Boys' name · since 1885
Brent
139,799 babies named Brent in U.S. Social Security records since 1885, with the highest year being 1970. Year-by-year trend, decade aggregates, and state-level rankings drawn from federal birth data.
- #241 of 45,481
- all-time among boys
- #1,510 of 13,930
- 2025 SSA year
- 139,799
- born since 1885
- 1970s
- peak decade
139,799 babies have been named Brent since 1885, making it today's #1510 boys' name.
Brent has 139,799 recorded births among boys since 1885, per the U.S. Social Security Administration, ranked #1510 as of the latest data, more common than 89% of boys, busiest in the 1970s -- see the year-by-year trends, decade totals, and state-level distribution below, all drawn directly from SSA birth-registration files spanning 1885 to 2025.
- #241 of 45,481 all-time among boys
- #1,510 of 13,930 2025 SSA year
- 139,799 born since 1885
- 1970s peak decade
Data updated Aug 2026
The verdict
According to the U.S. Social Security Administration, Brent ranks #241 of 45,481 boys' names by all-time recorded births (highest first) and #1,510 of 13,930 among boys' names in 2025. 139,799 born since 1885, peaking in the 1970s.
- #241 of 45,481
- all-time among boys
- #1,510 of 13,930
- 2025 SSA year
- 139,799
- born since 1885
- 1970s
- peak decade
Brent's 139,799 recorded births place it above 99.47% of the 45,481 boys names in the full SSA archive.
51 jurisdictions carry state-level records, led by California.
How Brent compares
139,799 Top 2% higher than 98% of 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
Brent's all-time total is 379x the median boys name, and Liam still leads by a wide margin.
| Metric | Brent | Median boys name (Takari) | #1 boys name (Liam) |
|---|---|---|---|
| All-time total births | 139,799 | 369 | 358,536 |
| Peak-year births | 4,269 | 34 | 22,252 |
Brent's usage pattern, beyond the headline number
Splitting Brent's full recorded timeline at 1968, 71% of its total births fall in the more recent half of the record versus 29% in the earlier half -- usage has skewed toward the present, not a one-decade spike. Its quietest year on record was 1885, with just 5 recorded births -- worth weighing against the 1970 peak of 4,269 to see the full range of the name's swing in popularity.
Brent popularity over time - boys
Annual U.S. births registered with the Social Security Administration · 1885–2025
- Peak year (1970)
- 4,269
- Annual births at peak, across 141 years of records
Brent popularity over time - girls
567 total births recorded since 1947 (Brent as girls' name)
Brent by decade
1970s is the heaviest window (35,380 births, 25% of the file).
1970s was Brent's strongest decade.
35,380 babies received the name during that ten-year window, about 25% of all-time use.
Brent births by decade
Total births in each ten-year window
- 1880s 5
1880s
5 births
- 1890s 5
1890s
5 births
- 1910s 111
1910s
111 births
- 1920s 199
1920s
199 births
- 1930s 694
1930s
694 births
- 1940s 4,384
1940s
4,384 births
- 1950s
1950s
14,335 births
- 1960s
1960s
27,164 births
- 1970s
1970s
35,380 births
- 1980s
1980s
31,279 births
- 1990s
1990s
16,624 births
- 2000s 6,303
2000s
6,303 births
- 2010s 2,536
2010s
2,536 births
- 2020s 780
2020s
780 births
What this shows Peak: 1970s at 35,380 births (25% of all-time use).
How Brent compares to similarly-sized names
Years in SSA records vs. share of all-time use concentrated in the single peak year, among 15 boys names closest to Brent's total volume
Brent by state
Where Brent concentrates geographically, total births since 1885
| Rank | State | Visual share | Births | Share of total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| #1 | California | | 13,546 | 9.7% |
| #2 | Ohio | | 8,413 | 6.0% |
| #3 | Texas | | 8,346 | 6.0% |
| #4 | Michigan | | 7,617 | 5.4% |
| #5 | Illinois | | 6,292 | 4.5% |
| #6 | Indiana | | 6,018 | 4.3% |
| #7 | Pennsylvania | | 5,297 | 3.8% |
| #8 | Utah | | 5,052 | 3.6% |
13,546 of 139,799 births nationwide. Compared to a flat distribution across 51 reporting states.
Brent appears in 51 states. Explore state details →
Frequently Asked Questions
How popular is the name Brent? ▼
Where does Brent sit in the SSA name archive? ▼
When was Brent most popular? ▼
Where is Brent most popular? ▼
How long has the name Brent been used? ▼
What names are similar to Brent? ▼
What to do with Brent's data
- Brent's decade-level peak was the 1970s (35,380 total births); usage has since declined to 780 in the 2020s -- if you're weighing a "classic revival" angle, the trend line argues against it.
- California records the most Brents (13,546 births) -- see the full state breakdown if geography matters to your decision. California names
Figures reflect SSA-reported births only; see the methodology above for the privacy-suppression floor.
Keep exploring Brent
Nearby Names Like Brent
Names with a similar sound, spelling, or feel to Brent
Compare Brent side by side: Brent vs Brett Brent vs Brendan Brent vs Brennan
Related Names
Names with a similar popularity rank to Brent
Nationwide names with similar peak year or record span
Two nationwide peer axes for Brent: closest SSA peak year, and closest first→latest record span. Distinct from the spelling and current-rank neighborhoods above.
Similar peak year (~1970)
Similar record span (~140 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, 1885–2025 (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 Brent 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.