How Many People Are Named Kay?
An estimated 52,598 people in the United States have the first name Kay. It is predominantly female (96.2%). The average bearer is 70 years old, and Kay peaked in popularity in 1942 with 3,719 births that year.
Below you will find a full statistical profile of Kay 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 Kay paired with any surname.
Key Insights
- While Kay is overwhelmingly female, 3,914 male births have been registered with this name since 1880.
- With an average bearer age of 70, Kay is a vintage name most associated with earlier generations. Most living bearers were born before 1966.
- Kay has fallen dramatically from its peak in the 1940s. Recent registrations are less than 5% of what they were at the name's height.
Estimated Living Americans
52,598
About 1 in 6,516 people in the U.S.
Rarity
Uncommon
Predicted Gender
Female
96.2% confidence
Average Age
70
years old
Peak Year
1942
3,719 births
Total Registered
102,497
since 1880
Gender Distribution for Kay
Kay is predominantly female (96.2%), though 3,914 male births have been registered. It functions as a unisex name for a small percentage of bearers.
Kay as a male name
Ranked #6,303 in 2024
14 male births in 2024
Peak: 1934 (159 births)
Kay as a female name
Ranked #3,912 in 2024
38 female births in 2024
Peak: 1942 (3,623 births)
Kay: Popularity Over Time
SSA records for Kay span from the 1880s to the 2020s, covering 15 decades of naming data. The most popular decade for this name was the 1940s, when 33,379 babies were registered. Kay has declined significantly from its peak in the 1940s. Recent registrations are a fraction of what they were at the name's height.
Kay by Decade
How has Kay 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 | 42 | 11 | 31 | |
| 1890s | 138 | 16 | 122 | |
| 1900s | 491 | 39 | 452 | |
| 1910s | 2,465 | 292 | 2,173 | |
| 1920s | 3,425 | 760 | 2,665 | |
| 1930s | 18,607 | 1,306 | 17,301 | |
| 1940s | 33,379 | 725 | 32,654 | |
| 1950s | 24,966 | 321 | 24,645 | |
| 1960s | 12,552 | 164 | 12,388 | |
| 1970s | 2,582 | 64 | 2,518 | |
| 1980s | 1,464 | 55 | 1,409 | |
| 1990s | 916 | 47 | 869 | |
| 2000s | 653 | 18 | 635 | |
| 2010s | 544 | 40 | 504 | |
| 2020s | 273 | 56 | 217 | |
Kay by State
Birth registrations for Kay span all 51 states and territories in the SSA database. The highest counts are in Texas, Michigan, Ohio. The lowest are in Alaska, Rhode Island, New Hampshire. On average, about 1,862 Kays were registered per state.
Kay + Last Name Combinations
How many people share a full name with Kay as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Names Similar to Kay
Other first names starting with K with a similar number of bearers.
Kay: Questions and Answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Kay?
We estimate approximately 52,598 people named Kay 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 6,516 Americans share this first name.
Is Kay a common name?
Kay is classified as "Uncommon" and is more popular than 99.2% of all first names in the SSA database. A total of 102,497 births have been registered with this name since 1880.
When was Kay most popular?
Kay reached peak popularity in 1942, when 3,719 babies were given this name. The average age of a living person named Kay is approximately 70 years old, reflecting when the name was most commonly given.
Is Kay a female name?
Kay is predominantly female. 96.2% of people with this name are female. See the gender breakdown above for full details.
How many Kay Smiths are there?
To find how many people share a specific full name, we combine first name and surname frequencies. Try: Kay Smith, Kay Johnson, Kay 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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