MyNameRoots
Top baby names of 1981
In 1981, Jennifer and Michael were the most popular names in the United States. 3,459,100 births in the Social Security records that year.
Pick girls or boys to see the ranking.
| Rank | Name | Births | Share | Change |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Jennifer | 57,046 | 1 in 60 | = same rank |
| 2 | Jessica | 42,531 | 1 in 80 | 1 places up |
| 3 | Amanda | 34,372 | 1 in 101 | 1 places down |
| 4 | Sarah | 28,175 | 1 in 123 | 1 places up |
| 5 | Melissa | 28,005 | 1 in 124 | 1 places down |
| 6 | Amy | 20,345 | 1 in 170 | 2 places up |
| 7 | Nicole | 20,310 | 1 in 170 | = same rank |
| 8 | Stephanie | 20,212 | 1 in 171 | 5 places up |
| 9 | Elizabeth | 20,168 | 1 in 172 | = same rank |
| 10 | Heather | 17,946 | 1 in 193 | 4 places down |
| 11 | Michelle | 17,781 | 1 in 195 | 1 places down |
| 12 | Rebecca | 16,737 | 1 in 207 | 5 places up |
| 13 | Kimberly | 16,689 | 1 in 207 | 2 places down |
| 14 | Tiffany | 16,416 | 1 in 211 | = same rank |
| 15 | Angela | 15,924 | 1 in 217 | 3 places down |
| 16 | Crystal | 15,888 | 1 in 218 | 2 places up |
| 17 | Christina | 14,392 | 1 in 240 | 2 places down |
| 18 | Lisa | 14,294 | 1 in 242 | 2 places down |
| 19 | Erin | 13,853 | 1 in 250 | 1 places up |
| 20 | Amber | 13,814 | 1 in 250 | 2 places up |
| 21 | Laura | 13,292 | 1 in 260 | = same rank |
| 22 | Rachel | 12,590 | 1 in 275 | 1 places up |
| 23 | Kelly | 11,873 | 1 in 291 | 4 places down |
| 24 | Andrea | 11,686 | 1 in 296 | 4 places up |
| 25 | April | 11,406 | 1 in 303 | 1 places up |
| 26 | Sara | 11,359 | 1 in 305 | 1 places up |
| 27 | Mary | 11,042 | 1 in 313 | 2 places down |
| 28 | Jamie | 10,982 | 1 in 315 | 4 places down |
| 29 | Emily | 10,799 | 1 in 320 | 2 places up |
| 30 | Danielle | 10,038 | 1 in 345 | 3 places up |
| 31 | Kristin | 9,737 | 1 in 355 | 6 places up |
| 32 | Shannon | 9,226 | 1 in 375 | 3 places down |
| 33 | Megan | 8,964 | 1 in 386 | 3 places down |
| 34 | Ashley | 8,874 | 1 in 390 | 6 places up |
| 35 | Lauren | 8,813 | 1 in 392 | 3 places up |
| 36 | Erica | 8,626 | 1 in 401 | 2 places down |
| 37 | Julie | 8,567 | 1 in 404 | 5 places down |
| 38 | Kristen | 8,540 | 1 in 405 | 1 places up |
| 39 | Katherine | 8,433 | 1 in 410 | 4 places down |
| 40 | Maria | 7,681 | 1 in 450 | 4 places down |
| 41 | Brandy | 6,898 | 1 in 501 | 1 places up |
| 42 | Christine | 6,854 | 1 in 505 | 1 places down |
| 43 | Courtney | 6,636 | 1 in 521 | 5 places up |
| 44 | Katie | 6,600 | 1 in 524 | = same rank |
| 45 | Tara | 6,366 | 1 in 543 | 2 places down |
| 46 | Alicia | 5,855 | 1 in 591 | 1 places up |
| 47 | Lindsay | 5,843 | 1 in 592 | 24 places up |
| 48 | Kathryn | 5,823 | 1 in 594 | 2 places up |
| 49 | Monica | 5,782 | 1 in 598 | 4 places down |
