Josh
Josh was given to 96 boys in 2025, #1,703 among boys’ names; 17,288 Americans have been recorded with it since 1880 (Social Security Administration, published May 2026).
An estimated 14,200 Americans named Josh and born in the U.S. are alive in 2026 (82% of everyone recorded); the median is 40 years old and half are between 22 and 51.
Girls and boys together; gaps are years SSA did not record (fewer than 5 births).
Births of Josh by year: SSA national baby-name file, 1880-2025, published May 8, 2026. SSA’s notes on the data.
What does Josh mean?
Wiktionary, English section
Josh is “a diminutive of the male given name Joshua.”
/ˈd͡ʒɑʃ/
Meaning: Wiktionary, English section, as of Sep 25, 2026 (CC BY‑SA 4.0).
How popular is Josh?
#1,703 among boys’ names, 2025
Josh fell from #1,401 in 2015 to #1,703 in 2025 among boys’ names; its share of boys born fell from 64.2 to 56.2 per million.
531 babies in 1979, the peak
Josh peaked in 1979, when 531 boys were given it, #339 among boys’ names. The 96 births of 2025 are 18% of that peak.
| Year | Births | Rank | Per 1,000 boys |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 96 | #1,703 | 0.06 |
| 2024 | 95 | #1,744 | 0.06 |
| 2023 | 89 | #1,809 | 0.05 |
| 2022 | 94 | #1,765 | 0.05 |
| 2021 | 100 | #1,660 | 0.06 |
| 2020 | 94 | #1,682 | 0.05 |
| 2019 | 103 | #1,609 | 0.06 |
| 2018 | 113 | #1,515 | 0.06 |
| 2017 | 129 | #1,374 | 0.07 |
| 2016 | 108 | #1,543 | 0.06 |
Every recorded year (146)
| Year | Births | Rank | Per 1,000 boys |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2015 | 123 | #1,401 | 0.06 |
| 2014 | 166 | #1,144 | 0.09 |
| 2013 | 152 | #1,183 | 0.08 |
| 2012 | 167 | #1,109 | 0.09 |
| 2011 | 180 | #1,052 | 0.09 |
| 2010 | 178 | #1,083 | 0.09 |
| 2009 | 205 | #976 | 0.10 |
| 2008 | 271 | #810 | 0.13 |
| 2007 | 316 | #726 | 0.15 |
| 2006 | 302 | #715 | 0.15 |
| 2005 | 266 | #751 | 0.13 |
| 2004 | 308 | #663 | 0.16 |
| 2003 | 273 | #698 | 0.14 |
| 2002 | 274 | #676 | 0.14 |
| 2001 | 246 | #715 | 0.13 |
| 2000 | 195 | #820 | 0.10 |
| 1999 | 194 | #791 | 0.10 |
| 1998 | 166 | #875 | 0.09 |
| 1997 | 189 | #782 | 0.10 |
| 1996 | 166 | #843 | 0.09 |
| 1995 | 183 | #791 | 0.10 |
| 1994 | 169 | #813 | 0.09 |
| 1993 | 186 | #766 | 0.09 |
| 1992 | 181 | #774 | 0.09 |
| 1991 | 181 | #755 | 0.09 |
| 1990 | 212 | #698 | 0.10 |
| 1989 | 213 | #681 | 0.11 |
| 1988 | 240 | #612 | 0.13 |
| 1987 | 233 | #593 | 0.12 |
| 1986 | 220 | #601 | 0.12 |
| 1985 | 248 | #561 | 0.13 |
| 1984 | 259 | #535 | 0.14 |
| 1983 | 299 | #487 | 0.17 |
| 1982 | 298 | #492 | 0.16 |
| 1981 | 347 | #442 | 0.19 |
| 1980 | 461 | #371 | 0.26 |
| 1979 | 531 | #339 | 0.31 |
| 1978 | 431 | #371 | 0.26 |
| 1977 | 383 | #399 | 0.23 |
| 1976 | 387 | #393 | 0.25 |
| 1975 | 456 | #362 | 0.29 |
| 1974 | 493 | #345 | 0.31 |
| 1973 | 401 | #387 | 0.26 |
