boys' name ★ peaked 2002

Cole

Gender Boy Rank 2025 #182 Trend ↓ Falling 26%

Cole is a given name of English origin, originally used as an English surname.

Rank 2025
#182
among boys · ↓20 vs 2024
Babies in 2025
2,009
named Cole · -10% vs 2024
How common
1 in 853
boys born in 2025
Peak year
2002
6,054 babies
All-time total
154,646
#225 all-time among boys
First recorded
1886
in Social Security records

Cole popularity over time

154,646 babies have been named Cole since 1886, according to official Social Security records. Switch measure to see births per year or the yearly rank.

Measure
Births per 1,000 babies of that sex, comparable across eras
123418801900192019401960198020002020BoysGirls
BoysGirls

By decade. Change compares yearly averages, so the current partial decade is on equal footing. Best rank is the name's best yearly rank within the decade.

Decade Girls Boys Total Per year Change Best rank
1880s – 6 6 1 – #859
1890s – 5 5 1 -17% #1,081
1900s – 16 16 2 +220% #1,194
1910s – 190 190 19 +1087% #941
1920s – 156 156 16 -18% #1,705
1930s – 127 127 13 -19% #1,669
1940s – 224 224 22 +76% #1,129
1950s – 562 562 56 +151% #885
1960s – 703 703 70 +25% #777
1970s – 1,444 1,444 144 +105% #592
1980s 76 8,722 8,798 880 +509% #202
1990s 128 33,868 33,996 3,400 +286% #72
2000s 167 56,846 57,013 5,701 +68% #69
2010s 126 36,401 36,527 3,653 -36% #90
2020s (to 2025) 56 14,823 14,879 2,480 -32% #132

Where Cole is heading

A five-year projection from the recent trend in births per 1,000 boys (damped so it flattens over time), converted to babies at today's birth totals. The implied rank places that projection in the 2025 field. A projection, not a promise: real trends bend.

Year Projected babies Per 1,000 boys Implied rank
2026 1,902 1.11 #193
2027 1,819 1.07 #197
2028 1,752 1.03 #200
2029 1,697 0.99 #207
2030 1,652 0.97 #215

Where Cole is most popular

Boys named Cole per 1,000 boys born in each state, 2021–2025. National average: 1.40 per 1,000. Strongest in New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Connecticut.

Vs national average
well below below near national above well above no data

All 50 states and DC, sorted by rate. Counts are boys named Cole born 2021–2025; the per-1,000 rate makes states of different sizes comparable, and the last column shows each state against the national average.

State Boys 2021–2025 Per 1,000 vs national
New Hampshire 116 5.22 +274%
Rhode Island 78 4.78 +243%
Connecticut 243 3.59 +157%
Massachusetts 478 3.48 +149%
Maine 67 3.45 +147%
Pennsylvania 840 3.16 +127%
Delaware 46 3.03 +117%
New Jersey 553 2.75 +97%
West Virginia 87 2.66 +91%
Montana 43 2.44 +75%
Utah 219 2.29 +64%
Alaska 26 2.18 +56%
Maryland 258 2.16 +55%
South Dakota 40 2.15 +54%
Michigan 427 2.08 +49%
New York 898 2.07 +49%
Ohio 538 2.03 +45%
Iowa 138 2.00 +43%
Wisconsin 235 1.98 +42%
Illinois 490 1.92 +37%
Hawaii 29 1.87 +34%
District of Columbia 27 1.83 +31%
Kentucky 182 1.81 +30%
Virginia 343 1.81 +30%
Nebraska 78 1.79 +29%
Louisiana 181 1.77 +27%
Missouri 237 1.71 +23%
Idaho 68 1.66 +19%
Colorado 214 1.66 +19%
North Carolina 418 1.64 +17%
Indiana 254 1.58 +14%
Kansas 107 1.56 +12%
Arkansas 95 1.50 +8%
Nevada 82 1.44 ≈ national
Oregon 109 1.44 ≈ national
Oklahoma 125 1.41 ≈ national
Minnesota 169 1.38 ≈ national
South Carolina 137 1.33 -5%
Washington 216 1.32 -5%
Arizona 209 1.28 -8%
Tennessee 227 1.26 -10%
Florida 535 1.13 -19%
Mississippi 59 1.04 -26%
Alabama 107 0.979 -30%
California 889 0.973 -30%
New Mexico 32 0.971 -30%
Georgia 245 0.967 -31%
Vermont 6 0.955 -32%
Texas 794 0.901 -35%
North Dakota 12 0.703 -50%
Wyoming – – –

State counts come from the Social Security Administration's state files, which omit any state-year with fewer than five babies of a name, so small states can undercount slightly.

The story of Cole

Cole is moderately common for boys in the United States, ranked #182 in 2025 with 2,003 babies given the name. It is currently declining compared with a decade ago.

