Boys' name · since 1886

Cole

Since 1886, U.S. Social Security records show 154,093 babies named Cole, peaking in 2002. See the year-by-year trend, decade totals, and state rankings below, sourced from federal birth data.

#225 of 45,481
all-time among boys
#182 of 13,930
2025 SSA year
154,093
born since 1886
2000s
peak decade

154,093 babies have been named Cole since 1886, making it today's #182 boys' name.

According to the U.S. Social Security Administration, Cole has been recorded 154,093 times among boys since 1886, currently ranked #182 nationally and more common than 99% of boys, with its heaviest use in the 2000s. This profile covers year-by-year birth trends, decade totals, and state-level distribution, all derived directly from SSA birth-registration files spanning 1886 to 2025.

  • #225 of 45,481 all-time among boys
  • #182 of 13,930 2025 SSA year
  • 154,093 born since 1886
  • 2000s peak decade

Data updated Aug 2026

The verdict

According to the U.S. Social Security Administration, Cole ranks #225 of 45,481 boys' names by all-time recorded births (highest first) and #182 of 13,930 among boys' names in 2025. 154,093 born since 1886, peaking in the 2000s.

#225 of 45,481
all-time among boys
#182 of 13,930
2025 SSA year
154,093
born since 1886
2000s
peak decade
0%100%Median name50%98.6%
Cole vs. every other boys name in current SSA rankings
Upper archive tier
All-time archive position

Cole's 154,093 recorded births place it above 99.5% of the 45,481 boys names in the full SSA archive.

51 jurisdictions
State-record footprint

51 jurisdictions carry state-level records, led by California.

How Cole compares

154,093 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

Cole's all-time total is 418x the median boys name, and Liam still leads by a wide margin.

Metric Cole Median boys name (Takari) #1 boys name (Liam)
All-time total births 154,093 369 358,536
Peak-year births 6,038 34 22,252

Cole's usage pattern, beyond the headline number

Cole splits its recorded history at 1965: 99% of all births land in the more recent half, 1% in the earlier half, a lean toward present-day use rather than a passing spike. The single quietest year was 1899 (5 births) -- compare that against the 2002 peak of 6,038 for a sense of just how much the name's popularity has swung.

Cole popularity over time - boys

Annual U.S. births registered with the Social Security Administration · 1886–2025

Top 1,000 boys' name
Peak year (2002)
6,038
Annual births at peak, across 140 years of records
02,0004,0006,0008,000 188619211937195319691985200120172025 2,003

Cole popularity over time - girls

553 total births recorded since 1980 (Cole as girls' name)

Unisex variant - 553 births
010203040 198019881994200020062012201820242025 6

Cole by decade

2000s is the heaviest window (56,846 births, 37% of the file).

2000s was Cole's strongest decade.

56,846 babies received the name during that ten-year window, about 37% of all-time use.

Cole births by decade

Total births in each ten-year window

births

What this shows Peak: 2000s at 56,846 births (37% of all-time use).

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

How Cole 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 Cole's total volume

Cole vs 15 similarly-sized boys names Scatter plot of 16 data points. 1%2%3%4%5%6% 6080100120140160 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 -146, 2.3%-146, 5.3%-146, 3.1%-146, 1.8%-146, 3.7%-146, 1.7%-113, 4.3%-79, 4%-129, 1.9%-146, 1.6%-115, 3.1%-146, 2.3%-100, 3%-146, 4.8%-140, 3%Cole-140, 3.9%Cole
Cole vs 15 similarly-sized boys names

Cole by state

Where Cole concentrates geographically, total births since 1886

Geographically diffuse
Top 8 states by recorded births for the name Cole
Rank State Visual share Births Share of total
#1 California
14,093 9.1%
#2 Texas
9,824 6.4%
#3 Pennsylvania
8,263 5.4%
#4 Ohio
7,120 4.6%
#5 New York
6,573 4.3%
#6 Illinois
6,341 4.1%
#7 Florida
5,934 3.9%
#8 Michigan
5,385 3.5%
California share of Cole's total US births 9.1%
Even split

14,093 of 154,093 births nationwide. Compared to a flat distribution across 51 reporting states.

Cole appears in 51 states. Explore state details →

Frequently Asked Questions

How popular is the name Cole? ▼
154,093 babies have been named Cole since 1886. All-time, it sits at #225 of 45,481 boys' names by recorded births. In 2025, it ranks #182 of 13,930 among boys. The peak year was 2002 with 6,038 births.
Where does Cole sit in the SSA name archive? ▼
According to the U.S. Social Security Administration, Cole ranks #225 of 45,481 boys' names by all-time recorded births (highest first) and #182 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 Cole most popular? ▼
Cole was most popular in the 2000s decade with 56,846 total births. The single peak year was 2002.
Where is Cole most popular? ▼
The top states for the name Cole are California (14,093 births), Texas (9,824 births), Pennsylvania (8,263 births).
How long has the name Cole been used? ▼
Records for Cole go back to 1886, giving 140 years of history through 2025.
What names are similar to Cole? ▼
Names with a similar sound or spelling include Colton, Colin, Collin, Colby, and 4 more. These share a common prefix and are also used for boys.

What to do with Cole's data

  • Cole's decade-level peak was the 2000s (56,846 total births); usage has since declined to 14,823 in the 2020s -- if you're weighing a "classic revival" angle, the trend line argues against it.
  • California records the most Coles (14,093 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 Cole

Nearby Names Like Cole

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

Colton Boy
#103 151,965 births
Colin Boy
#343 133,706 births
Collin Boy
#493 81,437 births
Colby Boy
#615 53,971 births
Colt Boy
#285 27,869 births

Compare Cole side by side: Cole vs Colton Cole vs Colin Cole vs Collin

Or pick any two names to compare →

Related Names

Names with a similar popularity rank to Cole

Tucker #181
55,150 births · Peak 2014
Ryker #183
41,204 births · Peak 2018
Max #180
167,458 births · Peak 2009
Jesse #184
432,428 births · Peak 1981
Emmanuel #179
91,079 births · Peak 2008
Amari #185
31,994 births · Peak 2023
Judah #178
35,578 births · Peak 2021
Aziel #186
8,721 births · Peak 2025

Nationwide names with similar peak year or record span

Two nationwide peer axes for Cole: 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, 1886–2025 (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 Cole 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.