Girls' name · since 1880
Sue
Sue has 144,536 recorded births since 1880 in federal Social Security data, most heavily in 1947 -- full year-by-year trend, decade aggregates, and state rankings follow.
- #278 of 72,339
- all-time among girls
- #8,861 of 17,297
- 2025 SSA year
- 144,536
- born since 1880
- 1940s
- peak decade
Yes -- Sue is the #8861 most popular girls' name in the U.S. today, with 144,536 recorded since 1880.
Sue has 144,536 recorded births among girls since 1880, per the U.S. Social Security Administration, ranked #8861 as of the latest data, more common than 49% of girls, busiest in the 1940s -- see the year-by-year trends, decade totals, and state-level distribution below, all drawn directly from SSA birth-registration files spanning 1880 to 2025.
- #278 of 72,339 all-time among girls
- #8,861 of 17,297 2025 SSA year
- 144,536 born since 1880
- 1940s peak decade
Data updated Aug 2026
The verdict
According to the U.S. Social Security Administration, Sue ranks #278 of 72,339 girls' names by all-time recorded births (highest first) and #8,861 of 17,297 among girls' names in 2025. 144,536 born since 1880, peaking in the 1940s.
- #278 of 72,339
- all-time among girls
- #8,861 of 17,297
- 2025 SSA year
- 144,536
- born since 1880
- 1940s
- peak decade
Sue's 144,536 recorded births place it above 99.61% of the 72,339 girls names in the full SSA archive.
51 jurisdictions carry state-level records, led by Ohio.
How Sue compares
144,536 Top 2% higher than 98% 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
Sue's all-time total is 384x the median girls name, and Olivia still leads by a wide margin.
| Metric | Sue | Median girls name (Kyann) | #1 girls name (Olivia) |
|---|---|---|---|
| All-time total births | 144,536 | 376 | 567,345 |
| Peak-year births | 5,306 | 21 | 19,840 |
Sue's usage pattern, beyond the headline number
Divide Sue's SSA record in two at 1952 and the more recent half accounts for 42% of all births, the earlier half the remaining 58%, a genuinely balanced usage pattern. Its calmest year was 2021, with only 5 births recorded -- set against the 1947 peak of 5,306, that's the full swing in one name's fortunes.
Sue popularity over time - girls
Annual U.S. births registered with the Social Security Administration · 1880–2025
- Peak year (1947)
- 5,306
- Annual births at peak, across 146 years of records
Sue popularity over time - boys
519 total births recorded since 1917 (Sue as boys' name)
Sue by decade
1940s is the heaviest window (40,943 births, 28% of the file).
1940s was Sue's strongest decade.
40,943 babies received the name during that ten-year window, about 28% of all-time use.
Sue births by decade
Total births in each ten-year window
- 1880s 918
1880s
918 births
- 1890s 1,326
1890s
1,326 births
- 1900s 1,774
1900s
1,774 births
- 1910s 6,091
1910s
6,091 births
- 1920s 7,073
1920s
7,073 births
- 1930s
1930s
19,507 births
- 1940s
1940s
40,943 births
- 1950s
1950s
38,852 births
- 1960s
1960s
21,601 births
- 1970s 3,823
1970s
3,823 births
- 1980s 1,678
1980s
1,678 births
- 1990s 522
1990s
522 births
- 2000s 238
2000s
238 births
- 2010s 147
2010s
147 births
- 2020s 43
2020s
43 births
What this shows Peak: 1940s at 40,943 births (28% of all-time use).
How Sue 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 Sue's total volume
Sue by state
Where Sue concentrates geographically, total births since 1880
| Rank | State | Visual share | Births | Share of total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| #1 | Ohio | | 11,758 | 8.1% |
| #2 | Michigan | | 9,453 | 6.5% |
| #3 | Illinois | | 8,753 | 6.1% |
| #4 | California | | 8,142 | 5.6% |
| #5 | Texas | | 7,814 | 5.4% |
| #6 | New York | | 7,607 | 5.3% |
| #7 | Pennsylvania | | 7,398 | 5.1% |
| #8 | Indiana | | 6,758 | 4.7% |
11,758 of 144,536 births nationwide. Compared to a flat distribution across 51 reporting states.
Sue appears in 51 states. Explore state details →
Frequently Asked Questions
How popular is the name Sue? ▼
Where does Sue sit in the SSA name archive? ▼
When was Sue most popular? ▼
Where is Sue most popular? ▼
How long has the name Sue been used? ▼
What names are similar to Sue? ▼
What to do with Sue's data
- Sue's decade-level peak was the 1940s (40,943 total births); usage has since declined to 43 in the 2020s -- if you're weighing a "classic revival" angle, the trend line argues against it.
- Ohio records the most Sues (11,758 births) -- see the full state breakdown if geography matters to your decision. Ohio names
Figures reflect SSA-reported births only; see the methodology above for the privacy-suppression floor.
Keep exploring Sue
Nearby Names Like Sue
Names with a similar sound, spelling, or feel to Sue
Compare Sue side by side: Sue vs Suellen Sue vs Sueann Sue vs Sueanne
Related Names
Names with a similar popularity rank to Sue
Nationwide names with similar peak year or record span
Two nationwide peer axes for Sue: 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 Sue 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.