How Many People Are Named Jessica?
An estimated 995,433 people in the United States have the first name Jessica, ranking it #24 among all first names. It is almost exclusively a female name. The average bearer is 38 years old, and Jessica peaked in popularity in 1987 with 56,239 births that year. It has a similar number of bearers to Jason (993,104).
Below you will find a full statistical profile of Jessica 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 Jessica paired with any surname.
Key Insights
- While Jessica is overwhelmingly female, 3,578 male births have been registered with this name since 1880.
- Jessica has fallen dramatically from its peak in the 1980s. Recent registrations are less than 5% of what they were at the name's height.
Estimated Living Americans
995,433
About 1 in 344 people in the U.S.
Rarity
Very Common
Predicted Gender
Female
99.7% confidence
Average Age
38
years old
Peak Year
1987
56,239 births
Total Registered
1,053,884
since 1880
Gender Distribution for Jessica
Jessica is almost exclusively a female name. Out of 1,053,884 total births registered, 99.7% were female.
Jessica as a male name
Ranked #13,123 in 2016
5 male births in 2016
Peak: 1989 (252 births)
Jessica as a female name
Ranked #574 in 2024
526 female births in 2024
Peak: 1987 (55,996 births)
Jessica: Popularity Over Time
SSA records for Jessica span from the 1880s to the 2020s, covering 15 decades of naming data. The most popular decade for this name was the 1980s, when 471,538 babies were registered. Jessica has declined significantly from its peak in the 1980s. Recent registrations are a fraction of what they were at the name's height.
Jessica by Decade
How has Jessica 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 | 94 | 0 | 94 | |
| 1890s | 135 | 0 | 135 | |
| 1900s | 159 | 0 | 159 | |
| 1910s | 411 | 0 | 411 | |
| 1920s | 410 | 0 | 410 | |
| 1930s | 499 | 0 | 499 | |
| 1940s | 2,204 | 0 | 2,204 | |
| 1950s | 4,560 | 0 | 4,560 | |
| 1960s | 13,726 | 55 | 13,671 | |
| 1970s | 144,026 | 528 | 143,498 | |
| 1980s | 471,538 | 2,020 | 469,518 | |
| 1990s | 303,898 | 769 | 303,129 | |
| 2000s | 90,851 | 186 | 90,665 | |
| 2010s | 18,242 | 20 | 18,222 | |
| 2020s | 3,131 | 0 | 3,131 | |
Jessica by State
Birth registrations for Jessica 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, Alaska. On average, about 20,580 Jessicas were registered per state.
Jessica + Last Name Combinations
How many people share a full name with Jessica as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Names Similar to Jessica
Other first names starting with J with a similar number of bearers.
Jessica: Questions and Answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Jessica?
We estimate approximately 995,433 people named Jessica 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 344 Americans share this first name.
Is Jessica a common name?
Jessica is classified as "Very Common" and is more popular than 100% of all first names in the SSA database. A total of 1,053,884 births have been registered with this name since 1880.
When was Jessica most popular?
Jessica reached peak popularity in 1987, when 56,239 babies were given this name. The average age of a living person named Jessica is approximately 38 years old, reflecting when the name was most commonly given.
Is Jessica a female name?
Jessica is predominantly female. 99.7% of people with this name are female. See the gender breakdown above for full details.
How many Jessica Smiths are there?
To find how many people share a specific full name, we combine first name and surname frequencies. Try: Jessica Smith, Jessica Johnson, Jessica 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
How Many of Me