| 50 | Brandi | 5,527 | 1 in 626 | 13 places up |
| Rank | Name | Births | Share | Change |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Michael | 68,750 | 1 in 50 | = same rank |
| 2 | Christopher | 50,221 | 1 in 70 | = same rank |
| 3 | Matthew | 43,330 | 1 in 80 | 3 places up |
| 4 | Jason | 41,927 | 1 in 80 | 1 places down |
| 5 | David | 40,629 | 1 in 90 | 1 places down |
| 6 | Joshua | 39,024 | 1 in 90 | 1 places up |
| 7 | James | 38,283 | 1 in 90 | 2 places down |
| 8 | John | 34,868 | 1 in 100 | = same rank |
| 9 | Robert | 34,395 | 1 in 101 | = same rank |
| 10 | Daniel | 30,985 | 1 in 112 | 1 places up |
| 11 | Joseph | 30,761 | 1 in 112 | 1 places down |
| 12 | Justin | 27,307 | 1 in 127 | 1 places up |
| 13 | Ryan | 26,811 | 1 in 129 | 2 places up |
| 14 | Brian | 26,583 | 1 in 130 | 2 places down |
| 15 | William | 24,798 | 1 in 139 | 1 places down |
| 16 | Jonathan | 22,588 | 1 in 153 | 5 places up |
| 17 | Eric | 20,712 | 1 in 167 | 1 places down |
| 18 | Andrew | 20,232 | 1 in 171 | 1 places up |
| 19 | Brandon | 20,206 | 1 in 171 | 12 places up |
| 20 | Adam | 20,044 | 1 in 173 | 2 places up |
| 21 | Nicholas | 19,775 | 1 in 175 | 4 places down |
| 22 | Jeremy | 19,113 | 1 in 181 | 4 places down |
| 23 | Anthony | 18,569 | 1 in 186 | 1 places up |
| 24 | Timothy | 18,228 | 1 in 190 | 4 places down |
| 25 | Kevin | 17,454 | 1 in 198 | 2 places down |
| 26 | Thomas | 17,159 | 1 in 202 | 1 places down |
| 27 | Richard | 16,855 | 1 in 205 | 1 places down |
| 28 | Steven | 16,482 | 1 in 210 | = same rank |
| 29 | Jeffrey | 15,931 | 1 in 217 | 2 places down |
| 30 | Aaron | 14,694 | 1 in 235 | 4 places up |
| 31 | Charles | 14,427 | 1 in 240 | 2 places down |
| 32 | Benjamin | 14,360 | 1 in 241 | = same rank |
| 33 | Mark | 13,542 | 1 in 255 | 3 places down |
| 34 | Scott | 12,719 | 1 in 272 | 1 places down |
| 35 | Paul | 11,776 | 1 in 294 | = same rank |
| 36 | Nathan | 11,256 | 1 in 307 | = same rank |
| 37 | Jesse | 10,443 | 1 in 331 | 8 places up |
| 38 | Patrick | 10,384 | 1 in 333 | = same rank |
| 39 | Stephen | 10,302 | 1 in 336 | 1 places up |
| 40 | Travis | 10,109 | 1 in 342 | 3 places down |
| 41 | Kenneth | 9,472 | 1 in 365 | = same rank |
| 42 | Dustin | 9,350 | 1 in 370 | 2 places up |
| 43 | Jacob | 9,342 | 1 in 370 | = same rank |
| 44 | Sean | 8,893 | 1 in 389 | 4 places up |
| 45 | Jose | 8,773 | 1 in 394 | 1 places up |
| 46 | Gregory | 8,756 | 1 in 395 | 4 places down |
| 47 | Chad | 8,412 | 1 in 411 | 8 places down |
| 48 | Bryan | 7,215 | 1 in 479 | 1 places up |
| 49 | Shawn | 7,076 | 1 in 489 | 2 places down |
| 50 | Bradley | 6,895 | 1 in 502 | 1 places up |
Share: number of babies born in 1981, girls and boys together, for one baby with this name. Change: places gained or lost since 1980. Tied names share the same rank.