Total births
556,776
Girls' name · since 1880
Janet
556,776 babies named Janet in U.S. Social Security records since 1880, with the highest year being 1954. Year-by-year trend, decade aggregates, and state-level rankings drawn from federal birth data.
- #2435
- among girls today
- 556,776
- born since 1880
- 1950s
- peak decade
- 86%
- more common than other girls
556,776 babies have been named Janet since 1880, making it today's #2435 girls' name.
According to the U.S. Social Security Administration, Janet has been recorded 556,776 times among girls since 1880, currently ranked #2435 nationally and more common than 86% of girls, with its heaviest use in the 1950s. 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.
- #2435 among girls today
- 556,776 born since 1880
- 1950s peak decade
- 86% more common than other girls
Data updated Jun 2026
The verdict
Janet is currently the #2435 girls' name in America, more common than 86% of girls - 556,776 born since 1880, peaking in the 1950s.
- #2435
- among girls today
- 556,776
- born since 1880
- 1950s
- peak decade
- 86%
- more common than other girls
Janet vs. every other girls name in current SSA rankings
#2435
of 17,726 girls in use
More common than 86% of names given to girls today.
1950s
Peak decade
30% of everyone ever named Janet was born in this single decade.
1954
Single peak year
18,477 babies were named Janet in 1954 - its busiest year on record.
How Janet compares
556,776 Top 0% higher than 100% of 17,726 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
Janet's all-time total is 1,458x the median girls name, and Olivia still leads by a wide margin.
| Metric | Janet | Median girls name (Emerly) | #1 girls name (Olivia) |
|---|---|---|---|
| All-time total births | 556,776 | 382 | 567,345 |
| Peak-year births | 18,477 | 48 | 19,840 |
Janet's usage pattern, beyond the headline number
Divide Janet's SSA record in two at 1953 and the more recent half accounts for 47% of all births, the earlier half the remaining 53%, a genuinely balanced usage pattern. Its calmest year was 1880, with only 28 births recorded -- set against the 1954 peak of 18,477, that's the full swing in one name's fortunes.
Janet at a glance
Outside the top 1,000Peak year
1954
Current rank
#2,435
Active since
1880
Janet popularity over time - girls
Annual U.S. births registered with the Social Security Administration · 1880–2025
- Peak year (1954)
- 18,477
- Annual births at peak, across 146 years of records
Janet popularity over time - boys
1,515 total births recorded since 1917 (Janet as boys' name)
Janet by decade
Total births in each ten-year window, peak vs trough at a glance
1950s was Janet's strongest decade.
167,520 babies received the name during that ten-year window, about 30% of all-time use.
Janet births by decade
Total births in each ten-year window
- 1880s 461
1880s
461 births
- 1890s 898
1890s
898 births
- 1900s 1,541
1900s
1,541 births
- 1910s 10,713
1910s
10,713 births
- 1920s 23,973
1920s
23,973 births
- 1930s
1930s
76,038 births
- 1940s
1940s
130,755 births
- 1950s
1950s
167,520 births
- 1960s
1960s
89,315 births
- 1970s 24,454
1970s
24,454 births
- 1980s 13,520
1980s
13,520 births
- 1990s 9,660
1990s
9,660 births
- 2000s 5,501
2000s
5,501 births
- 2010s 1,906
2010s
1,906 births
- 2020s 521
2020s
521 births
What this shows Peak: 1950s at 167,520 births (30% of all-time use).
How Janet 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 Janet's total volume
Janet vs 15 similarly-sized girls names
Janet by state
Where Janet concentrates geographically, total births since 1880
| Rank | State | Visual share | Births | Share of total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| #1 | New York | | 47,963 | 8.6% |
| #2 | California | | 44,840 | 8.1% |
| #3 | Pennsylvania | | 42,597 | 7.7% |
| #4 | Illinois | | 36,669 | 6.6% |
| #5 | Ohio | | 36,519 | 6.6% |
| #6 | Michigan | | 29,164 | 5.2% |
| #7 | Texas | | 20,749 | 3.7% |
| #8 | Massachusetts | | 19,583 | 3.5% |
New York share of Janet's total US births 8.6%
Even split
47,963 of 556,776 births nationwide. Compared to a flat distribution across 51 reporting states.
Janet appears in 51 states. Explore state details →
Frequently Asked Questions
How popular is the name Janet? ▼
556,776 babies have been named Janet since 1880. It currently ranks #2435 among girls. The peak year was 1954 with 18,477 births.
When was Janet most popular? ▼
Janet was most popular in the 1950s decade with 167,520 total births. The single peak year was 1954.
Where is Janet most popular? ▼
The top states for the name Janet are New York (47,963 births), California (44,840 births), Pennsylvania (42,597 births).
How long has the name Janet been used? ▼
Janet has been recorded in Social Security data since 1880, spanning 146 years of data through 2025.
What names are similar to Janet? ▼
Names with a similar sound or spelling include Janice, Jane, Janie, Janelle, and 4 more. These share a common prefix and are also used for girls.
What to do with Janet's data
- Janet's decade-level peak was the 1950s (167,520 total births); usage has since declined to 521 in the 2020s -- if you're weighing a "classic revival" angle, the trend line argues against it.
- New York records the most Janets (47,963 births) -- see the full state breakdown if geography matters to your decision. New York 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 Janet
Nearby Names Like Janet
Names with a similar sound, spelling, or feel to Janet
Janice Girl
#2250 406,448 births
Jane Girl
#269 379,876 births
Janie Girl
#1536 75,598 births
Janelle Girl
#776 56,881 births
Jan Girl
54,531 births
Compare Janet side by side: Janet vs Janice Janet vs Jane Janet vs Janie
Related Names
Names with a similar popularity rank to Janet
Minerva #2434
15,823 births · Peak 1955
Leonie #2436
2,231 births · Peak 2025
Aerith #2433
781 births · Peak 2025
Tracy #2437
251,393 births · Peak 1970
Amour #2432
866 births · Peak 2022
Valarie #2438
18,714 births · Peak 1964
Navie #2431
597 births · Peak 2021
Annemarie #2439
12,383 births · Peak 1968
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. "Janet: #2435 Girls' Name - 556,776 Births, Peak 1954." NameAlmanac. Accessed via https://namealmanac.com/name/janet. 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 Janet 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.