Meaning not yet researched.
Sterling: US boys given the name each year, 1880 to 2025, from Social Security card applications. 944 in 2025. Its best rank was #308 in 1895.
US births per year · SSA card applications
Peaked at #308 in 1895; #346 in 2025. About 81% of babies named Sterling in 2025 were boys.
Baby name · US data 1880–2025
#346 for US boys in 2025. Its best year was 1895, at #308.
Hover, tap or use the arrow keys for any year. Years with fewer than five babies of a sex are not published by SSA and show as zero.
Sterling: US boys and girls given the name each year from 1880 to 2025. 944 boys in 2025. Peak: #308 in 1895 · most boys in one year: 944 (2025).
In 2025, 944 US boys were named Sterling, making it the 346th most common boys’ name of the year, up 25 places from #371 in 2024. That is 59 more than the 885 boys named Sterling in 2024. Its best rank for boys was #308, reached in 1895. The most boys given the name in a single year was 944, in 2025. For comparison, it was #493 in 2015 and #422 in 1950.
In 2025, 218 US girls were named Sterling, making it the 1,100th most common girls’ name of the year, up 16 places from #1,116 in 2024. That is 1 fewer than the 219 girls named Sterling in 2024. Its best rank for girls was #1,100, reached in this year, 2025. The most girls given the name in a single year was 219, in 2024. For comparison, it was #2,233 in 2015 and unranked in 1950.
Social Security card records list Sterling in every one of the 146 years from 1880 to 2025; in 1880 there were 17 babies with the name. In all, 41,197 US babies have been given the name, 9.0% of them girls and 91% boys. Its busiest decade was the 2010s, with 6,398 babies named Sterling.
Over the 10 years from 2016 to 2025, 7,956 US boys were named Sterling; the busiest of those years was 2025, with 944. In 2025 that was about 1 in 1,809 of the boys in SSA’s list for the year.
Among the states, Sterling ranked highest in South Dakota in 2025, at #115 for boys there. It was not in the top 100 of any state. Rarer spellings such as Stirling are summarised on this page.
Meaning not yet researched.
We publish a meaning only with a cited source and a confidence label, and never generate one. Meanings are being researched for the most common names first.
No related spellings pass our data threshold.
Rare spellings summarised here: Stirling (929).
Numbers are all-time US births. Links come from Wikidata’s “said to be the same as” (P460, CC0).
No nicknames listed for Sterling in the open dataset we use.
Source: carltonnorthern/nicknames (Apache-2.0).
US boys. Rank within each state. SSA leaves out states where fewer than five boys got the name, so 9 are not listed.
| State | Births 2025 | Rank 2025 | Rank 2015 |
|---|---|---|---|
| South Dakota | 12 | #115 | — |
| Montana | 10 | #143 | #197 |
| Nebraska | 13 | #207 | #384 |
| Washington | 37 | #217 | #428 |
| Kentucky | 26 | #220 | #678 |
| Hawaii | 5 | #251 | — |
| Utah | 21 | #254 | #285 |
| Arizona | 32 | #257 | #369 |
| North Dakota | 5 | #260 | — |
| Kansas | 15 | #261 | #507 |
| New Mexico | 8 | #267 | #311 |
| Idaho | 10 | #274 | #289 |
| Iowa | 15 | #275 | #636 |
| Texas | 142 | #278 | #417 |
| Indiana | 29 | #282 | #885 |
| Wisconsin | 21 | #283 | #479 |
| Oklahoma | 17 | #292 | #275 |
| Michigan | 33 | #298 | #502 |
| Colorado | 22 | #304 | #310 |
| Mississippi | 11 | #309 | — |
| Oregon | 14 | #310 | #454 |
| Minnesota | 19 | #324 | #499 |
| Virginia | 26 | #327 | #441 |
| Arkansas | 11 | #329 | #301 |
| Tennessee | 27 | #334 | #549 |
| Georgia | 36 | #339 | #441 |
| North Carolina | 33 | #355 | #654 |
| Missouri | 18 | #364 | #558 |
| Louisiana | 14 | #370 | — |
| Ohio | 30 | #379 | #531 |
| Florida | 48 | #410 | #649 |
| South Carolina | 11 | #466 | #366 |
| Maryland | 11 | #471 | — |
| Alabama | 11 | #478 | #696 |
| Connecticut | 6 | #492 | — |
| Pennsylvania | 20 | #505 | #547 |
| Nevada | 6 | #506 | #386 |
| California | 52 | #580 | #601 |
| Illinois | 16 | #601 | #634 |
| Massachusetts | 7 | #685 | #700 |
| New York | 22 | #689 | #740 |
| New Jersey | 5 | #1,165 | #658 |
Births and national rank for each year SSA lists the name, newest first.
