How Many People Are Named Sullivan?
An estimated 15,234 people in the United States have the first name Sullivan. It is predominantly male (91.4%). The average bearer is 12 years old, and Sullivan peaked in popularity in 2024 with 1,113 births that year.
Below you will find a full statistical profile of Sullivan 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 Sullivan paired with any surname.
Key Insights
- Sullivan is a modern name. With an average bearer age of just 12, it has gained most of its popularity in recent years.
Estimated Living Americans
15,234
About 1 in 22,499 people in the U.S.
Rarity
Uncommon
Predicted Gender
Male
91.4% confidence
Average Age
12
years old
Peak Year
2024
1,113 births
Total Registered
15,914
since 1880
Gender Distribution for Sullivan
Sullivan is predominantly male (91.4%), though 1,368 female births have been registered. It functions as a unisex name for a small percentage of bearers.
Sullivan as a male name
Ranked #339 in 2024
1,011 male births in 2024
Peak: 2024 (1,011 births)
Sullivan as a female name
Ranked #1,948 in 2024
102 female births in 2024
Peak: 2024 (102 births)
Sullivan: Popularity Over Time
SSA records for Sullivan span from the 1880s to the 2020s, covering 15 decades of naming data. The most popular decade for this name was the 2010s, when 7,033 babies were registered. While Sullivan is less common than at its peak in the 2010s, it remains a well-established name with steady registrations.
Sullivan by Decade
How has Sullivan 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.
Sullivan by State
Birth registrations for Sullivan span all 45 states and territories in the SSA database. The highest counts are in South Carolina, Ohio, Minnesota. The lowest are in Alaska, Nevada, New Hampshire. On average, about 281 Sullivans were registered per state.
Sullivan + Last Name Combinations
How many people share a full name with Sullivan as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Names Similar to Sullivan
Other first names starting with S with a similar number of bearers.
Sullivan: Questions and Answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Sullivan?
We estimate approximately 15,234 people named Sullivan 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 22,499 Americans share this first name.
Is Sullivan a common name?
Sullivan is classified as "Uncommon" and is more popular than 98.2% of all first names in the SSA database. A total of 15,914 births have been registered with this name since 1880.
When was Sullivan most popular?
Sullivan reached peak popularity in 2024, when 1,113 babies were given this name. The average age of a living person named Sullivan is approximately 12 years old, reflecting when the name was most commonly given.
Is Sullivan a male name?
Sullivan is predominantly male. 91.4% of people with this name are male. See the gender breakdown above for full details.
How many Sullivan Smiths are there?
To find how many people share a specific full name, we combine first name and surname frequencies. Try: Sullivan Smith, Sullivan Johnson, Sullivan 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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