Boys' name · since 1880
Joel
Joel has 279,655 recorded births since 1880 in federal Social Security data, most heavily in 1985 -- full year-by-year trend, decade aggregates, and state rankings follow.
- #135 of 45,481
- all-time among boys
- #219 of 13,930
- 2025 SSA year
- 279,655
- born since 1880
- 1980s
- peak decade
Yes -- Joel is the #219 most popular boys' name in the U.S. today, with 279,655 recorded since 1880.
According to the U.S. Social Security Administration, Joel has been recorded 279,655 times among boys since 1880, currently ranked #219 nationally and more common than 98% of boys, with its heaviest use in the 1980s. 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.
- #135 of 45,481 all-time among boys
- #219 of 13,930 2025 SSA year
- 279,655 born since 1880
- 1980s peak decade
Data updated Aug 2026
The verdict
According to the U.S. Social Security Administration, Joel ranks #135 of 45,481 boys' names by all-time recorded births (highest first) and #219 of 13,930 among boys' names in 2025. 279,655 born since 1880, peaking in the 1980s.
- #135 of 45,481
- all-time among boys
- #219 of 13,930
- 2025 SSA year
- 279,655
- born since 1880
- 1980s
- peak decade
Joel's 279,655 recorded births place it above 99.7% of the 45,481 boys names in the full SSA archive.
51 jurisdictions carry state-level records, led by California.
How Joel compares
279,655 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
Joel's all-time total is 758x the median boys name, and Liam still leads by a wide margin.
| Metric | Joel | Median boys name (Takari) | #1 boys name (Liam) |
|---|---|---|---|
| All-time total births | 279,655 | 369 | 358,536 |
| Peak-year births | 4,623 | 34 | 22,252 |
Joel's usage pattern, beyond the headline number
Splitting Joel's full recorded timeline at 1953, 86% of its total births fall in the more recent half of the record versus 14% in the earlier half -- usage has skewed toward the present, not a one-decade spike. Its quietest year on record was 1891, with just 31 recorded births -- worth weighing against the 1985 peak of 4,623 to see the full range of the name's swing in popularity.
Joel popularity over time - boys
Annual U.S. births registered with the Social Security Administration · 1880–2025
- Peak year (1985)
- 4,623
- Annual births at peak, across 146 years of records
Joel popularity over time - girls
2,595 total births recorded since 1912 (Joel as girls' name)
Joel by decade
1980s is the heaviest window (43,566 births, 16% of the file).
1980s was Joel's strongest decade.
43,566 babies received the name during that ten-year window, about 16% of all-time use.
Joel births by decade
Total births in each ten-year window
- 1880s 497
1880s
497 births
- 1890s 393
1890s
393 births
- 1900s 428
1900s
428 births
- 1910s 2,178
1910s
2,178 births
- 1920s 3,819
1920s
3,819 births
- 1930s 8,689
1930s
8,689 births
- 1940s 17,424
1940s
17,424 births
- 1950s
1950s
27,859 births
- 1960s
1960s
33,832 births
- 1970s
1970s
37,228 births
- 1980s
1980s
43,566 births
- 1990s
1990s
33,804 births
- 2000s
2000s
33,681 births
- 2010s
2010s
25,821 births
- 2020s 10,436
2020s
10,436 births
What this shows Peak: 1980s at 43,566 births (16% of all-time use).
How Joel 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 Joel's total volume
Joel by state
Where Joel concentrates geographically, total births since 1880
| Rank | State | Visual share | Births | Share of total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| #1 | California | | 34,411 | 12.3% |
| #2 | Texas | | 29,787 | 10.7% |
| #3 | New York | | 26,987 | 9.7% |
| #4 | Illinois | | 12,520 | 4.5% |
| #5 | Pennsylvania | | 11,526 | 4.1% |
| #6 | Florida | | 11,114 | 4.0% |
| #7 | Michigan | | 10,440 | 3.7% |
| #8 | Ohio | | 9,452 | 3.4% |
34,411 of 279,655 births nationwide. Compared to a flat distribution across 51 reporting states.
Joel appears in 51 states. Explore state details →
Frequently Asked Questions
How popular is the name Joel? ▼
Where does Joel sit in the SSA name archive? ▼
When was Joel most popular? ▼
Where is Joel most popular? ▼
How long has the name Joel been used? ▼
What names are similar to Joel? ▼
What to do with Joel's data
- Joel's decade-level peak was the 1980s (43,566 total births); usage has since declined to 10,436 in the 2020s -- if you're weighing a "classic revival" angle, the trend line argues against it.
- California records the most Joels (34,411 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 Joel
Nearby Names Like Joel
Names with a similar sound, spelling, or feel to Joel
Compare Joel side by side: Joel vs Joe Joel vs Joey Joel vs Joesph
Related Names
Names with a similar popularity rank to Joel
Nationwide names with similar peak year or record span
Two nationwide peer axes for Joel: closest SSA peak year, and closest first→latest record span. Distinct from the spelling and current-rank neighborhoods above.
Similar peak year (~1985)
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 Joel 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.