| Year | Girls | Girls rank | Boys | Boys rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 218 | #1,100 | 944 | #346 |
| 2024 | 219 | #1,116 | 885 | #371 |
| 2023 | 180 | #1,275 | 792 | #403 |
| 2022 | 171 | #1,365 | 803 | #398 |
| 2021 | 182 | #1,275 | 844 | #383 |
| 2020 | 122 | #1,686 | 768 | #400 |
| 2019 | 115 | #1,786 | 753 | #411 |
| 2018 | 126 | #1,670 | 783 | #409 |
| 2017 | 127 | #1,695 | 713 | #435 |
| 2016 | 133 | #1,643 | 671 | #458 |
| 2015 | 85 | #2,233 | 595 | #493 |
| 2014 | 97 | #2,035 | 552 | #507 |
| 2013 | 70 | #2,565 | 441 | #583 |
| 2012 | 65 | #2,733 | 350 | #675 |
| 2011 | 64 | #2,758 | 307 | #739 |
| 2010 | 52 | #3,198 | 299 | #755 |
| 2009 | 47 | #3,507 | 231 | #899 |
| 2008 | 45 | #3,641 | 245 | #870 |
| 2007 | 41 | #3,910 | 269 | #800 |
| 2006 | 55 | #3,084 | 270 | #772 |
| 2005 | 39 | #3,804 | 272 | #743 |
| 2004 | 63 | #2,648 | 300 | #675 |
| 2003 | 54 | #2,878 | 325 | #632 |
| 2002 | 77 | #2,177 | 357 | #589 |
| 2001 | 55 | #2,737 | 395 | #545 |
| 2000 | 73 | #2,188 | 363 | #569 |
| 1999 | 55 | #2,603 | 392 | #531 |
| 1998 | 66 | #2,184 | 424 | #505 |
| 1997 | 42 | #2,929 | 428 | #494 |
| 1996 | 61 | #2,227 | 469 | #463 |
| 1995 | 53 | #2,452 | 511 | #446 |
| 1994 | 71 | #1,993 | 573 | #402 |
| 1993 | 76 | #1,879 | 504 | #437 |
| 1992 | 55 | #2,382 | 503 | #440 |
| 1991 | 49 | #2,545 | 454 | #463 |
| 1990 | 41 | #2,845 | 451 | #463 |
| 1989 | 33 | #3,244 | 389 | #486 |
| 1988 | 42 | #2,589 | 415 | #444 |
| 1987 | 32 | #3,026 | 326 | #492 |
| 1986 | 26 | #3,443 | 297 | #513 |
| 1985 | 20 | #4,113 | 275 | #527 |
| 1984 | 23 | #3,600 | 293 | #490 |
| 1983 | 25 | #3,325 | 276 | #508 |
| 1982 | 20 | #4,011 | 237 | #559 |
| 1981 | 20 | #3,987 | 218 | #581 |
| 1980 | 16 | #4,710 | 242 | #550 |
| 1979 | 18 | #4,206 | 225 | #571 |
| 1978 | 16 | #4,429 | 226 | #556 |
| 1977 | 12 | #5,491 | 214 | #573 |
| 1976 | 7 | #8,008 | 189 | #593 |
| 1975 | 7 | #7,850 | 183 | #600 |
| 1974 | 14 | #4,425 | 195 | #575 |
| 1973 | 7 | #7,329 | 194 | #570 |
| 1972 | 7 | #7,175 | 183 | #589 |
| 1971 | 9 | #5,932 | 242 | #523 |
| 1970 | 14 | #4,228 | 221 | #548 |
| 1969 | 10 | #5,012 | 234 | #509 |
| 1968 | 8 | #5,580 | 246 | #485 |
| 1967 | 6 | #6,693 | 216 | #512 |
| 1966 | 6 | #6,471 | 239 | #490 |
| 1965 | 7 | #5,743 | 215 | #523 |
| 1964 | 5 | #7,674 | 284 | #471 |
| 1963 | — | — | 288 | #465 |
| 1962 | — | — | 288 | #470 |
| 1961 | 6 | #6,476 | 249 | #505 |
| 1960 | — | — | 237 | #516 |
| 1959 | — | — | 259 | #487 |
| 1958 | 5 | #6,910 | 245 | #499 |
| 1957 | — | — | 246 | #497 |
| 1956 | 5 | #6,780 | 279 | #456 |
| 1955 | 9 | #4,342 | 267 | #457 |
