Total births
100,619
Girls' name · since 1882
Penny
Penny has 100,619 recorded births since 1882 in federal Social Security data, most heavily in 1963 -- full year-by-year trend, decade aggregates, and state rankings follow.
- #748
- among girls today
- 100,619
- born since 1882
- 1960s
- peak decade
- 96%
- more common than other girls
100,619 babies have been named Penny since 1882, making it today's #748 girls' name.
Social Security Administration records show Penny recorded 100,619 times among girls since 1882, holding rank #748 nationally today, ahead of 96% of girls, peaking in the 1960s. This profile derives year-by-year birth trends, decade totals, and state-level distribution directly from SSA birth-registration files spanning 1882 to 2025.
- #748 among girls today
- 100,619 born since 1882
- 1960s peak decade
- 96% more common than other girls
Data updated Jun 2026
The verdict
Penny is currently the #748 girls' name in America, more common than 96% of girls - 100,619 born since 1882, peaking in the 1960s.
- #748
- among girls today
- 100,619
- born since 1882
- 1960s
- peak decade
- 96%
- more common than other girls
Penny vs. every other girls name in current SSA rankings
#748
of 17,726 girls in use
More common than 96% of names given to girls today.
1960s
Peak decade
38% of everyone ever named Penny was born in this single decade.
1963
Single peak year
5,129 babies were named Penny in 1963 - its busiest year on record.
How Penny compares
100,619 Top 2% higher than 98% of 17,726 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
Penny's all-time total is 263x the median girls name, and Olivia still leads by a wide margin.
| Metric | Penny | Median girls name (Emerly) | #1 girls name (Olivia) |
|---|---|---|---|
| All-time total births | 100,619 | 382 | 567,345 |
| Peak-year births | 5,129 | 48 | 19,840 |
Penny's usage pattern, beyond the headline number
Penny splits its recorded history at 1960: 60% of all births land in the more recent half, 40% in the earlier half, a lean toward present-day use rather than a passing spike. The single quietest year was 1882 (5 births) -- compare that against the 1963 peak of 5,129 for a sense of just how much the name's popularity has swung.
Penny at a glance
Top 1,000 girls' namePeak year
1963
Current rank
#748
Active since
1882
Penny popularity over time - girls
Annual U.S. births registered with the Social Security Administration · 1882–2025
- Peak year (1963)
- 5,129
- Annual births at peak, across 144 years of records
Penny popularity over time - boys
384 total births recorded since 1915 (Penny as boys' name)
Penny by decade
Total births in each ten-year window, peak vs trough at a glance
1960s was Penny's strongest decade.
38,220 babies received the name during that ten-year window, about 38% of all-time use.
Penny births by decade
Total births in each ten-year window
- 1880s 11
1880s
11 births
- 1890s 29
1890s
29 births
- 1900s 50
1900s
50 births
- 1910s 146
1910s
146 births
- 1920s 467
1920s
467 births
- 1930s 1,128
1930s
1,128 births
- 1940s 13,113
1940s
13,113 births
- 1950s
1950s
25,123 births
- 1960s
1960s
38,220 births
- 1970s 12,578
1970s
12,578 births
- 1980s 2,951
1980s
2,951 births
- 1990s 783
1990s
783 births
- 2000s 623
2000s
623 births
- 2010s 3,024
2010s
3,024 births
- 2020s 2,373
2020s
2,373 births
What this shows Peak: 1960s at 38,220 births (38% of all-time use).
How Penny 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 Penny's total volume
Penny vs 15 similarly-sized girls names
Penny by state
Where Penny concentrates geographically, total births since 1882
| Rank | State | Visual share | Births | Share of total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| #1 | California | | 7,582 | 7.5% |
| #2 | Ohio | | 6,596 | 6.6% |
| #3 | Illinois | | 5,882 | 5.8% |
| #4 | Michigan | | 5,723 | 5.7% |
| #5 | New York | | 5,654 | 5.6% |
| #6 | Texas | | 4,969 | 4.9% |
| #7 | Pennsylvania | | 4,492 | 4.5% |
| #8 | Indiana | | 4,422 | 4.4% |
California share of Penny's total US births 7.5%
Even split
7,582 of 100,619 births nationwide. Compared to a flat distribution across 51 reporting states.
Penny appears in 51 states. Explore state details →
Frequently Asked Questions
How popular is the name Penny? ▼
Since 1882, Social Security records show 100,619 babies named Penny. Today it holds rank #748 among girls. Its busiest year on record was 1963, with 5,129 births.
When was Penny most popular? ▼
Penny was most popular in the 1960s decade with 38,220 total births. The single peak year was 1963.
Where is Penny most popular? ▼
The top states for the name Penny are California (7,582 births), Ohio (6,596 births), Illinois (5,882 births).
How long has the name Penny been used? ▼
Penny has been recorded in Social Security data since 1882, spanning 144 years of data through 2025.
What names are similar to Penny? ▼
Names with a similar sound or spelling include Penelope, Pennie, Penni, Penney, and 4 more. These share a common prefix and are also used for girls.
What to do with Penny's data
- Penny's decade-level peak was the 1960s (38,220 total births); usage has since declined to 2,373 in the 2020s -- if you're weighing a "classic revival" angle, the trend line argues against it.
- California records the most Pennys (7,582 births) -- see the full state breakdown if geography matters to your decision. California names
- Weighing it against an alternative? Put two names side by side. Compare names
Figures reflect SSA-reported births only; see the methodology above for the privacy-suppression floor.
Keep exploring Penny
Nearby Names Like Penny
Names with a similar sound, spelling, or feel to Penny
Penelope Girl
#28 109,480 births
Pennie Girl
#9564 5,814 births
Penni Girl
2,606 births
Penney Girl
1,951 births
Penina Girl
#4590 1,009 births
Compare Penny side by side: Penny vs Penelope Penny vs Pennie Penny vs Penni
Related Names
Names with a similar popularity rank to Penny
Data Sources
Data as of June 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, 1882–2025 (ssa.gov/oact/babynames).
State-level: Source: U.S. Social Security Administration, Baby Names, State-Level Files (namesbystate.zip).
Cite this page
NameAlmanac Editorial. "Penny: #748 Girls' Name - 100,619 Births, Peak 1963." NameAlmanac. Accessed via https://namealmanac.com/name/penny. Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.
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 Penny 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 June 2026.