How Many People Are Named Jesse?
An estimated 340,514 people in the United States have the first name Jesse. While not in the top 50, it remains a well-known name ranking #140 overall. It is predominantly male (97.2%). The average bearer is 40 years old, and Jesse peaked in popularity in 1981 with 10,824 births that year.
Below you will find a full statistical profile of Jesse 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 Jesse paired with any surname.
Key Insights
- While Jesse is overwhelmingly male, 12,419 female births have been registered with this name since 1880.
Estimated Living Americans
340,514
About 1 in 1,007 people in the U.S.
Rarity
Common
Predicted Gender
Male
97.2% confidence
Average Age
40
years old
Peak Year
1981
10,824 births
Total Registered
442,811
since 1880
Gender Distribution for Jesse
Jesse is predominantly male (97.2%), though 12,419 female births have been registered. It functions as a unisex name for a small percentage of bearers.
Jesse as a male name
Ranked #187 in 2024
1,980 male births in 2024
Peak: 1981 (10,444 births)
Jesse as a female name
Ranked #2,466 in 2024
73 female births in 2024
Peak: 1981 (380 births)
Jesse: Popularity Over Time
SSA records for Jesse span from the 1880s to the 2020s, covering 15 decades of naming data. The most popular decade for this name was the 1980s, when 89,027 babies were registered. Jesse has declined significantly from its peak in the 1980s. Recent registrations are a fraction of what they were at the name's height.
Jesse by Decade
How has Jesse 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 | 6,095 | 6,003 | 92 | |
| 1890s | 5,522 | 5,396 | 126 | |
| 1900s | 4,699 | 4,559 | 140 | |
| 1910s | 16,607 | 16,293 | 314 | |
| 1920s | 23,610 | 23,170 | 440 | |
| 1930s | 19,193 | 18,929 | 264 | |
| 1940s | 24,551 | 24,336 | 215 | |
| 1950s | 26,920 | 26,654 | 266 | |
| 1960s | 22,935 | 22,605 | 330 | |
| 1970s | 46,025 | 44,892 | 1,133 | |
| 1980s | 89,027 | 85,915 | 3,112 | |
| 1990s | 77,025 | 73,790 | 3,235 | |
| 2000s | 45,049 | 43,389 | 1,660 | |
| 2010s | 25,655 | 24,893 | 762 | |
| 2020s | 9,898 | 9,568 | 330 | |
Jesse by State
Birth registrations for Jesse span all 51 states and territories in the SSA database. The highest counts are in California, Texas, New York. The lowest are in Delaware, Vermont, Rhode Island. On average, about 8,245 Jesses were registered per state.
Jesse + Last Name Combinations
How many people share a full name with Jesse as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Names Similar to Jesse
Other first names starting with J with a similar number of bearers.
Jesse: Questions and Answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Jesse?
We estimate approximately 340,514 people named Jesse 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 1,007 Americans share this first name.
Is Jesse a common name?
Jesse is classified as "Common" and is more popular than 99.9% of all first names in the SSA database. A total of 442,811 births have been registered with this name since 1880.
When was Jesse most popular?
Jesse reached peak popularity in 1981, when 10,824 babies were given this name. The average age of a living person named Jesse is approximately 40 years old, reflecting when the name was most commonly given.
Is Jesse a male name?
Jesse is predominantly male. 97.2% of people with this name are male. See the gender breakdown above for full details.
How many Jesse Smiths are there?
To find how many people share a specific full name, we combine first name and surname frequencies. Try: Jesse Smith, Jesse Johnson, Jesse 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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