How Many People Are Named Carl?
An estimated 248,051 people in the United States have the first name Carl. While not in the top 50, it remains a well-known name ranking #204 overall. It is predominantly male (99.4%). The average bearer is 62 years old, and Carl peaked in popularity in 1956 with 8,346 births that year.
Below you will find a full statistical profile of Carl 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 Carl paired with any surname.
Key Insights
- While Carl is overwhelmingly male, 3,190 female births have been registered with this name since 1880.
- Carl has fallen dramatically from its peak in the 1950s. Recent registrations are less than 5% of what they were at the name's height.
Estimated Living Americans
248,051
About 1 in 1,382 people in the U.S.
Rarity
Common
Predicted Gender
Male
99.4% confidence
Average Age
62
years old
Peak Year
1956
8,346 births
Total Registered
507,825
since 1880
Gender Distribution for Carl
Carl is almost exclusively a male name. Out of 507,825 total births registered, 99.4% were male.
Carl as a male name
Ranked #1,033 in 2024
215 male births in 2024
Peak: 1956 (8,314 births)
Carl as a female name
Ranked #12,019 in 1994
6 female births in 1994
Peak: 1928 (61 births)
Carl: Popularity Over Time
SSA records for Carl span from the 1880s to the 2020s, covering 15 decades of naming data. The most popular decade for this name was the 1950s, when 79,066 babies were registered. Carl has declined significantly from its peak in the 1950s. Recent registrations are a fraction of what they were at the name's height.
Carl by Decade
How has Carl 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 | 5,261 | 5,227 | 34 | |
| 1890s | 8,138 | 8,047 | 91 | |
| 1900s | 9,951 | 9,865 | 86 | |
| 1910s | 48,767 | 48,454 | 313 | |
| 1920s | 70,346 | 69,851 | 495 | |
| 1930s | 67,168 | 66,757 | 411 | |
| 1940s | 73,055 | 72,739 | 316 | |
| 1950s | 79,066 | 78,754 | 312 | |
| 1960s | 61,184 | 60,785 | 399 | |
| 1970s | 31,757 | 31,370 | 387 | |
| 1980s | 25,780 | 25,472 | 308 | |
| 1990s | 14,733 | 14,695 | 38 | |
| 2000s | 7,197 | 7,197 | 0 | |
| 2010s | 4,223 | 4,223 | 0 | |
| 2020s | 1,199 | 1,199 | 0 | |
Carl by State
Birth registrations for Carl span all 51 states and territories in the SSA database. The highest counts are in Pennsylvania, New York, Ohio. The lowest are in Nevada, Vermont, Wyoming. On average, about 9,418 Carls were registered per state.
Carl + Last Name Combinations
How many people share a full name with Carl as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Names Similar to Carl
Other first names starting with C with a similar number of bearers.
Carl: Questions and Answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Carl?
We estimate approximately 248,051 people named Carl 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 1,382 Americans share this first name.
Is Carl a common name?
Carl is classified as "Common" and is more popular than 99.8% of all first names in the SSA database. A total of 507,825 births have been registered with this name since 1880.
When was Carl most popular?
Carl reached peak popularity in 1956, when 8,346 babies were given this name. The average age of a living person named Carl is approximately 62 years old, reflecting when the name was most commonly given.
Is Carl a male name?
Carl is predominantly male. 99.4% of people with this name are male. See the gender breakdown above for full details.
How many Carl Smiths are there?
To find how many people share a specific full name, we combine first name and surname frequencies. Try: Carl Smith, Carl Johnson, Carl 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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