US rank #118 Girls' name Peak 1921 1,262,307 births

Margaret — #118 US girls' name

1,262,307 babies named Margaret in U.S. Social Security records since 1880, with the highest year being 1921. Year-by-year trend, decade aggregates, and state-level rankings drawn from federal birth data.

1880s217991890s379371900s579191910s1892341920s2450101930s1573711940s1730251950s1495831960s818691970s319461980s303521990s312932000s239152010s200342020s11020
#118
of 17,661 girls in use

More common than 99.3% of names given to girls today.

1920s
Peak decade

19% of everyone ever named Margaret was born in this single decade.

1921
Single peak year

28,468 babies were named Margaret in 1921 — its busiest year on record.

What the Data Says About Margaret

The Social Security Administration has registered 1,262,307 babies named Margaret between 1880 and 2024, spanning 145 consecutive years of U.S. birth records. As a girl's name, Margaret currently holds the #118 rank among girls for 2024. The name reached its historical peak in 1921, when 28,468 babies received it in a single year.

Decade-level aggregation shows that Margaret performed strongest in the 1920s, accumulating 245,010 births during that ten-year window. Across the 15 decades of recorded activity, Margaret shows a clear decline from its mid-century high. Geographically, the name is most concentrated in New York, which accounts for 116,664 births — the largest state-level total in the dataset — followed by Pennsylvania and Illinois. In total, SSA state-level files list Margaret in 51 of the 51 U.S. reporting jurisdictions.

No etymological entry is currently available for Margaret 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 1,262,307 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.

Margaret at a glance

Top 1,000 girls' name

Total births

1,262,307

Since 1880

145 years of records

Peak year

1921

28,468 births that year

Strongest decade: 1920s

Current rank

#118

Among girls

As of 2024

Active since

1880

Recorded for 145 years

Last year on file: 2024

Margaret popularity over time — girls

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

Top 1,000 girls' name
Peak year (1921)
28,468
Annual births at peak — across 145 years of records
010,00020,00030,000 202420051986196719481929191018911880 1,578

Margaret popularity over time — boys

3,745 total births recorded since 1881 (Margaret as boys' name)

Unisex variant — 3,745 births
020406080100 201219841969195419391924190918941881 9

Margaret by decade

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

Peak: 1920s
Peak decade
1920s
245,010 births that decade — 19% of Margaret's all-time total
1880s217991890s379371900s579191910s1892341920s2450101930s1573711940s1730251950s1495831960s818691970s319461980s303521990s312932000s239152010s200342020s11020

Margaret by state

Where Margaret concentrates geographically — total births since 1880

Geographically diffuse
Top 8 states by recorded births for the name Margaret
Rank State Visual share Births Share of total
#1 New York
116,664 9.2%
#2 Pennsylvania
115,848 9.2%
#3 Illinois
63,225 5.0%
#4 Ohio
58,974 4.7%
#5 California
51,941 4.1%
#6 Michigan
45,228 3.6%
#7 Texas
43,812 3.5%
#8 New Jersey
42,359 3.4%
New York share of Margaret's total US births 9.2%
Even split

116,664 of 1,262,307 births nationwide. Compared to a flat distribution across 51 reporting states.

Margaret appears in 51 states. Explore state details →

Frequently Asked Questions

How popular is the name Margaret?
1,262,307 babies have been named Margaret since 1880. It currently ranks #118 among girls. The peak year was 1921 with 28,468 births.
When was Margaret most popular?
Margaret was most popular in the 1920s decade with 245,010 total births. The single peak year was 1921.
Where is Margaret most popular?
The top states for the name Margaret are New York (116,664 births), Pennsylvania (115,848 births), Illinois (63,225 births).
How long has the name Margaret been used?
Margaret has been recorded in Social Security data since 1880, spanning 145 years of data through 2024.
What names are similar to Margaret?
Names with a similar sound or spelling include Mary, Maria, Martha, Marie, and 4 more. These share a common prefix and are also used for girls.

Keep exploring Margaret

Nearby Names Like Margaret

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

Names with a similar popularity rank to Margaret

Baby Name Guides

Learn more about naming trends and how to use data to choose a name

Explore more names

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.