How Many People Are Named Dean?
An estimated 140,847 people in the United States have the first name Dean. While not in the top 50, it remains a well-known name ranking #381 overall. It is predominantly male (98.5%). The average bearer is 48 years old, and Dean peaked in popularity in 1961 with 4,965 births that year.
Below you will find a full statistical profile of Dean 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 Dean paired with any surname.
Key Insights
- While Dean is overwhelmingly male, 2,908 female births have been registered with this name since 1880.
Estimated Living Americans
140,847
About 1 in 2,434 people in the U.S.
Rarity
Common
Predicted Gender
Male
98.5% confidence
Average Age
48
years old
Peak Year
1961
4,965 births
Total Registered
192,948
since 1880
Gender Distribution for Dean
Dean is predominantly male (98.5%), though 2,908 female births have been registered. It functions as a unisex name for a small percentage of bearers.
Dean as a male name
Ranked #142 in 2024
2,545 male births in 2024
Peak: 1961 (4,931 births)
Dean as a female name
Ranked #15,817 in 2024
5 female births in 2024
Peak: 1932 (79 births)
Dean: Popularity Over Time
SSA records for Dean span from the 1880s to the 2020s, covering 15 decades of naming data. The most popular decade for this name was the 1960s, when 42,807 babies were registered. Dean has declined significantly from its peak in the 1960s. Recent registrations are a fraction of what they were at the name's height.
Dean by Decade
How has Dean 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 | 148 | 132 | 16 | |
| 1890s | 299 | 247 | 52 | |
| 1900s | 481 | 381 | 100 | |
| 1910s | 4,080 | 3,812 | 268 | |
| 1920s | 11,721 | 11,155 | 566 | |
| 1930s | 14,189 | 13,629 | 560 | |
| 1940s | 16,802 | 16,356 | 446 | |
| 1950s | 34,895 | 34,587 | 308 | |
| 1960s | 42,807 | 42,523 | 284 | |
| 1970s | 14,046 | 13,899 | 147 | |
| 1980s | 8,143 | 8,063 | 80 | |
| 1990s | 8,138 | 8,122 | 16 | |
| 2000s | 8,047 | 8,034 | 13 | |
| 2010s | 17,521 | 17,493 | 28 | |
| 2020s | 11,631 | 11,607 | 24 | |
Dean by State
Birth registrations for Dean span all 51 states and territories in the SSA database. The highest counts are in California, New York, Pennsylvania. The lowest are in Alaska, Delaware, Mississippi. On average, about 3,670 Deans were registered per state.
Dean + Last Name Combinations
How many people share a full name with Dean as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Names Similar to Dean
Other first names starting with D with a similar number of bearers.
Dean: Questions and Answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Dean?
We estimate approximately 140,847 people named Dean 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 2,434 Americans share this first name.
Is Dean a common name?
Dean is classified as "Common" and is more popular than 99.6% of all first names in the SSA database. A total of 192,948 births have been registered with this name since 1880.
When was Dean most popular?
Dean reached peak popularity in 1961, when 4,965 babies were given this name. The average age of a living person named Dean is approximately 48 years old, reflecting when the name was most commonly given.
Is Dean a male name?
Dean is predominantly male. 98.5% of people with this name are male. See the gender breakdown above for full details.
How many Dean Smiths are there?
To find how many people share a specific full name, we combine first name and surname frequencies. Try: Dean Smith, Dean Johnson, Dean 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