How Many People Are Named Michael?
Michael is the most popular first name in the United States, with an estimated 3,738,917 living bearers. It is predominantly male (99.5%). The average bearer is 50 years old, and Michael peaked in popularity in 1957 with 93,041 births that year.
Below you will find a full statistical profile of Michael 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 Michael paired with any surname.
Key Insights
- While Michael is overwhelmingly male, 21,865 female births have been registered with this name since 1880.
- With over 3.7 million estimated living bearers, Michael is one of the most common first names in American history.
Estimated Living Americans
3,738,917
About 1 in 92 people in the U.S.
Rarity
Very Common
Predicted Gender
Male
99.5% confidence
Average Age
50
years old
Peak Year
1957
93,041 births
Total Registered
4,440,391
since 1880
Gender Distribution for Michael
Michael is almost exclusively a male name. Out of 4,440,391 total births registered, 99.5% were male.
Michael as a male name
Ranked #18 in 2024
8,189 male births in 2024
Peak: 1957 (92,786 births)
Michael as a female name
Ranked #7,450 in 2024
15 female births in 2024
Peak: 1986 (590 births)
Michael: Popularity Over Time
SSA records for Michael span from the 1880s to the 2020s, covering 15 decades of naming data. The most popular decade for this name was the 1950s, when 839,779 babies were registered. Michael has declined significantly from its peak in the 1950s. Recent registrations are a fraction of what they were at the name's height.
Michael by Decade
How has Michael 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 | 3,558 | 3,558 | 0 | |
| 1890s | 3,933 | 3,926 | 7 | |
| 1900s | 5,232 | 5,220 | 12 | |
| 1910s | 31,009 | 30,859 | 150 | |
| 1920s | 38,197 | 37,894 | 303 | |
| 1930s | 56,384 | 56,000 | 384 | |
| 1940s | 338,111 | 336,564 | 1,547 | |
| 1950s | 839,779 | 837,466 | 2,313 | |
| 1960s | 836,749 | 833,070 | 3,679 | |
| 1970s | 712,443 | 707,368 | 5,075 | |
| 1980s | 669,026 | 663,824 | 5,202 | |
| 1990s | 464,385 | 462,451 | 1,934 | |
| 2000s | 251,525 | 250,702 | 823 | |
| 2010s | 145,502 | 145,171 | 331 | |
| 2020s | 44,558 | 44,453 | 105 | |
Michael by State
Birth registrations for Michael span all 51 states and territories in the SSA database. The highest counts are in New York, California, Pennsylvania. The lowest are in Wyoming, Alaska, Vermont. On average, about 86,712 Michaels were registered per state.
Michael + Last Name Combinations
How many people share a full name with Michael as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Names Similar to Michael
Other first names starting with M with a similar number of bearers.
Michael: Questions and Answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Michael?
We estimate approximately 3,738,917 people named Michael 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 92 Americans share this first name.
Is Michael a common name?
Michael is classified as "Very Common" and is more popular than 100% of all first names in the SSA database. A total of 4,440,391 births have been registered with this name since 1880.
When was Michael most popular?
Michael reached peak popularity in 1957, when 93,041 babies were given this name. The average age of a living person named Michael is approximately 50 years old, reflecting when the name was most commonly given.
Is Michael a male name?
Michael is predominantly male. 99.5% of people with this name are male. See the gender breakdown above for full details.
How many Michael Smiths are there?
To find how many people share a specific full name, we combine first name and surname frequencies. Try: Michael Smith, Michael Johnson, Michael 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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