| 1972 | 356 | #420 | 0.22 |
| 1971 | 325 | #450 | 0.18 |
| 1970 | 248 | #511 | 0.13 |
| 1969 | 193 | #564 | 0.11 |
| 1968 | 135 | #652 | 0.08 |
| 1967 | 105 | #723 | 0.06 |
| 1966 | 101 | #735 | 0.06 |
| 1965 | 105 | #728 | 0.06 |
| 1964 | 95 | #775 | 0.05 |
| 1963 | 115 | #730 | 0.06 |
| 1962 | 102 | #757 | 0.05 |
| 1961 | 132 | #674 | 0.06 |
| 1960 | 129 | #692 | 0.06 |
| 1959 | 128 | #675 | 0.06 |
| 1958 | 69 | #910 | 0.03 |
| 1957 | 53 | #1,045 | 0.02 |
| 1956 | 53 | #1,037 | 0.03 |
| 1955 | 50 | #1,070 | 0.02 |
| 1954 | 51 | #1,048 | 0.03 |
| 1953 | 58 | #941 | 0.03 |
| 1952 | 54 | #974 | 0.03 |
| 1951 | 41 | #1,127 | 0.02 |
| 1950 | 39 | #1,149 | 0.02 |
| 1949 | 46 | #1,038 | 0.03 |
| 1948 | 45 | #1,055 | 0.03 |
| 1947 | 40 | #1,155 | 0.02 |
| 1946 | 43 | #1,051 | 0.03 |
| 1945 | 34 | #1,134 | 0.03 |
| 1944 | 35 | #1,127 | 0.03 |
| 1943 | 25 | #1,417 | 0.02 |
| 1942 | 31 | #1,262 | 0.02 |
| 1941 | 31 | #1,201 | 0.03 |
| 1940 | 31 | #1,220 | 0.03 |
| 1939 | 32 | #1,156 | 0.03 |
| 1938 | 33 | #1,138 | 0.03 |
| 1937 | 38 | #1,045 | 0.04 |
| 1936 | 44 | #933 | 0.04 |
| 1935 | 34 | #1,133 | 0.03 |
| 1934 | 39 | #1,050 | 0.04 |
| 1933 | 30 | #1,214 | 0.03 |
| 1932 | 40 | #1,068 | 0.04 |
| 1931 | 30 | #1,267 | 0.03 |
| 1930 | 28 | #1,378 | 0.03 |
| 1929 | 36 | #1,166 | 0.03 |
| 1928 | 44 | #1,050 | 0.04 |
| 1927 | 41 | #1,120 | 0.04 |
| 1926 | 46 | #1,026 | 0.04 |
| 1925 | 45 | #1,033 | 0.04 |
| 1924 | 47 | #1,040 | 0.04 |
| 1923 | 49 | #1,003 | 0.04 |
| 1922 | 50 | #1,007 | 0.05 |
| 1921 | 36 | #1,214 | 0.03 |
| 1920 | 45 | #1,043 | 0.04 |
| 1919 | 41 | #1,069 | 0.04 |
| 1918 | 49 | #955 | 0.05 |
| 1917 | 42 | #1,009 | 0.05 |
| 1916 | 55 | #848 | 0.06 |
| 1915 | 40 | #1,006 | 0.05 |
| 1914 | 39 | #874 | 0.06 |
| 1913 | 37 | #784 | 0.07 |
| 1912 | 39 | #685 | 0.09 |
| 1911 | 30 | #554 | 0.13 |
| 1910 | 23 | #610 | 0.12 |
| 1909 | 21 | #584 | 0.13 |
| 1908 | 26 | #495 | 0.17 |
| 1907 | 19 | #574 | 0.13 |
| 1906 | 13 | #694 | 0.10 |
| 1905 | 17 | #580 | 0.13 |
| 1904 | 18 | #527 | 0.14 |
| 1903 | 21 | #458 | 0.18 |
| 1902 | 17 | #529 | 0.14 |
| 1901 | 18 | #460 | 0.17 |
| 1900 | 25 | #461 | 0.17 |
| 1899 | 17 | #467 | 0.16 |
| 1898 | 22 | #424 | 0.18 |
| 1897 | 21 | #418 | 0.19 |
| 1896 | 23 | #412 | 0.19 |
| 1895 | 27 | #364 | 0.23 |
| 1894 | 18 | #473 | 0.16 |
| 1893 | 16 | #471 | 0.14 |
| 1892 | 22 | #408 | 0.18 |
| 1891 | 19 | #404 | 0.19 |
| 1890 | 24 | #364 | 0.22 |
| 1889 | 22 | #385 | 0.20 |
| 1888 | 24 | #381 | 0.20 |
| 1887 | 15 | #443 | 0.15 |
| 1886 | 29 | #317 | 0.26 |
| 1885 | 23 | #371 | 0.21 |
| 1884 | 27 | #341 | 0.24 |
| 1883 | 27 | #321 | 0.26 |
| 1882 | 14 | #504 | 0.12 |
| 1881 | 22 | #356 | 0.22 |
| 1880 | 31 | #300 | 0.28 |
Ranks and shares: boys’ names in each year’s SSA file; share of all boys SSA recorded that year.
