boys' name ★ peaked 2007

Preston

Meaning priest Gender Boy · 1% girls Rank 2025 #299 Trend ↓ Falling 34%

From Old English prēost (“priest”) + tūn (“settlement”).

Rank 2025
#299
among boys · ↑31 vs 2024
Babies in 2025
1,141
named Preston · +7% vs 2024
How common
1 in 1,510
boys born in 2025
Peak year
2007
3,814 babies
All-time total
123,757
#273 all-time among boys
First recorded
1880
in Social Security records

Preston popularity over time

123,757 babies have been named Preston 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
0.511.5218801900192019401960198020002020BoysGirls
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 – 458 458 46 – #211
1890s – 514 514 51 +12% #208
1900s – 739 739 74 +44% #190
1910s 19 3,049 3,068 307 +315% #222
1920s 15 4,235 4,250 425 +39% #251
1930s 10 3,441 3,451 345 -19% #285
1940s 12 4,502 4,514 451 +31% #284
1950s 20 5,164 5,184 518 +15% #292
1960s 27 4,783 4,810 481 -7% #330
1970s 48 5,483 5,531 553 +15% #294
1980s 88 10,236 10,324 1,032 +87% #200
1990s 113 17,088 17,201 1,720 +67% #162
2000s 164 30,332 30,496 3,050 +77% #114
2010s 181 25,049 25,230 2,523 -17% #130
2020s (to 2025) 102 7,885 7,987 1,331 -47% #228

Where Preston 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 1,057 0.62 #324
2027 997 0.58 #337
2028 949 0.56 #344
2029 911 0.53 #358
2030 879 0.51 #366

Where Preston is most popular

Boys named Preston per 1,000 boys born in each state, 2021–2025. National average: 0.722 per 1,000. Strongest in Mississippi, West Virginia, and Louisiana.

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 Preston 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
Mississippi 102 1.80 +149%
West Virginia 58 1.78 +146%
Louisiana 162 1.58 +119%
Alabama 148 1.35 +87%
Kentucky 132 1.32 +82%
South Carolina 130 1.26 +74%
Arkansas 77 1.22 +68%
Oklahoma 107 1.21 +67%
Tennessee 202 1.12 +55%
Georgia 279 1.10 +52%
Virginia 200 1.05 +46%
Idaho 43 1.05 +45%
Michigan 210 1.03 +42%
Iowa 70 1.02 +41%
Missouri 138 0.996 +38%
North Carolina 244 0.956 +32%
Nevada 52 0.912 +26%
Indiana 141 0.879 +22%
Utah 83 0.870 +20%
Oregon 65 0.856 +19%
Pennsylvania 227 0.855 +18%
Nebraska 37 0.851 +18%
Montana 15 0.851 +18%
Ohio 221 0.834 +15%
Texas 730 0.829 +15%
Florida 386 0.815 +13%
Wisconsin 96 0.810 +12%
Kansas 55 0.802 +11%
Washington 126 0.770 +7%
Maryland 91 0.763 +6%
Hawaii 11 0.708 ≈ national
Colorado 91 0.705 ≈ national
Arizona 113 0.691 ≈ national
Minnesota 84 0.685 -5%
Connecticut 43 0.635 -12%
New York 262 0.605 -16%
California 542 0.593 -18%
Illinois 146 0.571 -21%
Massachusetts 75 0.545 -24%
Maine 10 0.515 -29%
Alaska 5 0.420 -42%
District of Columbia 6 0.406 -44%
New Jersey 81 0.402 -44%
Delaware 5 0.330 -54%
Rhode Island 5 0.307 -58%
New Hampshire 6 0.270 -63%
South Dakota 5 0.269 -63%
New Mexico 6 0.182 -75%
North Dakota – – –
Vermont – – –
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 Preston

Preston is moderately common for boys in the United States, ranked #299 in 2025 with 1,131 babies given the name. It is currently declining compared with a decade ago.

Since 1880, 123,757 American babies have been named Preston. Its peak came in 2007, when 3,814 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 Preston stood among all boys' names in any year, or use the compare tool to plot it against other names.

How old are people named Preston?

The median living Preston is about 22 years old; half are between 13 and 35. An estimated 105 thousand people named Preston are alive in the United States today.

median 22 020406080100

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

Preston 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 10 #9,944 1,131 #299
2024 18 #6,591 1,048 #330
2023 17 #6,866 1,232 #274
2022 16 #7,217 1,354 #255
2021 22 #5,700 1,473 #241
2020 19 #6,272 1,647 #228
2019 19 #6,364 1,748 #217
2018 13 #8,501 1,966 #205
2017 21 #5,990 2,073 #190
2016 24 #5,571 2,313 #172
2015 19 #6,664 2,456 #169
2014 20 #6,389 2,733 #148
2013 15 #8,066 2,670 #148
2012 14 #8,529 2,945 #130
2011 21 #6,291 3,037 #136
2010 15 #8,196 3,108 #131
2009 11 #10,496 3,465 #120
2008 13 #9,369 3,461 #124
2007 17 #7,660 3,797 #114
2006 13 #9,146 3,719 #114
2005 16 #7,414 2,728 #146
2004 21 #5,917 2,646 #152
2003 14 #7,899 2,640 #154
2002 17 #6,622 2,515 #155
2001 18 #6,252 2,618 #152
2000 24 #4,935 2,743 #142
1995 13 #6,932 1,715 #182
1990 9 #9,024 1,527 #198
1985 7 #9,004 978 #238
1980 5 #11,640 763 #277
1975 – – 450 #368
1970 – – 521 #356
1965 – – 456 #357
1960 – – 477 #358
1955 5 #6,497 524 #324
1950 – – 535 #292
1945 – – 450 #284
1940 – – 381 #288
1935 – – 324 #302
1930 10 #3,012 379 #293
1925 – – 426 #278
1920 – – 482 #251
1915 – – 388 #246
1910 – – 112 #222
1905 – – 82 #211
1900 – – 78 #227
1895 – – 58 #233
1890 – – 49 #242
1885 – – 48 #238
1880 – – 47 #243

Famous people named Preston

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

  1. 1 Preston Sturges Preston Sturges American film director and screenwriter 1898–1959 · 19th century
  2. 2 Preston Tucker Preston Tucker American automobile entrepreneur 1903–1956 · Contemporary
  3. 3 Preston Foster Preston Foster American actor and singer (1900–1970) Contemporary

Portraits from Wikipedia (Wikimedia Commons).

Frequently asked questions

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

How old is the average Preston?

The median living Preston is about 22 years old. Half of all living Prestons are between 13 and 35 years old.

How many people named Preston are alive today?

An estimated 105 thousand people named Preston are alive in the United States, based on 123,757 recorded births and Social Security life tables.

What does the name Preston mean?

From Old English prēost (“priest”) + tūn (“settlement”).

How popular is the name Preston in 2025?

Preston ranked #299 among boys' names in the United States in 2025, with 1,131 babies given the name, according to Social Security Administration data.

How many people are named Preston?

123,757 babies have been named Preston in the United States since 1880, based on Social Security card applications.

When was the name Preston most popular?

Preston peaked in 2007, when 3,814 newborns received the name.

Is Preston a boy or girl name?

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

Is the name Preston rising or falling?

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

Will Preston become more popular?

Preston is trending downward. If the recent trend holds, we project roughly 879 boys named Preston in 2030, which would rank around #366. Forecasts assume the current trend continues and become less certain further out.

Who are famous people named Preston?

Well-known people named Preston include Preston Sturges (film director), Preston Tucker (engineer), Preston Foster (actor).

Names like Preston

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

Compare Preston with similar names → More names starting with P →