Unisex name · since 1880

Nate

Since 1880, U.S. Social Security records show 4,490 babies named Nate, peaking in 2007. See the year-by-year trend, decade totals, and state rankings below, sourced from federal birth data.

#1,914 of 45,481
all-time among boys
#1,746 of 13,930
2025 SSA year
4,490
born since 1880
2000s
peak decade

Nate currently ranks #1746 among unisex names in America, with 4,490 babies recorded since 1880.

Nate has 4,490 recorded births among boys since 1880, per the U.S. Social Security Administration, ranked #1746 as of the latest data, more common than 87% of boys, 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.

  • #1,914 of 45,481 all-time among boys
  • #1,746 of 13,930 2025 SSA year
  • 4,490 born since 1880
  • 2000s peak decade

Data updated Aug 2026

The verdict

According to the U.S. Social Security Administration, Nate ranks #1,914 of 45,481 boys' names by all-time recorded births (highest first) and #1,746 of 13,930 among boys' names in 2025. 4,490 born since 1880, peaking in the 2000s.

#1,914 of 45,481
all-time among boys
#1,746 of 13,930
2025 SSA year
4,490
born since 1880
2000s
peak decade
0%100%Median name50%87.4%
Nate vs. every other boys name in current SSA rankings
Upper archive tier
All-time archive position

Nate's 4,490 recorded births place it above 95.79% of the 45,481 boys names in the full SSA archive.

27 jurisdictions
State-record footprint

27 jurisdictions carry state-level records, led by California.

How Nate compares

4,490 Top 14% higher than 86% 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

Nate's all-time total is 12x the median boys name, and Liam still leads by a wide margin.

Metric Nate Median boys name (Takari) #1 boys name (Liam)
All-time total births 4,490 369 358,536
Peak-year births 181 34 22,252

Nate's usage pattern, beyond the headline number

Nate splits its recorded history at 1971: 82% of all births land in the more recent half, 18% in the earlier half, a lean toward present-day use rather than a passing spike. The single quietest year was 1880 (5 births) -- compare that against the 2007 peak of 181 for a sense of just how much the name's popularity has swung.

Nate popularity over time - boys

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

Outside the top 1,000
Peak year (2007)
181
Annual births at peak, across 146 years of records
050100150200 188019251944195919731987200120152025 93

Nate popularity over time - girls

301 total births recorded since 1968 (Nate as girls' name)

Unisex variant - 301 births
0510152025 19681976198119861991199620032009 6

Nate by decade

2000s is the heaviest window (1,163 births, 26% of the file).

2000s was Nate's strongest decade.

1,163 babies received the name during that ten-year window, about 26% of all-time use.

Nate births by decade

Total births in each ten-year window

births

What this shows Peak: 2000s at 1,163 births (26% of all-time use).

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

How Nate 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 Nate's total volume

Nate vs 15 similarly-sized boys names Scatter plot of 16 data points. 0%5%10%15% 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 -114, 12.9%-112, 2.4%-126, 4.7%-39, 4.7%-35, 6.5%-146, 2.9%-45, 8%-146, 3.6%-44, 5%-146, 2.7%-110, 4.6%-53, 5.7%-59, 3.9%-45, 5.2%-146, 2.3%Nate-146, 4%Nate
Nate vs 15 similarly-sized boys names

Nate by state

Where Nate concentrates geographically, total births since 1880

Geographically diffuse
Top 8 states by recorded births for the name Nate
Rank State Visual share Births Share of total
#1 California
423 9.4%
#2 Texas
271 6.0%
#3 New York
253 5.6%
#4 Illinois
109 2.4%
#5 New Jersey
86 1.9%
#6 Florida
61 1.4%
#7 Minnesota
55 1.2%
#8 Louisiana
51 1.1%
California share of Nate's total US births 9.4%
Even split

423 of 4,490 births nationwide. Compared to a flat distribution across 27 reporting states.

Nate appears in 27 states. Explore state details →

Frequently Asked Questions

How popular is the name Nate? ▼
Since 1880, Social Security records show 4,490 babies named Nate. Across the full SSA archive it ranks #1,914 of 45,481 boys' names by total births. In 2025, it holds #1,746 of 13,930 among boys. Its busiest year on record was 2007, with 181 births.
Where does Nate sit in the SSA name archive? ▼
According to the U.S. Social Security Administration, Nate ranks #1,914 of 45,481 boys' names by all-time recorded births (highest first) and #1,746 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 Nate most popular? ▼
Nate was most popular in the 2000s decade with 1,163 total births. The single peak year was 2007.
Where is Nate most popular? ▼
The top states for the name Nate are California (423 births), Texas (271 births), New York (253 births).
Is Nate a unisex name? ▼
Yes, Nate is used for both boys and girls. As a boy's name it has 4,490 births, and as a girl's name it has 301 births.
How long has the name Nate been used? ▼
Nate has been recorded in Social Security data since 1880, spanning 146 years of data through 2025.
What names are similar to Nate? ▼
Names with a similar sound or spelling include Nathan, Nathaniel, Nathanael, Nathanial, and 4 more. These share a common prefix and are also used for boys.

What to do with Nate's data

  • Nate's usage has stayed within range of its 2000s decade-level peak (1,163 total births) through the 2020s (601) -- a comparatively stable name, not a fading trend.
  • California records the most Nates (423 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 Nate

Nearby Names Like Nate

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

Nathan Boy
#63 587,497 births
Nathaniel Boy
#140 287,103 births
Nathanael Boy
#632 22,227 births
Nathanial Boy
#3455 10,578 births
Nathen Boy
#3964 6,146 births

Compare Nate side by side: Nate vs Nathan Nate vs Nathaniel Nate vs Nathanael

Or pick any two names to compare →

Related Names

Names with a similar popularity rank to Nate

Augustin #1745
4,163 births · Peak 2025
Oskar #1747
3,241 births · Peak 2016
Roderick #1744
47,183 births · Peak 1971
Deion #1748
6,043 births · Peak 1996
Laurence #1743
39,720 births · Peak 1952
Jovan #1749
9,984 births · Peak 1998
Bentlee #1742
4,202 births · Peak 2012
Rain #1750
1,188 births · Peak 2024

Nationwide names with similar peak year or record span

Two nationwide peer axes for Nate: 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 Nate 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.