Girls' name · since 1880
Betsy
Betsy has 48,947 recorded births since 1880 in federal Social Security data, most heavily in 1959 -- full year-by-year trend, decade aggregates, and state rankings follow.
- #598 of 72,339
- all-time among girls
- #2,720 of 17,297
- 2025 SSA year
- 48,947
- born since 1880
- 1950s
- peak decade
48,947 babies have been named Betsy since 1880, making it today's #2720 girls' name.
According to the U.S. Social Security Administration, Betsy has been recorded 48,947 times among girls since 1880, currently ranked #2720 nationally and more common than 84% of girls, with its heaviest use in the 1950s. 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.
- #598 of 72,339 all-time among girls
- #2,720 of 17,297 2025 SSA year
- 48,947 born since 1880
- 1950s peak decade
Data updated Aug 2026
The verdict
According to the U.S. Social Security Administration, Betsy ranks #598 of 72,339 girls' names by all-time recorded births (highest first) and #2,720 of 17,297 among girls' names in 2025. 48,947 born since 1880, peaking in the 1950s.
- #598 of 72,339
- all-time among girls
- #2,720 of 17,297
- 2025 SSA year
- 48,947
- born since 1880
- 1950s
- peak decade
Betsy's 48,947 recorded births place it above 99.17% of the 72,339 girls names in the full SSA archive.
50 jurisdictions carry state-level records, led by New York.
How Betsy compares
48,947 Top 4% higher than 96% of 17,297 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
Betsy's all-time total is 130x the median girls name, and Olivia still leads by a wide margin.
| Metric | Betsy | Median girls name (Kyann) | #1 girls name (Olivia) |
|---|---|---|---|
| All-time total births | 48,947 | 376 | 567,345 |
| Peak-year births | 1,390 | 21 | 19,840 |
Betsy's usage pattern, beyond the headline number
Divide Betsy's SSA record in two at 1953 and the more recent half accounts for 64% of all births, the earlier half the remaining 36%, consistent with a name still gaining ground rather than fading. Its calmest year was 1897, with only 10 births recorded -- set against the 1959 peak of 1,390, that's the full swing in one name's fortunes.
Betsy popularity over time - girls
Annual U.S. births registered with the Social Security Administration · 1880–2025
- Peak year (1959)
- 1,390
- Annual births at peak, across 146 years of records
Betsy popularity over time - boys
10 total births recorded since 1942 (Betsy as boys' name)
Betsy by decade
1950s is the heaviest window (10,561 births, 22% of the file).
1950s was Betsy's strongest decade.
10,561 babies received the name during that ten-year window, about 22% of all-time use.
Betsy births by decade
Total births in each ten-year window
- 1880s 166
1880s
166 births
- 1890s 173
1890s
173 births
- 1900s 189
1900s
189 births
- 1910s 841
1910s
841 births
- 1920s 2,551
1920s
2,551 births
- 1930s 3,929
1930s
3,929 births
- 1940s
1940s
6,980 births
- 1950s
1950s
10,561 births
- 1960s
1960s
8,558 births
- 1970s
1970s
5,461 births
- 1980s 4,059
1980s
4,059 births
- 1990s 2,014
1990s
2,014 births
- 2000s 1,805
2000s
1,805 births
- 2010s 1,204
2010s
1,204 births
- 2020s 456
2020s
456 births
What this shows Peak: 1950s at 10,561 births (22% of all-time use).
How Betsy 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 Betsy's total volume
Betsy by state
Where Betsy concentrates geographically, total births since 1880
| Rank | State | Visual share | Births | Share of total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| #1 | New York | | 4,488 | 9.2% |
| #2 | Pennsylvania | | 3,636 | 7.4% |
| #3 | California | | 3,149 | 6.4% |
| #4 | North Carolina | | 3,018 | 6.2% |
| #5 | Ohio | | 2,964 | 6.1% |
| #6 | Texas | | 2,359 | 4.8% |
| #7 | Illinois | | 2,082 | 4.3% |
| #8 | Michigan | | 1,739 | 3.6% |
4,488 of 48,947 births nationwide. Compared to a flat distribution across 50 reporting states.
Betsy appears in 50 states. Explore state details →
Frequently Asked Questions
How popular is the name Betsy? ▼
Where does Betsy sit in the SSA name archive? ▼
When was Betsy most popular? ▼
Where is Betsy most popular? ▼
How long has the name Betsy been used? ▼
What names are similar to Betsy? ▼
What to do with Betsy's data
- Betsy's decade-level peak was the 1950s (10,561 total births); usage has since declined to 456 in the 2020s -- if you're weighing a "classic revival" angle, the trend line argues against it.
- New York records the most Betsys (4,488 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 Betsy
Nearby Names Like Betsy
Names with a similar sound, spelling, or feel to Betsy
Compare Betsy side by side: Betsy vs Betty Betsy vs Beth Betsy vs Bethany
Related Names
Names with a similar popularity rank to Betsy
Nationwide names with similar peak year or record span
Two nationwide peer axes for Betsy: closest SSA peak year, and closest first→latest record span. Distinct from the spelling and current-rank neighborhoods above.
Similar peak year (~1959)
Similar record span (~145 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, 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 Betsy 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.