How Many People Are Named Susan?
An estimated 778,536 people in the United States have the first name Susan, ranking it #41 among all first names. It is almost exclusively a female name. The average bearer is 66 years old, and Susan peaked in popularity in 1955 with 47,484 births that year. It has a similar number of bearers to Justin (760,960).
Below you will find a full statistical profile of Susan 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 Susan paired with any surname.
Key Insights
- While Susan is overwhelmingly female, 2,542 male births have been registered with this name since 1880.
- With an average bearer age of 66, Susan is a vintage name most associated with earlier generations. Most living bearers were born before 1970.
- Susan 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
778,536
About 1 in 440 people in the U.S.
Rarity
Very Common
Predicted Gender
Female
99.8% confidence
Average Age
66
years old
Peak Year
1955
47,484 births
Total Registered
1,125,774
since 1880
Gender Distribution for Susan
Susan is almost exclusively a female name. Out of 1,125,774 total births registered, 99.8% were female.
Susan as a male name
Ranked #13,994 in 2017
5 male births in 2017
Peak: 1957 (97 births)
Susan as a female name
Ranked #1,136 in 2024
213 female births in 2024
Peak: 1955 (47,419 births)
Susan: Popularity Over Time
SSA records for Susan span from the 1880s to the 2020s, covering 15 decades of naming data. The most popular decade for this name was the 1950s, when 438,469 babies were registered. Susan has declined significantly from its peak in the 1950s. Recent registrations are a fraction of what they were at the name's height.
Susan by Decade
How has Susan 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 | 3,231 | 0 | 3,231 | |
| 1890s | 3,617 | 5 | 3,612 | |
| 1900s | 3,447 | 0 | 3,447 | |
| 1910s | 6,819 | 5 | 6,814 | |
| 1920s | 8,414 | 6 | 8,408 | |
| 1930s | 21,114 | 86 | 21,028 | |
| 1940s | 212,525 | 511 | 212,014 | |
| 1950s | 438,469 | 696 | 437,773 | |
| 1960s | 288,370 | 709 | 287,661 | |
| 1970s | 88,632 | 322 | 88,310 | |
| 1980s | 30,704 | 157 | 30,547 | |
| 1990s | 10,921 | 28 | 10,893 | |
| 2000s | 5,319 | 7 | 5,312 | |
| 2010s | 3,057 | 10 | 3,047 | |
| 2020s | 1,135 | 0 | 1,135 | |
Susan by State
Birth registrations for Susan span all 51 states and territories in the SSA database. The highest counts are in New York, California, Pennsylvania. The lowest are in Alaska, Nevada, Wyoming. On average, about 21,790 Susans were registered per state.
Susan + Last Name Combinations
How many people share a full name with Susan as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Names Similar to Susan
Other first names starting with S with a similar number of bearers.
Susan: Questions and Answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Susan?
We estimate approximately 778,536 people named Susan 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 440 Americans share this first name.
Is Susan a common name?
Susan is classified as "Very Common" and is more popular than 100% of all first names in the SSA database. A total of 1,125,774 births have been registered with this name since 1880.
When was Susan most popular?
Susan reached peak popularity in 1955, when 47,484 babies were given this name. The average age of a living person named Susan is approximately 66 years old, reflecting when the name was most commonly given.
Is Susan a female name?
Susan is predominantly female. 99.8% of people with this name are female. See the gender breakdown above for full details.
How many Susan Smiths are there?
To find how many people share a specific full name, we combine first name and surname frequencies. Try: Susan Smith, Susan Johnson, Susan 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.
Search for a full name combination
How Many of Me