How Many People Are Named Earl?
An estimated 99,452 people in the United States have the first name Earl. It is predominantly male (99.2%). The average bearer is 67 years old, and Earl peaked in popularity in 1921 with 6,797 births that year.
Below you will find a full statistical profile of Earl 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 Earl paired with any surname.
Key Insights
- While Earl is overwhelmingly male, 2,247 female births have been registered with this name since 1880.
- With an average bearer age of 67, Earl is a vintage name most associated with earlier generations. Most living bearers were born before 1969.
- Earl has fallen dramatically from its peak in the 1920s. Recent registrations are less than 5% of what they were at the name's height.
Estimated Living Americans
99,452
About 1 in 3,446 people in the U.S.
Rarity
Uncommon
Predicted Gender
Male
99.2% confidence
Average Age
67
years old
Peak Year
1921
6,797 births
Total Registered
291,355
since 1880
Gender Distribution for Earl
Earl is almost exclusively a male name. Out of 291,355 total births registered, 99.2% were male.
Earl as a male name
Ranked #2,152 in 2024
68 male births in 2024
Peak: 1921 (6,754 births)
Earl as a female name
Ranked #12,354 in 1988
5 female births in 1988
Peak: 1930 (73 births)
Earl: Popularity Over Time
SSA records for Earl span from the 1880s to the 2020s, covering 15 decades of naming data. The most popular decade for this name was the 1920s, when 64,153 babies were registered. Earl has declined significantly from its peak in the 1920s. Recent registrations are a fraction of what they were at the name's height.
Earl by Decade
How has Earl 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 | 4,843 | 4,830 | 13 | |
| 1890s | 8,389 | 8,297 | 92 | |
| 1900s | 9,387 | 9,251 | 136 | |
| 1910s | 40,557 | 40,273 | 284 | |
| 1920s | 64,153 | 63,602 | 551 | |
| 1930s | 45,014 | 44,613 | 401 | |
| 1940s | 39,365 | 39,127 | 238 | |
| 1950s | 32,831 | 32,652 | 179 | |
| 1960s | 20,524 | 20,369 | 155 | |
| 1970s | 11,533 | 11,404 | 129 | |
| 1980s | 7,467 | 7,398 | 69 | |
| 1990s | 3,908 | 3,908 | 0 | |
| 2000s | 1,906 | 1,906 | 0 | |
| 2010s | 1,102 | 1,102 | 0 | |
| 2020s | 376 | 376 | 0 | |
Earl by State
Birth registrations for Earl span all 51 states and territories in the SSA database. The highest counts are in Pennsylvania, Ohio, Illinois. The lowest are in Alaska, Nevada, Wyoming. On average, about 5,180 Earls were registered per state.
Earl + Last Name Combinations
How many people share a full name with Earl as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Names Similar to Earl
Other first names starting with E with a similar number of bearers.
Earl: Questions and Answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Earl?
We estimate approximately 99,452 people named Earl 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 3,446 Americans share this first name.
Is Earl a common name?
Earl is classified as "Uncommon" and is more popular than 99.5% of all first names in the SSA database. A total of 291,355 births have been registered with this name since 1880.
When was Earl most popular?
Earl reached peak popularity in 1921, when 6,797 babies were given this name. The average age of a living person named Earl is approximately 67 years old, reflecting when the name was most commonly given.
Is Earl a male name?
Earl is predominantly male. 99.2% of people with this name are male. See the gender breakdown above for full details.
How many Earl Smiths are there?
To find how many people share a specific full name, we combine first name and surname frequencies. Try: Earl Smith, Earl Johnson, Earl 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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