How Many People Are Named Ken?
An estimated 25,303 people in the United States have the first name Ken. It is almost exclusively a male name. The average bearer is 59 years old, and Ken peaked in popularity in 1960 with 1,776 births that year.
Below you will find a full statistical profile of Ken 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 Ken paired with any surname.
Key Insights
- Ken has fallen dramatically from its peak in the 1960s. Recent registrations are less than 5% of what they were at the name's height.
Estimated Living Americans
25,303
About 1 in 13,546 people in the U.S.
Rarity
Uncommon
Predicted Gender
Male
99.9% confidence
Average Age
59
years old
Peak Year
1960
1,776 births
Total Registered
33,004
since 1880
Gender Distribution for Ken
Ken is almost exclusively a male name. Out of 33,004 total births registered, 99.9% were male.
Ken as a male name
Ranked #3,295 in 2024
36 male births in 2024
Peak: 1960 (1,776 births)
Ken as a female name
Ranked #14,063 in 1990
5 female births in 1990
Peak: 1961 (5 births)
Ken: Popularity Over Time
SSA records for Ken span from the 1900s to the 2020s, covering 13 decades of naming data. The most popular decade for this name was the 1960s, when 11,912 babies were registered. Ken has declined significantly from its peak in the 1960s. Recent registrations are a fraction of what they were at the name's height.
Ken by Decade
How has Ken 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.
Ken by State
Birth registrations for Ken span all 49 states and territories in the SSA database. The highest counts are in California, Illinois, Michigan. The lowest are in Vermont, Rhode Island, Delaware. On average, about 579 Kens were registered per state.
Ken + Last Name Combinations
How many people share a full name with Ken as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Names Similar to Ken
Other first names starting with K with a similar number of bearers.
Ken: Questions and Answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Ken?
We estimate approximately 25,303 people named Ken 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 13,546 Americans share this first name.
Is Ken a common name?
Ken is classified as "Uncommon" and is more popular than 98.7% of all first names in the SSA database. A total of 33,004 births have been registered with this name since 1880.
When was Ken most popular?
Ken reached peak popularity in 1960, when 1,776 babies were given this name. The average age of a living person named Ken is approximately 59 years old, reflecting when the name was most commonly given.
Is Ken a male name?
Ken is predominantly male. 99.9% of people with this name are male. See the gender breakdown above for full details.
How many Ken Smiths are there?
To find how many people share a specific full name, we combine first name and surname frequencies. Try: Ken Smith, Ken Johnson, Ken 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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