Girls' name · since 1921
Sheryl
78,826 babies named Sheryl in U.S. Social Security records since 1921, with the highest year being 1957. Year-by-year trend, decade aggregates, and state-level rankings drawn from federal birth data.
- #442 of 72,339
- all-time among girls
- #7,939 of 17,297
- 2025 SSA year
- 78,826
- born since 1921
- 1950s
- peak decade
Yes -- Sheryl is the #7939 most popular girls' name in the U.S. today, with 78,826 recorded since 1921.
Sheryl has 78,826 recorded births among girls since 1921, per the U.S. Social Security Administration, ranked #7939 as of the latest data, more common than 54% of girls, busiest in the 1950s -- see the year-by-year trends, decade totals, and state-level distribution below, all drawn directly from SSA birth-registration files spanning 1921 to 2025.
- #442 of 72,339 all-time among girls
- #7,939 of 17,297 2025 SSA year
- 78,826 born since 1921
- 1950s peak decade
Data updated Aug 2026
The verdict
According to the U.S. Social Security Administration, Sheryl ranks #442 of 72,339 girls' names by all-time recorded births (highest first) and #7,939 of 17,297 among girls' names in 2025. 78,826 born since 1921, peaking in the 1950s.
- #442 of 72,339
- all-time among girls
- #7,939 of 17,297
- 2025 SSA year
- 78,826
- born since 1921
- 1950s
- peak decade
Sheryl's 78,826 recorded births place it above 99.38% of the 72,339 girls names in the full SSA archive.
51 jurisdictions carry state-level records, led by California.
How Sheryl compares
78,826 Top 3% higher than 97% 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
Sheryl's all-time total is 210x the median girls name, and Olivia still leads by a wide margin.
| Metric | Sheryl | Median girls name (Kyann) | #1 girls name (Olivia) |
|---|---|---|---|
| All-time total births | 78,826 | 376 | 567,345 |
| Peak-year births | 4,133 | 21 | 19,840 |
Sheryl's usage pattern, beyond the headline number
Divide Sheryl's SSA record in two at 1974 and the more recent half accounts for 8% of all births, the earlier half the remaining 92%, consistent with a name more common in the past than in recent years. Its calmest year was 1930, with only 5 births recorded -- set against the 1957 peak of 4,133, that's the full swing in one name's fortunes.
Sheryl popularity over time - girls
Annual U.S. births registered with the Social Security Administration · 1921–2025
- Peak year (1957)
- 4,133
- Annual births at peak, across 105 years of records
Sheryl popularity over time - boys
200 total births recorded since 1932 (Sheryl as boys' name)
Sheryl by decade
1950s is the heaviest window (30,384 births, 39% of the file).
1950s was Sheryl's strongest decade.
30,384 babies received the name during that ten-year window, about 39% of all-time use.
Sheryl births by decade
Total births in each ten-year window
- 1920s 61
1920s
61 births
- 1930s 527
1930s
527 births
- 1940s 10,713
1940s
10,713 births
- 1950s
1950s
30,384 births
- 1960s
1960s
26,058 births
- 1970s 7,356
1970s
7,356 births
- 1980s 2,273
1980s
2,273 births
- 1990s 749
1990s
749 births
- 2000s 361
2000s
361 births
- 2010s 243
2010s
243 births
- 2020s 101
2020s
101 births
What this shows Peak: 1950s at 30,384 births (39% of all-time use).
How Sheryl 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 Sheryl's total volume
Sheryl by state
Where Sheryl concentrates geographically, total births since 1921
| Rank | State | Visual share | Births | Share of total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| #1 | California | | 7,848 | 10.0% |
| #2 | Michigan | | 5,276 | 6.7% |
| #3 | New York | | 4,927 | 6.3% |
| #4 | Illinois | | 4,489 | 5.7% |
| #5 | Texas | | 4,419 | 5.6% |
| #6 | Ohio | | 4,255 | 5.4% |
| #7 | Pennsylvania | | 2,961 | 3.8% |
| #8 | Iowa | | 2,878 | 3.7% |
7,848 of 78,826 births nationwide. Compared to a flat distribution across 51 reporting states.
Sheryl appears in 51 states. Explore state details →
Frequently Asked Questions
How popular is the name Sheryl? ▼
Where does Sheryl sit in the SSA name archive? ▼
When was Sheryl most popular? ▼
Where is Sheryl most popular? ▼
How long has the name Sheryl been used? ▼
What names are similar to Sheryl? ▼
What to do with Sheryl's data
- Sheryl's decade-level peak was the 1950s (30,384 total births); usage has since declined to 101 in the 2020s -- if you're weighing a "classic revival" angle, the trend line argues against it.
- California records the most Sheryls (7,848 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 Sheryl
Nearby Names Like Sheryl
Names with a similar sound, spelling, or feel to Sheryl
Compare Sheryl side by side: Sheryl vs Sheila Sheryl vs Sherry Sheryl vs Shelby
Related Names
Names with a similar popularity rank to Sheryl
Nationwide names with similar peak year or record span
Two nationwide peer axes for Sheryl: closest SSA peak year, and closest first→latest record span. Distinct from the spelling and current-rank neighborhoods above.
Similar peak year (~1957)
Similar record span (~104 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, 1921–2025 (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 Sheryl 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.