Boys' name · since 1880

Johnny

Since 1880, U.S. Social Security records show 317,918 babies named Johnny, peaking in 1947. See the year-by-year trend, decade totals, and state rankings below, sourced from federal birth data.

#109 of 45,481
all-time among boys
#458 of 13,930
2025 SSA year
317,918
born since 1880
1950s
peak decade

317,918 babies have been named Johnny since 1880, making it today's #458 boys' name.

Social Security Administration records show Johnny recorded 317,918 times among boys since 1880, holding rank #458 nationally today, ahead of 97% of boys, peaking in the 1950s. This profile derives year-by-year birth trends, decade totals, and state-level distribution directly from SSA birth-registration files spanning 1880 to 2025.

  • #109 of 45,481 all-time among boys
  • #458 of 13,930 2025 SSA year
  • 317,918 born since 1880
  • 1950s peak decade

Data updated Aug 2026

The verdict

According to the U.S. Social Security Administration, Johnny ranks #109 of 45,481 boys' names by all-time recorded births (highest first) and #458 of 13,930 among boys' names in 2025. 317,918 born since 1880, peaking in the 1950s.

#109 of 45,481
all-time among boys
#458 of 13,930
2025 SSA year
317,918
born since 1880
1950s
peak decade
0%100%Median name50%96.7%
Johnny vs. every other boys name in current SSA rankings
Upper archive tier
All-time archive position

Johnny's 317,918 recorded births place it above 99.76% of the 45,481 boys names in the full SSA archive.

50 jurisdictions
State-record footprint

50 jurisdictions carry state-level records, led by Texas.

How Johnny compares

317,918 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

Johnny's all-time total is 862x the median boys name, and Liam still leads by a wide margin.

Metric Johnny Median boys name (Takari) #1 boys name (Liam)
All-time total births 317,918 369 358,536
Peak-year births 7,441 34 22,252

Johnny's usage pattern, beyond the headline number

Splitting Johnny's full recorded timeline at 1953, 63% of its total births fall in the more recent half of the record versus 37% in the earlier half -- usage has skewed toward the present, not a one-decade spike. Its quietest year on record was 1881, with just 13 recorded births -- worth weighing against the 1947 peak of 7,441 to see the full range of the name's swing in popularity.

Johnny popularity over time - boys

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

Top 1,000 boys' name
Peak year (1947)
7,441
Annual births at peak, across 146 years of records
02,0004,0006,0008,000 188018991918193719561975199420132025 682

Johnny popularity over time - girls

3,778 total births recorded since 1896 (Johnny as girls' name)

Unisex variant - 3,778 births
020406080100 189619201936195219681984200020162025 8

Johnny by decade

1950s is the heaviest window (65,786 births, 21% of the file).

1950s was Johnny's strongest decade.

65,786 babies received the name during that ten-year window, about 21% of all-time use.

Johnny births by decade

Total births in each ten-year window

births

What this shows Peak: 1950s at 65,786 births (21% of all-time use).

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

How Johnny 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 Johnny's total volume

Johnny vs 15 similarly-sized boys names Scatter plot of 16 data points. 1%2%3%4%5%6% 80100120140160 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, 4.2%-146, 1.9%-126, 2.5%-146, 2.3%-146, 3.3%-144, 4.1%-146, 1.9%-146, 3.6%-146, 3.7%-146, 2.2%-95, 4.2%-111, 5%-146, 1.3%-145, 3.9%-146, 3.1%Johnny-146, 2.3%Johnny
Johnny vs 15 similarly-sized boys names

Johnny by state

Where Johnny concentrates geographically, total births since 1880

Geographically diffuse
Top 8 states by recorded births for the name Johnny
Rank State Visual share Births Share of total
#1 Texas
44,678 14.1%
#2 California
30,891 9.7%
#3 Georgia
22,348 7.0%
#4 North Carolina
19,048 6.0%
#5 Alabama
17,126 5.4%
#6 Tennessee
15,349 4.8%
#7 Mississippi
13,147 4.1%
#8 Florida
12,874 4.0%
Texas share of Johnny's total US births 14.1%
Even split

44,678 of 317,918 births nationwide. Compared to a flat distribution across 50 reporting states.

Johnny appears in 50 states. Explore state details →

Frequently Asked Questions

How popular is the name Johnny? ▼
317,918 babies have been named Johnny since 1880. All-time, it sits at #109 of 45,481 boys' names by recorded births. In 2025, it ranks #458 of 13,930 among boys. The peak year was 1947 with 7,441 births.
Where does Johnny sit in the SSA name archive? ▼
According to the U.S. Social Security Administration, Johnny ranks #109 of 45,481 boys' names by all-time recorded births (highest first) and #458 of 13,930 among boys' 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 Johnny most popular? ▼
Johnny was most popular in the 1950s decade with 65,786 total births. The single peak year was 1947.
Where is Johnny most popular? ▼
The top states for the name Johnny are Texas (44,678 births), California (30,891 births), Georgia (22,348 births).
How long has the name Johnny been used? ▼
Records for Johnny go back to 1880, giving 146 years of history through 2025.
What names are similar to Johnny? ▼
Names with a similar sound or spelling include John, Johnnie, Johnathan, Johnathon, and 4 more. These share a common prefix and are also used for boys.

What to do with Johnny's data

  • Johnny's decade-level peak was the 1950s (65,786 total births); usage has since declined to 4,398 in the 2020s -- if you're weighing a "classic revival" angle, the trend line argues against it.
  • Texas records the most Johnnys (44,678 births) -- see the full state breakdown if geography matters to your decision. Texas names

Figures reflect SSA-reported births only; see the methodology above for the privacy-suppression floor.

Keep exploring Johnny

Nearby Names Like Johnny

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

John Boy
#23 5,182,633 births
Johnnie Boy
#2284 102,099 births
Johnathan Boy
#508 98,262 births
Johnathon Boy
#2169 25,600 births
Johnie Boy
#7681 20,930 births

Compare Johnny side by side: Johnny vs John Johnny vs Johnnie Johnny vs Johnathan

Or pick any two names to compare →

Related Names

Names with a similar popularity rank to Johnny

Jake #457
129,322 births · Peak 2004
Rocco #459
31,679 births · Peak 2009
Sage #456
15,762 births · Peak 2022
Reece #460
21,968 births · Peak 2001
Pedro #455
94,083 births · Peak 2000
Esteban #461
35,592 births · Peak 2005
Oakley #454
11,385 births · Peak 2022
Lucian #462
14,469 births · Peak 2025

Nationwide names with similar peak year or record span

Two nationwide peer axes for Johnny: 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 Johnny 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.