Boys' name · since 1881
Craig
Craig has 299,616 recorded births since 1881 in federal Social Security data, most heavily in 1960 -- full year-by-year trend, decade aggregates, and state rankings follow.
- #122 of 45,481
- all-time among boys
- #1,646 of 13,930
- 2025 SSA year
- 299,616
- born since 1881
- 1960s
- peak decade
299,616 babies have been named Craig since 1881, making it today's #1646 boys' name.
Social Security Administration records show Craig recorded 299,616 times among boys since 1881, holding rank #1646 nationally today, ahead of 88% of boys, peaking in the 1960s. This profile derives year-by-year birth trends, decade totals, and state-level distribution directly from SSA birth-registration files spanning 1881 to 2025.
- #122 of 45,481 all-time among boys
- #1,646 of 13,930 2025 SSA year
- 299,616 born since 1881
- 1960s peak decade
Data updated Aug 2026
The verdict
According to the U.S. Social Security Administration, Craig ranks #122 of 45,481 boys' names by all-time recorded births (highest first) and #1,646 of 13,930 among boys' names in 2025. 299,616 born since 1881, peaking in the 1960s.
- #122 of 45,481
- all-time among boys
- #1,646 of 13,930
- 2025 SSA year
- 299,616
- born since 1881
- 1960s
- peak decade
Craig's 299,616 recorded births place it above 99.73% of the 45,481 boys names in the full SSA archive.
51 jurisdictions carry state-level records, led by California.
How Craig compares
299,616 Top 1% higher than 99% 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
Craig's all-time total is 812x the median boys name, and Liam still leads by a wide margin.
| Metric | Craig | Median boys name (Takari) | #1 boys name (Liam) |
|---|---|---|---|
| All-time total births | 299,616 | 369 | 358,536 |
| Peak-year births | 10,724 | 34 | 22,252 |
Craig's usage pattern, beyond the headline number
Craig splits its recorded history at 1959: 72% of all births land in the more recent half, 28% in the earlier half, a lean toward present-day use rather than a passing spike. The single quietest year was 1881 (5 births) -- compare that against the 1960 peak of 10,724 for a sense of just how much the name's popularity has swung.
Craig popularity over time - boys
Annual U.S. births registered with the Social Security Administration · 1881–2025
- Peak year (1960)
- 10,724
- Annual births at peak, across 145 years of records
Craig popularity over time - girls
1,012 total births recorded since 1918 (Craig as girls' name)
Craig by decade
1960s is the heaviest window (84,712 births, 28% of the file).
1960s was Craig's strongest decade.
84,712 babies received the name during that ten-year window, about 28% of all-time use.
Craig births by decade
Total births in each ten-year window
- 1880s 17
1880s
17 births
- 1890s 30
1890s
30 births
- 1900s 78
1900s
78 births
- 1910s 454
1910s
454 births
- 1920s 907
1920s
907 births
- 1930s 1,946
1930s
1,946 births
- 1940s 20,289
1940s
20,289 births
- 1950s
1950s
69,481 births
- 1960s
1960s
84,712 births
- 1970s
1970s
58,787 births
- 1980s
1980s
38,095 births
- 1990s 16,105
1990s
16,105 births
- 2000s 5,543
2000s
5,543 births
- 2010s 2,472
2010s
2,472 births
- 2020s 700
2020s
700 births
What this shows Peak: 1960s at 84,712 births (28% of all-time use).
How Craig 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 Craig's total volume
Craig by state
Where Craig concentrates geographically, total births since 1881
| Rank | State | Visual share | Births | Share of total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| #1 | California | | 30,273 | 10.1% |
| #2 | New York | | 24,546 | 8.2% |
| #3 | Pennsylvania | | 18,510 | 6.2% |
| #4 | Ohio | | 18,251 | 6.1% |
| #5 | Michigan | | 17,741 | 5.9% |
| #6 | Illinois | | 16,915 | 5.6% |
| #7 | Texas | | 12,210 | 4.1% |
| #8 | New Jersey | | 10,248 | 3.4% |
30,273 of 299,616 births nationwide. Compared to a flat distribution across 51 reporting states.
Craig appears in 51 states. Explore state details →
Frequently Asked Questions
How popular is the name Craig? ▼
Where does Craig sit in the SSA name archive? ▼
When was Craig most popular? ▼
Where is Craig most popular? ▼
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What to do with Craig's data
- Craig's decade-level peak was the 1960s (84,712 total births); usage has since declined to 700 in the 2020s -- if you're weighing a "classic revival" angle, the trend line argues against it.
- California records the most Craigs (30,273 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 Craig
Nearby Names Like Craig
Names with a similar sound, spelling, or feel to Craig
Compare Craig side by side: Craig vs Crawford Craig vs Crayton Craig vs Craige
Related Names
Names with a similar popularity rank to Craig
Nationwide names with similar peak year or record span
Two nationwide peer axes for Craig: closest SSA peak year, and closest first→latest record span. Distinct from the spelling and current-rank neighborhoods above.
Similar peak year (~1960)
Similar record span (~144 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, 1881–2025 (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 Craig 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.