How Many People Are Named Paula?
An estimated 202,061 people in the United States have the first name Paula. While not in the top 50, it remains a well-known name ranking #263 overall. It is almost exclusively a female name. The average bearer is 61 years old, and Paula peaked in popularity in 1963 with 10,178 births that year.
Below you will find a full statistical profile of Paula 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 Paula paired with any surname.
Key Insights
- While Paula is overwhelmingly female, 913 male births have been registered with this name since 1880.
- Paula 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
202,061
About 1 in 1,696 people in the U.S.
Rarity
Common
Predicted Gender
Female
99.7% confidence
Average Age
61
years old
Peak Year
1963
10,178 births
Total Registered
281,450
since 1880
Gender Distribution for Paula
Paula is almost exclusively a female name. Out of 281,450 total births registered, 99.7% were female.
Paula as a male name
Ranked #11,888 in 2023
6 male births in 2023
Peak: 1958 (27 births)
Paula as a female name
Ranked #753 in 2024
374 female births in 2024
Peak: 1963 (10,151 births)
Paula: Popularity Over Time
SSA records for Paula span from the 1880s to the 2020s, covering 15 decades of naming data. The most popular decade for this name was the 1950s, when 85,028 babies were registered. Paula has declined significantly from its peak in the 1950s. Recent registrations are a fraction of what they were at the name's height.
Paula by Decade
How has Paula 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 | 178 | 0 | 178 | |
| 1890s | 424 | 0 | 424 | |
| 1900s | 666 | 0 | 666 | |
| 1910s | 2,027 | 5 | 2,022 | |
| 1920s | 4,564 | 10 | 4,554 | |
| 1930s | 8,907 | 46 | 8,861 | |
| 1940s | 39,153 | 108 | 39,045 | |
| 1950s | 85,028 | 159 | 84,869 | |
| 1960s | 80,700 | 189 | 80,511 | |
| 1970s | 32,868 | 143 | 32,725 | |
| 1980s | 11,196 | 123 | 11,073 | |
| 1990s | 6,386 | 56 | 6,330 | |
| 2000s | 4,219 | 43 | 4,176 | |
| 2010s | 3,324 | 14 | 3,310 | |
| 2020s | 1,810 | 17 | 1,793 | |
Paula by State
Birth registrations for Paula span all 51 states and territories in the SSA database. The highest counts are in Texas, California, New York. The lowest are in Alaska, Wyoming, Nevada. On average, about 5,409 Paulas were registered per state.
Paula + Last Name Combinations
How many people share a full name with Paula as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Names Similar to Paula
Other first names starting with P with a similar number of bearers.
Paula: Questions and Answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Paula?
We estimate approximately 202,061 people named Paula 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 1,696 Americans share this first name.
Is Paula a common name?
Paula is classified as "Common" and is more popular than 99.8% of all first names in the SSA database. A total of 281,450 births have been registered with this name since 1880.
When was Paula most popular?
Paula reached peak popularity in 1963, when 10,178 babies were given this name. The average age of a living person named Paula is approximately 61 years old, reflecting when the name was most commonly given.
Is Paula a female name?
Paula is predominantly female. 99.7% of people with this name are female. See the gender breakdown above for full details.
How many Paula Smiths are there?
To find how many people share a specific full name, we combine first name and surname frequencies. Try: Paula Smith, Paula Johnson, Paula 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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