How Many People Are Named Michelle?
An estimated 730,105 people in the United States have the first name Michelle, ranking it #45 among all first names. It is almost exclusively a female name. The average bearer is 48 years old, and Michelle peaked in popularity in 1969 with 34,457 births that year. It has a similar number of bearers to Amanda (727,877).
Below you will find a full statistical profile of Michelle 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 Michelle paired with any surname.
Key Insights
- While Michelle is overwhelmingly female, 3,250 male births have been registered with this name since 1880.
- Michelle has fallen dramatically from its peak in the 1970s. Recent registrations are less than 5% of what they were at the name's height.
Estimated Living Americans
730,105
About 1 in 469 people in the U.S.
Rarity
Very Common
Predicted Gender
Female
99.6% confidence
Average Age
48
years old
Peak Year
1969
34,457 births
Total Registered
819,099
since 1880
Gender Distribution for Michelle
Michelle is almost exclusively a female name. Out of 819,099 total births registered, 99.6% were female.
Michelle as a male name
Ranked #7,894 in 2011
10 male births in 2011
Peak: 1971 (150 births)
Michelle as a female name
Ranked #409 in 2024
772 female births in 2024
Peak: 1969 (34,319 births)
Michelle: Popularity Over Time
SSA records for Michelle span from the 1910s to the 2020s, covering 12 decades of naming data. The most popular decade for this name was the 1970s, when 250,208 babies were registered. Michelle has declined significantly from its peak in the 1970s. Recent registrations are a fraction of what they were at the name's height.
Michelle by Decade
How has Michelle 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.
Michelle by State
Birth registrations for Michelle span all 51 states and territories in the SSA database. The highest counts are in California, New York, Texas. The lowest are in Wyoming, Vermont, Alaska. On average, about 15,999 Michelles were registered per state.
Michelle + Last Name Combinations
How many people share a full name with Michelle as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Names Similar to Michelle
Other first names starting with M with a similar number of bearers.
Michelle: Questions and Answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Michelle?
We estimate approximately 730,105 people named Michelle 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 469 Americans share this first name.
Is Michelle a common name?
Michelle is classified as "Very Common" and is more popular than 100% of all first names in the SSA database. A total of 819,099 births have been registered with this name since 1880.
When was Michelle most popular?
Michelle reached peak popularity in 1969, when 34,457 babies were given this name. The average age of a living person named Michelle is approximately 48 years old, reflecting when the name was most commonly given.
Is Michelle a female name?
Michelle is predominantly female. 99.6% of people with this name are female. See the gender breakdown above for full details.
How many Michelle Smiths are there?
To find how many people share a specific full name, we combine first name and surname frequencies. Try: Michelle Smith, Michelle Johnson, Michelle 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