How Many People Are Named Herb?
An estimated 1,074 people in the United States have the first name Herb. It is almost exclusively a male name. The average bearer is 70 years old, and Herb peaked in popularity in 1947 with 70 births that year.
Below you will find a full statistical profile of Herb 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 Herb paired with any surname.
Key Insights
- With an average bearer age of 70, Herb is a vintage name most associated with earlier generations. Most living bearers were born before 1966.
Estimated Living Americans
1,074
About 1 in 319,138 people in the U.S.
Rarity
Rare
Predicted Gender
Male
100.0% confidence
Average Age
70
years old
Peak Year
1947
70 births
Total Registered
2,008
since 1880
Gender Distribution for Herb
Herb is almost exclusively a male name. Out of 2,008 total births registered, 100.0% were male.
Herb as a male name
Ranked #8,013 in 1993
6 male births in 1993
Peak: 1947 (70 births)
Herb: Popularity Over Time
SSA records for Herb span from the 1880s to the 1990s, covering 12 decades of naming data. The most popular decade for this name was the 1940s, when 531 babies were registered. Herb has declined significantly from its peak in the 1940s. Recent registrations are a fraction of what they were at the name's height.
Herb by Decade
How has Herb 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.
Herb by State
Birth registrations for Herb span all 12 states and territories in the SSA database. The highest counts are in California, Ohio, Illinois. The lowest are in Oklahoma, Minnesota, Texas. On average, about 35 Herbs were registered per state.
Herb + Last Name Combinations
How many people share a full name with Herb as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Names Similar to Herb
Other first names starting with H with a similar number of bearers.
Herb: Questions and Answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Herb?
We estimate approximately 1,074 people named Herb 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 319,138 Americans share this first name.
Is Herb a common name?
Herb is classified as "Rare" and is more popular than 90.6% of all first names in the SSA database. A total of 2,008 births have been registered with this name since 1880.
When was Herb most popular?
Herb reached peak popularity in 1947, when 70 babies were given this name. The average age of a living person named Herb is approximately 70 years old, reflecting when the name was most commonly given.
Is Herb a male name?
Herb is predominantly male. 100.0% of people with this name are male. See the gender breakdown above for full details.
How many Herb Smiths are there?
To find how many people share a specific full name, we combine first name and surname frequencies. Try: Herb Smith, Herb Johnson, Herb 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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