How Many People Are Named Derek?
An estimated 226,565 people in the United States have the first name Derek. While not in the top 50, it remains a well-known name ranking #231 overall. It is almost exclusively a male name. The average bearer is 37 years old, and Derek peaked in popularity in 1989 with 8,402 births that year.
Below you will find a full statistical profile of Derek 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 Derek paired with any surname.
Key Insights
- While Derek is overwhelmingly male, 909 female births have been registered with this name since 1880.
Estimated Living Americans
226,565
About 1 in 1,513 people in the U.S.
Rarity
Common
Predicted Gender
Male
99.6% confidence
Average Age
37
years old
Peak Year
1989
8,402 births
Total Registered
238,769
since 1880
Gender Distribution for Derek
Derek is almost exclusively a male name. Out of 238,769 total births registered, 99.6% were male.
Derek as a male name
Ranked #258 in 2024
1,355 male births in 2024
Peak: 1989 (8,365 births)
Derek as a female name
Ranked #17,482 in 2011
5 female births in 2011
Peak: 1987 (57 births)
Derek: Popularity Over Time
SSA records for Derek span from the 1920s to the 2020s, covering 11 decades of naming data. The most popular decade for this name was the 1980s, when 73,385 babies were registered. Derek has declined significantly from its peak in the 1980s. Recent registrations are a fraction of what they were at the name's height.
Derek by Decade
How has Derek 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.
Derek by State
Birth registrations for Derek span all 51 states and territories in the SSA database. The highest counts are in California, Texas, New York. The lowest are in Wyoming, Delaware, Vermont. On average, about 4,636 Dereks were registered per state.
Derek + Last Name Combinations
How many people share a full name with Derek as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Names Similar to Derek
Other first names starting with D with a similar number of bearers.
Derek: Questions and Answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Derek?
We estimate approximately 226,565 people named Derek 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 1,513 Americans share this first name.
Is Derek a common name?
Derek is classified as "Common" and is more popular than 99.8% of all first names in the SSA database. A total of 238,769 births have been registered with this name since 1880.
When was Derek most popular?
Derek reached peak popularity in 1989, when 8,402 babies were given this name. The average age of a living person named Derek is approximately 37 years old, reflecting when the name was most commonly given.
Is Derek a male name?
Derek is predominantly male. 99.6% of people with this name are male. See the gender breakdown above for full details.
How many Derek Smiths are there?
To find how many people share a specific full name, we combine first name and surname frequencies. Try: Derek Smith, Derek Johnson, Derek 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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