| 1954 | — | — | 252 | #458 |
| 1953 | — | — | 255 | #451 |
| 1952 | 8 | #4,437 | 255 | #440 |
| 1951 | — | — | 260 | #421 |
| 1950 | — | — | 252 | #422 |
| 1949 | 7 | #4,615 | 260 | #423 |
| 1948 | 5 | #5,944 | 255 | #421 |
| 1947 | — | — | 281 | #409 |
| 1946 | 9 | #3,639 | 232 | #419 |
| 1945 | 7 | #3,984 | 216 | #410 |
| 1944 | — | — | 211 | #416 |
| 1943 | 5 | #5,295 | 217 | #422 |
| 1942 | 9 | #3,411 | 258 | #379 |
| 1941 | 7 | #3,914 | 200 | #413 |
| 1940 | — | — | 204 | #402 |
| 1939 | 5 | #4,872 | 177 | #429 |
| 1938 | 6 | #4,291 | 188 | #415 |
| 1937 | — | — | 166 | #439 |
| 1936 | — | — | 194 | #393 |
| 1935 | — | — | 179 | #413 |
| 1934 | 5 | #4,882 | 186 | #408 |
| 1933 | — | — | 186 | #397 |
| 1932 | 5 | #5,005 | 227 | #371 |
| 1931 | 5 | #4,889 | 193 | #405 |
| 1930 | — | — | 208 | #404 |
| 1929 | 6 | #4,502 | 250 | #356 |
| 1928 | 6 | #4,660 | 229 | #392 |
| 1927 | 6 | #4,738 | 236 | #386 |
| 1926 | — | — | 246 | #371 |
| 1925 | — | — | 241 | #385 |
| 1924 | — | — | 280 | #356 |
| 1923 | 7 | #4,324 | 253 | #376 |
| 1922 | 9 | #3,624 | 270 | #364 |
| 1921 | 6 | #5,025 | 269 | #372 |
| 1920 | 7 | #4,337 | 259 | #374 |
| 1919 | — | — | 254 | #361 |
| 1918 | 8 | #3,813 | 249 | #376 |
| 1917 | — | — | 218 | #384 |
| 1916 | — | — | 202 | #391 |
| 1915 | — | — | 209 | #373 |
| 1914 | — | — | 151 | #385 |
| 1913 | 6 | #3,139 | 132 | #362 |
| 1912 | — | — | 100 | #385 |
| 1911 | — | — | 47 | #425 |
| 1910 | — | — | 46 | #390 |
| 1909 | — | — | 47 | #343 |
| 1908 | — | — | 44 | #344 |
| 1907 | — | — | 39 | #358 |
| 1906 | — | — | 32 | #385 |
| 1905 | — | — | 30 | #390 |
| 1904 | — | — | 33 | #353 |
| 1903 | — | — | 31 | #352 |
| 1902 | — | — | 30 | #365 |
| 1901 | — | — | 28 | #352 |
| 1900 | — | — | 38 | #356 |
| 1899 | — | — | 18 | #454 |
| 1898 | — | — | 26 | #390 |
| 1897 | — | — | 25 | #382 |
| 1896 | — | — | 21 | #436 |
| 1895 | — | — | 35 | #308 |
| 1894 | — | — | 15 | #536 |
| 1893 | — | — | 30 | #321 |
| 1892 | — | — | 23 | #403 |
| 1891 | — | — | 25 | #348 |
| 1890 | — | — | 15 | #509 |
| 1889 | — | — | 15 | #494 |
| 1888 | — | — | 25 | #374 |
| 1887 | — | — | 19 | #390 |
| 1886 | — | — | 10 | #640 |
| 1885 | — | — | 18 | #436 |
| 1884 | — | — | 20 | #413 |
| 1883 | — | — | 20 | #396 |
| 1882 | — | — | 16 | #466 |
| 1881 | — | — | 8 | #695 |
| 1880 | — | — | 17 | #440 |
About the data: counts are Social Security card applications for US births, for names given to at least five babies of a sex in a year (SSA, names.zip, public domain). Ranks follow SSA’s own order: most births first, ties alphabetical. Files retrieved 2026-10-05 (checksum on our sources page).