boys' name ★ peaked 1998

Ricardo

Meaning From Portuguese and Spanish Ricardo Gender Boy Rank 2025 #380 Trend ↓ Falling 14%

From Portuguese and Spanish Ricardo.

Rank 2025
#380
among boys · ↓7 vs 2024
Babies in 2025
833
named Ricardo · -4% vs 2024
How common
1 in 2,051
boys born in 2025
Peak year
1998
3,055 babies
All-time total
147,169
#234 all-time among boys
First recorded
1888
in Social Security records

Ricardo popularity over time

147,169 babies have been named Ricardo since 1888, 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 – 6 6 1 – #1,012
1890s – 7 7 1 +17% #828
1900s – 61 61 6 +771% #798
1910s – 330 330 33 +441% #816
1920s – 1,168 1,168 117 +254% #412
1930s – 1,789 1,789 179 +53% #391
1940s 16 3,044 3,060 306 +71% #307
1950s 59 10,318 10,377 1,038 +239% #208
1960s 104 13,149 13,253 1,325 +28% #177
1970s 169 17,657 17,826 1,783 +35% #130
1980s 188 23,089 23,277 2,328 +31% #117
1990s 135 29,311 29,446 2,945 +27% #115
2000s 42 27,190 27,232 2,723 -8% #134
2010s – 13,928 13,928 1,393 -49% #195
2020s (to 2025) – 5,409 5,409 902 -35% #339

Where Ricardo 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 812 0.48 #391
2027 794 0.47 #403
2028 780 0.46 #409
2029 768 0.45 #421
2030 757 0.44 #425

Where Ricardo is most popular

Boys named Ricardo per 1,000 boys born in each state, 2021–2025. National average: 0.515 per 1,000. Strongest in New Mexico, Texas, and Arizona.

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 Ricardo 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 Mexico 45 1.37 +165%
Texas 1,191 1.35 +163%
Arizona 202 1.23 +140%
California 1,051 1.15 +123%
Nevada 50 0.877 +70%
District of Columbia 11 0.745 +45%
Colorado 80 0.620 +20%
Illinois 158 0.618 +20%
Florida 270 0.570 +11%
Oregon 42 0.553 +7%
Washington 87 0.532 ≈ national
Oklahoma 46 0.520 ≈ national
Maryland 57 0.478 -7%
Georgia 103 0.407 -21%
North Carolina 98 0.384 -25%
New Jersey 73 0.363 -30%
Indiana 56 0.349 -32%
Utah 33 0.346 -33%
Nebraska 15 0.345 -33%
South Carolina 35 0.339 -34%
New York 133 0.307 -40%
Massachusetts 42 0.305 -41%
Louisiana 31 0.303 -41%
Connecticut 20 0.295 -43%
Virginia 51 0.269 -48%
Tennessee 48 0.266 -48%
Michigan 49 0.239 -54%
Arkansas 15 0.237 -54%
Kansas 16 0.233 -55%
Alabama 24 0.220 -57%
Pennsylvania 54 0.203 -60%
Missouri 25 0.180 -65%
Ohio 43 0.162 -68%
Minnesota 18 0.147 -71%
Wisconsin 14 0.118 -77%
Kentucky 8 0.080 -85%
Iowa 5 0.073 -86%
Alaska – – –
Delaware – – –
Hawaii – – –
Idaho – – –
Maine – – –
Mississippi – – –
Montana – – –
North Dakota – – –
New Hampshire – – –
Rhode Island – – –
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 Ricardo

Ricardo is moderately common for boys in the United States, ranked #380 in 2025 with 833 babies given the name. It is currently declining compared with a decade ago.

Since 1888, 147,169 American babies have been named Ricardo. Its peak came in 1998, when 3,055 newborns received the name, the signature sound of the 1990s.

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

How old are people named Ricardo?

The median living Ricardo is about 33 years old; half are between 21 and 47. An estimated 134 thousand people named Ricardo are alive in the United States today.

