Unisex name · since 1917

Payson

Payson has 1,443 recorded births since 1917 in federal Social Security data, most heavily in 2015 -- full year-by-year trend, decade aggregates, and state rankings follow.

#4,067 of 45,481
all-time among boys
#3,255 of 13,930
2025 SSA year
1,443
born since 1917
2010s
peak decade

Yes -- Payson is the #3255 most popular unisex name in the U.S. today, with 1,443 recorded since 1917.

Payson has 1,443 recorded births among boys since 1917, per the U.S. Social Security Administration, ranked #3255 as of the latest data, more common than 77% of boys, busiest in the 2010s -- see the year-by-year trends, decade totals, and state-level distribution below, all drawn directly from SSA birth-registration files spanning 1917 to 2025.

  • #4,067 of 45,481 all-time among boys
  • #3,255 of 13,930 2025 SSA year
  • 1,443 born since 1917
  • 2010s peak decade

Data updated Aug 2026

The verdict

According to the U.S. Social Security Administration, Payson ranks #4,067 of 45,481 boys' names by all-time recorded births (highest first) and #3,255 of 13,930 among boys' names in 2025. 1,443 born since 1917, peaking in the 2010s.

#4,067 of 45,481
all-time among boys
#3,255 of 13,930
2025 SSA year
1,443
born since 1917
2010s
peak decade
0%100%Median name50%76.6%
Payson vs. every other boys name in current SSA rankings
Above the archive median
All-time archive position

Payson's 1,443 recorded births place it above 91.05% of the 45,481 boys names in the full SSA archive.

11 jurisdictions
State-record footprint

11 jurisdictions carry state-level records, led by Arizona.

How Payson compares

1,443 Top 26% higher than 74% 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

Payson's all-time total is 4x the median boys name, and Liam still leads by a wide margin.

Metric Payson Median boys name (Takari) #1 boys name (Liam)
All-time total births 1,443 369 358,536
Peak-year births 78 34 22,252

Payson's usage pattern, beyond the headline number

Payson splits its recorded history at 2005: 77% of all births land in the more recent half, 23% in the earlier half, a lean toward present-day use rather than a passing spike. The single quietest year was 1917 (5 births) -- compare that against the 2015 peak of 78 for a sense of just how much the name's popularity has swung.

Payson popularity over time - boys

Annual U.S. births registered with the Social Security Administration · 1917–2025

Outside the top 1,000
Peak year (2015)
78
Annual births at peak, across 109 years of records
020406080100 19171991199720032009201520212025 36

Payson popularity over time - girls

1,169 total births recorded since 1995 (Payson as girls' name)

Unisex variant - 1,169 births
050100150 19952003200720112015201920232025 47

Payson by decade

2010s is the heaviest window (613 births, 42% of the file).

2010s was Payson's strongest decade.

613 babies received the name during that ten-year window, about 42% of all-time use.

Payson births by decade

Total births in each ten-year window

births

What this shows Peak: 2010s at 613 births (42% of all-time use).

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

How Payson 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 Payson's total volume

Payson vs 15 similarly-sized boys names Scatter plot of 16 data points. 0%5%10%15%20% 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 -146, 2.8%-94, 6.7%-40, 4.7%-45, 15.3%-57, 5.2%-123, 3.8%-60, 3.1%-121, 3%-143, 2.9%-68, 4.1%-36, 5.8%-55, 4.5%-15, 16.9%-111, 2.2%-33, 7.5%Payson-109, 5.4%Payson
Payson vs 15 similarly-sized boys names

Payson by state

Where Payson concentrates geographically, total births since 1917

Geographically diffuse
Top 8 states by recorded births for the name Payson
Rank State Visual share Births Share of total
#1 Arizona
156 10.8%
#2 Utah
77 5.3%
#3 Texas
48 3.3%
#4 Idaho
23 1.6%
#5 California
12 0.8%
#6 Illinois
7 0.5%
#7 Colorado
5 0.3%
#8 Missouri
5 0.3%
Arizona share of Payson's total US births 10.8%
Even split

156 of 1,443 births nationwide. Compared to a flat distribution across 11 reporting states.

Payson appears in 11 states. Explore state details →

Frequently Asked Questions

How popular is the name Payson? ▼
1,443 babies have been named Payson since 1917. All-time, it sits at #4,067 of 45,481 boys' names by recorded births. In 2025, it ranks #3,255 of 13,930 among boys. The peak year was 2015 with 78 births.
Where does Payson sit in the SSA name archive? ▼
According to the U.S. Social Security Administration, Payson ranks #4,067 of 45,481 boys' names by all-time recorded births (highest first) and #3,255 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 Payson most popular? ▼
Payson was most popular in the 2010s decade with 613 total births. The single peak year was 2015.
Where is Payson most popular? ▼
The top states for the name Payson are Arizona (156 births), Utah (77 births), Texas (48 births).
Is Payson a unisex name? ▼
Yes, Payson is used for both boys and girls. As a boy's name it has 1,443 births, and as a girl's name it has 1,169 births.
How long has the name Payson been used? ▼
Records for Payson go back to 1917, giving 109 years of history through 2025.
What names are similar to Payson? ▼
Names with a similar sound or spelling include Payton, Payden, Payne, Payten, and 4 more. These share a common prefix and are also used for boys.

What to do with Payson's data

  • Payson's usage has stayed within range of its 2010s decade-level peak (613 total births) through the 2020s (273) -- a comparatively stable name, not a fading trend.
  • Arizona records the most Paysons (156 births) -- see the full state breakdown if geography matters to your decision. Arizona names

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

Keep exploring Payson

Nearby Names Like Payson

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

Payton Boy
#1564 24,739 births
Payden Boy
#7372 1,343 births
Payne Boy
#8268 1,300 births
Payten Boy
631 births
Payam Boy
193 births

Compare Payson side by side: Payson vs Payton Payson vs Payden Payson vs Payne

Or pick any two names to compare →

Related Names

Names with a similar popularity rank to Payson

Pace #3254
917 births · Peak 2024
Alen #3256
2,371 births · Peak 2005
Patton #3253
1,664 births · Peak 2015
Stoney #3257
3,092 births · Peak 1963
Edric #3252
1,732 births · Peak 2018
Tye #3258
5,222 births · Peak 2006
Townsend #3251
871 births · Peak 2025
Dany #3259
1,430 births · Peak 2008

Nationwide names with similar peak year or record span

Two nationwide peer axes for Payson: 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, 1917–2025 (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 Payson 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.