How Many People Are Named Carla?
An estimated 121,802 people in the United States have the first name Carla. While not in the top 50, it remains a well-known name ranking #452 overall. It is almost exclusively a female name. The average bearer is 54 years old, and Carla peaked in popularity in 1961 with 5,829 births that year.
Below you will find a full statistical profile of Carla 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 Carla paired with any surname.
Key Insights
- While Carla is overwhelmingly female, 425 male births have been registered with this name since 1880.
- Carla has fallen dramatically from its peak in the 1960s. Recent registrations are less than 5% of what they were at the name's height.
Estimated Living Americans
121,802
About 1 in 2,814 people in the U.S.
Rarity
Common
Predicted Gender
Female
99.7% confidence
Average Age
54
years old
Peak Year
1961
5,829 births
Total Registered
150,588
since 1880
Gender Distribution for Carla
Carla is almost exclusively a female name. Out of 150,588 total births registered, 99.7% were female.
Carla as a male name
Ranked #9,059 in 1995
5 male births in 1995
Peak: 1967 (19 births)
Carla as a female name
Ranked #1,012 in 2024
252 female births in 2024
Peak: 1962 (5,821 births)
Carla: Popularity Over Time
SSA records for Carla span from the 1890s to the 2020s, covering 14 decades of naming data. The most popular decade for this name was the 1960s, when 48,024 babies were registered. Carla has declined significantly from its peak in the 1960s. Recent registrations are a fraction of what they were at the name's height.
Carla by Decade
How has Carla 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 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1890s | 11 | 0 | 11 | |
| 1900s | 54 | 0 | 54 | |
| 1910s | 171 | 0 | 171 | |
| 1920s | 550 | 0 | 550 | |
| 1930s | 2,262 | 0 | 2,262 | |
| 1940s | 9,497 | 11 | 9,486 | |
| 1950s | 29,490 | 58 | 29,432 | |
| 1960s | 48,024 | 119 | 47,905 | |
| 1970s | 26,943 | 98 | 26,845 | |
| 1980s | 14,557 | 104 | 14,453 | |
| 1990s | 8,434 | 35 | 8,399 | |
| 2000s | 6,166 | 0 | 6,166 | |
| 2010s | 3,154 | 0 | 3,154 | |
| 2020s | 1,275 | 0 | 1,275 | |
Carla by State
Birth registrations for Carla span all 51 states and territories in the SSA database. The highest counts are in California, Texas, Ohio. The lowest are in Vermont, New Hampshire, Alaska. On average, about 2,877 Carlas were registered per state.
Carla + Last Name Combinations
How many people share a full name with Carla as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Names Similar to Carla
Other first names starting with C with a similar number of bearers.
Carla: Questions and Answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Carla?
We estimate approximately 121,802 people named Carla 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 2,814 Americans share this first name.
Is Carla a common name?
Carla is classified as "Common" and is more popular than 99.6% of all first names in the SSA database. A total of 150,588 births have been registered with this name since 1880.
When was Carla most popular?
Carla reached peak popularity in 1961, when 5,829 babies were given this name. The average age of a living person named Carla is approximately 54 years old, reflecting when the name was most commonly given.
Is Carla a female name?
Carla is predominantly female. 99.7% of people with this name are female. See the gender breakdown above for full details.
How many Carla Smiths are there?
To find how many people share a specific full name, we combine first name and surname frequencies. Try: Carla Smith, Carla Johnson, Carla 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.
Search for a full name combination
How Many of Me