Girls' name · since 1880

Grace

534,935 babies named Grace in U.S. Social Security records since 1880, with the highest year being 2003. Year-by-year trend, decade aggregates, and state-level rankings drawn from federal birth data.

#58 of 72,339
all-time among girls
#38 of 17,297
2025 SSA year
534,935
born since 1880
2000s
peak decade

Grace currently ranks #38 among girls' names in America, with 534,935 babies recorded since 1880.

According to the U.S. Social Security Administration, Grace has been recorded 534,935 times among girls since 1880, currently ranked #38 nationally and more common than 99.8% of girls, 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 1880 to 2025.

  • #58 of 72,339 all-time among girls
  • #38 of 17,297 2025 SSA year
  • 534,935 born since 1880
  • 2000s peak decade

Data updated Aug 2026

The verdict

According to the U.S. Social Security Administration, Grace ranks #58 of 72,339 girls' names by all-time recorded births (highest first) and #38 of 17,297 among girls' names in 2025. 534,935 born since 1880, peaking in the 2000s.

#58 of 72,339
all-time among girls
#38 of 17,297
2025 SSA year
534,935
born since 1880
2000s
peak decade
0%100%Median name50%99.7%
Grace vs. every other girls name in current SSA rankings
Upper archive tier
All-time archive position

Grace's 534,935 recorded births place it above 99.91% of the 72,339 girls names in the full SSA archive.

51 jurisdictions
State-record footprint

51 jurisdictions carry state-level records, led by New York.

How Grace compares

534,935 Top 1% higher than 99% of 17,297 names currently given to girls

Based on all-time total births among currently-ranked girls 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

Grace's all-time total is 1,423x the median girls name, and Olivia still leads by a wide margin.

Metric Grace Median girls name (Kyann) #1 girls name (Olivia)
All-time total births 534,935 376 567,345
Peak-year births 12,781 21 19,840

Grace's usage pattern, beyond the headline number

Grace splits its recorded history at 1953: 55% of all births land in the more recent half, 45% in the earlier half, an evenly balanced pattern over time. The single quietest year was 1976 (526 births) -- compare that against the 2003 peak of 12,781 for a sense of just how much the name's popularity has swung.

Grace popularity over time - girls

Annual U.S. births registered with the Social Security Administration · 1880–2025

Top 100 girls' name
Peak year (2003)
12,781
Annual births at peak, across 146 years of records
05,00010,00015,000 188018991918193719561975199420132025 5,127

Grace popularity over time - boys

1,405 total births recorded since 1880 (Grace as boys' name)

Unisex variant - 1,405 births
01020304050 188018991914192919441968199920142025 12

Grace by decade

2000s is the heaviest window (110,720 births, 21% of the file).

2000s was Grace's strongest decade.

110,720 babies received the name during that ten-year window, about 21% of all-time use.

Grace births by decade

Total births in each ten-year window

births

What this shows Peak: 2000s at 110,720 births (21% of all-time use).

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

How Grace compares to similarly-sized names

Years in SSA records vs. share of all-time use concentrated in the single peak year, among 15 girls names closest to Grace's total volume

Grace vs 15 similarly-sized girls names Scatter plot of 16 data points. 0%2%4%6%8%10% 110120130140150 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, 2.4%-146, 2.4%-112, 4.6%-112, 9.2%-128, 4.5%-146, 1.9%-146, 3.3%-146, 3.7%-146, 3.6%-144, 3.3%-146, 1.8%-146, 3.5%-146, 2%-146, 2.9%-146, 3%Grace-146, 2.4%Grace
Grace vs 15 similarly-sized girls names

Grace by state

Where Grace concentrates geographically, total births since 1880

Geographically diffuse
Top 8 states by recorded births for the name Grace
Rank State Visual share Births Share of total
#1 New York
44,957 8.4%
#2 California
36,398 6.8%
#3 Pennsylvania
34,067 6.4%
#4 Texas
24,577 4.6%
#5 Illinois
24,176 4.5%
#6 Ohio
21,606 4.0%
#7 Michigan
18,276 3.4%
#8 New Jersey
17,464 3.3%
New York share of Grace's total US births 8.4%
Even split

44,957 of 534,935 births nationwide. Compared to a flat distribution across 51 reporting states.

Grace appears in 51 states. Explore state details →

Frequently Asked Questions

How popular is the name Grace?
534,935 babies have been named Grace since 1880. All-time, it sits at #58 of 72,339 girls' names by recorded births. In 2025, it ranks #38 of 17,297 among girls. The peak year was 2003 with 12,781 births.
Where does Grace sit in the SSA name archive?
According to the U.S. Social Security Administration, Grace ranks #58 of 72,339 girls' names by all-time recorded births (highest first) and #38 of 17,297 among girls' 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 Grace most popular?
Grace was most popular in the 2000s decade with 110,720 total births. The single peak year was 2003.
Where is Grace most popular?
The top states for the name Grace are New York (44,957 births), California (36,398 births), Pennsylvania (34,067 births).
How long has the name Grace been used?
Grace has been recorded in Social Security data since 1880, spanning 146 years of data through 2025.
What names are similar to Grace?
Names with a similar sound or spelling include Gracie, Graciela, Gracelyn, Gracelynn, and 4 more. These share a common prefix and are also used for girls.

What to do with Grace's data

  • Grace's decade-level peak was the 2000s (110,720 total births); usage has since declined to 31,533 in the 2020s -- if you're weighing a "classic revival" angle, the trend line argues against it.
  • New York records the most Graces (44,957 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 Grace

Nearby Names Like Grace

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

Names with a similar popularity rank to Grace

Nationwide names with similar peak year or record span

Two nationwide peer axes for Grace: 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, 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 Grace 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.