boys' name ★ peaked 2015

Gunner

Meaning Gunner is a nickname, given name, and surname Gender Boy Rank 2025 #506 Trend ↓ Falling 44%

Gunner is a nickname, given name, and surname.

Rank 2025
#506
among boys · ↑12 vs 2024
Babies in 2025
597
named Gunner · +1% vs 2024
How common
1 in 2,861
boys born in 2025
Peak year
2015
1,597 babies
All-time total
23,508
#771 all-time among boys
First recorded
1970
in Social Security records

Gunner popularity over time

23,508 babies have been named Gunner since 1970, 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
0.250.50.75118801900192019401960198020002020BoysGirls
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 – – – – – –
1890s – – – – – –
1900s – – – – – –
1910s – – – – – –
1920s – – – – – –
1930s – – – – – –
1940s – – – – – –
1950s – – – – – –
1960s – – – – – –
1970s – 37 37 4 – #3,444
1980s – 97 97 10 +162% #3,161
1990s – 1,513 1,513 151 +1460% #666
2000s – 4,150 4,150 415 +174% #398
2010s 16 12,868 12,884 1,288 +210% #235
2020s (to 2025) 6 4,821 4,827 805 -38% #308

Where Gunner 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 543 0.32 outside top 500
2027 501 0.29 outside top 500
2028 468 0.27 outside top 500
2029 441 0.26 outside top 500
2030 420 0.25 outside top 500

Where Gunner is most popular

Boys named Gunner per 1,000 boys born in each state, 2021–2025. National average: 0.434 per 1,000. Strongest in West Virginia, Arkansas, and Kentucky.

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 Gunner 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
West Virginia 83 2.54 +485%
Arkansas 107 1.69 +289%
Kentucky 141 1.40 +224%
Oklahoma 122 1.38 +218%
Mississippi 74 1.30 +200%
Alabama 141 1.29 +197%
Montana 18 1.02 +135%
Tennessee 177 0.981 +126%
Louisiana 89 0.870 +100%
Wyoming 5 0.864 +99%
South Carolina 87 0.842 +94%
Georgia 207 0.817 +88%
Missouri 113 0.815 +88%
Kansas 54 0.787 +81%
Idaho 31 0.757 +74%
Utah 69 0.723 +66%
Indiana 110 0.686 +58%
Ohio 176 0.664 +53%
Iowa 45 0.653 +50%
Maine 12 0.618 +42%
North Carolina 154 0.603 +39%
Virginia 102 0.538 +24%
Oregon 38 0.501 +15%
Nevada 28 0.491 +13%
Nebraska 21 0.483 +11%
Arizona 75 0.458 +6%
Colorado 59 0.457 +5%
Michigan 88 0.430 ≈ national
Alaska 5 0.420 ≈ national
Maryland 50 0.419 ≈ national
Texas 355 0.403 -7%
Illinois 92 0.360 -17%
Florida 170 0.359 -17%
Wisconsin 42 0.355 -18%
Pennsylvania 93 0.350 -19%
South Dakota 6 0.322 -26%
Hawaii 5 0.322 -26%
North Dakota 5 0.293 -33%
Washington 45 0.275 -37%
Minnesota 29 0.236 -46%
New Hampshire 5 0.225 -48%
California 182 0.199 -54%
New York 62 0.143 -67%
Massachusetts 15 0.109 -75%
New Jersey 16 0.079 -82%
Connecticut – – –
District of Columbia – – –
Delaware – – –
New Mexico – – –
Rhode Island – – –
Vermont – – –

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 Gunner

Gunner is uncommon for boys in the United States, ranked #506 in 2025 with 597 babies given the name. It is currently declining compared with a decade ago.

Since 1970, 23,508 American babies have been named Gunner. Its peak came in 2015, when 1,597 newborns received the name, the signature sound of the 2010s.

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

How old are people named Gunner?

The median living Gunner is about 11 years old; half are between 6 and 15. An estimated 23 thousand people named Gunner are alive in the United States today.

median 11 020406080100

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

Gunner 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 – – 597 #506
2024 – – 591 #518
2023 – – 711 #437
2022 – – 830 #386
2021 6 #14,097 1,021 #324
2020 – – 1,071 #308
2019 – – 1,175 #294
2018 5 #16,529 1,251 #281
2017 – – 1,394 #262
2016 – – 1,453 #251
2015 6 #15,168 1,591 #239
2014 – – 1,578 #235
2013 5 #17,500 1,514 #239
2012 – – 1,203 #293
2011 – – 911 #333
2010 – – 798 #369
2009 – – 745 #398
2008 – – 585 #474
2007 – – 525 #501
2006 – – 426 #579
2005 – – 358 #620
2004 – – 364 #597
2003 – – 326 #630
2002 – – 305 #637
2001 – – 272 #669
2000 – – 244 #716
1995 – – 203 #758
1990 – – 21 #3,002
1985 – – 9 #4,455
1980 – – 6 #5,795
1975 – – 8 #4,082
1970 – – 6 #4,434
1965 – – – –
1960 – – – –
1955 – – – –
1950 – – – –
1945 – – – –
1940 – – – –
1935 – – – –
1930 – – – –
1925 – – – –
1920 – – – –
1915 – – – –
1910 – – – –
1905 – – – –
1900 – – – –
1895 – – – –
1890 – – – –
1885 – – – –
1880 – – – –

Frequently asked questions

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

How old is the average Gunner?

The median living Gunner is about 11 years old. Half of all living Gunners are between 6 and 15 years old.

How many people named Gunner are alive today?

An estimated 23 thousand people named Gunner are alive in the United States, based on 23,508 recorded births and Social Security life tables.

What does the name Gunner mean?

Gunner is a nickname, given name, and surname.

How popular is the name Gunner in 2025?

Gunner ranked #506 among boys' names in the United States in 2025, with 597 babies given the name, according to Social Security Administration data.

How many people are named Gunner?

23,508 babies have been named Gunner in the United States since 1970, based on Social Security card applications.

When was the name Gunner most popular?

Gunner peaked in 2015, when 1,597 newborns received the name.

Is Gunner a boy or girl name?

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

Is the name Gunner rising or falling?

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

Will Gunner become more popular?

Gunner is trending downward. If the recent trend holds, we project roughly 420 boys named Gunner in 2030, which would rank outside the top 500. Forecasts assume the current trend continues and become less certain further out.

Names like Gunner

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

Compare Gunner with similar names → More names starting with G →