Girls' name · since 1880
Paula
Paula has 280,856 recorded births since 1880 in federal Social Security data, most heavily in 1963 -- full year-by-year trend, decade aggregates, and state rankings follow.
- #140 of 72,339
- all-time among girls
- #853 of 17,297
- 2025 SSA year
- 280,856
- born since 1880
- 1950s
- peak decade
Yes -- Paula is the #853 most popular girls' name in the U.S. today, with 280,856 recorded since 1880.
According to the U.S. Social Security Administration, Paula has been recorded 280,856 times among girls since 1880, currently ranked #853 nationally and more common than 95% of girls, 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.
- #140 of 72,339 all-time among girls
- #853 of 17,297 2025 SSA year
- 280,856 born since 1880
- 1950s peak decade
Data updated Aug 2026
The verdict
According to the U.S. Social Security Administration, Paula ranks #140 of 72,339 girls' names by all-time recorded births (highest first) and #853 of 17,297 among girls' names in 2025. 280,856 born since 1880, peaking in the 1950s.
- #140 of 72,339
- all-time among girls
- #853 of 17,297
- 2025 SSA year
- 280,856
- born since 1880
- 1950s
- peak decade
Paula's 280,856 recorded births place it above 99.8% of the 72,339 girls names in the full SSA archive.
51 jurisdictions carry state-level records, led by Texas.
How Paula compares
280,856 Top 1% higher than 99% of 17,297 names currently given to girls
Based on all-time total births among currently-ranked girls 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
Paula's all-time total is 747x the median girls name, and Olivia still leads by a wide margin.
| Metric | Paula | Median girls name (Kyann) | #1 girls name (Olivia) |
|---|---|---|---|
| All-time total births | 280,856 | 376 | 567,345 |
| Peak-year births | 10,156 | 21 | 19,840 |
Paula's usage pattern, beyond the headline number
Splitting Paula's full recorded timeline at 1953, 72% of its total births fall in the more recent half of the record versus 28% in the earlier half -- usage has skewed toward the present, not a one-decade spike. Its quietest year on record was 1882, with just 6 recorded births -- worth weighing against the 1963 peak of 10,156 to see the full range of the name's swing in popularity.
Paula popularity over time - girls
Annual U.S. births registered with the Social Security Administration · 1880–2025
- Peak year (1963)
- 10,156
- Annual births at peak, across 146 years of records
Paula popularity over time - boys
913 total births recorded since 1917 (Paula as boys' name)
Paula by decade
1950s is the heaviest window (84,869 births, 30% of the file).
1950s was Paula's strongest decade.
84,869 babies received the name during that ten-year window, about 30% of all-time use.
Paula births by decade
Total births in each ten-year window
- 1880s 178
1880s
178 births
- 1890s 424
1890s
424 births
- 1900s 666
1900s
666 births
- 1910s 2,022
1910s
2,022 births
- 1920s 4,554
1920s
4,554 births
- 1930s 8,861
1930s
8,861 births
- 1940s
1940s
39,044 births
- 1950s
1950s
84,869 births
- 1960s
1960s
80,512 births
- 1970s 32,724
1970s
32,724 births
- 1980s 11,072
1980s
11,072 births
- 1990s 6,330
1990s
6,330 births
- 2000s 4,177
2000s
4,177 births
- 2010s 3,310
2010s
3,310 births
- 2020s 2,113
2020s
2,113 births
What this shows Peak: 1950s at 84,869 births (30% of all-time use).
How Paula compares to similarly-sized names
Years in SSA records vs. share of all-time use concentrated in the single peak year, among 15 girls names closest to Paula's total volume
Paula by state
Where Paula concentrates geographically, total births since 1880
| Rank | State | Visual share | Births | Share of total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| #1 | Texas | | 23,947 | 8.5% |
| #2 | California | | 22,857 | 8.1% |
| #3 | New York | | 19,672 | 7.0% |
| #4 | Ohio | | 15,048 | 5.4% |
| #5 | Illinois | | 14,500 | 5.2% |
| #6 | Pennsylvania | | 13,604 | 4.8% |
| #7 | Massachusetts | | 13,541 | 4.8% |
| #8 | Michigan | | 11,382 | 4.1% |
23,947 of 280,856 births nationwide. Compared to a flat distribution across 51 reporting states.
Paula appears in 51 states. Explore state details →
Frequently Asked Questions
How popular is the name Paula? ▼
Where does Paula sit in the SSA name archive? ▼
When was Paula most popular? ▼
Where is Paula most popular? ▼
How long has the name Paula been used? ▼
What names are similar to Paula? ▼
What to do with Paula's data
- Paula's decade-level peak was the 1950s (84,869 total births); usage has since declined to 2,113 in the 2020s -- if you're weighing a "classic revival" angle, the trend line argues against it.
- Texas records the most Paulas (23,947 births) -- see the full state breakdown if geography matters to your decision. Texas names
Figures reflect SSA-reported births only; see the methodology above for the privacy-suppression floor.
Keep exploring Paula
Nearby Names Like Paula
Names with a similar sound, spelling, or feel to Paula
Compare Paula side by side: Paula vs Pauline Paula vs Paulette Paula vs Paulina
Related Names
Names with a similar popularity rank to Paula
Nationwide names with similar peak year or record span
Two nationwide peer axes for Paula: closest SSA peak year, and closest first→latest record span. Distinct from the spelling and current-rank neighborhoods above.
Similar peak year (~1963)
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 Paula 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.