US rank #792 Boys' name Peak 1951 60,160 births

Rex — #792 US boys' name

60,160 babies named Rex in U.S. Social Security records since 1880, with the highest year being 1951. Year-by-year trend, decade aggregates, and state-level rankings drawn from federal birth data.

1880s1831890s3051900s4971910s32531920s56271930s59491940s66691950s135001960s87321970s33601980s25331990s17412000s20482010s39442020s1819
#792
of 14,243 boys in use

More common than 94% of names given to boys today.

1950s
Peak decade

22% of everyone ever named Rex was born in this single decade.

1951
Single peak year

1,503 babies were named Rex in 1951 — its busiest year on record.

What the Data Says About Rex

The Social Security Administration has registered 60,160 babies named Rex between 1880 and 2024, spanning 145 consecutive years of U.S. birth records. As a boy's name, Rex currently holds the #792 rank among boys for 2024. The name reached its historical peak in 1951, when 1,503 babies received it in a single year.

Decade-level aggregation shows that Rex performed strongest in the 1950s, accumulating 13,500 births during that ten-year window. Across the 15 decades of recorded activity, Rex shows a clear decline from its mid-century high. Geographically, the name is most concentrated in California, which accounts for 4,473 births — the largest state-level total in the dataset — followed by Texas and Indiana. In total, SSA state-level files list Rex in 48 of the 51 U.S. reporting jurisdictions.

No etymological entry is currently available for Rex in our reference dataset. These figures derive from SSA's annual national and state-level name files, which include any name appearing at least five times in a given year or state-year; names below that threshold are suppressed for privacy and therefore excluded from the totals shown here. The 60,160 total represents a lower bound — actual usage may be higher in years or states where the count fell below the disclosure floor. This page is provided for informational and research purposes only and does not constitute personal, legal, or naming advice.

Rex at a glance

Top 1,000 boys' name

Total births

60,160

Since 1880

145 years of records

Peak year

1951

1,503 births that year

Strongest decade: 1950s

Current rank

#792

Among boys

As of 2024

Active since

1880

Recorded for 145 years

Last year on file: 2024

Rex popularity over time — boys

Annual U.S. births registered with the Social Security Administration · 2024–1880

Top 1,000 boys' name
Peak year (1951)
1,503
Annual births at peak — across 145 years of records
-50005001,0001,5002,000 202420051986196719481929191018911880 13

Rex popularity over time — girls

141 total births recorded since 1921 (Rex as girls' name)

Unisex variant — 141 births
4681012 19841964195919561952193519271921 5

Rex by decade

Total births in each ten-year window — peak vs trough at a glance

Peak: 1950s
Peak decade
1950s
13,500 births that decade — 22% of Rex's all-time total
1880s1831890s3051900s4971910s32531920s56271930s59491940s66691950s135001960s87321970s33601980s25331990s17412000s20482010s39442020s1819

Rex by state

Where Rex concentrates geographically — total births since 1880

Geographically diffuse
Top 8 states by recorded births for the name Rex
Rank State Visual share Births Share of total
#1 California
4,473 7.4%
#2 Texas
4,417 7.3%
#3 Indiana
3,924 6.5%
#4 Ohio
3,207 5.3%
#5 Michigan
2,880 4.8%
#6 Illinois
2,475 4.1%
#7 Missouri
2,171 3.6%
#8 Kansas
2,021 3.4%
California share of Rex's total US births 7.4%
Even split

4,473 of 60,160 births nationwide. Compared to a flat distribution across 48 reporting states.

Rex appears in 48 states. Explore state details →

Frequently Asked Questions

How popular is the name Rex?
60,160 babies have been named Rex since 1880. It currently ranks #792 among boys. The peak year was 1951 with 1,503 births.
When was Rex most popular?
Rex was most popular in the 1950s decade with 13,500 total births. The single peak year was 1951.
Where is Rex most popular?
The top states for the name Rex are California (4,473 births), Texas (4,417 births), Indiana (3,924 births).
How long has the name Rex been used?
Rex has been recorded in Social Security data since 1880, spanning 145 years of data through 2024.
What names are similar to Rex?
Names with a similar sound or spelling include Rexford, Rexton, Rexx, Rexie, and 4 more. These share a common prefix and are also used for boys.

Data Sources

Data as of 2024. Source: U.S. Social Security Administration (SSA).

Primary: Source: U.S. Social Security Administration, Baby Names from Social Security Card Applications — National Data, 1880–2024 (ssa.gov/oact/babynames). National-level data includes all names with 5 or more occurrences in a given year.

State-level: Source: U.S. Social Security Administration, Baby Names — State-Level Files (namesbystate.zip). Includes all names with 5 or more occurrences per state per year; rarer names are excluded for privacy.