boys' name ★ peaked 1993

Zachary

Meaning Yahweh has remembered Gender Boy Rank 2025 #216 Trend ↓ Falling 38%

From clipped forms of Zachariah and Zacharias + -y, from Hebrew זְכַרְיָה (Zəḵaryā, “Yahweh has remembered”) via Latin Zacharias and Koine Greek Ζαχαρίας (Zakharías).

Rank 2025
#216
among boys · ↓22 vs 2024
Babies in 2025
1,646
named Zachary · -11% vs 2024
How common
1 in 1,038
boys born in 2025
Peak year
1993
25,591 babies
All-time total
553,281
#60 all-time among boys
First recorded
1900
in Social Security records

Zachary popularity over time

553,281 babies have been named Zachary since 1900, 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
3.757.511.251518801900192019401960198020002020BoysGirls
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 – – – – – –
1890s – – – – – –
1900s – 6 6 1 – #1,309
1910s – 109 109 11 +1717% #1,254
1920s – 168 168 17 +54% #1,659
1930s – 142 142 14 -15% #1,687
1940s – 404 404 40 +185% #668
1950s – 2,169 2,169 217 +437% #444
1960s 12 3,476 3,488 349 +61% #383
1970s 101 19,060 19,161 1,916 +449% #74
1980s 617 101,818 102,435 10,244 +435% #25
1990s 467 225,290 225,757 22,576 +120% #12
2000s 263 134,756 135,019 13,502 -40% #15
2010s 64 51,146 51,210 5,121 -62% #61
2020s (to 2025) 5 13,208 13,213 2,202 -57% #135

Where Zachary 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 1,515 0.89 #232
2027 1,411 0.83 #246
2028 1,329 0.78 #261
2029 1,262 0.74 #271
2030 1,209 0.71 #280

Where Zachary is most popular

Boys named Zachary per 1,000 boys born in each state, 2021–2025. National average: 1.21 per 1,000. Strongest in New Hampshire, Delaware, and Connecticut.

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 Zachary 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 Hampshire 65 2.93 +141%
Delaware 43 2.84 +134%
Connecticut 190 2.81 +131%
Hawaii 42 2.70 +123%
New Jersey 511 2.54 +109%
Rhode Island 41 2.51 +107%
Massachusetts 328 2.39 +97%
New York 901 2.08 +72%
Pennsylvania 505 1.90 +57%
Maryland 225 1.89 +56%
Alaska 22 1.85 +52%
Illinois 416 1.63 +34%
Nevada 91 1.60 +32%
Virginia 299 1.58 +30%
Mississippi 89 1.57 +29%
Michigan 313 1.53 +26%
California 1,348 1.47 +22%
South Dakota 27 1.45 +20%
Maine 27 1.39 +15%
Florida 647 1.37 +13%
Indiana 219 1.37 +13%
District of Columbia 20 1.35 +12%
Washington 214 1.31 +8%
Oregon 98 1.29 +6%
New Mexico 42 1.27 +5%
Kentucky 123 1.23 ≈ national
Ohio 320 1.21 ≈ national
Nebraska 52 1.20 ≈ national
Arizona 192 1.17 ≈ national
South Carolina 121 1.17 ≈ national
West Virginia 38 1.16 ≈ national
Minnesota 141 1.15 -5%
Oklahoma 100 1.13 -7%
Utah 106 1.11 -8%
Colorado 140 1.08 -11%
Texas 935 1.06 -13%
Louisiana 107 1.05 -14%
North Carolina 267 1.05 -14%
Georgia 263 1.04 -14%
Alabama 110 1.01 -17%
Wisconsin 119 1.00 -17%
Idaho 41 1.00 -17%
Tennessee 179 0.992 -18%
Arkansas 60 0.948 -22%
Missouri 129 0.931 -23%
Kansas 62 0.904 -26%
Iowa 59 0.856 -29%
Montana 15 0.851 -30%
Vermont 5 0.796 -34%
North Dakota 11 0.644 -47%
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 Zachary

Zachary is moderately common for boys in the United States, ranked #216 in 2025 with 1,646 babies given the name. It is currently declining compared with a decade ago.

