Boys' name · since 1880
Robert
Robert has 4,849,730 recorded births since 1880 in federal Social Security data, most heavily in 1947 -- full year-by-year trend, decade aggregates, and state rankings follow.
- #3 of 45,481
- all-time among boys
- #92 of 13,930
- 2025 SSA year
- 4,849,730
- born since 1880
- 1950s
- peak decade
Yes -- Robert is the #92 most popular boys' name in the U.S. today, with 4,849,730 recorded since 1880.
Social Security Administration records show Robert recorded 4,849,730 times among boys since 1880, holding rank #92 nationally today, ahead of 99.3% of boys, peaking in the 1950s. This profile derives year-by-year birth trends, decade totals, and state-level distribution directly from SSA birth-registration files spanning 1880 to 2025.
- #3 of 45,481 all-time among boys
- #92 of 13,930 2025 SSA year
- 4,849,730 born since 1880
- 1950s peak decade
Data updated Aug 2026
The verdict
According to the U.S. Social Security Administration, Robert ranks #3 of 45,481 boys' names by all-time recorded births (highest first) and #92 of 13,930 among boys' names in 2025. 4,849,730 born since 1880, peaking in the 1950s.
- #3 of 45,481
- all-time among boys
- #92 of 13,930
- 2025 SSA year
- 4,849,730
- born since 1880
- 1950s
- peak decade
Robert's 4,849,730 recorded births place it above 99.99% of the 45,481 boys names in the full SSA archive.
51 jurisdictions carry state-level records, led by New York.
How Robert compares
4,849,730 Top 1% higher than 99% 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
Robert's all-time total is 13,143x the median boys name, and Liam still leads by a wide margin.
| Metric | Robert | Median boys name (Takari) | #1 boys name (Liam) |
|---|---|---|---|
| All-time total births | 4,849,730 | 369 | 358,536 |
| Peak-year births | 91,655 | 34 | 22,252 |
Robert's usage pattern, beyond the headline number
Robert splits its recorded history at 1953: 48% of all births land in the more recent half, 52% in the earlier half, an evenly balanced pattern over time. The single quietest year was 1887 (2,125 births) -- compare that against the 1947 peak of 91,655 for a sense of just how much the name's popularity has swung.
Robert popularity over time - boys
Annual U.S. births registered with the Social Security Administration · 1880–2025
- Peak year (1947)
- 91,655
- Annual births at peak, across 146 years of records
Robert popularity over time - girls
20,119 total births recorded since 1880 (Robert as girls' name)
Robert by decade
1950s is the heaviest window (830,395 births, 17% of the file).
1950s was Robert's strongest decade.
830,395 babies received the name during that ten-year window, about 17% of all-time use.
Robert births by decade
Total births in each ten-year window
- 1880s 24,074
1880s
24,074 births
- 1890s 26,147
1890s
26,147 births
- 1900s 35,849
1900s
35,849 births
- 1910s 239,185
1910s
239,185 births
- 1920s
1920s
576,374 births
- 1930s
1930s
590,810 births
- 1940s
1940s
758,126 births
- 1950s
1950s
830,395 births
- 1960s
1960s
650,786 births
- 1970s
1970s
397,225 births
- 1980s 321,655
1980s
321,655 births
- 1990s 205,459
1990s
205,459 births
- 2000s 106,666
2000s
106,666 births
- 2010s 62,654
2010s
62,654 births
- 2020s 24,325
2020s
24,325 births
What this shows Peak: 1950s at 830,395 births (17% of all-time use).
How Robert 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 Robert's total volume
Robert by state
Where Robert concentrates geographically, total births since 1880
| Rank | State | Visual share | Births | Share of total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| #1 | New York | | 441,116 | 9.1% |
| #2 | Pennsylvania | | 353,383 | 7.3% |
| #3 | California | | 353,351 | 7.3% |
| #4 | Ohio | | 279,412 | 5.8% |
| #5 | Illinois | | 277,790 | 5.7% |
| #6 | Texas | | 224,847 | 4.6% |
| #7 | Michigan | | 216,253 | 4.5% |
| #8 | Massachusetts | | 172,687 | 3.6% |
441,116 of 4,849,730 births nationwide. Compared to a flat distribution across 51 reporting states.
Robert appears in 51 states. Explore state details →
Frequently Asked Questions
How popular is the name Robert? ▼
Where does Robert sit in the SSA name archive? ▼
When was Robert most popular? ▼
Where is Robert most popular? ▼
How long has the name Robert been used? ▼
What names are similar to Robert? ▼
What to do with Robert's data
- Robert's decade-level peak was the 1950s (830,395 total births); usage has since declined to 24,325 in the 2020s -- if you're weighing a "classic revival" angle, the trend line argues against it.
- New York records the most Roberts (441,116 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 Robert
Nearby Names Like Robert
Names with a similar sound, spelling, or feel to Robert
Compare Robert side by side: Robert vs Roberto Robert vs Robin Robert vs Robbie
Related Names
Names with a similar popularity rank to Robert
Nationwide names with similar peak year or record span
Two nationwide peer axes for Robert: closest SSA peak year, and closest first→latest record span. Distinct from the spelling and current-rank neighborhoods above.
Similar peak year (~1947)
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 Robert 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.