US rank #280 Boys' name Peak 2016 28,093 births

Tobias — #280 US boys' name

28,093 babies named Tobias in U.S. Social Security records since 1880, with the highest year being 2016. Year-by-year trend, decade aggregates, and state-level rankings drawn from federal birth data.

1880s381890s231900s371910s1441920s1551930s1071940s1601950s2431960s5761970s21021980s18081990s22662000s48052010s94042020s6225
#280
of 14,243 boys in use

More common than 98% of names given to boys today.

2010s
Peak decade

33% of everyone ever named Tobias was born in this single decade.

2016
Single peak year

1,523 babies were named Tobias in 2016 — its busiest year on record.

What the Data Says About Tobias

The Social Security Administration has registered 28,093 babies named Tobias between 1880 and 2024, spanning 145 consecutive years of U.S. birth records. As a boy's name, Tobias currently holds the #280 rank among boys for 2024. The name reached its historical peak in 2016, when 1,523 babies received it in a single year.

Decade-level aggregation shows that Tobias performed strongest in the 2010s, accumulating 9,404 births during that ten-year window. Across the 15 decades of recorded activity, Tobias shows notable generational variation in parental adoption. Geographically, the name is most concentrated in California, which accounts for 2,823 births — the largest state-level total in the dataset — followed by Texas and New York. In total, SSA state-level files list Tobias in 50 of the 51 U.S. reporting jurisdictions.

No etymological entry is currently available for Tobias in our reference dataset. These figures derive from SSA's annual national and state-level name files, which include any name appearing at least five times in a given year or state-year; names below that threshold are suppressed for privacy and therefore excluded from the totals shown here. The 28,093 total represents a lower bound — actual usage may be higher in years or states where the count fell below the disclosure floor. This page is provided for informational and research purposes only and does not constitute personal, legal, or naming advice.

Tobias at a glance

Top 1,000 boys' name

Total births

28,093

Since 1880

145 years of records

Peak year

2016

1,523 births that year

Strongest decade: 2010s

Current rank

#280

Among boys

As of 2024

Active since

1880

Recorded for 145 years

Last year on file: 2024

Tobias popularity over time

Annual U.S. births registered with the Social Security Administration · 2024–1880

Top 1,000 boys' name
Peak year (2016)
1,523
Annual births at peak — across 145 years of records
-50005001,0001,5002,000 202420071990197319561939192219011880 7

Tobias by decade

Total births in each ten-year window — peak vs trough at a glance

Peak: 2010s
Peak decade
2010s
9,404 births that decade — 33% of Tobias's all-time total
1880s381890s231900s371910s1441920s1551930s1071940s1601950s2431960s5761970s21021980s18081990s22662000s48052010s94042020s6225

Tobias by state

Where Tobias concentrates geographically — total births since 1880

Geographically diffuse
Top 8 states by recorded births for the name Tobias
Rank State Visual share Births Share of total
#1 California
2,823 10.0%
#2 Texas
1,875 6.7%
#3 New York
1,341 4.8%
#4 Florida
1,306 4.6%
#5 Ohio
1,110 4.0%
#6 Illinois
1,069 3.8%
#7 Pennsylvania
1,065 3.8%
#8 Georgia
960 3.4%
California share of Tobias's total US births 10.0%
Even split

2,823 of 28,093 births nationwide. Compared to a flat distribution across 50 reporting states.

Tobias appears in 50 states. Explore state details →

Frequently Asked Questions

How popular is the name Tobias?
28,093 babies have been named Tobias since 1880. It currently ranks #280 among boys. The peak year was 2016 with 1,523 births.
When was Tobias most popular?
Tobias was most popular in the 2010s decade with 9,404 total births. The single peak year was 2016.
Where is Tobias most popular?
The top states for the name Tobias are California (2,823 births), Texas (1,875 births), New York (1,341 births).
How long has the name Tobias been used?
Tobias has been recorded in Social Security data since 1880, spanning 145 years of data through 2024.
What names are similar to Tobias?
Names with a similar sound or spelling include Toby, Tobin, Tobey, Tobe, and 4 more. These share a common prefix and are also used for boys.

Keep exploring Tobias

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Data Sources

Data as of 2024. Source: U.S. Social Security Administration (SSA).

Primary: Source: U.S. Social Security Administration, Baby Names from Social Security Card Applications — National Data, 1880–2024 (ssa.gov/oact/babynames). National-level data includes all names with 5 or more occurrences in a given year.

State-level: Source: U.S. Social Security Administration, Baby Names — State-Level Files (namesbystate.zip). Includes all names with 5 or more occurrences per state per year; rarer names are excluded for privacy.