boys' name ★ peaked 1918

Frank

Meaning a Frank Gender Boy · 1% girls Rank 2025 #514 Trend ↓ Falling 14%

From Middle English Frank, partially from Old English Franca (“a Frank”); and partially from Old French Franc, and/or Latin Francus (“a Frank”), from Frankish *Franko…

Rank 2025
#514
among boys · ↓45 vs 2024
Babies in 2025
584
named Frank · -11% vs 2024
How common
1 in 2,925
boys born in 2025
Peak year
1918
17,089 babies
All-time total
920,589
#33 all-time among boys
First recorded
1880
in Social Security records

Frank popularity over time

920,589 babies have been named Frank since 1880, 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
1020304018801900192019401960198020002020BoysGirls
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 168 30,967 31,135 3,114 – #6
1890s 221 28,718 28,939 2,894 -7% #6
1900s 194 29,046 29,240 2,924 +1% #8
1910s 560 116,017 116,577 11,658 +299% #8
1920s 947 151,830 152,777 15,278 +31% #9
1930s 617 108,090 108,707 10,871 -29% #13
1940s 401 119,417 119,818 11,982 +10% #20
1950s 377 112,321 112,698 11,270 -6% #29
1960s 384 87,155 87,539 8,754 -22% #40
1970s 373 46,917 47,290 4,729 -46% #48
1980s 267 33,590 33,857 3,386 -28% #81
1990s 97 23,970 24,067 2,407 -29% #109
2000s 5 14,475 14,480 1,448 -40% #209
2010s – 9,480 9,480 948 -35% #302
2020s (to 2025) – 3,985 3,985 664 -30% #428

Where Frank 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 569 0.33 outside top 500
2027 556 0.33 outside top 500
2028 546 0.32 outside top 500
2029 537 0.31 outside top 500
2030 530 0.31 outside top 500

Where Frank is most popular

Boys named Frank per 1,000 boys born in each state, 2021–2025. National average: 0.381 per 1,000. Strongest in New Jersey, Connecticut, and Rhode Island.

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 Frank 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 Jersey 206 1.02 +169%
Connecticut 58 0.857 +125%
Rhode Island 12 0.736 +93%
New York 316 0.730 +92%
Nevada 40 0.702 +84%
Illinois 172 0.673 +77%
Massachusetts 71 0.516 +36%
Florida 236 0.498 +31%
Arizona 76 0.465 +22%
Michigan 95 0.464 +22%
Pennsylvania 117 0.441 +16%
Louisiana 45 0.440 +15%
California 401 0.439 +15%
Maryland 51 0.428 +12%
Missouri 59 0.426 +12%
Minnesota 52 0.424 +11%
Wisconsin 49 0.414 +9%
Ohio 104 0.392 ≈ national
Alabama 42 0.384 ≈ national
Colorado 49 0.380 ≈ national
South Carolina 39 0.377 ≈ national
Georgia 94 0.371 ≈ national
Oregon 27 0.356 -7%
Utah 33 0.346 -9%
Tennessee 62 0.343 -10%
Virginia 64 0.337 -11%
Washington 52 0.318 -17%
Texas 276 0.313 -18%
Maine 6 0.309 -19%
North Carolina 74 0.290 -24%
New Hampshire 5 0.225 -41%
Kansas 15 0.219 -43%
Indiana 29 0.181 -53%
Idaho 7 0.171 -55%
Kentucky 17 0.169 -56%
Arkansas 10 0.158 -59%
Mississippi 7 0.123 -68%
Nebraska 5 0.115 -70%
Iowa 6 0.087 -77%
Oklahoma 7 0.079 -79%
Alaska – – –
District of Columbia – – –
Delaware – – –
Hawaii – – –
Montana – – –
North Dakota – – –
New Mexico – – –
South Dakota – – –
Vermont – – –
West Virginia – – –
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 Frank

Frank is uncommon for boys in the United States, ranked #514 in 2025 with 584 babies given the name. It is currently declining compared with a decade ago.

Since 1880, 920,589 American babies have been named Frank. Its peak came in 1918, when 17,089 newborns received the name, the signature sound of the 1910s.

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 Frank stood among all boys' names in any year, or use the compare tool to plot it against other names.

How old are people named Frank?

