Total births
988,227
Boys' name · since 1880
Jacob
988,227 babies named Jacob in U.S. Social Security records since 1880, with the highest year being 1998. Year-by-year trend, decade aggregates, and state-level rankings drawn from federal birth data.
- #40
- among boys today
- 988,227
- born since 1880
- 1990s
- peak decade
- 99.7%
- more common than other boys
Jacob currently ranks #40 among boys' names in America, with 988,227 babies recorded since 1880.
Social Security Administration records show Jacob recorded 988,227 times among boys since 1880, holding rank #40 nationally today, ahead of 99.7% of boys, peaking in the 1990s. This profile derives year-by-year birth trends, decade totals, and state-level distribution directly from SSA birth-registration files spanning 1880 to 2025.
- #40 among boys today
- 988,227 born since 1880
- 1990s peak decade
- 99.7% more common than other boys
Data updated Jun 2026
The verdict
Jacob is currently the #40 boys' name in America, more common than 99.7% of boys - 988,227 born since 1880, peaking in the 1990s.
- #40
- among boys today
- 988,227
- born since 1880
- 1990s
- peak decade
- 99.7%
- more common than other boys
Jacob vs. every other boys name in current SSA rankings
#40
of 14,294 boys in use
More common than 99.7% of names given to boys today.
1990s
Peak decade
30% of everyone ever named Jacob was born in this single decade.
1998
Single peak year
36,031 babies were named Jacob in 1998 - its busiest year on record.
How Jacob compares
988,227 Top 0% higher than 100% of 14,294 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
Jacob's all-time total is 2,693x the median boys name, and Liam still leads by a wide margin.
| Metric | Jacob | Median boys name (Elchonon) | #1 boys name (Liam) |
|---|---|---|---|
| All-time total births | 988,227 | 367 | 358,536 |
| Peak-year births | 36,031 | 23 | 22,252 |
Jacob's usage pattern, beyond the headline number
Splitting Jacob's full recorded timeline at 1953, 96% of its total births fall in the more recent half of the record versus 4% in the earlier half -- usage has skewed toward the present, not a one-decade spike. Its quietest year on record was 1901, with just 172 recorded births -- worth weighing against the 1998 peak of 36,031 to see the full range of the name's swing in popularity.
Jacob at a glance
Top 100 boys' namePeak year
1998
Current rank
#40
Active since
1880
Jacob popularity over time - boys
Annual U.S. births registered with the Social Security Administration · 1880–2025
- Peak year (1998)
- 36,031
- Annual births at peak, across 146 years of records
Jacob popularity over time - girls
2,305 total births recorded since 1911 (Jacob as girls' name)
Jacob by decade
Total births in each ten-year window, peak vs trough at a glance
1990s was Jacob's strongest decade.
298,415 babies received the name during that ten-year window, about 30% of all-time use.
Jacob births by decade
Total births in each ten-year window
- 1880s 3,566
1880s
3,566 births
- 1890s 2,551
1890s
2,551 births
- 1900s 2,191
1900s
2,191 births
- 1910s 8,684
1910s
8,684 births
- 1920s 9,047
1920s
9,047 births
- 1930s 5,264
1930s
5,264 births
- 1940s 4,853
1940s
4,853 births
- 1950s 5,400
1950s
5,400 births
- 1960s 5,075
1960s
5,075 births
- 1970s 36,351
1970s
36,351 births
- 1980s
1980s
124,254 births
- 1990s
1990s
298,415 births
- 2000s
2000s
274,077 births
- 2010s
2010s
163,321 births
- 2020s 45,178
2020s
45,178 births
What this shows Peak: 1990s at 298,415 births (30% of all-time use).
How Jacob 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 Jacob's total volume
Jacob vs 15 similarly-sized boys names
Jacob by state
Where Jacob concentrates geographically, total births since 1880
| Rank | State | Visual share | Births | Share of total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| #1 | California | | 110,946 | 11.2% |
| #2 | Texas | | 82,859 | 8.4% |
| #3 | New York | | 52,853 | 5.3% |
| #4 | Ohio | | 46,247 | 4.7% |
| #5 | Illinois | | 43,199 | 4.4% |
| #6 | Florida | | 40,649 | 4.1% |
| #7 | Michigan | | 40,440 | 4.1% |
| #8 | Pennsylvania | | 40,402 | 4.1% |
California share of Jacob's total US births 11.2%
Even split
110,946 of 988,227 births nationwide. Compared to a flat distribution across 51 reporting states.
Jacob appears in 51 states. Explore state details →
Frequently Asked Questions
How popular is the name Jacob? ▼
Jacob has been given to 988,227 babies in the U.S. since 1880, according to SSA data. Among boys, it ranks #40 as of the latest data. 36,031 babies were born in 1998, its single highest year.
When was Jacob most popular? ▼
Jacob was most popular in the 1990s decade with 298,415 total births. The single peak year was 1998.
Where is Jacob most popular? ▼
The top states for the name Jacob are California (110,946 births), Texas (82,859 births), New York (52,853 births).
How long has the name Jacob been used? ▼
Jacob has been recorded in Social Security data since 1880, spanning 146 years of data through 2025.
What names are similar to Jacob? ▼
Names with a similar sound or spelling include Jack, Jackson, Jace, Jackie, and 4 more. These share a common prefix and are also used for boys.
What to do with Jacob's data
- Jacob's decade-level peak was the 1990s (298,415 total births); usage has since declined to 45,178 in the 2020s -- if you're weighing a "classic revival" angle, the trend line argues against it.
- California records the most Jacobs (110,946 births) -- see the full state breakdown if geography matters to your decision. California names
- Weighing it against an alternative? Put two names side by side. Compare names
Figures reflect SSA-reported births only; see the methodology above for the privacy-suppression floor.
Keep exploring Jacob
Nearby Names Like Jacob
Names with a similar sound, spelling, or feel to Jacob
Jack Boy
#15 756,943 births
Jackson Boy
#35 297,220 births
Jace Boy
#114 91,544 births
Jackie Boy
#2877 78,900 births
Jacoby Boy
#1322 11,161 births
Compare Jacob side by side: Jacob vs Jack Jacob vs Jackson Jacob vs Jace
Related Names
Names with a similar popularity rank to Jacob
Thomas #39
2,358,576 births · Peak 1952
Isaac #41
331,508 births · Peak 2007
Wyatt #38
208,452 births · Peak 2017
Mason #42
342,583 births · Peak 2011
Miles #37
122,868 births · Peak 2024
Gabriel #43
395,778 births · Peak 2008
Maverick #36
70,604 births · Peak 2022
Anthony #44
1,488,042 births · Peak 1990
Data Sources
Data as of June 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).
Cite this page
NameAlmanac Editorial. "Jacob: #40 Boys' Name - 988,227 Births, Peak 1998." NameAlmanac. Accessed via https://namealmanac.com/name/jacob. Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.
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 Jacob 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 June 2026.