Since 1886, 154,646 American babies have been named Cole. Its peak came in 2002, when 6,054 newborns received the name, the signature sound of the 2000s.

The chart above shows the full history: the popularity view (births per 1,000 babies) is the honest comparison across generations, since total US births have changed enormously since 1880. Switch to the rank view to see where Cole stood among all boys' names in any year, or use the compare tool to plot it against other names.

How old are people named Cole?

The median living Cole is about 20 years old; half are between 12 and 27. An estimated 151 thousand people named Cole are alive in the United States today.

median 20 020406080100

Estimated from births per year and Social Security period life tables; an approximation of the living age distribution, by age in years.

Cole year by year

Every year since 2001, and five-year steps back to 1880. Rank is within each sex.

Year Girls Girls rank Boys Boys rank
2025 6 #13,569 2,003 #182
2024 6 #13,850 2,224 #162
2023 14 #7,731 2,364 #155
2022 8 #11,430 2,626 #144
2021 12 #8,592 2,835 #132
2020 10 #9,717 2,771 #133
2019 16 #7,101 3,093 #123
2018 13 #8,250 3,348 #118
2017 12 #8,918 3,468 #116
2016 18 #6,718 3,604 #110
2015 15 #7,715 3,499 #115
2014 9 #11,189 3,426 #116
2013 13 #8,701 3,454 #114
2012 12 #9,233 3,779 #102
2011 13 #8,739 4,140 #94
2010 5 #17,605 4,590 #90
2009 14 #8,544 5,278 #82
2008 19 #6,863 5,389 #85
2007 14 #8,626 5,703 #84
2006 32 #4,485 5,640 #84
2005 14 #7,989 5,587 #79
2004 23 #5,411 5,648 #75
2003 5 #16,312 5,898 #69
2002 16 #6,777 6,038 #69
2001 12 #8,308 5,739 #74
2000 18 #5,997 5,926 #71
1995 15 #6,025 3,150 #118
1990 11 #7,414 1,100 #248
1985 – – 1,185 #204
1980 6 #9,316 271 #516
1975 – – 158 #653
1970 – – 99 #812
1965 – – 68 #892
1960 – – 72 #892
1955 – – 62 #950
1950 – – 28 #1,369
1945 – – 8 #2,600
1940 – – 10 #2,354
1935 – – 9 #2,565
1930 – – 11 #2,473
1925 – – 18 #1,884
1920 – – 10 #2,806
1915 – – 26 #1,312
1910 – – 6 #1,456
1905 – – – –
1900 – – 6 #1,194
1895 – – – –
1890 – – – –
1885 – – – –
1880 – – – –

Famous people named Cole

The most globally famous bearers of the name, ranked by fame across Wikipedia editions (Pantheon project, MIT).

  1. 1 Cole Hauser Cole Hauser American actor (born 1975) Contemporary
  2. 2 Cole Sprouse Cole Sprouse American actor (born 1992) Contemporary
  3. 3 Cole Porter Cole Porter American composer and songwriter (1891–1964) 19th century
  4. 4 Cole Hamels Cole Hamels American baseball player (born 1983) Contemporary
  5. 5 Cole Aldrich Cole Aldrich American basketball player (born 1988) Contemporary

Portraits from Wikipedia (Wikimedia Commons).

Frequently asked questions

Quick answers about Cole, drawn from the same Social Security data as the charts above.

How old is the average Cole?

The median living Cole is about 20 years old. Half of all living Coles are between 12 and 27 years old.

How many people named Cole are alive today?

An estimated 151 thousand people named Cole are alive in the United States, based on 154,646 recorded births and Social Security life tables.

What does the name Cole mean?

Cole is a given name of English origin, originally used as an English surname.

How popular is the name Cole in 2025?

Cole ranked #182 among boys' names in the United States in 2025, with 2,003 babies given the name, according to Social Security Administration data.

How many people are named Cole?

154,646 babies have been named Cole in the United States since 1886, based on Social Security card applications.

When was the name Cole most popular?

Cole peaked in 2002, when 6,054 newborns received the name.

Is Cole a boy or girl name?

Cole is overwhelmingly a boy's name: 100% of babies with the name.

Is the name Cole rising or falling?

Cole is declining, less popular now than a decade ago.

Will Cole become more popular?

Cole is trending downward. If the recent trend holds, we project roughly 1,652 boys named Cole in 2030, which would rank around #215. Forecasts assume the current trend continues and become less certain further out.

Who are famous people named Cole?

Well-known people named Cole include Cole Hauser (actor), Cole Sprouse (actor), Cole Porter (composer).

Names like Cole

Names that sound and feel close to Cole: shared sounds, similar era, similar popularity. Each links to its full history.

Compare Cole with similar names → More names starting with C →