How Many People Are Named Ross?
An estimated 58,895 people in the United States have the first name Ross. It is predominantly male (99.5%). The average bearer is 48 years old, and Ross peaked in popularity in 1985 with 1,898 births that year.
Below you will find a full statistical profile of Ross 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 Ross paired with any surname.
Key Insights
- While Ross is overwhelmingly male, 422 female births have been registered with this name since 1880.
- Ross has fallen dramatically from its peak in the 1980s. Recent registrations are less than 5% of what they were at the name's height.
Estimated Living Americans
58,895
About 1 in 5,820 people in the U.S.
Rarity
Uncommon
Predicted Gender
Male
99.5% confidence
Average Age
48
years old
Peak Year
1985
1,898 births
Total Registered
82,174
since 1880
Gender Distribution for Ross
Ross is almost exclusively a male name. Out of 82,174 total births registered, 99.5% were male.
Ross as a male name
Ranked #1,359 in 2024
139 male births in 2024
Peak: 1985 (1,884 births)
Ross as a female name
Ranked #17,122 in 2023
5 female births in 2023
Peak: 1986 (16 births)
Ross: Popularity Over Time
SSA records for Ross span from the 1880s to the 2020s, covering 15 decades of naming data. The most popular decade for this name was the 1980s, when 15,819 babies were registered. Ross has declined significantly from its peak in the 1980s. Recent registrations are a fraction of what they were at the name's height.
Ross by Decade
How has Ross 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 | 951 | 951 | 0 | |
| 1890s | 856 | 851 | 5 | |
| 1900s | 803 | 803 | 0 | |
| 1910s | 3,739 | 3,692 | 47 | |
| 1920s | 5,293 | 5,240 | 53 | |
| 1930s | 4,587 | 4,558 | 29 | |
| 1940s | 6,170 | 6,153 | 17 | |
| 1950s | 9,538 | 9,515 | 23 | |
| 1960s | 9,814 | 9,781 | 33 | |
| 1970s | 7,981 | 7,935 | 46 | |
| 1980s | 15,819 | 15,713 | 106 | |
| 1990s | 10,483 | 10,463 | 20 | |
| 2000s | 3,578 | 3,561 | 17 | |
| 2010s | 1,861 | 1,847 | 14 | |
| 2020s | 701 | 689 | 12 | |
Ross by State
Birth registrations for Ross span all 51 states and territories in the SSA database. The highest counts are in California, Texas, New York. The lowest are in Delaware, Alaska, Wyoming. On average, about 1,473 Rosss were registered per state.
Ross + Last Name Combinations
How many people share a full name with Ross as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Names Similar to Ross
Other first names starting with R with a similar number of bearers.
Ross: Questions and Answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Ross?
We estimate approximately 58,895 people named Ross 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 5,820 Americans share this first name.
Is Ross a common name?
Ross is classified as "Uncommon" and is more popular than 99.2% of all first names in the SSA database. A total of 82,174 births have been registered with this name since 1880.
When was Ross most popular?
Ross reached peak popularity in 1985, when 1,898 babies were given this name. The average age of a living person named Ross is approximately 48 years old, reflecting when the name was most commonly given.
Is Ross a male name?
Ross is predominantly male. 99.5% of people with this name are male. See the gender breakdown above for full details.
How many Ross Smiths are there?
To find how many people share a specific full name, we combine first name and surname frequencies. Try: Ross Smith, Ross Johnson, Ross 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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