Popularity of Baby Names by Year

Choosing a baby name can be super stressful (although it doesn't have to be!). There are so many factors to consider—baby name regret is a biggie—and for some people, how trendy a name is, or has been in the past, matters. That's why this tool from the U.S. Social Security Administration is so helpful.

Using this tool, you can get an annual ranking for a specific name from as far back as 1900. This way, you can see if the names on your list are rising or falling in popularity. Sounds cool, right? Simply go to the S.S.A.'s baby names website, and scroll down until you see this:

Now, using the tool on the right side, type in the name you want to search, choose the year range and the sex of your baby. (If you don't know the baby's gender yet, check the sex you associate with that specific name). The range of years you selected will affect the size of the chart, but it should look something like this (I entered my own name as an example):

What you want to look at is the second column which shows the name's rank in the corresponding year in the first column. If the number values are decreasing as you go down the list, the name is getting less popular (like mine, oh well). If they increase as you go down the list, the name is getting more popular. Easy peasy!

Obviously, it's up to you to decide whether you prefer names that are trending up or down, but knowing this info could definitely help narrow down your choices.