Is Josh a boy’s or a girl’s name?
Josh has been recorded only for boys: SSA lists no girls with the name in 146 years of records (it lists a name only in years with 5 or more babies of a sex).
Girls and boys named Josh: the SSA national file counts each sex separately.
How many people are named Josh, and how old are they?
14,200 alive in 2026, estimated
That is 82% of the 17,288 Americans ever recorded as Josh. The median Josh alive today is 40 years old; half are between 22 and 51.
The 2020 Census counted 125,623 people named Josh (220 women and girls, 125,403 men and boys). SSA’s births carried forward to Census day, April 1, 2020, predict 14,082 born in the U.S. The Census count is 8.9 times that prediction. Possible reasons: the Census records the name people give, which for many is the short form Josh rather than the name on their birth record, and it counts people born abroad, whom SSA’s files leave out.
Alive today, by age
Alive today, by generation
| Generation | Born | Alive |
|---|---|---|
| Silent Generation | 1928-1945 | 114 |
| Baby Boomers | 1946-1964 | 935 |
| Generation X | 1965-1980 | 4,580 |
| Millennials | 1981-1996 | 3,440 |
| Generation Z | 1997-2012 | 3,670 |
| Generation Alpha | 2013-2025 | 1,450 |
An estimate, not a count. SSA’s files count people born in the United States who received a Social Security number, so anyone born abroad is not in them; before 1937 most people got a number as adults, and their survival is counted from that age.
Living estimate: SSA births carried forward with the survival rates in SSA’s cohort life tables (2024 Trustees Report) for each birth year and sex. How the estimate is made. Count: Census Bureau, first names in the 2020 Census (released April 14, 2026; names reported 100 or more times, with the Bureau’s disclosure-avoidance adjustment).
Where are babies named Josh born?
The states with the most babies named Josh are California, Texas and New York, with 37% of its births recorded by state since 1910.
| State | Since 1910 | Rank, boys | vs. national |
|---|---|---|---|
| California | 1,887 | #2,328 | 1.0× |
| Texas | 1,385 | #1,702 | 1.0× |
| New York | 1,157 | #1,168 | 0.9× |
| Florida | 861 | #865 | 1.3× |
| Georgia | 544 | not ranked | 1.1× |
| Pennsylvania | 540 | not ranked | 0.7× |
| Illinois | 485 | not ranked | 0.6× |
| Ohio | 416 | not ranked | 0.5× |
| Louisiana | 358 | not ranked | 1.1× |
| North Carolina | 321 | not ranked | 0.7× |
Where Josh is more common than its national share predicts
Relative to its national share, Josh is most over-represented in Florida: since 1910 it was given 1.3 times as often there as its national share each year would predict.
States: SSA state file, 1910-2025, published May 8, 2026; births count girls and boys together, and the rank is among boys’ names in the state in 2025. The file leaves out any state and year with fewer than 5 babies of the name, so small states are undercounted; each ratio compares the state’s births of Josh with the births its national share predicts year by year, for states with at least 100 births of the name.
Names spelled alike
Of these 2 names spelled alike, given to 17,694 babies since 1880, Josh is the most given (98% of them). In 2025 it was given to 96 of their 118 babies (81%), again the most given.
Spelled alike: names in the SSA national file with the same pattern of letters and sounds and at most two letters apart, and Wiktionary’s listed forms; births since 1880 and in 2025, and each name’s peak year, from the SSA national file, published May 8, 2026. Some are separate names, not spellings of one.
More about Josh and names like it
- Compare Josh and JoashBirths, ranks, peak and the living estimate side by side.
- The most given names of the 1970sJosh peaked in 1979.
- California’s most given namesThe state where SSA recorded the most babies named Josh since 1910.
- The top names of 1979The year the most babies were named Josh.
- The names of Generation XMost people named Josh alive today were born 1965-1980.
- Names starting with JMost given first.