Boys' name · since 1880
Neal
Neal has 55,048 recorded births since 1880 in federal Social Security data, most heavily in 1959 -- full year-by-year trend, decade aggregates, and state rankings follow.
- #473 of 45,481
- all-time among boys
- #1,907 of 13,930
- 2025 SSA year
- 55,048
- born since 1880
- 1950s
- peak decade
55,048 babies have been named Neal since 1880, making it today's #1907 boys' name.
According to the U.S. Social Security Administration, Neal has been recorded 55,048 times among boys since 1880, currently ranked #1907 nationally and more common than 86% of boys, with its heaviest use in the 1950s. This profile covers year-by-year birth trends, decade totals, and state-level distribution, all derived directly from SSA birth-registration files spanning 1880 to 2025.
- #473 of 45,481 all-time among boys
- #1,907 of 13,930 2025 SSA year
- 55,048 born since 1880
- 1950s peak decade
Data updated Aug 2026
The verdict
According to the U.S. Social Security Administration, Neal ranks #473 of 45,481 boys' names by all-time recorded births (highest first) and #1,907 of 13,930 among boys' names in 2025. 55,048 born since 1880, peaking in the 1950s.
- #473 of 45,481
- all-time among boys
- #1,907 of 13,930
- 2025 SSA year
- 55,048
- born since 1880
- 1950s
- peak decade
Neal's 55,048 recorded births place it above 98.95% of the 45,481 boys names in the full SSA archive.
50 jurisdictions carry state-level records, led by New York.
How Neal compares
55,048 Top 4% higher than 96% 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
Neal's all-time total is 149x the median boys name, and Liam still leads by a wide margin.
| Metric | Neal | Median boys name (Takari) | #1 boys name (Liam) |
|---|---|---|---|
| All-time total births | 55,048 | 369 | 358,536 |
| Peak-year births | 1,222 | 34 | 22,252 |
Neal's usage pattern, beyond the headline number
Splitting Neal's full recorded timeline at 1953, 63% of its total births fall in the more recent half of the record versus 37% in the earlier half -- usage has skewed toward the present, not a one-decade spike. Its quietest year on record was 1883, with just 29 recorded births -- worth weighing against the 1959 peak of 1,222 to see the full range of the name's swing in popularity.
Neal popularity over time - boys
Annual U.S. births registered with the Social Security Administration · 1880–2025
- Peak year (1959)
- 1,222
- Annual births at peak, across 146 years of records
Neal popularity over time - girls
257 total births recorded since 1901 (Neal as girls' name)
Neal by decade
1950s is the heaviest window (10,735 births, 20% of the file).
1950s was Neal's strongest decade.
10,735 babies received the name during that ten-year window, about 20% of all-time use.
Neal births by decade
Total births in each ten-year window
- 1880s 361
1880s
361 births
- 1890s 373
1890s
373 births
- 1900s 456
1900s
456 births
- 1910s 1,943
1910s
1,943 births
- 1920s 3,858
1920s
3,858 births
- 1930s 4,083
1930s
4,083 births
- 1940s
1940s
6,158 births
- 1950s
1950s
10,735 births
- 1960s
1960s
9,361 births
- 1970s
1970s
6,011 births
- 1980s
1980s
5,426 births
- 1990s 3,143
1990s
3,143 births
- 2000s 1,371
2000s
1,371 births
- 2010s 1,191
2010s
1,191 births
- 2020s 578
2020s
578 births
What this shows Peak: 1950s at 10,735 births (20% of all-time use).
How Neal 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 Neal's total volume
Neal by state
Where Neal concentrates geographically, total births since 1880
| Rank | State | Visual share | Births | Share of total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| #1 | New York | | 4,693 | 8.5% |
| #2 | California | | 3,979 | 7.2% |
| #3 | Illinois | | 3,041 | 5.5% |
| #4 | Pennsylvania | | 2,775 | 5.0% |
| #5 | Ohio | | 2,678 | 4.9% |
| #6 | Texas | | 2,627 | 4.8% |
| #7 | Michigan | | 1,862 | 3.4% |
| #8 | Massachusetts | | 1,700 | 3.1% |
4,693 of 55,048 births nationwide. Compared to a flat distribution across 50 reporting states.
Neal appears in 50 states. Explore state details →
Frequently Asked Questions
How popular is the name Neal? ▼
Where does Neal sit in the SSA name archive? ▼
When was Neal most popular? ▼
Where is Neal most popular? ▼
How long has the name Neal been used? ▼
What names are similar to Neal? ▼
What to do with Neal's data
- Neal's decade-level peak was the 1950s (10,735 total births); usage has since declined to 578 in the 2020s -- if you're weighing a "classic revival" angle, the trend line argues against it.
- New York records the most Neals (4,693 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 Neal
Nearby Names Like Neal
Names with a similar sound, spelling, or feel to Neal
Compare Neal side by side: Neal vs Neale Neal vs Neamiah Neal vs Nealy
Related Names
Names with a similar popularity rank to Neal
Nationwide names with similar peak year or record span
Two nationwide peer axes for Neal: closest SSA peak year, and closest first→latest record span. Distinct from the spelling and current-rank neighborhoods above.
Similar peak year (~1959)
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 Neal 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.