girls' name ★ peaked 2007

Tessa

Gender Girl Rank 2025 #311 Trend ↓ Falling 17%

A diminutive of the female given name Teresa, from Ancient Greek.

Rank 2025
#311
among girls · ↓8 vs 2024
Babies in 2025
978
named Tessa · -6% vs 2024
How common
1 in 1,643
girls born in 2025
Peak year
2007
1,753 babies
All-time total
55,939
#546 all-time among girls
First recorded
1891
in Social Security records

Tessa popularity over time

55,939 babies have been named Tessa since 1891, 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
0.250.50.75118801900192019401960198020002020GirlsBoys
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 31 – 31 3 – #1,162
1900s 10 – 10 1 -68% #2,142
1910s 23 – 23 2 +130% #3,006
1920s 37 – 37 4 +61% #3,973
1930s 11 – 11 1 -70% #4,301
1940s 183 – 183 18 +1564% #1,353
1950s 165 – 165 17 -10% #1,947
1960s 867 – 867 87 +425% #875
1970s 2,969 – 2,969 297 +242% #452
1980s 6,325 5 6,330 633 +113% #289
1990s 12,041 – 12,041 1,204 +90% #218
2000s 13,177 8 13,185 1,319 +10% #190
2010s 13,883 – 13,883 1,388 +5% #208
2020s (to 2025) 6,204 – 6,204 1,034 -26% #281

Where Tessa 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 947 0.59 #324
2027 921 0.57 #335
2028 900 0.56 #338
2029 882 0.55 #347
2030 868 0.54 #352

Where Tessa is most popular

Girls named Tessa per 1,000 girls born in each state, 2021–2025. National average: 0.625 per 1,000. Strongest in Connecticut, Massachusetts, and Utah.

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 Tessa 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
Connecticut 111 1.91 +205%
Massachusetts 185 1.53 +145%
Utah 123 1.48 +137%
South Dakota 20 1.40 +124%
Illinois 300 1.31 +110%
Rhode Island 16 1.28 +105%
Montana 17 1.26 +101%
New Jersey 223 1.24 +98%
Michigan 214 1.17 +88%
Alaska 10 1.16 +86%
North Dakota 15 1.14 +83%
Pennsylvania 263 1.11 +78%
Delaware 12 1.06 +69%
Wisconsin 107 1.04 +66%
Nebraska 37 1.03 +65%
Missouri 122 1.01 +62%
Kansas 58 1.01 +61%
Minnesota 105 0.973 +56%
West Virginia 24 0.916 +47%
Maine 14 0.905 +45%
Iowa 51 0.873 +40%
Idaho 29 0.867 +39%
New Hampshire 16 0.867 +39%
Colorado 94 0.842 +35%
Indiana 118 0.841 +35%
New York 318 0.803 +29%
Ohio 184 0.776 +24%
Nevada 35 0.753 +21%
Oregon 48 0.737 +18%
Virginia 120 0.704 +13%
Washington 100 0.692 +11%
North Carolina 147 0.646 ≈ national
Maryland 68 0.642 ≈ national
Kentucky 52 0.608 ≈ national
Arizona 85 0.606 ≈ national
South Carolina 53 0.590 -6%
Oklahoma 43 0.584 -6%
Tennessee 88 0.555 -11%
Texas 436 0.542 -13%
Florida 225 0.526 -16%
Georgia 117 0.515 -18%
California 426 0.507 -19%
Alabama 47 0.501 -20%
District of Columbia 5 0.422 -32%
Arkansas 21 0.397 -36%
Mississippi 12 0.257 -59%
New Mexico 6 0.247 -61%
Louisiana 20 0.228 -63%
Hawaii – – –
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 Tessa

Tessa is moderately common for girls in the United States, ranked #311 in 2025 with 978 babies given the name. It is currently declining compared with a decade ago.

Since 1891, 55,939 American babies have been named Tessa. Its peak came in 2007, when 1,753 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 Tessa stood among all girls' names in any year, or use the compare tool to plot it against other names.

How old are people named Tessa?

The median living Tessa is about 21 years old; half are between 11 and 32. An estimated 55 thousand people named Tessa are alive in the United States today.

median 21 020406080100

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

Tessa 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 978 #311 – –
2024 1,036 #303 – –
2023 964 #323 – –
2022 973 #332 – –
2021 1,118 #287 – –
2020 1,135 #281 – –
2019 1,268 #260 – –
2018 1,329 #245 – –
2017 1,296 #245 – –
2016 1,395 #230 – –
2015 1,560 #208 – –
2014 1,527 #221 – –
2013 1,324 #244 – –
2012 1,366 #233 – –
2011 1,391 #229 – –
2010 1,427 #221 – –
2009 1,569 #207 – –
2008 1,660 #203 – –
2007 1,753 #190 – –
2006 1,354 #251 – –
2005 1,224 #269 – –
2004 1,184 #276 8 #8,838
2003 1,112 #281 – –
2002 1,064 #294 – –
2001 1,047 #301 – –
2000 1,210 #266 – –
1995 1,119 #253 – –
1990 955 #290 – –
1985 683 #344 – –
1980 361 #526 – –
1975 289 #575 – –
1970 180 #786 – –
1965 108 #1,008 – –
1960 24 #2,507 – –
1955 20 #2,546 – –
1950 17 #2,524 – –
1945 36 #1,353 – –
1940 – – – –
1935 – – – –
1930 – – – –
1925 – – – –
1920 5 #5,675 – –
1915 7 #3,758 – –
1910 – – – –
1905 – – – –
1900 5 #2,194 – –
1895 5 #1,789 – –
1890 – – – –
1885 – – – –
1880 – – – –

Famous people named Tessa

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

  1. 1 Tessa Thompson Tessa Thompson American actress (born 1983) Contemporary
  2. 2 Tessa Virtue Tessa Virtue Canadian ice dancer b. 1989 · Contemporary
  3. 3 Tessa Jowell Tessa Jowell British Labour politician (1947–2018) Contemporary
  4. 4 Tessa Sanderson Tessa Sanderson British former javelin thrower (born 1956) Contemporary
  5. 5 Tessa Worley Tessa Worley French alpine skier b. 1989 · Contemporary

Portraits from Wikipedia (Wikimedia Commons).

Frequently asked questions

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

How old is the average Tessa?

The median living Tessa is about 21 years old. Half of all living Tessas are between 11 and 32 years old.

How many people named Tessa are alive today?

An estimated 55 thousand people named Tessa are alive in the United States, based on 55,939 recorded births and Social Security life tables.

What does the name Tessa mean?

A diminutive of the female given name Teresa, from Ancient Greek.

How popular is the name Tessa in 2025?

Tessa ranked #311 among girls' names in the United States in 2025, with 978 babies given the name, according to Social Security Administration data.

How many people are named Tessa?

55,939 babies have been named Tessa in the United States since 1891, based on Social Security card applications.

When was the name Tessa most popular?

Tessa peaked in 2007, when 1,753 newborns received the name.

Is Tessa a boy or girl name?

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

Is the name Tessa rising or falling?

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

Will Tessa become more popular?

Tessa is trending downward. If the recent trend holds, we project roughly 868 girls named Tessa in 2030, which would rank around #352. Forecasts assume the current trend continues and become less certain further out.

Who are famous people named Tessa?

Well-known people named Tessa include Tessa Thompson (actor), Tessa Virtue (skater), Tessa Jowell (politician).

Names like Tessa

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

Compare Tessa with similar names → More names starting with T →