How Many People Are Named Graham?

An estimated 54,164 people in the United States have the first name Graham. It is almost exclusively a male name. The average bearer is 20 years old, and Graham peaked in popularity in 2024 with 2,800 births that year.

Below you will find a full statistical profile of Graham as a first name in the United States, including gender data, a year-by-year popularity timeline going back to 1880, a decade breakdown, state-by-state birth registrations, and, when available, a 2020 Census snapshot showing who had the name at that point in time. You can also check how many people share the full name Graham paired with any surname.

Key Insights

  • While Graham is overwhelmingly male, 222 female births have been registered with this name since 1880.

Estimated Living Americans

54,164

About 1 in 6,328 people in the U.S.

Rarity

Uncommon

Very Rare Very Common

Predicted Gender

Male

99.6% confidence

Average Age

20

years old

Peak Year

2024

2,800 births

Total Registered

58,681

since 1880

Gender Distribution for Graham

Graham is almost exclusively a male name. Out of 58,681 total births registered, 99.6% were male.

Male 58,459 (99.6%)
Female 222 (0.4%)

Graham as a male name

Ranked #129 in 2024

2,789 male births in 2024

Peak: 2024 (2,789 births)

Graham as a female name

Ranked #9,111 in 2024

11 female births in 2024

Peak: 2023 (16 births)

Graham in the 2020 Census

The 2020 Census recorded 44,924 people with the first name Graham, which placed it at #969 in the published first-name tables. This is a snapshot of people who already had the name in 2020. The estimated living count elsewhere on this page is different: it is a current estimate built from SSA birth records and age-based survival rates, so the two figures are not expected to match exactly.

Read this section as a snapshot of people who already had the name in 2020. The SSA charts elsewhere on this page are still the better way to see how the name rose, fell, or shifted across generations.

Gender in the 2020 Census

In the 2020 Census, Graham was recorded as predominantly male. Out of 44,924 people with this name in that snapshot, 99.4% were male and 0.6% were female. That is very close to the long-run birth pattern in SSA records, where the name is male 99.6% of the time.

Census Count

44,924

people with this name

Census Rank

#969

among Census first names

Frequency Rate

14.87

per 100,000 people

Male 44,654 (99.4%)
Female 270 (0.6%)

Recorded Race and Hispanic Origin in the 2020 Census

In the 2020 Census, the first name Graham was most commonly recorded among people who identified as White (90.92%). The next largest recorded groups were Two or More Races (3.93%) and Hispanic (2.72%).

These percentages describe the people who had the first name Graham in the 2020 Census. They do not tell you the deeper meaning or origin of the name itself.

White
90.92%
Black
1.45%
Hispanic
2.72%
Asian/Pacific Islander
0.74%
American Indian/Alaska Native
0.25%
Two or More Races
3.93%

2020 Census demographic breakdown

Each row shows a recorded Census category for people with the first name Graham.

Group Share Count
White 90.92% 40,852
Two or More Races 3.93% 1,765
Hispanic 2.72% 1,222
Black 1.45% 650
Asian and Pacific Islander 0.74% 331
American Indian and Alaska Native 0.25% 113

The Census published separate sex and race/origin tables for first names, so their total counts can differ slightly for the same name. That is why the race section focuses on the demographic mix rather than repeating a second headline count.

Graham: Popularity Over Time

SSA records for Graham span from the 1880s to the 2020s, covering 15 decades of naming data. The most popular decade for this name was the 2010s, when 19,329 babies were registered. While Graham is less common than at its peak in the 2010s, it remains a well-established name with steady registrations.

Male
Female
0 560 1K 2K 2K 3K 1900 1920 1940 1960 1980 2000 2020

Graham by Decade

How has Graham 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 61 61 0
1890s 79 79 0
1900s 126 126 0
1910s 705 700 5
1920s 1,062 1,062 0
1930s 1,036 1,036 0
1940s 963 963 0
1950s 971 971 0
1960s 1,100 1,094 6
1970s 2,329 2,329 0
1980s 4,977 4,959 18
1990s 6,033 6,006 27
2000s 7,652 7,623 29
2010s 19,329 19,248 81
2020s 12,258 12,202 56

Graham by State

Birth registrations for Graham span all 51 states and territories in the SSA database. The highest counts are in California, Texas, North Carolina. The lowest are in Hawaii, Wyoming, Alaska. On average, about 1,054 Grahams were registered per state.

Graham + Last Name Combinations

How many people share a full name with Graham as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.

Graham: Questions and Answers

How many people in the U.S. are named Graham?

We estimate approximately 54,164 people named Graham 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 6,328 Americans share this first name.

Is Graham a common name?

Graham is classified as "Uncommon" and is more popular than 99.2% of all first names in the SSA database. A total of 58,681 births have been registered with this name since 1880.

When was Graham most popular?

Graham reached peak popularity in 2024, when 2,800 babies were given this name. The average age of a living person named Graham is approximately 20 years old, reflecting when the name was most commonly given.

How common was Graham in the 2020 Census?

The 2020 Census recorded 44,924 people with the first name Graham. That placed it at #969 in the published Census first-name tables, or 14.87 people per 100,000.

Why is the Census count different from the living estimate?

Because they measure different things. The Census number is a count of people with the name in 2020. The living estimate is a current model based on SSA birth records and survival rates, so it aims to estimate how many people with the name are alive now.

What does the SSA popularity chart show?

The popularity chart tracks birth registrations, not people currently alive. It shows how often Graham was given to babies from 1880 through 2024, which is why it is the best tool on the page for seeing long-run naming trends.

What does the Census say about the gender split for Graham?

In the 2020 Census snapshot, Graham was recorded as predominantly male. The published split was 99.4% male and 0.6% female.

What does the Census say about the background of people named Graham?

In the 2020 Census, the first name Graham was most commonly recorded among people who identified as White (90.92%). The next largest recorded groups were Two or More Races (3.93%) and Hispanic (2.72%). These percentages describe the people who had the name in the 2020 Census, not the deeper meaning or origin of the name itself.

Why can the Census sex total and race total differ slightly?

The Census published separate first-name tables for sex and for race and Hispanic origin. Those totals can differ slightly for the same name, so the page uses them as two related snapshots rather than treating them as perfectly interchangeable counts.

Does every first name have Census demographic data?

No. The public Census first-name tables only include names that met the Bureau's publication rules. That means some names on this site will have SSA history but no published Census demographic snapshot.

Is Graham a male name?

Graham is predominantly male. 99.6% of people with this name are male. See the gender breakdown above for full details.

Why can Graham have a lot of living bearers even if it is not trendy now?

Because a name can build up a large population over many decades. Graham peaked in 2024, and the average living bearer is about 20 years old, so a name can still have millions of living bearers even after it stops feeling current for newborns.

How many Graham Smiths are there?

To find how many people share a specific full name, we combine first name and surname frequencies. Try: Graham Smith, Graham Johnson, Graham 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