How Many People Are Named Roy?
An estimated 185,404 people in the United States have the first name Roy. While not in the top 50, it remains a well-known name ranking #292 overall. It is predominantly male (99.3%). The average bearer is 63 years old, and Roy peaked in popularity in 1947 with 7,592 births that year.
Below you will find a full statistical profile of Roy 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 Roy paired with any surname.
Key Insights
- While Roy is overwhelmingly male, 2,693 female births have been registered with this name since 1880.
- Roy has fallen dramatically from its peak in the 1940s. Recent registrations are less than 5% of what they were at the name's height.
Estimated Living Americans
185,404
About 1 in 1,849 people in the U.S.
Rarity
Common
Predicted Gender
Male
99.3% confidence
Average Age
63
years old
Peak Year
1947
7,592 births
Total Registered
410,743
since 1880
Gender Distribution for Roy
Roy is almost exclusively a male name. Out of 410,743 total births registered, 99.3% were male.
Roy as a male name
Ranked #541 in 2024
552 male births in 2024
Peak: 1947 (7,560 births)
Roy as a female name
Ranked #17,287 in 2022
5 female births in 2022
Peak: 1927 (69 births)
Roy: Popularity Over Time
SSA records for Roy span from the 1880s to the 2020s, covering 15 decades of naming data. The most popular decade for this name was the 1940s, when 66,004 babies were registered. Roy has declined significantly from its peak in the 1940s. Recent registrations are a fraction of what they were at the name's height.
Roy by Decade
How has Roy 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 | 6,597 | 6,565 | 32 | |
| 1890s | 9,859 | 9,779 | 80 | |
| 1900s | 10,714 | 10,632 | 82 | |
| 1910s | 40,629 | 40,340 | 289 | |
| 1920s | 63,803 | 63,259 | 544 | |
| 1930s | 51,876 | 51,495 | 381 | |
| 1940s | 66,004 | 65,645 | 359 | |
| 1950s | 62,182 | 61,847 | 335 | |
| 1960s | 40,305 | 40,044 | 261 | |
| 1970s | 22,523 | 22,352 | 171 | |
| 1980s | 14,455 | 14,308 | 147 | |
| 1990s | 8,600 | 8,600 | 0 | |
| 2000s | 5,578 | 5,578 | 0 | |
| 2010s | 5,022 | 5,015 | 7 | |
| 2020s | 2,596 | 2,591 | 5 | |
Roy by State
Birth registrations for Roy span all 51 states and territories in the SSA database. The highest counts are in Texas, California, New York. The lowest are in Delaware, Alaska, New Hampshire. On average, about 7,442 Roys were registered per state.
Roy + Last Name Combinations
How many people share a full name with Roy as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Names Similar to Roy
Other first names starting with R with a similar number of bearers.
Roy: Questions and Answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Roy?
We estimate approximately 185,404 people named Roy 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 1,849 Americans share this first name.
Is Roy a common name?
Roy is classified as "Common" and is more popular than 99.7% of all first names in the SSA database. A total of 410,743 births have been registered with this name since 1880.
When was Roy most popular?
Roy reached peak popularity in 1947, when 7,592 babies were given this name. The average age of a living person named Roy is approximately 63 years old, reflecting when the name was most commonly given.
Is Roy a male name?
Roy is predominantly male. 99.3% of people with this name are male. See the gender breakdown above for full details.
How many Roy Smiths are there?
To find how many people share a specific full name, we combine first name and surname frequencies. Try: Roy Smith, Roy Johnson, Roy 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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