How Many People Are Named Margaret?
An estimated 424,744 people in the United States have the first name Margaret. While not in the top 50, it remains a well-known name ranking #107 overall. It is almost exclusively a female name. The average bearer is 60 years old, and Margaret peaked in popularity in 1921 with 28,521 births that year.
Below you will find a full statistical profile of Margaret as a first name in the United States, including gender data, a year-by-year popularity timeline going back to 1880, a decade breakdown, state-by-state birth registrations, and, when available, a 2020 Census snapshot showing who had the name at that point in time. You can also check how many people share the full name Margaret paired with any surname.
Key Insights
- While Margaret is overwhelmingly female, 3,745 male births have been registered with this name since 1880.
- Margaret has fallen dramatically from its peak in the 1920s. Recent registrations are less than 5% of what they were at the name's height.
Estimated Living Americans
424,744
About 1 in 807 people in the U.S.
Rarity
Common
Predicted Gender
Female
99.7% confidence
Average Age
60
years old
Peak Year
1921
28,521 births
Total Registered
1,266,052
since 1880
Gender Distribution for Margaret
Margaret is almost exclusively a female name. Out of 1,266,052 total births registered, 99.7% were female.
Margaret as a male name
Ranked #11,736 in 2012
6 male births in 2012
Peak: 1926 (91 births)
Margaret as a female name
Ranked #119 in 2024
2,303 female births in 2024
Peak: 1921 (28,468 births)
Margaret in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 549,715 people with the first name Margaret, which placed it at #76 in the published first-name tables. This is a snapshot of people who already had the name in 2020. The estimated living count elsewhere on this page is different: it is a current estimate built from SSA birth records and age-based survival rates, so the two figures are not expected to match exactly.
Read this section as a snapshot of people who already had the name in 2020. The SSA charts elsewhere on this page are still the better way to see how the name rose, fell, or shifted across generations.
Gender in the 2020 Census
In the 2020 Census, Margaret was recorded as predominantly female. Out of 549,715 people with this name in that snapshot, 0.1% were male and 99.9% were female. That is very close to the long-run birth pattern in SSA records, where the name is female 99.7% of the time.
Census Count
549,715
people with this name
Census Rank
#76
among Census first names
Frequency Rate
182.01
per 100,000 people
Recorded Race and Hispanic Origin in the 2020 Census
In the 2020 Census, the first name Margaret was most commonly recorded among people who identified as White (86.03%). The next largest recorded groups were Black (6.42%) and Hispanic (4.05%).
These percentages describe the people who had the first name Margaret in the 2020 Census. They do not tell you the deeper meaning or origin of the name itself.
2020 Census demographic breakdown
Each row shows a recorded Census category for people with the first name Margaret.
| Group | Share | Count |
|---|---|---|
| White | 86.03% | 472,944 |
| Black | 6.42% | 35,276 |
| Hispanic | 4.05% | 22,263 |
| Two or More Races | 1.72% | 9,476 |
| Asian and Pacific Islander | 1.36% | 7,463 |
| American Indian and Alaska Native | 0.42% | 2,293 |
Margaret: Popularity Over Time
SSA records for Margaret span from the 1880s to the 2020s, covering 15 decades of naming data. The most popular decade for this name was the 1920s, when 245,708 babies were registered. Margaret has declined significantly from its peak in the 1920s. Recent registrations are a fraction of what they were at the name's height.
Margaret by Decade
How has Margaret 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 | 21,894 | 95 | 21,799 | |
| 1890s | 38,060 | 123 | 37,937 | |
| 1900s | 58,137 | 218 | 57,919 | |
| 1910s | 189,707 | 473 | 189,234 | |
| 1920s | 245,708 | 698 | 245,010 | |
| 1930s | 158,079 | 708 | 157,371 | |
| 1940s | 173,515 | 490 | 173,025 | |
| 1950s | 149,899 | 316 | 149,583 | |
| 1960s | 82,129 | 260 | 81,869 | |
| 1970s | 32,066 | 120 | 31,946 | |
| 1980s | 30,512 | 160 | 30,352 | |
| 1990s | 31,359 | 66 | 31,293 | |
| 2000s | 23,927 | 12 | 23,915 | |
| 2010s | 20,040 | 6 | 20,034 | |
| 2020s | 11,020 | 0 | 11,020 | |
Margaret by State
Birth registrations for Margaret span all 51 states and territories in the SSA database. The highest counts are in New York, Pennsylvania, Illinois. The lowest are in Nevada, Alaska, Wyoming. On average, about 22,450 Margarets were registered per state.
Margaret + Last Name Combinations
How many people share a full name with Margaret as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Names Similar to Margaret
Other first names starting with M with a similar number of bearers.
Margaret: Questions and Answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Margaret?
We estimate approximately 424,744 people named Margaret 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 807 Americans share this first name.
Is Margaret a common name?
Margaret is classified as "Common" and is more popular than 99.9% of all first names in the SSA database. A total of 1,266,052 births have been registered with this name since 1880.
When was Margaret most popular?
Margaret reached peak popularity in 1921, when 28,521 babies were given this name. The average age of a living person named Margaret is approximately 60 years old, reflecting when the name was most commonly given.
How common was Margaret in the 2020 Census?
The 2020 Census recorded 549,715 people with the first name Margaret. That placed it at #76 in the published Census first-name tables, or 182.01 people per 100,000.
Why is the Census count different from the living estimate?
Because they measure different things. The Census number is a count of people with the name in 2020. The living estimate is a current model based on SSA birth records and survival rates, so it aims to estimate how many people with the name are alive now.
What does the SSA popularity chart show?
The popularity chart tracks birth registrations, not people currently alive. It shows how often Margaret was given to babies from 1880 through 2024, which is why it is the best tool on the page for seeing long-run naming trends.
What does the Census say about the gender split for Margaret?
In the 2020 Census snapshot, Margaret was recorded as predominantly female. The published split was 0.1% male and 99.9% female.
What does the Census say about the background of people named Margaret?
In the 2020 Census, the first name Margaret was most commonly recorded among people who identified as White (86.03%). The next largest recorded groups were Black (6.42%) and Hispanic (4.05%). These percentages describe the people who had the name in the 2020 Census, not the deeper meaning or origin of the name itself.
Why can the Census sex total and race total differ slightly?
The Census published separate first-name tables for sex and for race and Hispanic origin. Those totals can differ slightly for the same name, so the page uses them as two related snapshots rather than treating them as perfectly interchangeable counts.
Does every first name have Census demographic data?
No. The public Census first-name tables only include names that met the Bureau's publication rules. That means some names on this site will have SSA history but no published Census demographic snapshot.
Is Margaret a female name?
Margaret is predominantly female. 99.7% of people with this name are female. See the gender breakdown above for full details.
Why can Margaret have a lot of living bearers even if it is not trendy now?
Because a name can build up a large population over many decades. Margaret peaked in 1921, and the average living bearer is about 60 years old, so a name can still have millions of living bearers even after it stops feeling current for newborns.
How many Margaret Smiths are there?
To find how many people share a specific full name, we combine first name and surname frequencies. Try: Margaret Smith, Margaret Johnson, Margaret 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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