Girls' name · since 1940
Sierra
Since 1940, U.S. Social Security records show 100,597 babies named Sierra, peaking in 1998. See the year-by-year trend, decade totals, and state rankings below, sourced from federal birth data.
- #375 of 72,339
- all-time among girls
- #614 of 17,297
- 2025 SSA year
- 100,597
- born since 1940
- 1990s
- peak decade
Sierra currently ranks #614 among girls' names in America, with 100,597 babies recorded since 1940.
Sierra has 100,597 recorded births among girls since 1940, per the U.S. Social Security Administration, ranked #614 as of the latest data, more common than 96% of girls, busiest in the 1990s -- see the year-by-year trends, decade totals, and state-level distribution below, all drawn directly from SSA birth-registration files spanning 1940 to 2025.
- #375 of 72,339 all-time among girls
- #614 of 17,297 2025 SSA year
- 100,597 born since 1940
- 1990s peak decade
Data updated Aug 2026
The verdict
According to the U.S. Social Security Administration, Sierra ranks #375 of 72,339 girls' names by all-time recorded births (highest first) and #614 of 17,297 among girls' names in 2025. 100,597 born since 1940, peaking in the 1990s.
- #375 of 72,339
- all-time among girls
- #614 of 17,297
- 2025 SSA year
- 100,597
- born since 1940
- 1990s
- peak decade
Sierra's 100,597 recorded births place it above 99.48% of the 72,339 girls names in the full SSA archive.
51 jurisdictions carry state-level records, led by California.
How Sierra compares
100,597 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
Sierra's all-time total is 268x the median girls name, and Olivia still leads by a wide margin.
| Metric | Sierra | Median girls name (Kyann) | #1 girls name (Olivia) |
|---|---|---|---|
| All-time total births | 100,597 | 376 | 567,345 |
| Peak-year births | 5,841 | 21 | 19,840 |
Sierra's usage pattern, beyond the headline number
Splitting Sierra's full recorded timeline at 1985, 98% of its total births fall in the more recent half of the record versus 2% in the earlier half -- usage has skewed toward the present, not a one-decade spike. Its quietest year on record was 1947, with just 5 recorded births -- worth weighing against the 1998 peak of 5,841 to see the full range of the name's swing in popularity.
Sierra popularity over time - girls
Annual U.S. births registered with the Social Security Administration · 1940–2025
- Peak year (1998)
- 5,841
- Annual births at peak, across 86 years of records
Sierra popularity over time - boys
269 total births recorded since 1975 (Sierra as boys' name)
Sierra by decade
1990s is the heaviest window (43,638 births, 43% of the file).
1990s was Sierra's strongest decade.
43,638 babies received the name during that ten-year window, about 43% of all-time use.
Sierra births by decade
Total births in each ten-year window
- 1940s 144
1940s
144 births
- 1950s 54
1950s
54 births
- 1960s 81
1960s
81 births
- 1970s 787
1970s
787 births
- 1980s 8,846
1980s
8,846 births
- 1990s
1990s
43,638 births
- 2000s
2000s
34,534 births
- 2010s 9,272
2010s
9,272 births
- 2020s 3,241
2020s
3,241 births
What this shows Peak: 1990s at 43,638 births (43% of all-time use).
How Sierra 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 Sierra's total volume
Sierra by state
Where Sierra concentrates geographically, total births since 1940
| Rank | State | Visual share | Births | Share of total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| #1 | California | | 13,340 | 13.3% |
| #2 | Texas | | 6,596 | 6.6% |
| #3 | Florida | | 4,936 | 4.9% |
| #4 | Ohio | | 4,723 | 4.7% |
| #5 | Pennsylvania | | 4,314 | 4.3% |
| #6 | New York | | 3,998 | 4.0% |
| #7 | Michigan | | 3,272 | 3.3% |
| #8 | North Carolina | | 3,074 | 3.1% |
13,340 of 100,597 births nationwide. Compared to a flat distribution across 51 reporting states.
Sierra appears in 51 states. Explore state details →
Frequently Asked Questions
How popular is the name Sierra? ▼
Where does Sierra sit in the SSA name archive? ▼
When was Sierra most popular? ▼
Where is Sierra most popular? ▼
How long has the name Sierra been used? ▼
What names are similar to Sierra? ▼
What to do with Sierra's data
- Sierra's decade-level peak was the 1990s (43,638 total births); usage has since declined to 3,241 in the 2020s -- if you're weighing a "classic revival" angle, the trend line argues against it.
- California records the most Sierras (13,340 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 Sierra
Nearby Names Like Sierra
Names with a similar sound, spelling, or feel to Sierra
Compare Sierra side by side: Sierra vs Sienna Sierra vs Siena Sierra vs Siera
Related Names
Names with a similar popularity rank to Sierra
Nationwide names with similar peak year or record span
Two nationwide peer axes for Sierra: closest SSA peak year, and closest first→latest record span. Distinct from the spelling and current-rank neighborhoods above.
Similar peak year (~1998)
Similar record span (~85 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, 1940–2025 (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 Sierra 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.