Boys' name · since 1880
Clark
50,851 babies named Clark in U.S. Social Security records since 1880, with the highest year being 1961. Year-by-year trend, decade aggregates, and state-level rankings drawn from federal birth data.
- #507 of 45,481
- all-time among boys
- #377 of 13,930
- 2025 SSA year
- 50,851
- born since 1880
- 2010s
- peak decade
Yes -- Clark is the #377 most popular boys' name in the U.S. today, with 50,851 recorded since 1880.
Clark has 50,851 recorded births among boys since 1880, per the U.S. Social Security Administration, ranked #377 as of the latest data, more common than 97% of boys, busiest in the 2010s -- 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.
- #507 of 45,481 all-time among boys
- #377 of 13,930 2025 SSA year
- 50,851 born since 1880
- 2010s peak decade
Data updated Aug 2026
The verdict
According to the U.S. Social Security Administration, Clark ranks #507 of 45,481 boys' names by all-time recorded births (highest first) and #377 of 13,930 among boys' names in 2025. 50,851 born since 1880, peaking in the 2010s.
- #507 of 45,481
- all-time among boys
- #377 of 13,930
- 2025 SSA year
- 50,851
- born since 1880
- 2010s
- peak decade
Clark's 50,851 recorded births place it above 98.88% of the 45,481 boys names in the full SSA archive.
50 jurisdictions carry state-level records, led by California.
How Clark compares
50,851 Top 4% higher than 96% 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
Clark's all-time total is 138x the median boys name, and Liam still leads by a wide margin.
| Metric | Clark | Median boys name (Takari) | #1 boys name (Liam) |
|---|---|---|---|
| All-time total births | 50,851 | 369 | 358,536 |
| Peak-year births | 879 | 34 | 22,252 |
Clark's usage pattern, beyond the headline number
Splitting Clark's full recorded timeline at 1953, 66% of its total births fall in the more recent half of the record versus 34% in the earlier half -- usage has skewed toward the present, not a one-decade spike. Its quietest year on record was 1902, with just 31 recorded births -- worth weighing against the 1961 peak of 879 to see the full range of the name's swing in popularity.
Clark popularity over time - boys
Annual U.S. births registered with the Social Security Administration · 1880–2025
- Peak year (1961)
- 879
- Annual births at peak, across 146 years of records
Clark popularity over time - girls
354 total births recorded since 1918 (Clark as girls' name)
Clark by decade
2010s is the heaviest window (6,880 births, 14% of the file).
2010s was Clark's strongest decade.
6,880 babies received the name during that ten-year window, about 14% of all-time use.
Clark births by decade
Total births in each ten-year window
- 1880s 513
1880s
513 births
- 1890s 505
1890s
505 births
- 1900s 502
1900s
502 births
- 1910s 2,383
1910s
2,383 births
- 1920s
1920s
2,914 births
- 1930s
1930s
3,763 births
- 1940s
1940s
5,050 births
- 1950s
1950s
6,631 births
- 1960s
1960s
6,140 births
- 1970s 2,534
1970s
2,534 births
- 1980s
1980s
3,014 births
- 1990s 2,692
1990s
2,692 births
- 2000s 2,742
2000s
2,742 births
- 2010s
2010s
6,880 births
- 2020s
2020s
4,588 births
What this shows Peak: 2010s at 6,880 births (14% of all-time use).
How Clark 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 Clark's total volume
Clark by state
Where Clark concentrates geographically, total births since 1880
| Rank | State | Visual share | Births | Share of total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| #1 | California | | 4,186 | 8.2% |
| #2 | Texas | | 3,013 | 5.9% |
| #3 | Pennsylvania | | 2,739 | 5.4% |
| #4 | Ohio | | 2,430 | 4.8% |
| #5 | New York | | 2,405 | 4.7% |
| #6 | Illinois | | 2,233 | 4.4% |
| #7 | Michigan | | 2,065 | 4.1% |
| #8 | Utah | | 1,667 | 3.3% |
4,186 of 50,851 births nationwide. Compared to a flat distribution across 50 reporting states.
Clark appears in 50 states. Explore state details →
Frequently Asked Questions
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What to do with Clark's data
- Clark's usage has stayed within range of its 2010s decade-level peak (6,880 total births) through the 2020s (4,588) -- a comparatively stable name, not a fading trend.
- California records the most Clarks (4,186 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 Clark
Nearby Names Like Clark
Names with a similar sound, spelling, or feel to Clark
Compare Clark side by side: Clark vs Clarence Clark vs Clayton Clark vs Claude
Related Names
Names with a similar popularity rank to Clark
Nationwide names with similar peak year or record span
Two nationwide peer axes for Clark: closest SSA peak year, and closest first→latest record span. Distinct from the spelling and current-rank neighborhoods above.
Similar peak year (~1961)
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 Clark 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.