US rank #534 Girls' name Peak 2007 85,411 births

Kate — #534 US girls' name

85,411 babies named Kate in U.S. Social Security records since 1880, with the highest year being 2007. Year-by-year trend, decade aggregates, and state-level rankings drawn from federal birth data.

1880s31941890s30011900s20581910s28401920s19661930s9671940s10021950s12591960s20381970s54971980s135691990s93552000s207682010s144702020s3427
#534
of 17,661 girls in use

More common than 97% of names given to girls today.

2000s
Peak decade

24% of everyone ever named Kate was born in this single decade.

2007
Single peak year

2,550 babies were named Kate in 2007 — its busiest year on record.

What the Data Says About Kate

The Social Security Administration has registered 85,411 babies named Kate between 1880 and 2024, spanning 145 consecutive years of U.S. birth records. As a girl's name, Kate currently holds the #534 rank among girls for 2024. The name reached its historical peak in 2007, when 2,550 babies received it in a single year.

Decade-level aggregation shows that Kate performed strongest in the 2000s, accumulating 20,768 births during that ten-year window. Across the 15 decades of recorded activity, Kate shows a clear decline from its mid-century high. Geographically, the name is most concentrated in California, which accounts for 8,418 births — the largest state-level total in the dataset — followed by New York and Texas. In total, SSA state-level files list Kate in 51 of the 51 U.S. reporting jurisdictions.

No etymological entry is currently available for Kate in our reference dataset. These figures derive from SSA's annual national and state-level name files, which include any name appearing at least five times in a given year or state-year; names below that threshold are suppressed for privacy and therefore excluded from the totals shown here. The 85,411 total represents a lower bound — actual usage may be higher in years or states where the count fell below the disclosure floor. This page is provided for informational and research purposes only and does not constitute personal, legal, or naming advice.

Kate at a glance

Top 1,000 girls' name

Total births

85,411

Since 1880

145 years of records

Peak year

2007

2,550 births that year

Strongest decade: 2000s

Current rank

#534

Among girls

As of 2024

Active since

1880

Recorded for 145 years

Last year on file: 2024

Kate popularity over time — girls

Annual U.S. births registered with the Social Security Administration · 2024–1880

Top 1,000 girls' name
Peak year (2007)
2,550
Annual births at peak — across 145 years of records
-1,00001,0002,0003,000 202420051986196719481929191018911880 299

Kate popularity over time — boys

89 total births recorded since 1902 (Kate as boys' name)

Unisex variant — 89 births
4681012 2005200119871985198319791902 5

Kate by decade

Total births in each ten-year window — peak vs trough at a glance

Peak: 2000s
Peak decade
2000s
20,768 births that decade — 24% of Kate's all-time total
1880s31941890s30011900s20581910s28401920s19661930s9671940s10021950s12591960s20381970s54971980s135691990s93552000s207682010s144702020s3427

Kate by state

Where Kate concentrates geographically — total births since 1880

Geographically diffuse
Top 8 states by recorded births for the name Kate
Rank State Visual share Births Share of total
#1 California
8,418 9.9%
#2 New York
6,082 7.1%
#3 Texas
5,611 6.6%
#4 Illinois
3,383 4.0%
#5 Pennsylvania
2,994 3.5%
#6 Massachusetts
2,958 3.5%
#7 Michigan
2,441 2.9%
#8 Ohio
2,434 2.8%
California share of Kate's total US births 9.9%
Even split

8,418 of 85,411 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?
85,411 babies have been named Kate since 1880. It currently ranks #534 among girls. The peak year was 2007 with 2,550 births.
When was Kate most popular?
Kate was most popular in the 2000s decade with 20,768 total births. The single peak year was 2007.
Where is Kate most popular?
The top states for the name Kate are California (8,418 births), New York (6,082 births), Texas (5,611 births).
How long has the name Kate been used?
Kate has been recorded in Social Security data since 1880, spanning 145 years of data through 2024.
What names are similar to Kate?
Names with a similar sound or spelling include Kathleen, Katherine, Kathryn, Kathy, and 4 more. These share a common prefix and are also used for girls.

Keep exploring Kate

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Data Sources

Data as of 2024. Source: U.S. Social Security Administration (SSA).

Primary: Source: U.S. Social Security Administration, Baby Names from Social Security Card Applications — National Data, 1880–2024 (ssa.gov/oact/babynames). National-level data includes all names with 5 or more occurrences in a given year.

State-level: Source: U.S. Social Security Administration, Baby Names — State-Level Files (namesbystate.zip). Includes all names with 5 or more occurrences per state per year; rarer names are excluded for privacy.