Unisex name · since 1880

Merritt

Since 1880, U.S. Social Security records show 6,151 babies named Merritt, peaking in 1924. See the year-by-year trend, decade totals, and state rankings below, sourced from federal birth data.

#1,557 of 45,481
all-time among boys
#1,500 of 13,930
2025 SSA year
6,151
born since 1880
1920s
peak decade

Merritt currently ranks #1500 among unisex names in America, with 6,151 babies recorded since 1880.

Merritt has 6,151 recorded births among boys since 1880, per the U.S. Social Security Administration, ranked #1500 as of the latest data, more common than 89% of boys, busiest in the 1920s -- 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.

  • #1,557 of 45,481 all-time among boys
  • #1,500 of 13,930 2025 SSA year
  • 6,151 born since 1880
  • 1920s peak decade

Data updated Aug 2026

The verdict

According to the U.S. Social Security Administration, Merritt ranks #1,557 of 45,481 boys' names by all-time recorded births (highest first) and #1,500 of 13,930 among boys' names in 2025. 6,151 born since 1880, peaking in the 1920s.

#1,557 of 45,481
all-time among boys
#1,500 of 13,930
2025 SSA year
6,151
born since 1880
1920s
peak decade
0%100%Median name50%89.2%
Merritt vs. every other boys name in current SSA rankings
Upper archive tier
All-time archive position

Merritt's 6,151 recorded births place it above 96.57% of the 45,481 boys names in the full SSA archive.

29 jurisdictions
State-record footprint

29 jurisdictions carry state-level records, led by New York.

How Merritt compares

6,151 Top 11% higher than 89% 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

Merritt's all-time total is 17x the median boys name, and Liam still leads by a wide margin.

Metric Merritt Median boys name (Takari) #1 boys name (Liam)
All-time total births 6,151 369 358,536
Peak-year births 121 34 22,252

Merritt's usage pattern, beyond the headline number

Splitting Merritt's full recorded timeline at 1953, 45% of its total births fall in the more recent half of the record versus 55% in the earlier half -- a fairly even split across the full record. Its quietest year on record was 1882, with just 5 recorded births -- worth weighing against the 1924 peak of 121 to see the full range of the name's swing in popularity.

Merritt popularity over time - boys

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

Outside the top 1,000
Peak year (1924)
121
Annual births at peak, across 146 years of records
050100150 188018991918193719561975199420132025 117

Merritt popularity over time - girls

3,231 total births recorded since 1919 (Merritt as girls' name)

Unisex variant - 3,231 births
0100200300400500 191919681977198619952004201320222025 401

Merritt by decade

1920s is the heaviest window (966 births, 16% of the file).

1920s was Merritt's strongest decade.

966 babies received the name during that ten-year window, about 16% of all-time use.

Merritt births by decade

Total births in each ten-year window

births

What this shows Peak: 1920s at 966 births (16% of all-time use).

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

How Merritt 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 Merritt's total volume

Merritt vs 15 similarly-sized boys names Scatter plot of 16 data points. 0%2%4%6%8%10%12% 050100150200 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 -107, 3.2%-29, 10.4%-109, 3.9%-124, 4.1%-146, 3.1%-54, 6.2%-33, 7.4%-128, 5.7%-136, 5.7%-146, 1.4%-58, 3.9%-117, 2.7%-111, 2.3%-113, 2.9%-81, 6%Merritt-146, 2%Merritt
Merritt vs 15 similarly-sized boys names

Merritt by state

Where Merritt concentrates geographically, total births since 1880

Geographically diffuse
Top 8 states by recorded births for the name Merritt
Rank State Visual share Births Share of total
#1 New York
366 6.0%
#2 Pennsylvania
224 3.6%
#3 California
155 2.5%
#4 Texas
128 2.1%
#5 Indiana
99 1.6%
#6 Illinois
93 1.5%
#7 Michigan
90 1.5%
#8 Ohio
88 1.4%
New York share of Merritt's total US births 6.0%
Even split

366 of 6,151 births nationwide. Compared to a flat distribution across 29 reporting states.

Merritt appears in 29 states. Explore state details →

Frequently Asked Questions

How popular is the name Merritt? ▼
6,151 babies have been named Merritt since 1880. All-time, it sits at #1,557 of 45,481 boys' names by recorded births. In 2025, it ranks #1,500 of 13,930 among boys. The peak year was 1924 with 121 births.
Where does Merritt sit in the SSA name archive? ▼
According to the U.S. Social Security Administration, Merritt ranks #1,557 of 45,481 boys' names by all-time recorded births (highest first) and #1,500 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 Merritt most popular? ▼
Merritt was most popular in the 1920s decade with 966 total births. The single peak year was 1924.
Where is Merritt most popular? ▼
The top states for the name Merritt are New York (366 births), Pennsylvania (224 births), California (155 births).
Is Merritt a unisex name? ▼
Yes, Merritt is used for both boys and girls. As a boy's name it has 6,151 births, and as a girl's name it has 3,231 births.
How long has the name Merritt been used? ▼
The SSA has tracked Merritt since 1880 -- 146 years through the most recent 2025 data.
What names are similar to Merritt? ▼
Names with a similar sound or spelling include Merle, Merlin, Merrill, Mervin, and 4 more. These share a common prefix and are also used for boys.

What to do with Merritt's data

  • Merritt's usage has stayed within range of its 1920s decade-level peak (966 total births) through the 2020s (524) -- a comparatively stable name, not a fading trend.
  • New York records the most Merritts (366 births) -- see the full state breakdown if geography matters to your decision. New York names

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

Keep exploring Merritt

Nearby Names Like Merritt

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

Merle Boy
#3450 30,666 births
Merlin Boy
#2336 15,049 births
Merrill Boy
#6145 12,988 births
Mervin Boy
#2367 12,322 births
Merrick Boy
#1184 5,792 births

Compare Merritt side by side: Merritt vs Merle Merritt vs Merlin Merritt vs Merrill

Or pick any two names to compare →

Related Names

Names with a similar popularity rank to Merritt

Clarence #1499
303,564 births · Peak 1921
Randall #1501
198,592 births · Peak 1960
Kyair #1498
835 births · Peak 2023
Vito #1502
15,052 births · Peak 1925
Jassiel #1497
951 births · Peak 2024
Lazaro #1503
7,118 births · Peak 2004
Arjan #1496
1,001 births · Peak 2025
Carver #1504
3,161 births · Peak 2018

Nationwide names with similar peak year or record span

Two nationwide peer axes for Merritt: 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 Merritt 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.