girls' name ★ peaked 1955

Susan

Meaning A female given name from Hebrew Gender Girl Rank 2025 #1,091 Trend → Stable

A female given name from Hebrew.

Rank 2025
#1,091
among girls · ↑32 vs 2024
Babies in 2025
222
named Susan · +3% vs 2024
How common
1 in 7,240
girls born in 2025
Peak year
1955
47,483 babies
All-time total
1,126,022
#8 all-time among girls
First recorded
1880
in Social Security records

Susan popularity over time

1,126,022 babies have been named Susan 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
7.51522.53018801900192019401960198020002020GirlsBoys
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 3,231 – 3,231 323 – #79
1890s 3,612 5 3,617 362 +12% #106
1900s 3,447 – 3,447 345 -5% #144
1910s 6,814 5 6,819 682 +98% #167
1920s 8,408 6 8,414 841 +23% #210
1930s 21,028 86 21,114 2,111 +151% #44
1940s 212,016 511 212,527 21,253 +907% #5
1950s 437,774 695 438,469 43,847 +106% #2
1960s 287,666 709 288,375 28,838 -34% #2
1970s 88,308 322 88,630 8,863 -69% #15
1980s 30,549 157 30,706 3,071 -65% #62
1990s 10,893 28 10,921 1,092 -64% #172
2000s 5,323 7 5,330 533 -51% #409
2010s 3,051 10 3,061 306 -43% #765
2020s (to 2025) 1,361 – 1,361 227 -26% #975

Where Susan 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 220 0.14 outside top 500
2027 218 0.14 outside top 500
2028 216 0.13 outside top 500
2029 215 0.13 outside top 500
2030 214 0.13 outside top 500

Where Susan is most popular

Girls named Susan per 1,000 girls born in each state, 2021–2025. National average: 0.135 per 1,000. Strongest in Pennsylvania, Ohio, and Indiana.

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 Susan 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
Pennsylvania 145 0.613 +353%
Ohio 70 0.295 +118%
Indiana 40 0.285 +110%
Wisconsin 26 0.252 +86%
Michigan 40 0.220 +62%
New York 73 0.184 +36%
Alabama 17 0.181 +34%
Utah 15 0.180 +33%
South Carolina 16 0.178 +31%
Iowa 10 0.171 +26%
Minnesota 18 0.167 +23%
Virginia 25 0.147 +8%
New Jersey 26 0.144 +6%
Colorado 14 0.125 -7%
Tennessee 18 0.114 -16%
Texas 87 0.108 -20%
Missouri 12 0.100 -26%
Kentucky 8 0.094 -31%
North Carolina 21 0.092 -32%
Maryland 9 0.085 -37%
California 68 0.081 -40%
Illinois 18 0.079 -42%
Florida 32 0.075 -45%
Washington 6 0.042 -69%
Massachusetts 5 0.041 -69%
Georgia 9 0.040 -71%
Alaska – – –
Arkansas – – –
Arizona – – –
Connecticut – – –
District of Columbia – – –
Delaware – – –
Hawaii – – –
Idaho – – –
Kansas – – –
Louisiana – – –
Maine – – –
Mississippi – – –
Montana – – –
North Dakota – – –
Nebraska – – –
New Hampshire – – –
New Mexico – – –
Nevada – – –
Oklahoma – – –
Oregon – – –
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 Susan

Susan is uncommon for girls in the United States, ranked #1,091 in 2025 with 222 babies given the name. It is currently declining compared with a decade ago.

Since 1880, 1,126,022 American babies have been named Susan. Its peak came in 1955, when 47,483 newborns received the name, the signature sound of the 1950s.

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

How old are people named Susan?

The median living Susan is about 67 years old; half are between 60 and 73. An estimated 905 thousand people named Susan are alive in the United States today.

