Boys' name · since 1880

Buford

Since 1880, U.S. Social Security records show 10,854 babies named Buford, peaking in 1921. See the year-by-year trend, decade totals, and state rankings below, sourced from federal birth data.

#1,152 of 45,481
all-time among boys
#10,703 of 13,930
2025 SSA year
10,854
born since 1880
1920s
peak decade

Yes -- Buford is the #10703 most popular boys' name in the U.S. today, with 10,854 recorded since 1880.

Social Security Administration records show Buford recorded 10,854 times among boys since 1880, holding rank #10703 nationally today, ahead of 23% of boys, peaking in the 1920s. This profile derives year-by-year birth trends, decade totals, and state-level distribution directly from SSA birth-registration files spanning 1880 to 2025.

  • #1,152 of 45,481 all-time among boys
  • #10,703 of 13,930 2025 SSA year
  • 10,854 born since 1880
  • 1920s peak decade

Data updated Aug 2026

The verdict

According to the U.S. Social Security Administration, Buford ranks #1,152 of 45,481 boys' names by all-time recorded births (highest first) and #10,703 of 13,930 among boys' names in 2025. 10,854 born since 1880, peaking in the 1920s.

#1,152 of 45,481
all-time among boys
#10,703 of 13,930
2025 SSA year
10,854
born since 1880
1920s
peak decade
0%100%Median name50%23.1%
Buford vs. every other boys name in current SSA rankings
Upper archive tier
All-time archive position

Buford's 10,854 recorded births place it above 97.46% of the 45,481 boys names in the full SSA archive.

21 jurisdictions
State-record footprint

21 jurisdictions carry state-level records, led by Tennessee.

How Buford compares

10,854 Top 9% higher than 91% 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

Buford's all-time total is 29x the median boys name, and Liam still leads by a wide margin.

Metric Buford Median boys name (Takari) #1 boys name (Liam)
All-time total births 10,854 369 358,536
Peak-year births 334 34 22,252

Buford's usage pattern, beyond the headline number

Buford splits its recorded history at 1945: 28% of all births land in the more recent half, 72% in the earlier half, leaning more toward its earlier era than today's. The single quietest year was 2012 (5 births) -- compare that against the 1921 peak of 334 for a sense of just how much the name's popularity has swung.

Buford popularity over time - boys

Annual U.S. births registered with the Social Security Administration · 1880–2025

Outside the top 1,000
Peak year (1921)
334
Annual births at peak, across 146 years of records
0100200300400 188018991915193119471963197919952025 6

Buford popularity over time - girls

110 total births recorded since 1908 (Buford as girls' name)

Unisex variant - 110 births
4681012 1908191319171920192619361952 5

Buford by decade

1920s is the heaviest window (2,759 births, 25% of the file).

1920s was Buford's strongest decade.

2,759 babies received the name during that ten-year window, about 25% of all-time use.

Buford births by decade

Total births in each ten-year window

births

What this shows Peak: 1920s at 2,759 births (25% of all-time use).

Source U.S. Social Security Administration · Baby Names As of August 2026

How Buford 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 Buford's total volume

Buford vs 15 similarly-sized boys names Scatter plot of 16 data points. 0%2%4%6%8%10% 406080100120140160 New & already peakedOld name, single-era peakNew & still diversifyingLong history, steady all along Years in SSA records % of total births in the single peak year -104, 7%-146, 1.7%-146, 3.7%-122, 3.6%-144, 3.2%-146, 4.6%-114, 6.1%-108, 4%-68, 7.8%-109, 7.2%-76, 3.7%-57, 5.4%-77, 5.5%-122, 5.3%-146, 2.1%Buford-146, 3.1%Buford
Buford vs 15 similarly-sized boys names

Buford by state

Where Buford concentrates geographically, total births since 1880

Geographically diffuse
Top 8 states by recorded births for the name Buford
Rank State Visual share Births Share of total
#1 Tennessee
1,449 13.3%
#2 Texas
926 8.5%
#3 Alabama
899 8.3%
#4 Georgia
838 7.7%
#5 Kentucky
710 6.5%
#6 Virginia
597 5.5%
#7 Mississippi
538 5.0%
#8 Arkansas
332 3.1%
Tennessee share of Buford's total US births 13.3%
Even split

1,449 of 10,854 births nationwide. Compared to a flat distribution across 21 reporting states.

Buford appears in 21 states. Explore state details →

Frequently Asked Questions

How popular is the name Buford? ▼
10,854 babies have been named Buford since 1880. All-time, it sits at #1,152 of 45,481 boys' names by recorded births. In 2025, it ranks #10,703 of 13,930 among boys. The peak year was 1921 with 334 births.
Where does Buford sit in the SSA name archive? ▼
According to the U.S. Social Security Administration, Buford ranks #1,152 of 45,481 boys' names by all-time recorded births (highest first) and #10,703 of 13,930 among boys' names in 2025. All-time ordinal matches browse popularity (total births DESC); the current ordinal uses the 2025 SSA file. See /methodology#corpus-placement.
When was Buford most popular? ▼
Buford was most popular in the 1920s decade with 2,759 total births. The single peak year was 1921.
Where is Buford most popular? ▼
The top states for the name Buford are Tennessee (1,449 births), Texas (926 births), Alabama (899 births).
How long has the name Buford been used? ▼
The SSA has tracked Buford since 1880 -- 146 years through the most recent 2025 data.
What names are similar to Buford? ▼
Names with a similar sound or spelling include Bufford, Buff, Bufard, Buffy. These share a common prefix and are also used for boys.

What to do with Buford's data

  • Buford's decade-level peak was the 1920s (2,759 total births); usage has since declined to 11 in the 2020s -- if you're weighing a "classic revival" angle, the trend line argues against it.
  • Tennessee records the most Bufords (1,449 births) -- see the full state breakdown if geography matters to your decision. Tennessee names

Figures reflect SSA-reported births only; see the methodology above for the privacy-suppression floor.

Keep exploring Buford

Nearby Names Like Buford

Names with a similar sound, spelling, or feel to Buford

Bufford Boy
507 births
Buff Boy
31 births
Bufard Boy
6 births
Buffy Boy
6 births

Compare Buford side by side: Buford vs Bufford Buford vs Buff Buford vs Bufard

Or pick any two names to compare →

Related Names

Names with a similar popularity rank to Buford

Eldridge #10702
5,247 births · Peak 1924
Waldo #10704
5,716 births · Peak 1915
Horatio #10701
1,443 births · Peak 2007
Toney #10705
6,416 births · Peak 1961
Dell #10700
4,008 births · Peak 1953
Allison #10706
3,825 births · Peak 1917
Frances #10699
5,024 births · Peak 1928
Ballard #10707
1,159 births · Peak 1922

Nationwide names with similar peak year or record span

Two nationwide peer axes for Buford: closest SSA peak year, and closest first→latest record span. Distinct from the spelling and current-rank neighborhoods above.

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 Buford 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.