Girls' name · since 1880
Kate
Since 1880, U.S. Social Security records show 85,987 babies named Kate, peaking in 2007. See the year-by-year trend, decade totals, and state rankings below, sourced from federal birth data.
- #414 of 72,339
- all-time among girls
- #520 of 17,297
- 2025 SSA year
- 85,987
- born since 1880
- 2000s
- peak decade
Kate currently ranks #520 among girls' names in America, with 85,987 babies recorded since 1880.
Kate has 85,987 recorded births among girls since 1880, per the U.S. Social Security Administration, ranked #520 as of the latest data, more common than 97% of girls, busiest in the 2000s -- see the year-by-year trends, decade totals, and state-level distribution below, all drawn directly from SSA birth-registration files spanning 1880 to 2025.
- #414 of 72,339 all-time among girls
- #520 of 17,297 2025 SSA year
- 85,987 born since 1880
- 2000s peak decade
Data updated Aug 2026
The verdict
According to the U.S. Social Security Administration, Kate ranks #414 of 72,339 girls' names by all-time recorded births (highest first) and #520 of 17,297 among girls' names in 2025. 85,987 born since 1880, peaking in the 2000s.
- #414 of 72,339
- all-time among girls
- #520 of 17,297
- 2025 SSA year
- 85,987
- born since 1880
- 2000s
- peak decade
Kate's 85,987 recorded births place it above 99.42% of the 72,339 girls names in the full SSA archive.
51 jurisdictions carry state-level records, led by California.
How Kate compares
85,987 Top 3% higher than 97% 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
Kate's all-time total is 229x the median girls name, and Olivia still leads by a wide margin.
| Metric | Kate | Median girls name (Kyann) | #1 girls name (Olivia) |
|---|---|---|---|
| All-time total births | 85,987 | 376 | 567,345 |
| Peak-year births | 2,550 | 21 | 19,840 |
Kate's usage pattern, beyond the headline number
Splitting Kate's full recorded timeline at 1953, 82% of its total births fall in the more recent half of the record versus 18% in the earlier half -- usage has skewed toward the present, not a one-decade spike. Its quietest year on record was 1945, with just 76 recorded births -- worth weighing against the 2007 peak of 2,550 to see the full range of the name's swing in popularity.
Kate popularity over time - girls
Annual U.S. births registered with the Social Security Administration · 1880–2025
- Peak year (2007)
- 2,550
- Annual births at peak, across 146 years of records
Kate popularity over time - boys
89 total births recorded since 1902 (Kate as boys' name)
Kate by decade
2000s is the heaviest window (20,768 births, 24% of the file).
2000s was Kate's strongest decade.
20,768 babies received the name during that ten-year window, about 24% of all-time use.
Kate births by decade
Total births in each ten-year window
- 1880s 3,194
1880s
3,194 births
- 1890s 3,001
1890s
3,001 births
- 1900s 2,058
1900s
2,058 births
- 1910s 2,840
1910s
2,840 births
- 1920s 1,966
1920s
1,966 births
- 1930s 967
1930s
967 births
- 1940s 1,002
1940s
1,002 births
- 1950s 1,259
1950s
1,259 births
- 1960s 2,037
1960s
2,037 births
- 1970s 5,496
1970s
5,496 births
- 1980s
1980s
13,568 births
- 1990s
1990s
9,355 births
- 2000s
2000s
20,768 births
- 2010s
2010s
14,470 births
- 2020s 4,006
2020s
4,006 births
What this shows Peak: 2000s at 20,768 births (24% of all-time use).
How Kate 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 Kate's total volume
Kate by state
Where Kate concentrates geographically, total births since 1880
| Rank | State | Visual share | Births | Share of total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| #1 | California | | 8,475 | 9.9% |
| #2 | New York | | 6,109 | 7.1% |
| #3 | Texas | | 5,688 | 6.6% |
| #4 | Illinois | | 3,397 | 4.0% |
| #5 | Pennsylvania | | 3,004 | 3.5% |
| #6 | Massachusetts | | 2,965 | 3.4% |
| #7 | Michigan | | 2,455 | 2.9% |
| #8 | Ohio | | 2,453 | 2.9% |
8,475 of 85,987 births nationwide. Compared to a flat distribution across 51 reporting states.
Kate appears in 51 states. Explore state details →
Frequently Asked Questions
How popular is the name Kate? ▼
Where does Kate sit in the SSA name archive? ▼
When was Kate most popular? ▼
Where is Kate most popular? ▼
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What names are similar to Kate? ▼
What to do with Kate's data
- Kate's decade-level peak was the 2000s (20,768 total births); usage has since declined to 4,006 in the 2020s -- if you're weighing a "classic revival" angle, the trend line argues against it.
- California records the most Kates (8,475 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 Kate
Nearby Names Like Kate
Names with a similar sound, spelling, or feel to Kate
Compare Kate side by side: Kate vs Kathleen Kate vs Katherine Kate vs Kathryn
Related Names
Names with a similar popularity rank to Kate
Nationwide names with similar peak year or record span
Two nationwide peer axes for Kate: closest SSA peak year, and closest first→latest record span. Distinct from the spelling and current-rank neighborhoods above.
Similar peak year (~2007)
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 Kate 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.