How Many People Are Named Erik?
An estimated 148,999 people in the United States have the first name Erik. While not in the top 50, it remains a well-known name ranking #358 overall. It is almost exclusively a male name. The average bearer is 38 years old, and Erik peaked in popularity in 1980 with 4,955 births that year.
Below you will find a full statistical profile of Erik 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 Erik paired with any surname.
Key Insights
- While Erik is overwhelmingly male, 666 female births have been registered with this name since 1880.
Estimated Living Americans
148,999
About 1 in 2,300 people in the U.S.
Rarity
Common
Predicted Gender
Male
99.6% confidence
Average Age
38
years old
Peak Year
1980
4,955 births
Total Registered
157,566
since 1880
Gender Distribution for Erik
Erik is almost exclusively a male name. Out of 157,566 total births registered, 99.6% were male.
Erik as a male name
Ranked #476 in 2024
644 male births in 2024
Peak: 1980 (4,914 births)
Erik as a female name
Ranked #14,305 in 2008
7 female births in 2008
Peak: 1980 (41 births)
Erik: Popularity Over Time
SSA records for Erik span from the 1910s to the 2020s, covering 12 decades of naming data. The most popular decade for this name was the 1980s, when 36,608 babies were registered. Erik has declined significantly from its peak in the 1980s. Recent registrations are a fraction of what they were at the name's height.
Erik by Decade
How has Erik 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.
Erik by State
Birth registrations for Erik span all 51 states and territories in the SSA database. The highest counts are in California, Texas, New York. The lowest are in Wyoming, Vermont, Delaware. On average, about 3,033 Eriks were registered per state.
Erik + Last Name Combinations
How many people share a full name with Erik as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Names Similar to Erik
Other first names starting with E with a similar number of bearers.
Erik: Questions and Answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Erik?
We estimate approximately 148,999 people named Erik 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 2,300 Americans share this first name.
Is Erik a common name?
Erik is classified as "Common" and is more popular than 99.7% of all first names in the SSA database. A total of 157,566 births have been registered with this name since 1880.
When was Erik most popular?
Erik reached peak popularity in 1980, when 4,955 babies were given this name. The average age of a living person named Erik is approximately 38 years old, reflecting when the name was most commonly given.
Is Erik a male name?
Erik is predominantly male. 99.6% of people with this name are male. See the gender breakdown above for full details.
How many Erik Smiths are there?
To find how many people share a specific full name, we combine first name and surname frequencies. Try: Erik Smith, Erik Johnson, Erik 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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