Boys' name · since 1880
Donald
Since 1880, U.S. Social Security records show 1,414,824 babies named Donald, peaking in 1934. See the year-by-year trend, decade totals, and state rankings below, sourced from federal birth data.
- #16 of 45,481
- all-time among boys
- #690 of 13,930
- 2025 SSA year
- 1,414,824
- born since 1880
- 1930s
- peak decade
1,414,824 babies have been named Donald since 1880, making it today's #690 boys' name.
According to the U.S. Social Security Administration, Donald has been recorded 1,414,824 times among boys since 1880, currently ranked #690 nationally and more common than 95% of boys, with its heaviest use in the 1930s. This profile covers year-by-year birth trends, decade totals, and state-level distribution, all derived directly from SSA birth-registration files spanning 1880 to 2025.
- #16 of 45,481 all-time among boys
- #690 of 13,930 2025 SSA year
- 1,414,824 born since 1880
- 1930s peak decade
Data updated Aug 2026
The verdict
According to the U.S. Social Security Administration, Donald ranks #16 of 45,481 boys' names by all-time recorded births (highest first) and #690 of 13,930 among boys' names in 2025. 1,414,824 born since 1880, peaking in the 1930s.
- #16 of 45,481
- all-time among boys
- #690 of 13,930
- 2025 SSA year
- 1,414,824
- born since 1880
- 1930s
- peak decade
Donald's 1,414,824 recorded births place it above 99.96% of the 45,481 boys names in the full SSA archive.
51 jurisdictions carry state-level records, led by New York.
How Donald compares
1,414,824 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
Donald's all-time total is 3,834x the median boys name, and Liam still leads by a wide margin.
| Metric | Donald | Median boys name (Takari) | #1 boys name (Liam) |
|---|---|---|---|
| All-time total births | 1,414,824 | 369 | 358,536 |
| Peak-year births | 30,408 | 34 | 22,252 |
Donald's usage pattern, beyond the headline number
Donald splits its recorded history at 1953: 38% of all births land in the more recent half, 62% in the earlier half, leaning more toward its earlier era than today's. The single quietest year was 1881 (27 births) -- compare that against the 1934 peak of 30,408 for a sense of just how much the name's popularity has swung.
Donald popularity over time - boys
Annual U.S. births registered with the Social Security Administration · 1880–2025
- Peak year (1934)
- 30,408
- Annual births at peak, across 146 years of records
Donald popularity over time - girls
5,563 total births recorded since 1890 (Donald as girls' name)
Donald by decade
1930s is the heaviest window (283,718 births, 20% of the file).
1930s was Donald's strongest decade.
283,718 babies received the name during that ten-year window, about 20% of all-time use.
Donald births by decade
Total births in each ten-year window
- 1880s 548
1880s
548 births
- 1890s 1,786
1890s
1,786 births
- 1900s 4,632
1900s
4,632 births
- 1910s 57,001
1910s
57,001 births
- 1920s
1920s
191,816 births
- 1930s
1930s
283,718 births
- 1940s
1940s
247,834 births
- 1950s
1950s
273,574 births
- 1960s
1960s
172,628 births
- 1970s 82,435
1970s
82,435 births
- 1980s 50,843
1980s
50,843 births
- 1990s 26,756
1990s
26,756 births
- 2000s 12,005
2000s
12,005 births
- 2010s 6,709
2010s
6,709 births
- 2020s 2,539
2020s
2,539 births
What this shows Peak: 1930s at 283,718 births (20% of all-time use).
How Donald 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 Donald's total volume
Donald by state
Where Donald concentrates geographically, total births since 1880
| Rank | State | Visual share | Births | Share of total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| #1 | New York | | 105,217 | 7.4% |
| #2 | Pennsylvania | | 102,176 | 7.2% |
| #3 | Ohio | | 95,634 | 6.8% |
| #4 | Illinois | | 90,385 | 6.4% |
| #5 | California | | 85,526 | 6.0% |
| #6 | Michigan | | 77,069 | 5.4% |
| #7 | Texas | | 52,580 | 3.7% |
| #8 | Indiana | | 46,822 | 3.3% |
105,217 of 1,414,824 births nationwide. Compared to a flat distribution across 51 reporting states.
Donald appears in 51 states. Explore state details →
Frequently Asked Questions
How popular is the name Donald? ▼
Where does Donald sit in the SSA name archive? ▼
When was Donald most popular? ▼
Where is Donald most popular? ▼
How long has the name Donald been used? ▼
What names are similar to Donald? ▼
What to do with Donald's data
- Donald's decade-level peak was the 1930s (283,718 total births); usage has since declined to 2,539 in the 2020s -- if you're weighing a "classic revival" angle, the trend line argues against it.
- New York records the most Donalds (105,217 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 Donald
Nearby Names Like Donald
Names with a similar sound, spelling, or feel to Donald
Compare Donald side by side: Donald vs Don Donald vs Donovan Donald vs Donnie
Related Names
Names with a similar popularity rank to Donald
Nationwide names with similar peak year or record span
Two nationwide peer axes for Donald: closest SSA peak year, and closest first→latest record span. Distinct from the spelling and current-rank neighborhoods above.
Similar peak year (~1934)
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 Donald 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.