The median living Frank is about 63 years old; half are between 48 and 74. An estimated 362 thousand people named Frank are alive in the United States today.

median 63 020406080100

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

Frank 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 – – 584 #514
2024 – – 658 #469
2023 – – 650 #469
2022 – – 708 #440
2021 – – 691 #445
2020 – – 694 #428
2019 – – 773 #403
2018 – – 807 #392
2017 – – 890 #373
2016 – – 957 #353
2015 – – 945 #355
2014 – – 991 #336
2013 – – 1,007 #327
2012 – – 985 #320
2011 – – 1,048 #308
2010 – – 1,077 #302
2009 – – 1,138 #291
2008 – – 1,228 #278
2007 5 #18,555 1,333 #262
2006 – – 1,401 #246
2005 – – 1,480 #231
2004 – – 1,466 #230
2003 – – 1,500 #230
2002 – – 1,587 #216
2001 – – 1,634 #214
2000 – – 1,708 #209
1995 17 #5,514 2,247 #157
1990 13 #6,592 3,188 #109
1985 28 #3,184 3,302 #90
1980 27 #3,151 3,734 #81
1975 36 #2,287 4,212 #66
1970 49 #1,810 6,805 #48
1965 30 #2,167 8,319 #43
1960 37 #1,860 10,755 #40
1955 24 #2,238 11,109 #34
1950 30 #1,737 11,606 #29
1945 30 #1,491 10,874 #21
1940 36 #1,227 10,595 #20
1935 55 #942 10,420 #16
1930 88 #746 12,535 #13
1925 99 #746 15,329 #12
1920 65 #907 16,430 #9
1915 62 #828 15,006 #9
1910 21 #954 3,768 #8
1905 22 #787 2,837 #8
1900 19 #871 3,477 #8
1895 27 #581 3,012 #6
1890 34 #436 3,078 #6
1885 18 #509 3,067 #6
1880 13 #479 3,242 #6

Famous people named Frank

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

  1. 1 Frank Sinatra Frank Sinatra American singer and actor (1915–1998) Contemporary
  2. 2 Frank Abagnale Frank Abagnale American security consultant and convicted fraudster b. 1948 · Contemporary
  3. 3 Frank Lampard Frank Lampard English football player and manager (born 1978) Contemporary
  4. 4 Frank Lucas Frank Lucas American drug lord (1930–2019) Contemporary
  5. 5 Frank Zappa Frank Zappa American musician (1940–1993) Contemporary
  6. 6 Frank Lloyd Wright Frank Lloyd Wright American architect (1867–1959) 19th century
  7. 7 Frank Costello Frank Costello Italian-American mobster (1891-1973) 19th century
  8. 8 Frank Langella Frank Langella American actor (born 1938) Contemporary
  9. 9 Frank Oz Frank Oz American actor and puppeteer (born 1944) Contemporary
  10. 10 Frank Gehry Frank Gehry Canadian and American architect (1929–2025) Contemporary
  11. 11 Frank Darabont Film director, France b. 1959 · Contemporary
  12. 12 Frank Herbert Frank Herbert American science-fiction author (1920–1986) Contemporary
  13. 13 Frank Rijkaard Frank Rijkaard Dutch football manager (born 1962) Contemporary
  14. 14 Frank Capra Frank Capra Italian-born American film director (1897–1991) 19th century
  15. 15 Frank Sheeran Frank Sheeran American mobster and labor union official (1920–2003) Contemporary
  16. 16 Frank Borman Frank Borman American astronaut and lunar explorer (1928–2023) Contemporary
  17. 17 Frank Zane Athlete, United States b. 1942 · Contemporary
  18. 18 Frank Williams Frank Williams British businessman and motorsport executive (1942–2021) Contemporary
  19. 19 Frank Whittle Frank Whittle British Royal Air Force engineer and air officer (1907–1996) Contemporary
  20. 20 Frank Jack Fletcher Military personnel, United States 1885–1973 · 19th century

Portraits from Wikipedia (Wikimedia Commons).

Frequently asked questions

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

How old is the average Frank?

The median living Frank is about 63 years old. Half of all living Franks are between 48 and 74 years old.

How many people named Frank are alive today?

An estimated 362 thousand people named Frank are alive in the United States, based on 920,589 recorded births and Social Security life tables.

What does the name Frank mean?

From Middle English Frank, partially from Old English Franca (“a Frank”); and partially from Old French Franc, and/or Latin Francus (“a Frank”), from Frankish *Franko (“a Frank”); both maybe from Proto-Germanic *frankô…

How popular is the name Frank in 2025?

Frank ranked #514 among boys' names in the United States in 2025, with 584 babies given the name, according to Social Security Administration data.

How many people are named Frank?

920,589 babies have been named Frank in the United States since 1880, based on Social Security card applications.

When was the name Frank most popular?

Frank peaked in 1918, when 17,089 newborns received the name.

Is Frank a boy or girl name?

Frank is overwhelmingly a boy's name: 99% of babies with the name.

Is the name Frank rising or falling?

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

Will Frank become more popular?

Frank is trending downward. If the recent trend holds, we project roughly 530 boys named Frank in 2030, which would rank outside the top 500. Forecasts assume the current trend continues and become less certain further out.

Who are famous people named Frank?

Well-known people named Frank include Frank Sinatra (singer), Frank Abagnale (mafioso), Frank Lampard (soccer player).

Names like Frank

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

Compare Frank with similar names → More names starting with F →