Girls' name · since 1933
Janel
Since 1933, U.S. Social Security records show 12,023 babies named Janel, peaking in 1971. See the year-by-year trend, decade totals, and state rankings below, sourced from federal birth data.
- #1,493 of 72,339
- all-time among girls
- #11,047 of 17,297
- 2025 SSA year
- 12,023
- born since 1933
- 1970s
- peak decade
Yes -- Janel is the #11047 most popular girls' name in the U.S. today, with 12,023 recorded since 1933.
Janel has 12,023 recorded births among girls since 1933, per the U.S. Social Security Administration, ranked #11047 as of the latest data, more common than 36% of girls, busiest in the 1970s -- see the year-by-year trends, decade totals, and state-level distribution below, all drawn directly from SSA birth-registration files spanning 1933 to 2025.
- #1,493 of 72,339 all-time among girls
- #11,047 of 17,297 2025 SSA year
- 12,023 born since 1933
- 1970s peak decade
Data updated Aug 2026
The verdict
According to the U.S. Social Security Administration, Janel ranks #1,493 of 72,339 girls' names by all-time recorded births (highest first) and #11,047 of 17,297 among girls' names in 2025. 12,023 born since 1933, peaking in the 1970s.
- #1,493 of 72,339
- all-time among girls
- #11,047 of 17,297
- 2025 SSA year
- 12,023
- born since 1933
- 1970s
- peak decade
Janel's 12,023 recorded births place it above 97.93% of the 72,339 girls names in the full SSA archive.
38 jurisdictions carry state-level records, led by California.
How Janel compares
12,023 Top 9% higher than 91% 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
Janel's all-time total is 32x the median girls name, and Olivia still leads by a wide margin.
| Metric | Janel | Median girls name (Kyann) | #1 girls name (Olivia) |
|---|---|---|---|
| All-time total births | 12,023 | 376 | 567,345 |
| Peak-year births | 424 | 21 | 19,840 |
Janel's usage pattern, beyond the headline number
Splitting Janel's full recorded timeline at 1979, 49% of its total births fall in the more recent half of the record versus 51% in the earlier half -- a fairly even split across the full record. Its quietest year on record was 1933, with just 5 recorded births -- worth weighing against the 1971 peak of 424 to see the full range of the name's swing in popularity.
Janel popularity over time - girls
Annual U.S. births registered with the Social Security Administration · 1933–2025
- Peak year (1971)
- 424
- Annual births at peak, across 93 years of records
Janel popularity over time - boys
32 total births recorded since 1971 (Janel as boys' name)
Janel by decade
1970s is the heaviest window (3,661 births, 30% of the file).
1970s was Janel's strongest decade.
3,661 babies received the name during that ten-year window, about 30% of all-time use.
Janel births by decade
Total births in each ten-year window
- 1930s 80
1930s
80 births
- 1940s 244
1940s
244 births
- 1950s 913
1950s
913 births
- 1960s
1960s
1,576 births
- 1970s
1970s
3,661 births
- 1980s
1980s
2,628 births
- 1990s
1990s
1,718 births
- 2000s 750
2000s
750 births
- 2010s 347
2010s
347 births
- 2020s 106
2020s
106 births
What this shows Peak: 1970s at 3,661 births (30% of all-time use).
How Janel 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 Janel's total volume
Janel by state
Where Janel concentrates geographically, total births since 1933
| Rank | State | Visual share | Births | Share of total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| #1 | California | | 1,556 | 12.9% |
| #2 | New York | | 730 | 6.1% |
| #3 | Pennsylvania | | 668 | 5.6% |
| #4 | Illinois | | 536 | 4.5% |
| #5 | Michigan | | 528 | 4.4% |
| #6 | Minnesota | | 477 | 4.0% |
| #7 | Texas | | 474 | 3.9% |
| #8 | Ohio | | 436 | 3.6% |
1,556 of 12,023 births nationwide. Compared to a flat distribution across 38 reporting states.
Janel appears in 38 states. Explore state details →
Frequently Asked Questions
How popular is the name Janel? ▼
Where does Janel sit in the SSA name archive? ▼
When was Janel most popular? ▼
Where is Janel most popular? ▼
How long has the name Janel been used? ▼
What names are similar to Janel? ▼
What to do with Janel's data
- Janel's decade-level peak was the 1970s (3,661 total births); usage has since declined to 106 in the 2020s -- if you're weighing a "classic revival" angle, the trend line argues against it.
- California records the most Janels (1,556 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 Janel
Nearby Names Like Janel
Names with a similar sound, spelling, or feel to Janel
Compare Janel side by side: Janel vs Janet Janel vs Janice Janel vs Jane
Related Names
Names with a similar popularity rank to Janel
Nationwide names with similar peak year or record span
Two nationwide peer axes for Janel: closest SSA peak year, and closest first→latest record span. Distinct from the spelling and current-rank neighborhoods above.
Similar peak year (~1971)
Similar record span (~92 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, 1933–2025 (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 Janel 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.