girls' name ★ peaked 1985

Meghan

Gender Girl Rank 2025 #1,906 Trend ↓ Falling 57%

A female given name from Welsh, a pseudo-Irish spelling of the Welsh Megan.

Rank 2025
#1,906
among girls · ↓459 vs 2024
Babies in 2025
102
named Meghan · -33% vs 2024
How common
1 in 15,758
girls born in 2025
Peak year
1985
4,682 babies
All-time total
96,727
#389 all-time among girls
First recorded
1952
in Social Security records

Meghan popularity over time

96,727 babies have been named Meghan since 1952, 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
0.751.52.25318801900192019401960198020002020GirlsBoys
GirlsBoys

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 102 – 102 10 – #1,530
1960s 958 – 958 96 +839% #656
1970s 9,358 38 9,396 940 +881% #121
1980s 36,206 147 36,353 3,635 +287% #63
1990s 31,500 28 31,528 3,153 -13% #91
2000s 14,085 14 14,099 1,410 -55% #134
2010s 3,045 – 3,045 305 -78% #566
2020s (to 2025) 1,246 – 1,246 208 -32% #880

Where Meghan is heading

A five-year projection from the recent trend in births per 1,000 girls (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 girls Implied rank
2026 87 0.05 outside top 500
2027 77 0.05 outside top 500
2028 69 0.04 outside top 500
2029 63 0.04 outside top 500
2030 58 0.04 outside top 500

Where Meghan is most popular

Girls named Meghan per 1,000 girls born in each state, 2021–2025. National average: 0.116 per 1,000. Strongest in Florida, New Jersey, 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 girls named Meghan 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 Girls 2021–2025 Per 1,000 vs national
Florida 160 0.374 +222%
New Jersey 59 0.327 +182%
Connecticut 17 0.292 +152%
New York 78 0.197 +70%
Maryland 17 0.160 +38%
Texas 118 0.147 +26%
Massachusetts 17 0.141 +21%
Virginia 22 0.129 +11%
California 101 0.120 ≈ national
Pennsylvania 26 0.110 -5%
Georgia 24 0.106 -9%
North Carolina 23 0.101 -13%
Tennessee 15 0.095 -18%
Kentucky 6 0.070 -40%
Illinois 12 0.052 -55%
Ohio 5 0.021 -82%
Alaska – – –
Alabama – – –
Arkansas – – –
Arizona – – –
Colorado – – –
District of Columbia – – –
Delaware – – –
Hawaii – – –
Iowa – – –
Idaho – – –
Indiana – – –
Kansas – – –
Louisiana – – –
Maine – – –
Michigan – – –
Minnesota – – –
Missouri – – –
Mississippi – – –
Montana – – –
North Dakota – – –
Nebraska – – –
New Hampshire – – –
New Mexico – – –
Nevada – – –
Oklahoma – – –
Oregon – – –
Rhode Island – – –
South Carolina – – –
South Dakota – – –
Utah – – –
Vermont – – –
Washington – – –
Wisconsin – – –
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 Meghan

Meghan is rare for girls in the United States, ranked #1,906 in 2025 with 102 babies given the name. It is currently declining compared with a decade ago.

Since 1952, 96,727 American babies have been named Meghan. Its peak came in 1985, when 4,682 newborns received the name, the signature sound of the 1980s.

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

How old are people named Meghan?

The median living Meghan is about 35 years old; half are between 28 and 41. An estimated 95 thousand people named Meghan are alive in the United States today.

median 35 020406080100

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

Meghan 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 102 #1,906 – –
2024 152 #1,447 – –
2023 207 #1,165 – –
2022 219 #1,126 – –
2021 262 #989 – –
2020 304 #880 – –
2019 385 #735 – –
2018 412 #708 – –
2017 166 #1,391 – –
2016 202 #1,221 – –
2015 242 #1,083 – –
2014 214 #1,159 – –
2013 230 #1,077 – –
2012 301 #883 – –
2011 376 #736 – –
2010 517 #566 – –
2009 621 #494 – –
2008 694 #455 – –
2007 878 #373 – –
2006 1,021 #322 – –
2005 1,219 #271 – –
2004 1,557 #217 8 #8,654
2003 1,695 #194 – –
2002 1,862 #174 – –
2001 2,024 #159 6 #10,103
2000 2,514 #134 – –
1995 2,963 #112 8 #6,778
1990 3,695 #91 13 #4,327
1985 4,669 #63 13 #3,535
1980 2,692 #114 13 #3,368
1975 821 #292 6 #5,224
1970 381 #516 – –
1965 85 #1,163 – –
1960 33 #1,999 – –
1955 9 #4,274 – –
1950 – – – –
1945 – – – –
1940 – – – –
1935 – – – –
1930 – – – –
1925 – – – –
1920 – – – –
1915 – – – –
1910 – – – –
1905 – – – –
1900 – – – –
1895 – – – –
1890 – – – –
1885 – – – –
1880 – – – –

Famous people named Meghan

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

  1. 1 Meghan, Duchess of Sussex Meghan, Duchess of Sussex American member of the British royal family (born 1981) Contemporary
  2. 2 Meghan Trainor Meghan Trainor American singer-songwriter (born 1993) Contemporary
  3. 3 Meghan Ory Meghan Ory Canadian television and film actress (born 1982) Contemporary
  4. 4 Meghan McCain Meghan McCain American television personality (born 1984) Contemporary
  5. 5 Meghan Klingenberg Meghan Klingenberg American soccer player (born 1988) Contemporary

Portraits from Wikipedia (Wikimedia Commons).

Frequently asked questions

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

How old is the average Meghan?

The median living Meghan is about 35 years old. Half of all living Meghans are between 28 and 41 years old.

How many people named Meghan are alive today?

An estimated 95 thousand people named Meghan are alive in the United States, based on 96,727 recorded births and Social Security life tables.

What does the name Meghan mean?

A female given name from Welsh, a pseudo-Irish spelling of the Welsh Megan.

How popular is the name Meghan in 2025?

Meghan ranked #1,906 among girls' names in the United States in 2025, with 102 babies given the name, according to Social Security Administration data.

How many people are named Meghan?

96,727 babies have been named Meghan in the United States since 1952, based on Social Security card applications.

When was the name Meghan most popular?

Meghan peaked in 1985, when 4,682 newborns received the name.

Is Meghan a boy or girl name?

Meghan is overwhelmingly a girl's name: 100% of babies with the name.

Is the name Meghan rising or falling?

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

Will Meghan become more popular?

Meghan is trending downward. If the recent trend holds, we project roughly 58 girls named Meghan 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 Meghan?

Well-known people named Meghan include Meghan, Duchess of Sussex (actor), Meghan Trainor (musician), Meghan Ory (actor).

Names like Meghan

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

Compare Meghan with similar names → More names starting with M →