Unisex name ★ peaked 1960

Sandy

Gender Unisex · 87% girls Rank 2025 #3,020 Trend ↓ Falling 20%

A unisex given name from diminutives A diminutive of the male given names Alexander, Sander, Alasdair, Sandeep, Sanford, and Santiago.

Rank 2025
#3,020
among girls · ↑251 vs 2024
Babies in 2025
67
named Sandy · +12% vs 2024
How common
1 in 29,223
girls born in 2025
Peak year
1960
3,822 babies
All-time total
79,530
#482 all-time among girls
First recorded
1880
in Social Security records

Sandy popularity over time

79,530 babies have been named Sandy 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
0.511.5218801900192019401960198020002020GirlsBoys
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 – 191 191 19 – –
1890s – 161 161 16 -16% –
1900s – 225 225 23 +40% –
1910s 33 512 545 55 +142% #3,134
1920s 123 723 846 85 +55% #1,882
1930s 796 741 1,537 154 +82% #421
1940s 8,189 1,428 9,617 962 +526% #197
1950s 12,188 2,169 14,357 1,436 +49% #133
1960s 22,710 1,966 24,676 2,468 +72% #126
1970s 9,107 932 10,039 1,004 -59% #250
1980s 6,827 686 7,513 751 -25% #289
1990s 4,752 381 5,133 513 -32% #380
2000s 2,853 171 3,024 302 -41% #648
2010s 1,136 110 1,246 125 -59% #1,334
2020s (to 2025) 358 62 420 70 -44% #2,593

Where Sandy 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 53 0.03 outside top 500
2027 51 0.03 outside top 500
2028 50 0.03 outside top 500
2029 48 0.03 outside top 500
2030 47 0.03 outside top 500

Where Sandy is most popular

Girls named Sandy per 1,000 girls born in each state, 2021–2025. National average: 0.036 per 1,000. Strongest in California, Alabama, and Florida.

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 Sandy 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
California 53 0.063 +75%
Alabama 5 0.053 +48%
Florida 21 0.049 +36%
Texas 33 0.041 +14%
North Carolina 5 0.022 -39%
New York 5 0.013 -65%
Alaska – – –
Arkansas – – –
Arizona – – –
Colorado – – –
Connecticut – – –
District of Columbia – – –
Delaware – – –
Georgia – – –
Hawaii – – –
Iowa – – –
Idaho – – –
Illinois – – –
Indiana – – –
Kansas – – –
Kentucky – – –
Louisiana – – –
Massachusetts – – –
Maryland – – –
Maine – – –
Michigan – – –
Minnesota – – –
Missouri – – –
Mississippi – – –
Montana – – –
North Dakota – – –
Nebraska – – –
New Hampshire – – –
New Jersey – – –
New Mexico – – –
Nevada – – –
Ohio – – –
Oklahoma – – –
Oregon – – –
Pennsylvania – – –
Rhode Island – – –
South Carolina – – –
South Dakota – – –
Tennessee – – –
Utah – – –
Virginia – – –
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 Sandy

Sandy is rare for girls in the United States, ranked #3,020 in 2025 with 55 babies given the name. It is currently declining compared with a decade ago.

Since 1880, 79,530 American babies have been named Sandy, about 87% girls and 13% boys, making it a genuinely unisex name. Its peak came in 1960, when 3,822 newborns received the name, the signature sound of the 1960s.

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

How old are people named Sandy?

