How Many People Are Named Phillip?
An estimated 238,727 people in the United States have the first name Phillip. While not in the top 50, it remains a well-known name ranking #218 overall. It is almost exclusively a male name. The average bearer is 52 years old, and Phillip peaked in popularity in 1960 with 6,072 births that year.
Below you will find a full statistical profile of Phillip 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 Phillip paired with any surname.
Key Insights
- While Phillip is overwhelmingly male, 1,330 female births have been registered with this name since 1880.
- Phillip 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
238,727
About 1 in 1,436 people in the U.S.
Rarity
Common
Predicted Gender
Male
99.6% confidence
Average Age
52
years old
Peak Year
1960
6,072 births
Total Registered
312,450
since 1880
Gender Distribution for Phillip
Phillip is almost exclusively a male name. Out of 312,450 total births registered, 99.6% were male.
Phillip as a male name
Ranked #626 in 2024
450 male births in 2024
Peak: 1960 (6,043 births)
Phillip as a female name
Ranked #18,490 in 2005
5 female births in 2005
Peak: 1985 (39 births)
Phillip: Popularity Over Time
SSA records for Phillip span from the 1880s to the 2020s, covering 15 decades of naming data. The most popular decade for this name was the 1950s, when 52,646 babies were registered. Phillip has declined significantly from its peak in the 1950s. Recent registrations are a fraction of what they were at the name's height.
Phillip by Decade
How has Phillip 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 | 898 | 898 | 0 | |
| 1890s | 884 | 884 | 0 | |
| 1900s | 1,161 | 1,161 | 0 | |
| 1910s | 5,146 | 5,135 | 11 | |
| 1920s | 9,595 | 9,525 | 70 | |
| 1930s | 16,601 | 16,533 | 68 | |
| 1940s | 37,074 | 36,988 | 86 | |
| 1950s | 52,646 | 52,458 | 188 | |
| 1960s | 50,630 | 50,394 | 236 | |
| 1970s | 40,122 | 39,844 | 278 | |
| 1980s | 46,025 | 45,706 | 319 | |
| 1990s | 28,034 | 27,970 | 64 | |
| 2000s | 13,483 | 13,473 | 10 | |
| 2010s | 7,624 | 7,624 | 0 | |
| 2020s | 2,527 | 2,527 | 0 | |
Phillip by State
Birth registrations for Phillip span all 51 states and territories in the SSA database. The highest counts are in California, Texas, Illinois. The lowest are in Vermont, Wyoming, Rhode Island. On average, about 6,010 Phillips were registered per state.
Phillip + Last Name Combinations
How many people share a full name with Phillip as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Names Similar to Phillip
Other first names starting with P with a similar number of bearers.
Phillip: Questions and Answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Phillip?
We estimate approximately 238,727 people named Phillip 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 1,436 Americans share this first name.
Is Phillip a common name?
Phillip is classified as "Common" and is more popular than 99.8% of all first names in the SSA database. A total of 312,450 births have been registered with this name since 1880.
When was Phillip most popular?
Phillip reached peak popularity in 1960, when 6,072 babies were given this name. The average age of a living person named Phillip is approximately 52 years old, reflecting when the name was most commonly given.
Is Phillip a male name?
Phillip is predominantly male. 99.6% of people with this name are male. See the gender breakdown above for full details.
How many Phillip Smiths are there?
To find how many people share a specific full name, we combine first name and surname frequencies. Try: Phillip Smith, Phillip Johnson, Phillip 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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