |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2015 | 631 | #472 | 0.33 |
| 2014 | 528 | #525 | 0.27 |
| 2013 | 447 | #574 | 0.24 |
| 2012 | 433 | #590 | 0.23 |
| 2011 | 314 | #724 | 0.17 |
| 2010 | 260 | #823 | 0.14 |
| 2009 | 193 | #1,014 | 0.10 |
| 2008 | 171 | #1,089 | 0.08 |
| 2007 | 174 | #1,070 | 0.08 |
| 2006 | 160 | #1,098 | 0.08 |
| 2005 | 134 | #1,190 | 0.07 |
| 2004 | 130 | #1,188 | 0.07 |
| 2003 | 102 | #1,342 | 0.05 |
| 2002 | 102 | #1,304 | 0.05 |
| 2001 | 76 | #1,569 | 0.04 |
| 2000 | 76 | #1,560 | 0.04 |
| 1999 | 66 | #1,622 | 0.03 |
| 1998 | 60 | #1,700 | 0.03 |
| 1997 | 50 | #1,859 | 0.03 |
| 1996 | 65 | #1,532 | 0.03 |
| 1995 | 60 | #1,554 | 0.03 |
| 1994 | 72 | #1,369 | 0.04 |
| 1993 | 72 | #1,336 | 0.04 |
| 1992 | 63 | #1,450 | 0.03 |
| 1991 | 58 | #1,496 | 0.03 |
| 1990 | 77 | #1,255 | 0.04 |
| 1989 | 57 | #1,448 | 0.03 |
| 1988 | 58 | #1,352 | 0.03 |
| 1987 | 38 | #1,734 | 0.02 |
| 1986 | 61 | #1,229 | 0.03 |
| 1985 | 59 | #1,241 | 0.03 |
| 1984 | 52 | #1,280 | 0.03 |
| 1983 | 47 | #1,361 | 0.03 |
| 1982 | 53 | #1,279 | 0.03 |
| 1981 | 53 | #1,260 | 0.03 |
| 1980 | 62 | #1,154 | 0.03 |
| 1979 | 79 | #1,001 | 0.05 |
| 1978 | 59 | #1,149 | 0.04 |
| 1977 | 65 | #1,071 | 0.04 |
| 1976 | 36 | #1,506 | 0.02 |
| 1975 | 40 | #1,381 | 0.03 |
| 1974 | 42 | #1,311 | 0.03 |
| 1973 | 51 | #1,148 | 0.03 |
| 1972 | 46 | #1,212 | 0.03 |
| 1971 | 42 | #1,292 | 0.02 |
| 1970 | 49 | #1,180 | 0.03 |
| 1969 | 64 | #959 | 0.04 |
| 1968 | 46 | #1,100 | 0.03 |
| 1967 | 50 | #1,030 | 0.03 |
| 1966 | 39 | #1,199 | 0.02 |
| 1965 | 30 | #1,407 | 0.02 |
| 1964 | 43 | #1,173 | 0.02 |
| 1963 | 47 | #1,121 | 0.02 |
| 1962 | 43 | #1,186 | 0.02 |
| 1961 | 45 | #1,181 | 0.02 |
| 1960 | 25 | #1,622 | 0.01 |
| 1959 | 39 | #1,248 | 0.02 |
| 1958 | 46 | #1,134 | 0.02 |
| 1957 | 60 | #981 | 0.03 |
| 1956 | 48 | #1,091 | 0.02 |
| 1955 | 39 | #1,199 | 0.02 |
| 1954 | 51 | #1,046 | 0.03 |
| 1953 | 46 | #1,075 | 0.02 |
| 1952 | 50 | #1,013 | 0.03 |
| 1951 | 42 | #1,110 | 0.02 |
| 1950 | 39 | #1,141 | 0.02 |
| 1949 | 46 | #1,029 | 0.03 |
| 1948 | 52 | #963 | 0.03 |
| 1947 | 44 | #1,092 | 0.02 |
| 1946 | 36 | #1,156 | 0.02 |
| 1945 | 34 | #1,123 | 0.03 |
| 1944 | 37 | #1,089 | 0.03 |
| 1943 | 38 | #1,108 | 0.03 |
| 1942 | 44 | #1,007 | 0.03 |
| 1941 | 34 | #1,130 | 0.03 |
| 1940 | 23 | #1,403 | 0.02 |
| 1939 | 23 | #1,395 | 0.02 |
| 1938 | 30 | #1,201 | 0.03 |
| 1937 | 37 | #1,057 | 0.03 |
| 1936 | 29 | #1,226 | 0.03 |
| 1935 | 29 | #1,249 | 0.03 |
| 1934 | 29 | #1,243 | 0.03 |
| 1933 | 17 | #1,714 | 0.02 |
| 1932 | 27 | #1,329 | 0.03 |
| 1931 | 39 | #1,078 | 0.04 |
| 1930 | 30 | #1,305 | 0.03 |
| 1929 | 42 | #1,058 | 0.04 |
| 1928 | 35 | #1,214 | 0.03 |
| 1927 | 35 | #1,229 | 0.03 |
| 1926 | 35 | #1,223 | 0.03 |
| 1925 | 45 | #1,022 | 0.04 |
| 1924 | 43 | #1,094 | 0.04 |
| 1923 | 36 | #1,199 | 0.03 |
| 1922 | 43 | #1,075 | 0.04 |
| 1921 | 39 | #1,140 | 0.04 |
| 1920 | 43 | #1,074 | 0.04 |
| 1919 | 28 | #1,354 | 0.03 |
| 1918 | 31 | #1,260 | 0.03 |
| 1917 | 47 | #934 | 0.05 |
| 1916 | 68 | #737 | 0.08 |
| 1915 | 39 | #1,017 | 0.05 |
| 1914 | 24 | #1,192 | 0.04 |
| 1913 | 15 | #1,375 | 0.03 |
| 1912 | 21 | #1,004 | 0.05 |
| 1911 | 7 | #1,400 | 0.03 |
| 1910 | 5 | #1,611 | 0.03 |
| 1909 | 7 | #1,164 | 0.04 |
| 1908 | 9 | #955 | 0.06 |
| 1905 | 5 | #1,250 | 0.04 |
| 1904 | 7 | #974 | 0.05 |
| 1903 | 6 | #1,023 | 0.05 |
| 1898 | 5 | #1,137 | 0.04 |
| 1897 | 5 | #1,079 | 0.04 |
| 1895 | 6 | #989 | 0.05 |
| 1892 | 6 | #967 | 0.05 |
| 1889 | 9 | #679 | 0.08 |
| 1888 | 5 | #1,049 | 0.04 |
| 1887 | 9 | #636 | 0.09 |
Ranks and shares: boys’ names in each year’s SSA file; share of all boys SSA recorded that year.
