Total births
14,770
Girls' name · since 1889
Tess
14,770 babies named Tess in U.S. Social Security records since 1889, with the highest year being 1992. Year-by-year trend, decade aggregates, and state-level rankings drawn from federal birth data.
- #1756
- among girls today
- 14,770
- born since 1889
- 1990s
- peak decade
- 90%
- more common than other girls
Yes -- Tess is the #1756 most popular girls' name in the U.S. today, with 14,770 recorded since 1889.
Social Security Administration records show Tess recorded 14,770 times among girls since 1889, holding rank #1756 nationally today, ahead of 90% 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 1889 to 2025.
- #1756 among girls today
- 14,770 born since 1889
- 1990s peak decade
- 90% more common than other girls
Data updated Jun 2026
The verdict
Tess is currently the #1756 girls' name in America, more common than 90% of girls - 14,770 born since 1889, peaking in the 1990s.
- #1756
- among girls today
- 14,770
- born since 1889
- 1990s
- peak decade
- 90%
- more common than other girls
Tess vs. every other girls name in current SSA rankings
#1756
of 17,726 girls in use
More common than 90% of names given to girls today.
1990s
Peak decade
31% of everyone ever named Tess was born in this single decade.
1992
Single peak year
529 babies were named Tess in 1992 - its busiest year on record.
How Tess compares
14,770 Top 7% higher than 93% of 17,726 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
Tess's all-time total is 39x the median girls name, and Olivia still leads by a wide margin.
| Metric | Tess | Median girls name (Emerly) | #1 girls name (Olivia) |
|---|---|---|---|
| All-time total births | 14,770 | 382 | 567,345 |
| Peak-year births | 529 | 48 | 19,840 |
Tess's usage pattern, beyond the headline number
Splitting Tess's full recorded timeline at 1964, 95% of its total births fall in the more recent half of the record versus 5% in the earlier half -- usage has skewed toward the present, not a one-decade spike. Its quietest year on record was 1896, with just 5 recorded births -- worth weighing against the 1992 peak of 529 to see the full range of the name's swing in popularity.
Tess at a glance
Outside the top 1,000Peak year
1992
Current rank
#1,756
Active since
1889
Tess popularity over time
Annual U.S. births registered with the Social Security Administration · 1889–2025
- Peak year (1992)
- 529
- Annual births at peak, across 137 years of records
Tess by decade
Total births in each ten-year window, peak vs trough at a glance
1990s was Tess's strongest decade.
4,559 babies received the name during that ten-year window, about 31% of all-time use.
Tess births by decade
Total births in each ten-year window
- 1880s 6
1880s
6 births
- 1890s 38
1890s
38 births
- 1900s 83
1900s
83 births
- 1910s 155
1910s
155 births
- 1920s 128
1920s
128 births
- 1930s 37
1930s
37 births
- 1940s 46
1940s
46 births
- 1950s 89
1950s
89 births
- 1960s 361
1960s
361 births
- 1970s 423
1970s
423 births
- 1980s 1,707
1980s
1,707 births
- 1990s
1990s
4,559 births
- 2000s
2000s
4,024 births
- 2010s
2010s
2,345 births
- 2020s 769
2020s
769 births
What this shows Peak: 1990s at 4,559 births (31% of all-time use).
How Tess 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 Tess's total volume
Tess vs 15 similarly-sized girls names
Tess by state
Where Tess concentrates geographically, total births since 1889
| Rank | State | Visual share | Births | Share of total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| #1 | California | | 1,496 | 10.1% |
| #2 | New York | | 1,022 | 6.9% |
| #3 | Massachusetts | | 758 | 5.1% |
| #4 | Illinois | | 741 | 5.0% |
| #5 | Texas | | 719 | 4.9% |
| #6 | Pennsylvania | | 572 | 3.9% |
| #7 | Ohio | | 494 | 3.3% |
| #8 | Michigan | | 405 | 2.7% |
California share of Tess's total US births 10.1%
Even split
1,496 of 14,770 births nationwide. Compared to a flat distribution across 44 reporting states.
Tess appears in 44 states. Explore state details →
Frequently Asked Questions
How popular is the name Tess? ▼
Since 1889, Social Security records show 14,770 babies named Tess. Today it holds rank #1756 among girls. Its busiest year on record was 1992, with 529 births.
When was Tess most popular? ▼
Tess was most popular in the 1990s decade with 4,559 total births. The single peak year was 1992.
Where is Tess most popular? ▼
The top states for the name Tess are California (1,496 births), New York (1,022 births), Massachusetts (758 births).
How long has the name Tess been used? ▼
Tess has been recorded in Social Security data since 1889, spanning 137 years of data through 2025.
What names are similar to Tess? ▼
Names with a similar sound or spelling include Tessa, Tessie, Tesla, Tesha, and 4 more. These share a common prefix and are also used for girls.
What to do with Tess's data
- Tess's decade-level peak was the 1990s (4,559 total births); usage has since declined to 769 in the 2020s -- if you're weighing a "classic revival" angle, the trend line argues against it.
- California records the most Tesss (1,496 births) -- see the full state breakdown if geography matters to your decision. California names
- Weighing it against an alternative? Put two names side by side. Compare names
Figures reflect SSA-reported births only; see the methodology above for the privacy-suppression floor.
Keep exploring Tess
Nearby Names Like Tess
Names with a similar sound, spelling, or feel to Tess
Tessa Girl
#303 55,926 births
Tessie Girl
#8948 9,981 births
Tesla Girl
2,589 births
Tesha Girl
1,804 births
Tesa Girl
#15612 1,382 births
Compare Tess side by side: Tess vs Tessa Tess vs Tessie Tess vs Tesla
Related Names
Names with a similar popularity rank to Tess
Charlene #1755
133,729 births · Peak 1952
Leilah #1757
4,241 births · Peak 2010
Zadie #1754
3,615 births · Peak 2016
Estela #1758
9,147 births · Peak 2022
Jennie #1753
127,181 births · Peak 1917
Walker #1759
1,037 births · Peak 2022
Solene #1752
509 births · Peak 2025
Leticia #1760
42,984 births · Peak 1980
Data Sources
Data as of June 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, 1889–2025 (ssa.gov/oact/babynames).
State-level: Source: U.S. Social Security Administration, Baby Names, State-Level Files (namesbystate.zip).
Cite this page
NameAlmanac Editorial. "Tess: #1756 Girls' Name - 14,770 Births, Peak 1992." NameAlmanac. Accessed via https://namealmanac.com/name/tess. Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.
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 Tess 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 June 2026.