median 33 020406080100

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

Ricardo 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 – – 833 #380
2024 – – 871 #373
2023 – – 876 #372
2022 – – 920 #357
2021 – – 946 #345
2020 – – 963 #339
2019 – – 1,018 #329
2018 – – 1,125 #306
2017 – – 1,168 #302
2016 – – 1,297 #281
2015 – – 1,340 #277
2014 – – 1,462 #256
2013 – – 1,430 #253
2012 – – 1,567 #227
2011 – – 1,635 #216
2010 – – 1,886 #195
2009 – – 2,303 #170
2008 – – 2,757 #149
2007 – – 2,779 #146
2006 – – 2,702 #152
2005 6 #16,022 2,626 #157
2004 8 #12,499 2,781 #144
2003 8 #12,153 2,762 #148
2002 9 #10,902 2,709 #143
2001 6 #14,921 2,853 #138
2000 5 #17,015 2,918 #134
1995 9 #9,374 2,871 #126
1990 14 #6,382 2,802 #120
1985 18 #4,410 2,139 #131
1980 16 #4,688 2,324 #117
1975 16 #4,087 1,726 #143
1970 15 #3,998 1,653 #172
1965 12 #3,909 1,279 #198
1960 9 #4,694 1,311 #215
1955 10 #3,993 1,104 #216
1950 – – 614 #265
1945 5 #5,108 282 #354
1940 – – 207 #399
1935 – – 162 #448
1930 – – 216 #391
1925 – – 138 #524
1920 – – 74 #774
1915 – – 37 #1,066
1910 – – 9 #1,180
1905 – – – –
1900 – – – –
1895 – – – –
1890 – – – –
1885 – – – –
1880 – – – –

Famous people named Ricardo

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

  1. 1 Ricardo Montalbán Ricardo Montalbán Mexican and American actor (1920–2009) Contemporary
  2. 2 Ricardo Carvalho Ricardo Carvalho Portuguese football manager and former player b. 1978 · Contemporary
  3. 3 Ricardo Darín Ricardo Darín Argentine actor, director and producer (born 1957) Contemporary
  4. 4 Ricardo Montaner Ricardo Montaner Venezuelan singer b. 1957 · Contemporary
  5. 5 Ricardo Lagos Ricardo Lagos President of Chile from 2000 to 2006 b. 1938 · Contemporary
  6. 6 Ricardo La Volpe Ricardo La Volpe Argentine footballer and manager b. 1952 · Contemporary
  7. 7 Ricardo Zamora Ricardo Zamora Spanish footballer (1901–1978) Contemporary
  8. 8 Ricardo Martinelli Ricardo Martinelli President of Panama from 2009 to 2014 b. 1952 · Contemporary
  9. 9 Ricardo Flores Magón Ricardo Flores Magón Mexican anarchist, social reform activist, and revolutionary (1874–1922) 19th century
  10. 10 Ricardo Bochini Ricardo Bochini Argentine footballer (born 1954) Contemporary
  11. 11 Ricardo Gareca Soccer player, Argentina b. 1958 · Contemporary
  12. 12 Ricardo Bofill Ricardo Bofill Spanish architect (1939–2022) Contemporary
  13. 13 Ricardo Rodríguez Ricardo Rodríguez Mexican racing driver (1942–1962) Contemporary
  14. 14 Ricardo Gomes Ricardo Gomes Brazilian footballer (born 1964) Contemporary
  15. 15 Ricardo Maduro Politician, Panama b. 1946 · Contemporary
  16. 16 Ricardo Teixeira Ricardo Teixeira Brazilian football administrator (b. 1947) Contemporary
  17. 17 Ricardo Rocha Brazilian footballer b. 1962 · Contemporary
  18. 18 Ricardo Giusti Soccer player, Argentina b. 1956 · Contemporary
  19. 19 Ricardo Piglia Ricardo Piglia Argentine writer (1941-2017) Contemporary
  20. 20 Ricardo Viñes Ricardo Viñes Spanish pianist 1875–1943 · 19th century

Portraits from Wikipedia (Wikimedia Commons).

Frequently asked questions

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

How old is the average Ricardo?

The median living Ricardo is about 33 years old. Half of all living Ricardos are between 21 and 47 years old.

How many people named Ricardo are alive today?

An estimated 134 thousand people named Ricardo are alive in the United States, based on 147,169 recorded births and Social Security life tables.

What does the name Ricardo mean?

From Portuguese and Spanish Ricardo.

How popular is the name Ricardo in 2025?

Ricardo ranked #380 among boys' names in the United States in 2025, with 833 babies given the name, according to Social Security Administration data.

How many people are named Ricardo?

147,169 babies have been named Ricardo in the United States since 1888, based on Social Security card applications.

When was the name Ricardo most popular?

Ricardo peaked in 1998, when 3,055 newborns received the name.

Is Ricardo a boy or girl name?

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

Is the name Ricardo rising or falling?

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

Will Ricardo become more popular?

Ricardo is trending downward. If the recent trend holds, we project roughly 757 boys named Ricardo in 2030, which would rank around #425. Forecasts assume the current trend continues and become less certain further out.

Who are famous people named Ricardo?

Well-known people named Ricardo include Ricardo Montalbán (actor), Ricardo Carvalho (soccer player), Ricardo Darín (actor).

Names like Ricardo

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

Compare Ricardo with similar names → More names starting with R →