How Many People Are Named Helen?
An estimated 179,926 people in the United States have the first name Helen. While not in the top 50, it remains a well-known name ranking #306 overall. It is almost exclusively a female name. The average bearer is 66 years old, and Helen peaked in popularity in 1918 with 36,228 births that year.
Below you will find a full statistical profile of Helen 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 Helen paired with any surname.
Key Insights
- While Helen is overwhelmingly female, 3,105 male births have been registered with this name since 1880.
- With an average bearer age of 66, Helen is a vintage name most associated with earlier generations. Most living bearers were born before 1970.
- Helen 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
179,926
About 1 in 1,905 people in the U.S.
Rarity
Common
Predicted Gender
Female
99.7% confidence
Average Age
66
years old
Peak Year
1918
36,228 births
Total Registered
1,026,632
since 1880
Gender Distribution for Helen
Helen is almost exclusively a female name. Out of 1,026,632 total births registered, 99.7% were female.
Helen as a male name
Ranked #12,003 in 2004
5 male births in 2004
Peak: 1927 (92 births)
Helen as a female name
Ranked #424 in 2024
726 female births in 2024
Peak: 1918 (36,148 births)
Helen: Popularity Over Time
SSA records for Helen span from the 1880s to the 2020s, covering 15 decades of naming data. The most popular decade for this name was the 1920s, when 291,151 babies were registered. Helen has declined significantly from its peak in the 1920s. Recent registrations are a fraction of what they were at the name's height.
Helen by Decade
How has Helen 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 | 11,527 | 31 | 11,496 | |
| 1890s | 37,917 | 115 | 37,802 | |
| 1900s | 69,675 | 247 | 69,428 | |
| 1910s | 248,717 | 563 | 248,154 | |
| 1920s | 291,151 | 748 | 290,403 | |
| 1930s | 141,091 | 665 | 140,426 | |
| 1940s | 91,076 | 334 | 90,742 | |
| 1950s | 57,747 | 169 | 57,578 | |
| 1960s | 29,203 | 105 | 29,098 | |
| 1970s | 11,540 | 65 | 11,475 | |
| 1980s | 8,450 | 36 | 8,414 | |
| 1990s | 8,427 | 22 | 8,405 | |
| 2000s | 8,852 | 5 | 8,847 | |
| 2010s | 7,583 | 0 | 7,583 | |
| 2020s | 3,676 | 0 | 3,676 | |
Helen by State
Birth registrations for Helen span all 51 states and territories in the SSA database. The highest counts are in Pennsylvania, New York, Illinois. The lowest are in Nevada, Alaska, Wyoming. On average, about 17,715 Helens were registered per state.
Helen + Last Name Combinations
How many people share a full name with Helen as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Names Similar to Helen
Other first names starting with H with a similar number of bearers.
Helen: Questions and Answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Helen?
We estimate approximately 179,926 people named Helen 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 1,905 Americans share this first name.
Is Helen a common name?
Helen is classified as "Common" and is more popular than 99.7% of all first names in the SSA database. A total of 1,026,632 births have been registered with this name since 1880.
When was Helen most popular?
Helen reached peak popularity in 1918, when 36,228 babies were given this name. The average age of a living person named Helen is approximately 66 years old, reflecting when the name was most commonly given.
Is Helen a female name?
Helen is predominantly female. 99.7% of people with this name are female. See the gender breakdown above for full details.
How many Helen Smiths are there?
To find how many people share a specific full name, we combine first name and surname frequencies. Try: Helen Smith, Helen Johnson, Helen 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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