How Many People Are Named Paul?
An estimated 870,452 people in the United States have the first name Paul, ranking it #31 among all first names. It is almost exclusively a male name. The average bearer is 59 years old, and Paul peaked in popularity in 1957 with 27,075 births that year. It has a similar number of bearers to Sarah (856,869).
Below you will find a full statistical profile of Paul 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 Paul paired with any surname.
Key Insights
- While Paul is overwhelmingly male, 5,843 female births have been registered with this name since 1880.
- Paul has fallen dramatically from its peak in the 1950s. Recent registrations are less than 5% of what they were at the name's height.
Estimated Living Americans
870,452
About 1 in 394 people in the U.S.
Rarity
Very Common
Predicted Gender
Male
99.6% confidence
Average Age
59
years old
Peak Year
1957
27,075 births
Total Registered
1,402,786
since 1880
Gender Distribution for Paul
Paul is almost exclusively a male name. Out of 1,402,786 total births registered, 99.6% were male.
Paul as a male name
Ranked #264 in 2024
1,320 male births in 2024
Peak: 1957 (27,012 births)
Paul as a female name
Ranked #16,623 in 2006
6 female births in 2006
Peak: 1928 (123 births)
Paul: Popularity Over Time
SSA records for Paul span from the 1880s to the 2020s, covering 15 decades of naming data. The most popular decade for this name was the 1950s, when 253,807 babies were registered. Paul has declined significantly from its peak in the 1950s. Recent registrations are a fraction of what they were at the name's height.
Paul by Decade
How has Paul 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 | 4,213 | 4,196 | 17 | |
| 1890s | 8,238 | 8,181 | 57 | |
| 1900s | 12,729 | 12,636 | 93 | |
| 1910s | 78,626 | 78,216 | 410 | |
| 1920s | 133,237 | 132,384 | 853 | |
| 1930s | 126,402 | 125,771 | 631 | |
| 1940s | 183,894 | 183,356 | 538 | |
| 1950s | 253,807 | 253,191 | 616 | |
| 1960s | 243,419 | 242,503 | 916 | |
| 1970s | 137,219 | 136,404 | 815 | |
| 1980s | 105,105 | 104,397 | 708 | |
| 1990s | 59,078 | 58,932 | 146 | |
| 2000s | 31,002 | 30,959 | 43 | |
| 2010s | 19,023 | 19,023 | 0 | |
| 2020s | 6,794 | 6,794 | 0 | |
Paul by State
Birth registrations for Paul span all 51 states and territories in the SSA database. The highest counts are in New York, Pennsylvania, California. The lowest are in Wyoming, Alaska, Nevada. On average, about 26,932 Pauls were registered per state.
Paul + Last Name Combinations
How many people share a full name with Paul as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Names Similar to Paul
Other first names starting with P with a similar number of bearers.
Paul: Questions and Answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Paul?
We estimate approximately 870,452 people named Paul 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 394 Americans share this first name.
Is Paul a common name?
Paul is classified as "Very Common" and is more popular than 100% of all first names in the SSA database. A total of 1,402,786 births have been registered with this name since 1880.
When was Paul most popular?
Paul reached peak popularity in 1957, when 27,075 babies were given this name. The average age of a living person named Paul is approximately 59 years old, reflecting when the name was most commonly given.
Is Paul a male name?
Paul is predominantly male. 99.6% of people with this name are male. See the gender breakdown above for full details.
How many Paul Smiths are there?
To find how many people share a specific full name, we combine first name and surname frequencies. Try: Paul Smith, Paul Johnson, Paul 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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