Boys' name · since 1880
Clifford
Clifford has 188,249 recorded births since 1880 in federal Social Security data, most heavily in 1925 -- full year-by-year trend, decade aggregates, and state rankings follow.
- #194 of 45,481
- all-time among boys
- #1,352 of 13,930
- 2025 SSA year
- 188,249
- born since 1880
- 1920s
- peak decade
Clifford currently ranks #1352 among boys' names in America, with 188,249 babies recorded since 1880.
Clifford has 188,249 recorded births among boys since 1880, per the U.S. Social Security Administration, ranked #1352 as of the latest data, more common than 90% of boys, busiest in the 1920s -- 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.
- #194 of 45,481 all-time among boys
- #1,352 of 13,930 2025 SSA year
- 188,249 born since 1880
- 1920s peak decade
Data updated Aug 2026
The verdict
According to the U.S. Social Security Administration, Clifford ranks #194 of 45,481 boys' names by all-time recorded births (highest first) and #1,352 of 13,930 among boys' names in 2025. 188,249 born since 1880, peaking in the 1920s.
- #194 of 45,481
- all-time among boys
- #1,352 of 13,930
- 2025 SSA year
- 188,249
- born since 1880
- 1920s
- peak decade
Clifford's 188,249 recorded births place it above 99.57% of the 45,481 boys names in the full SSA archive.
51 jurisdictions carry state-level records, led by New York.
How Clifford compares
188,249 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
Clifford's all-time total is 510x the median boys name, and Liam still leads by a wide margin.
| Metric | Clifford | Median boys name (Takari) | #1 boys name (Liam) |
|---|---|---|---|
| All-time total births | 188,249 | 369 | 358,536 |
| Peak-year births | 3,424 | 34 | 22,252 |
Clifford's usage pattern, beyond the headline number
Divide Clifford's SSA record in two at 1953 and the more recent half accounts for 37% of all births, the earlier half the remaining 63%, consistent with a name more common in the past than in recent years. Its calmest year was 1881, with only 110 births recorded -- set against the 1925 peak of 3,424, that's the full swing in one name's fortunes.
Clifford popularity over time - boys
Annual U.S. births registered with the Social Security Administration · 1880–2025
- Peak year (1925)
- 3,424
- Annual births at peak, across 146 years of records
Clifford popularity over time - girls
2,019 total births recorded since 1880 (Clifford as girls' name)
Clifford by decade
1920s is the heaviest window (31,242 births, 17% of the file).
1920s was Clifford's strongest decade.
31,242 babies received the name during that ten-year window, about 17% of all-time use.
Clifford births by decade
Total births in each ten-year window
- 1880s 1,552
1880s
1,552 births
- 1890s 2,701
1890s
2,701 births
- 1900s 4,055
1900s
4,055 births
- 1910s
1910s
20,886 births
- 1920s
1920s
31,242 births
- 1930s
1930s
23,100 births
- 1940s
1940s
25,823 births
- 1950s
1950s
29,862 births
- 1960s
1960s
19,264 births
- 1970s 11,761
1970s
11,761 births
- 1980s 9,556
1980s
9,556 births
- 1990s 4,295
1990s
4,295 births
- 2000s 1,895
2000s
1,895 births
- 2010s 1,415
2010s
1,415 births
- 2020s 842
2020s
842 births
What this shows Peak: 1920s at 31,242 births (17% of all-time use).
How Clifford 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 Clifford's total volume
Clifford by state
Where Clifford concentrates geographically, total births since 1880
| Rank | State | Visual share | Births | Share of total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| #1 | New York | | 13,395 | 7.1% |
| #2 | California | | 11,372 | 6.0% |
| #3 | Texas | | 9,400 | 5.0% |
| #4 | Pennsylvania | | 9,365 | 5.0% |
| #5 | Ohio | | 9,233 | 4.9% |
| #6 | Illinois | | 8,659 | 4.6% |
| #7 | Michigan | | 7,730 | 4.1% |
| #8 | Georgia | | 7,400 | 3.9% |
13,395 of 188,249 births nationwide. Compared to a flat distribution across 51 reporting states.
Clifford appears in 51 states. Explore state details →
Frequently Asked Questions
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When was Clifford most popular? ▼
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What to do with Clifford's data
- Clifford's decade-level peak was the 1920s (31,242 total births); usage has since declined to 842 in the 2020s -- if you're weighing a "classic revival" angle, the trend line argues against it.
- New York records the most Cliffords (13,395 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 Clifford
Nearby Names Like Clifford
Names with a similar sound, spelling, or feel to Clifford
Compare Clifford side by side: Clifford vs Clinton Clifford vs Clifton Clifford vs Clint
Related Names
Names with a similar popularity rank to Clifford
Nationwide names with similar peak year or record span
Two nationwide peer axes for Clifford: closest SSA peak year, and closest first→latest record span. Distinct from the spelling and current-rank neighborhoods above.
Similar peak year (~1925)
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 Clifford 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.