median 67 020406080100

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

Susan 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 222 #1,091 – –
2024 216 #1,123 – –
2023 223 #1,105 – –
2022 212 #1,150 – –
2021 226 #1,098 – –
2020 262 #975 – –
2019 245 #1,049 – –
2018 235 #1,082 – –
2017 276 #963 5 #13,998
2016 306 #909 – –
2015 301 #913 – –
2014 327 #847 5 #13,806
2013 319 #834 – –
2012 329 #816 – –
2011 357 #765 – –
2010 356 #772 – –
2009 380 #749 – –
2008 432 #700 – –
2007 468 #637 – –
2006 497 #587 – –
2005 487 #586 – –
2004 536 #530 7 #9,806
2003 576 #498 – –
2002 615 #464 – –
2001 639 #436 – –
2000 693 #409 – –
1995 894 #312 – –
1990 1,687 #172 13 #4,372
1985 2,661 #106 18 #2,814
1980 4,704 #62 19 #2,603
1975 7,488 #32 32 #1,624
1970 15,738 #15 52 #1,155
1965 26,321 #5 53 #1,017
1960 39,208 #2 81 #841
1955 47,418 #5 65 #930
1950 38,017 #5 57 #916
1945 19,222 #10 55 #849
1940 6,756 #36 27 #1,307
1935 1,801 #126 5 #4,089
1930 1,003 #192 – –
1925 862 #219 – –
1920 850 #225 – –
1915 817 #202 5 #4,326
1910 395 #173 – –
1905 320 #165 – –
1900 410 #144 – –
1895 393 #120 – –
1890 354 #115 – –
1885 302 #100 – –
1880 286 #80 – –

Famous people named Susan

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

  1. 1 Susan Sarandon Susan Sarandon American actor (born 1946) Contemporary
  2. 2 Susan Boyle Susan Boyle Scottish singer (born 1961) Contemporary
  3. 3 Susan Atkins Susan Atkins Convicted murderer and member of the "Manson family" (1948–2009) Contemporary
  4. 4 Susan Wojcicki Susan Wojcicki American business executive (1968–2024) Contemporary
  5. 5 Susan Lucci Susan Lucci American actress (born 1946) Contemporary
  6. 6 Susan Dey Susan Dey American actress (born 1952) Contemporary
  7. 7 Susan B. Anthony Susan B. Anthony American women's rights activist (1820–1906) 19th century
  8. 8 Susan Sontag Susan Sontag American writer, critic and public intellectual (1933–2004) Contemporary
  9. 9 Susan Hayward Susan Hayward American actress (1917–1975) Contemporary
  10. 10 Susan George Susan George English actress b. 1950 · Contemporary
  11. 11 Susan Rice Susan Rice American politician and diplomat (born 1964) Contemporary
  12. 12 Susan Sullivan Susan Sullivan American actress b. 1942 · Contemporary
  13. 13 Susan Oliver Susan Oliver American actress, author and aviator (1932–1990) Contemporary
  14. 14 Susan Clark Susan Clark Canadian actress b. 1943 · Contemporary
  15. 15 Susan Hampshire Susan Hampshire British actress (born 1937) Contemporary
  16. 16 Susan Flannery Susan Flannery American actress (b. 1939) Contemporary
  17. 17 Susan Tyrrell Susan Tyrrell American actress (1945–2012) Contemporary
  18. 18 Susan Blakely Susan Blakely American actress b. 1948 · Contemporary
  19. 19 Susan Strasberg Susan Strasberg American actress and author (1938–1999) Contemporary
  20. 20 Susan Anspach Susan Anspach American actress (1942–2018) Contemporary

Portraits from Wikipedia (Wikimedia Commons).

Frequently asked questions

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

How old is the average Susan?

The median living Susan is about 67 years old. Half of all living Susans are between 60 and 73 years old.

How many people named Susan are alive today?

An estimated 905 thousand people named Susan are alive in the United States, based on 1,126,022 recorded births and Social Security life tables.

What does the name Susan mean?

A female given name from Hebrew.

How popular is the name Susan in 2025?

Susan ranked #1,091 among girls' names in the United States in 2025, with 222 babies given the name, according to Social Security Administration data.

How many people are named Susan?

1,126,022 babies have been named Susan in the United States since 1880, based on Social Security card applications.

When was the name Susan most popular?

Susan peaked in 1955, when 47,483 newborns received the name.

Is Susan a boy or girl name?

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

Is the name Susan rising or falling?

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

Will Susan become more popular?

Susan looks stable. If the recent trend holds, we project roughly 214 girls named Susan in 2030, ranking outside the top 500. Forecasts assume the current trend continues and become less certain further out.

Who are famous people named Susan?

Well-known people named Susan include Susan Sarandon (actor), Susan Boyle (singer), Susan Atkins (extremist).

Names like Susan

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

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