How Many People Are Named Alton?
An estimated 23,251 people in the United States have the first name Alton. It is predominantly male (99.2%). The average bearer is 57 years old, and Alton peaked in popularity in 1937 with 836 births that year.
Below you will find a full statistical profile of Alton as a first name in the United States, including gender data, a year-by-year popularity timeline going back to 1880, a decade breakdown, and state-by-state birth registrations. You can also check how many people share the full name Alton paired with any surname.
Key Insights
- While Alton is overwhelmingly male, 376 female births have been registered with this name since 1880.
Estimated Living Americans
23,251
About 1 in 14,741 people in the U.S.
Rarity
Uncommon
Predicted Gender
Male
99.2% confidence
Average Age
57
years old
Peak Year
1937
836 births
Total Registered
47,725
since 1880
Gender Distribution for Alton
Alton is almost exclusively a male name. Out of 47,725 total births registered, 99.2% were male.
Alton as a male name
Ranked #1,566 in 2024
110 male births in 2024
Peak: 1937 (836 births)
Alton as a female name
Ranked #12,428 in 1989
5 female births in 1989
Peak: 1920 (16 births)
Alton: Popularity Over Time
SSA records for Alton span from the 1880s to the 2020s, covering 15 decades of naming data. The most popular decade for this name was the 1920s, when 7,338 babies were registered. Alton has declined significantly from its peak in the 1920s. Recent registrations are a fraction of what they were at the name's height.
Alton by Decade
How has Alton tracked across different eras? The table below groups all SSA birth registrations into 10-year periods, with separate male and female counts. The colored bar shows each decade's share relative to the peak.
| Decade | Total | Male | Female | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1880s | 191 | 191 | 0 | |
| 1890s | 276 | 276 | 0 | |
| 1900s | 1,114 | 1,102 | 12 | |
| 1910s | 4,491 | 4,417 | 74 | |
| 1920s | 7,338 | 7,243 | 95 | |
| 1930s | 7,284 | 7,215 | 69 | |
| 1940s | 6,414 | 6,373 | 41 | |
| 1950s | 6,018 | 5,988 | 30 | |
| 1960s | 4,411 | 4,376 | 35 | |
| 1970s | 2,860 | 2,855 | 5 | |
| 1980s | 2,226 | 2,211 | 15 | |
| 1990s | 1,684 | 1,684 | 0 | |
| 2000s | 1,466 | 1,466 | 0 | |
| 2010s | 1,426 | 1,426 | 0 | |
| 2020s | 526 | 526 | 0 | |
Alton by State
Birth registrations for Alton span all 47 states and territories in the SSA database. The highest counts are in Texas, North Carolina, Louisiana. The lowest are in Colorado, Montana, Delaware. On average, about 862 Altons were registered per state.
Alton + Last Name Combinations
How many people share a full name with Alton as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Names Similar to Alton
Other first names starting with A with a similar number of bearers.
Alton: Questions and Answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Alton?
We estimate approximately 23,251 people named Alton are alive in the United States today. This is based on SSA birth records from 1880 to 2024, adjusted for mortality using CDC life tables. About 1 in 14,741 Americans share this first name.
Is Alton a common name?
Alton is classified as "Uncommon" and is more popular than 98.6% of all first names in the SSA database. A total of 47,725 births have been registered with this name since 1880.
When was Alton most popular?
Alton reached peak popularity in 1937, when 836 babies were given this name. The average age of a living person named Alton is approximately 57 years old, reflecting when the name was most commonly given.
Is Alton a male name?
Alton is predominantly male. 99.2% of people with this name are male. See the gender breakdown above for full details.
How many Alton Smiths are there?
To find how many people share a specific full name, we combine first name and surname frequencies. Try: Alton Smith, Alton Johnson, Alton Williams. You can also search any combination on our homepage.
Where does this data come from?
Our estimates use Social Security Administration birth records (1880 to 2024), adjusted for survival using CDC 2023 life tables broken down by sex. The U.S. population figure (342,754,338) is from the Census Bureau's July 2025 estimate. Full methodology.
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