Is Benson a boy’s or a girl’s name?
Benson has been given almost only to boys: 32 girls in 128 years of records.
Girls and boys named Benson: the SSA national file counts each sex separately.
How many people are named Benson, and how old are they?
12,700 alive in 2026, estimated
That is 88% of the 14,344 Americans ever recorded as Benson. The median Benson alive today is 11 years old; half are between 5 and 20.
The 2020 Census counted 9,711 people named Benson (53 women and girls, 9,658 men and boys). SSA’s births carried forward to Census day, April 1, 2020, predict 9,216 born in the U.S. The Census count is 5% above that prediction.
Alive today, by age
Alive today, by generation
| Generation | Born | Alive |
|---|---|---|
| Silent Generation | 1928-1945 | 115 |
| Baby Boomers | 1946-1964 | 554 |
| Generation X | 1965-1980 | 709 |
| Millennials | 1981-1996 | 899 |
| Generation Z | 1997-2012 | 2,470 |
| Generation Alpha | 2013-2025 | 7,940 |
An estimate, not a count. SSA’s files count people born in the United States who received a Social Security number, so anyone born abroad is not in them; before 1937 most people got a number as adults, and their survival is counted from that age.
Living estimate: SSA births carried forward with the survival rates in SSA’s cohort life tables (2024 Trustees Report) for each birth year and sex. How the estimate is made. Count: Census Bureau, first names in the 2020 Census (released April 14, 2026; names reported 100 or more times, with the Bureau’s disclosure-avoidance adjustment).
Where are babies named Benson born?
The states with the most babies named Benson are Texas, Ohio and Indiana, with 18% of its births recorded by state in 2025; Indiana is not among the ten states with the most births.
| State | Births 2025 | Rank, boys | vs. national |
|---|---|---|---|
| Texas | 75 | #452 | 0.5× |
| Ohio | 74 | #178 | 0.9× |
| Indiana | 60 | #137 | 1.0× |
| Utah | 56 | #89 | 4.9× |
| Michigan | 56 | #186 | 0.7× |
| Wisconsin | 53 | #114 | 0.9× |
| California | 52 | #573 | 0.7× |
| Pennsylvania | 52 | #235 | 0.7× |
| Florida | 48 | #404 | 0.6× |
| Illinois | 39 | #279 | 0.5× |
Where Benson is more common than its national share predicts
Relative to its national share, Benson is most over-represented in Utah: since 1910 it was given 4.9 times as often there as its national share each year would predict.
States: SSA state file, 1910-2025, published May 8, 2026; births count girls and boys together, and the rank is among boys’ names in the state in 2025. The file leaves out any state and year with fewer than 5 babies of the name, so small states are undercounted; each ratio compares the state’s births of Benson with the births its national share predicts year by year, for states with at least 100 births of the name.
Names spelled alike
Of these 3 names spelled alike, given to 14,921 babies since 1880, Benson is the most given (96% of them). In 2025 it was given to 1,227 of their 1,259 babies (97%), again the most given.
Spelled alike: names in the SSA national file with the same pattern of letters and sounds and at most two letters apart, and Wiktionary’s listed forms; births since 1880 and in 2025, and each name’s peak year, from the SSA national file, published May 8, 2026. Some are separate names, not spellings of one.
Names that rose and fell in the same decades as Benson
Names whose births rose and fell across the same decades, measured on each decade’s share of births.
Similar histories: each decade’s share of births, from the SSA national file, 1880-2025, published May 8, 2026. SSA’s notes on the data.
More about Benson and names like it
- Compare Benson and BensenBirths, ranks, peak and the living estimate side by side.
- The most given names of the 2020sBenson peaked in 2025.
- California’s most given namesThe state where SSA recorded the most babies named Benson since 1910.
- From surnamesWiktionary’s origin for Benson: every such name, by how often it is given.
- The top names of 2025The year the most babies were named Benson.
- The names of Generation AlphaMost people named Benson alive today were born 2013-2025.
- Names starting with BMost given first.