How Many People Are Named Walter?
An estimated 237,731 people in the United States have the first name Walter. While not in the top 50, it remains a well-known name ranking #219 overall. It is predominantly male (99.4%). The average bearer is 62 years old, and Walter peaked in popularity in 1918 with 13,418 births that year.
Below you will find a full statistical profile of Walter 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 Walter paired with any surname.
Key Insights
- While Walter is overwhelmingly male, 3,632 female births have been registered with this name since 1880.
Estimated Living Americans
237,731
About 1 in 1,442 people in the U.S.
Rarity
Common
Predicted Gender
Male
99.4% confidence
Average Age
62
years old
Peak Year
1918
13,418 births
Total Registered
633,415
since 1880
Gender Distribution for Walter
Walter is almost exclusively a male name. Out of 633,415 total births registered, 99.4% were male.
Walter as a male name
Ranked #271 in 2024
1,264 male births in 2024
Peak: 1918 (13,338 births)
Walter as a female name
Ranked #13,341 in 1995
6 female births in 1995
Peak: 1925 (100 births)
Walter: Popularity Over Time
SSA records for Walter span from the 1880s to the 2020s, covering 15 decades of naming data. The most popular decade for this name was the 1920s, when 120,673 babies were registered. Walter has declined significantly from its peak in the 1920s. Recent registrations are a fraction of what they were at the name's height.
Walter by Decade
How has Walter 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 | 18,255 | 18,185 | 70 | |
| 1890s | 19,613 | 19,495 | 118 | |
| 1900s | 20,126 | 19,997 | 129 | |
| 1910s | 89,635 | 89,145 | 490 | |
| 1920s | 120,673 | 119,809 | 864 | |
| 1930s | 81,487 | 80,906 | 581 | |
| 1940s | 84,104 | 83,726 | 378 | |
| 1950s | 72,528 | 72,196 | 332 | |
| 1960s | 46,198 | 45,932 | 266 | |
| 1970s | 25,945 | 25,729 | 216 | |
| 1980s | 17,718 | 17,568 | 150 | |
| 1990s | 12,058 | 12,020 | 38 | |
| 2000s | 8,132 | 8,132 | 0 | |
| 2010s | 10,606 | 10,606 | 0 | |
| 2020s | 6,337 | 6,337 | 0 | |
Walter by State
Birth registrations for Walter span all 51 states and territories in the SSA database. The highest counts are in New York, Pennsylvania, Illinois. The lowest are in Nevada, Wyoming, Alaska. On average, about 11,207 Walters were registered per state.
Walter + Last Name Combinations
How many people share a full name with Walter as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Names Similar to Walter
Other first names starting with W with a similar number of bearers.
Walter: Questions and Answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Walter?
We estimate approximately 237,731 people named Walter 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 1,442 Americans share this first name.
Is Walter a common name?
Walter is classified as "Common" and is more popular than 99.8% of all first names in the SSA database. A total of 633,415 births have been registered with this name since 1880.
When was Walter most popular?
Walter reached peak popularity in 1918, when 13,418 babies were given this name. The average age of a living person named Walter is approximately 62 years old, reflecting when the name was most commonly given.
Is Walter a male name?
Walter is predominantly male. 99.4% of people with this name are male. See the gender breakdown above for full details.
How many Walter Smiths are there?
To find how many people share a specific full name, we combine first name and surname frequencies. Try: Walter Smith, Walter Johnson, Walter 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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