Since 1900, 553,281 American babies have been named Zachary. Its peak came in 1993, when 25,591 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 Zachary stood among all boys' names in any year, or use the compare tool to plot it against other names.

How old are people named Zachary?

The median living Zachary is about 29 years old; half are between 22 and 35. An estimated 537 thousand people named Zachary are alive in the United States today.

median 29 020406080100

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

Zachary 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 – – 1,646 #216
2024 – – 1,844 #194
2023 – – 2,128 #171
2022 5 #17,700 2,263 #165
2021 – – 2,598 #144
2020 – – 2,729 #135
2019 6 #15,494 3,084 #124
2018 – – 3,577 #107
2017 5 #18,371 3,822 #103
2016 9 #11,754 4,576 #89
2015 5 #19,044 4,866 #88
2014 8 #13,039 5,188 #82
2013 6 #16,474 5,775 #73
2012 8 #13,438 6,263 #67
2011 7 #14,794 6,811 #64
2010 10 #11,223 7,184 #61
2009 10 #11,438 8,091 #53
2008 12 #10,066 9,235 #47
2007 11 #10,804 10,217 #42
2006 21 #6,348 11,013 #33
2005 20 #6,242 12,288 #29
2004 70 #2,445 13,712 #26
2003 21 #5,791 15,541 #20
2002 26 #4,763 16,622 #19
2001 34 #3,863 18,185 #16
2000 38 #3,524 19,852 #15
1995 55 #2,393 23,131 #14
1990 57 #2,257 20,430 #22
1985 77 #1,574 11,346 #39
1980 29 #3,067 4,245 #72
1975 7 #7,978 1,688 #145
1970 6 #7,988 557 #342
1965 – – 313 #436
1960 5 #7,321 346 #432
1955 – – 280 #444
1950 – – 149 #554
1945 – – 19 #1,580
1940 – – 20 #1,572
1935 – – 13 #2,125
1930 – – 16 #1,963
1925 – – 21 #1,744
1920 – – 16 #2,129
1915 – – 14 #2,068
1910 – – – –
1905 – – – –
1900 – – 6 #1,309
1895 – – – –
1890 – – – –
1885 – – – –
1880 – – – –

Famous people named Zachary

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

  1. 1 Zachary Levi Zachary Levi American actor (born 1980) Contemporary
  2. 2 Zachary Quinto Zachary Quinto American actor (born 1977) Contemporary
  3. 3 Zachary Taylor Zachary Taylor President of the United States from 1849 to 1850 1784–1850 · 18th century
  4. 4 Zachary Gordon Zachary Gordon American actor (born 1998) Contemporary
  5. 5 Zachary Scott Zachary Scott American actor (1914–1965) Contemporary
  6. 6 Zachary Knighton Zachary Knighton American actor (born 1978) Contemporary

Portraits from Wikipedia (Wikimedia Commons).

Frequently asked questions

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

How old is the average Zachary?

The median living Zachary is about 29 years old. Half of all living Zacharys are between 22 and 35 years old.

How many people named Zachary are alive today?

An estimated 537 thousand people named Zachary are alive in the United States, based on 553,281 recorded births and Social Security life tables.

What does the name Zachary mean?

From clipped forms of Zachariah and Zacharias + -y, from Hebrew זְכַרְיָה (Zəḵaryā, “Yahweh has remembered”) via Latin Zacharias and Koine Greek Ζαχαρίας (Zakharías).

How popular is the name Zachary in 2025?

Zachary ranked #216 among boys' names in the United States in 2025, with 1,646 babies given the name, according to Social Security Administration data.

How many people are named Zachary?

553,281 babies have been named Zachary in the United States since 1900, based on Social Security card applications.

When was the name Zachary most popular?

Zachary peaked in 1993, when 25,591 newborns received the name.

Is Zachary a boy or girl name?

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

Is the name Zachary rising or falling?

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

Will Zachary become more popular?

Zachary is trending downward. If the recent trend holds, we project roughly 1,209 boys named Zachary in 2030, which would rank around #280. Forecasts assume the current trend continues and become less certain further out.

Who are famous people named Zachary?

Well-known people named Zachary include Zachary Levi (actor), Zachary Quinto (actor), Zachary Taylor (politician).

Names like Zachary

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

Compare Zachary with similar names → More names starting with Z →