The median living Sandy is about 60 years old; half are between 45 and 66. An estimated 67 thousand people named Sandy are alive in the United States today.

median 60 020406080100

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

Sandy 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 55 #3,020 12 #7,112
2024 49 #3,271 11 #7,668
2023 68 #2,612 13 #6,829
2022 62 #2,783 10 #8,195
2021 58 #2,922 7 #10,593
2020 66 #2,593 9 #8,610
2019 78 #2,327 9 #8,745
2018 78 #2,359 14 #6,278
2017 98 #2,015 10 #8,036
2016 86 #2,244 7 #10,539
2015 107 #1,905 9 #8,610
2014 130 #1,650 12 #6,980
2013 134 #1,615 7 #10,531
2012 138 #1,582 14 #6,251
2011 110 #1,838 15 #5,902
2010 177 #1,334 13 #6,638
2009 189 #1,287 10 #8,196
2008 228 #1,132 13 #6,698
2007 256 #1,034 16 #5,633
2006 250 #1,025 14 #6,036
2005 292 #869 24 #3,921
2004 317 #800 16 #5,199
2003 296 #828 20 #4,249
2002 317 #763 18 #4,462
2001 322 #744 18 #4,434
2000 386 #648 22 #3,734
1995 468 #518 35 #2,287
1990 694 #380 51 #1,632
1985 602 #378 73 #1,090
1980 858 #289 68 #1,101
1975 841 #285 91 #873
1970 1,246 #250 125 #736
1965 1,706 #193 210 #532
1960 3,647 #126 175 #593
1955 751 #312 233 #481
1950 515 #344 189 #490
1945 866 #220 127 #532
1940 382 #326 90 #630
1935 66 #854 68 #748
1930 14 #2,404 75 #735
1925 16 #2,364 72 #778
1920 7 #4,331 62 #876
1915 7 #3,740 56 #822
1910 – – 35 #470
1905 – – 33 #363
1900 – – 22 #513
1895 – – 20 #451
1890 – – 13 #560
1885 – – 19 #421
1880 – – 18 #422

Famous people named Sandy

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

  1. 1 Sandy Koufax Sandy Koufax American baseball player (born 1935) Contemporary
  2. 2 Sandy Dennis Sandy Dennis American actress (1937–1992) Contemporary
  3. 3 Sandy Duncan Sandy Duncan American actress, dancer, and singer b. 1946 · Contemporary
  4. 4 Sandy West Sandy West American rock musician (1959–2006) Contemporary
  5. 5 Sandy Lyle Sandy Lyle Scottish professional golfer (born 1958) Contemporary
  6. 6 Sandy Berger Sandy Berger American political advisor (1945–2015) Contemporary
  7. 7 Sandy Jardine Scottish professional footballer 1948–2014 · Contemporary
  8. 8 Sandy Powell Sandy Powell British costume designer (born 1960) Contemporary
  9. 9 Sandy Turnbull Sandy Turnbull Scottish footballer 1884–1917 · 19th century
  10. 10 Sandy Topics referred to by the same term b. 1983 · Contemporary
  11. 11 Sandy Neilson Sandy Neilson American swimmer (born 1956) Contemporary

Portraits from Wikipedia (Wikimedia Commons).

Frequently asked questions

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

How old is the average Sandy?

The median living Sandy is about 60 years old. Half of all living Sandys are between 45 and 66 years old.

How many people named Sandy are alive today?

An estimated 67 thousand people named Sandy are alive in the United States, based on 79,530 recorded births and Social Security life tables.

What does the name Sandy mean?

A unisex given name from diminutives A diminutive of the male given names Alexander, Sander, Alasdair, Sandeep, Sanford, and Santiago.

How popular is the name Sandy in 2025?

Sandy ranked #3,020 among girls' names in the United States in 2025, with 55 babies given the name, according to Social Security Administration data.

How many people are named Sandy?

79,530 babies have been named Sandy in the United States since 1880, based on Social Security card applications.

When was the name Sandy most popular?

Sandy peaked in 1960, when 3,822 newborns received the name.

Is Sandy a boy or girl name?

Sandy is used for both: about 87% of babies named Sandy have been girls and 13% boys.

Is the name Sandy rising or falling?

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

Will Sandy become more popular?

Sandy is trending downward. If the recent trend holds, we project roughly 47 girls named Sandy 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 Sandy?

Well-known people named Sandy include Sandy Koufax (baseball player), Sandy Dennis (actor), Sandy Duncan (actor).

Names like Sandy

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

Compare Sandy with similar names → More names starting with S →