Girls' name · since 1971
Shelsea
658 babies named Shelsea in U.S. Social Security records since 1971, with the highest year being 1997. Year-by-year trend, decade aggregates, and state-level rankings drawn from federal birth data.
- #9,928 of 72,339
- all-time among girls
- #15,314 of 17,297
- 2025 SSA year
- 658
- born since 1971
- 1990s
- peak decade
Yes -- Shelsea is the #15314 most popular girls' name in the U.S. today, with 658 recorded since 1971.
Social Security Administration records show Shelsea recorded 658 times among girls since 1971, holding rank #15314 nationally today, ahead of 11% of girls, peaking in the 1990s. This profile derives year-by-year birth trends, decade totals, and state-level distribution directly from SSA birth-registration files spanning 1971 to 2025.
- #9,928 of 72,339 all-time among girls
- #15,314 of 17,297 2025 SSA year
- 658 born since 1971
- 1990s peak decade
Data updated Aug 2026
The verdict
According to the U.S. Social Security Administration, Shelsea ranks #9,928 of 72,339 girls' names by all-time recorded births (highest first) and #15,314 of 17,297 among girls' names in 2025. 658 born since 1971, peaking in the 1990s.
- #9,928 of 72,339
- all-time among girls
- #15,314 of 17,297
- 2025 SSA year
- 658
- born since 1971
- 1990s
- peak decade
Shelsea's 658 recorded births place it above 86.27% of the 72,339 girls names in the full SSA archive.
The state file records this name in 4 jurisdictions, led by California.
How Shelsea compares
658 Top 40% higher than 60% 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
Shelsea's all-time total is 75% above the median girls name, and Olivia still leads by a wide margin.
| Metric | Shelsea | Median girls name (Kyann) | #1 girls name (Olivia) |
|---|---|---|---|
| All-time total births | 658 | 376 | 567,345 |
| Peak-year births | 36 | 21 | 19,840 |
Shelsea's usage pattern, beyond the headline number
Shelsea splits its recorded history at 2001: 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 1971 (5 births) -- compare that against the 1997 peak of 36 for a sense of just how much the name's popularity has swung.
Shelsea popularity over time
Annual U.S. births registered with the Social Security Administration · 1971–2025
- Peak year (1997)
- 36
- Annual births at peak, across 55 years of records
Shelsea by decade
1990s is the heaviest window (230 births, 35% of the file).
1990s was Shelsea's strongest decade.
230 babies received the name during that ten-year window, about 35% of all-time use.
Shelsea births by decade
Total births in each ten-year window
- 1970s 11
1970s
11 births
- 1980s 70
1980s
70 births
- 1990s
1990s
230 births
- 2000s
2000s
217 births
- 2010s
2010s
113 births
- 2020s 17
2020s
17 births
What this shows Peak: 1990s at 230 births (35% of all-time use).
How Shelsea 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 Shelsea's total volume
Shelsea by state
Where Shelsea concentrates geographically, total births since 1971
| Rank | State | Visual share | Births | Share of total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| #1 | California | | 101 | 15.3% |
| #2 | Texas | | 27 | 4.1% |
| #3 | New York | | 20 | 3.0% |
| #4 | Florida | | 10 | 1.5% |
101 of 658 births nationwide. Compared to a flat distribution across 4 reporting states.
Frequently Asked Questions
How popular is the name Shelsea? ▼
Where does Shelsea sit in the SSA name archive? ▼
When was Shelsea most popular? ▼
Where is Shelsea most popular? ▼
How long has the name Shelsea been used? ▼
What names are similar to Shelsea? ▼
What to do with Shelsea's data
- Shelsea's decade-level peak was the 1990s (230 total births); usage has since declined to 17 in the 2020s -- if you're weighing a "classic revival" angle, the trend line argues against it.
- California records the most Shelseas (101 births) -- see the full state breakdown if geography matters to your decision. California names
Figures reflect SSA-reported births only; see the methodology above for the privacy-suppression floor.
Keep exploring Shelsea
Nearby Names Like Shelsea
Names with a similar sound, spelling, or feel to Shelsea
Compare Shelsea side by side: Shelsea vs Sheila Shelsea vs Sherry Shelsea vs Shelby
Related Names
Names with a similar popularity rank to Shelsea
Nationwide names with similar peak year or record span
Two nationwide peer axes for Shelsea: closest SSA peak year, and closest first→latest record span. Distinct from the spelling and current-rank neighborhoods above.
Similar peak year (~1997)
Similar record span (~54 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, 1971–2025 (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 Shelsea 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.