Unisex name · since 1880

Carey

Carey has 16,880 recorded births since 1880 in federal Social Security data, most heavily in 1957 -- full year-by-year trend, decade aggregates, and state rankings follow.

#910 of 45,481
all-time among boys
#6,449 of 13,930
2025 SSA year
16,880
born since 1880
1950s
peak decade

Carey currently ranks #6449 among unisex names in America, with 16,880 babies recorded since 1880.

Carey has 16,880 recorded births among boys since 1880, per the U.S. Social Security Administration, ranked #6449 as of the latest data, more common than 54% of boys, busiest in the 1950s -- see the year-by-year trends, decade totals, and state-level distribution below, all drawn directly from SSA birth-registration files spanning 1880 to 2025.

  • #910 of 45,481 all-time among boys
  • #6,449 of 13,930 2025 SSA year
  • 16,880 born since 1880
  • 1950s peak decade

Data updated Aug 2026

The verdict

According to the U.S. Social Security Administration, Carey ranks #910 of 45,481 boys' names by all-time recorded births (highest first) and #6,449 of 13,930 among boys' names in 2025. 16,880 born since 1880, peaking in the 1950s.

#910 of 45,481
all-time among boys
#6,449 of 13,930
2025 SSA year
16,880
born since 1880
1950s
peak decade
0%100%Median name50%53.7%
Carey vs. every other boys name in current SSA rankings
Upper archive tier
All-time archive position

Carey's 16,880 recorded births place it above 97.99% of the 45,481 boys names in the full SSA archive.

38 jurisdictions
State-record footprint

38 jurisdictions carry state-level records, led by Texas.

How Carey compares

16,880 Top 7% higher than 93% 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

Carey's all-time total is 46x the median boys name, and Liam still leads by a wide margin.

Metric Carey Median boys name (Takari) #1 boys name (Liam)
All-time total births 16,880 369 358,536
Peak-year births 461 34 22,252

Carey's usage pattern, beyond the headline number

Divide Carey's SSA record in two at 1953 and the more recent half accounts for 71% of all births, the earlier half the remaining 29%, consistent with a name still gaining ground rather than fading. Its calmest year was 1886, with only 5 births recorded -- set against the 1957 peak of 461, that's the full swing in one name's fortunes.

Carey popularity over time - boys

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

Outside the top 1,000
Peak year (1957)
461
Annual births at peak, across 146 years of records
0100200300400500 188018991918193719561975199420132025 13

Carey popularity over time - girls

12,741 total births recorded since 1880 (Carey as girls' name)

Unisex variant - 12,741 births
0200400600800 188019191934194919641979199420092024 5

Carey by decade

1950s is the heaviest window (3,649 births, 22% of the file).

1950s was Carey's strongest decade.

3,649 babies received the name during that ten-year window, about 22% of all-time use.

Carey births by decade

Total births in each ten-year window

births

What this shows Peak: 1950s at 3,649 births (22% of all-time use).

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

How Carey 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 Carey's total volume

Carey vs 15 similarly-sized boys names Scatter plot of 16 data points. 0%2%4%6%8% 050100150200 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 -69, 3.4%-132, 2%-146, 3.6%-111, 2.2%-118, 4.6%-146, 2.9%-87, 4%-72, 5.5%-146, 2.6%-146, 2.2%-146, 2.3%-44, 4.6%-146, 4.1%-62, 3.1%-47, 7%Carey-146, 2.7%Carey
Carey vs 15 similarly-sized boys names

Carey by state

Where Carey concentrates geographically, total births since 1880

Geographically diffuse
Top 8 states by recorded births for the name Carey
Rank State Visual share Births Share of total
#1 Texas
1,214 7.2%
#2 Georgia
1,185 7.0%
#3 California
970 5.7%
#4 Louisiana
815 4.8%
#5 Alabama
713 4.2%
#6 North Carolina
652 3.9%
#7 Illinois
630 3.7%
#8 Florida
579 3.4%
Texas share of Carey's total US births 7.2%
Even split

1,214 of 16,880 births nationwide. Compared to a flat distribution across 38 reporting states.

Carey appears in 38 states. Explore state details →

Frequently Asked Questions

How popular is the name Carey? ▼
16,880 babies have been named Carey since 1880. All-time, it sits at #910 of 45,481 boys' names by recorded births. In 2025, it ranks #6,449 of 13,930 among boys. The peak year was 1957 with 461 births.
Where does Carey sit in the SSA name archive? ▼
According to the U.S. Social Security Administration, Carey ranks #910 of 45,481 boys' names by all-time recorded births (highest first) and #6,449 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 Carey most popular? ▼
Carey was most popular in the 1950s decade with 3,649 total births. The single peak year was 1957.
Where is Carey most popular? ▼
The top states for the name Carey are Texas (1,214 births), Georgia (1,185 births), California (970 births).
Is Carey a unisex name? ▼
Yes, Carey is used for both boys and girls. As a boy's name it has 16,880 births, and as a girl's name it has 12,741 births.
How long has the name Carey been used? ▼
The SSA has tracked Carey since 1880 -- 146 years through the most recent 2025 data.
What names are similar to Carey? ▼
Names with a similar sound or spelling include Carl, Carlos, Carter, Carson, and 4 more. These share a common prefix and are also used for boys.

What to do with Carey's data

  • Carey's decade-level peak was the 1950s (3,649 total births); usage has since declined to 73 in the 2020s -- if you're weighing a "classic revival" angle, the trend line argues against it.
  • Texas records the most Careys (1,214 births) -- see the full state breakdown if geography matters to your decision. Texas names

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

Keep exploring Carey

Nearby Names Like Carey

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

Carl Boy
#1132 504,827 births
Carlos Boy
#150 307,036 births
Carter Boy
#45 206,833 births
Carson Boy
#124 132,774 births
Carlton Boy
#2884 48,890 births

Compare Carey side by side: Carey vs Carl Carey vs Carlos Carey vs Carter

Or pick any two names to compare →

Related Names

Names with a similar popularity rank to Carey

Rollin #6448
5,771 births · Peak 1925
Billie #6450
31,637 births · Peak 1930
Rollie #6447
3,570 births · Peak 1947
Worth #6451
2,204 births · Peak 1918
Irwin #6446
15,946 births · Peak 1925
Blas #6452
2,921 births · Peak 1988
Saylen #6445
14 births · Peak 2025
Ashby #6453
1,655 births · Peak 2017

Nationwide names with similar peak year or record span

Two nationwide peer axes for Carey: 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 Carey 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.