Welcome to our comprehensive page dedicated to exploring the most popular baby names of the 1980s. As trends in baby names evolve over time, reflecting changes in culture, literature, and even popular media, it’s fascinating to see which names rise to the top in each era. For the 1980s, we delve deep into the naming trends to bring you the names that defined the era.
The top boy name of the Eighties, Michael, and the top girl name, Jessica, not only showcase the preferences of parents during that time but also often carry with them stories of significance—be it historical figures that inspired a generation, characters from beloved books and movies, or the enduring beauty of a name that resonates with many.
| RANK | Boy Name | Boy Count | Girl Name | Girl Count |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Michael | 571327 | Jessica | 428857 |
| 2 | Christopher | 493010 | Jennifer | 397362 |
| 3 | Matthew | 415607 | Amanda | 334991 |
| 4 | Joshua | 381348 | Ashley | 325805 |
| 5 | David | 347248 | Sarah | 253755 |
| 6 | Daniel | 314361 | Melissa | 195187 |
| 7 | James | 311993 | Stephanie | 194977 |
| 8 | Robert | 281912 | Nicole | 190489 |
| 9 | Ryan | 272514 | Elizabeth | 182536 |
| 10 | John | 271877 | Heather | 178694 |
| 11 | Andrew | 269055 | Amber | 154130 |
| 12 | Justin | 269035 | Megan | 148277 |
| 13 | Jason | 262006 | Tiffany | 143531 |
| 14 | Joseph | 258388 | Michelle | 143503 |
| 15 | Brandon | 225066 | Amy | 138161 |
| 16 | Nicholas | 215598 | Rachel | 135058 |
| 17 | William | 213622 | Christina | 130438 |
| 18 | Brian | 207601 | Kimberly | 129324 |
| 19 | Jonathan | 204437 | Brittany | 125528 |
| 20 | Anthony | 191301 | Crystal | 124655 |
| 21 | Eric | 187423 | Rebecca | 122971 |
| 22 | Adam | 184418 | Emily | 120555 |
| 23 | Kevin | 167304 | Danielle | 118444 |
| 24 | Steven | 160545 | Laura | 117780 |
| 25 | Timothy | 154480 | Lauren | 115751 |
| 26 | Thomas | 151048 | Angela | 108650 |
| 27 | Jeremy | 146778 | Erin | 105575 |
| 28 | Kyle | 141341 | Samantha | 104874 |
| 29 | Richard | 138585 | Sara | 98871 |
| 30 | Benjamin | 136913 | Andrea | 94980 |
| 31 | Aaron | 134447 | Kelly | 93696 |
| 32 | Jeffrey | 132475 | Jamie | 92112 |
| 33 | Jacob | 123834 | Lisa | 90616 |
| 34 | Charles | 113918 | Katherine | 87592 |
| 35 | Mark | 112117 | Mary | 85742 |
| 36 | Nathan | 107011 | Erica | 82932 |
| 37 | Scott | 103438 | Courtney | 75322 |
| 38 | Travis | 101610 | Katie | 71679 |
| 39 | Zachary | 98299 | Kristen | 70221 |
| 40 | Patrick | 98285 | Shannon | 69989 |
| 41 | Dustin | 97730 | April | 69820 |
| 42 | Stephen | 93925 | Lindsey | 68062 |
| 43 | Sean | 92694 | Alicia | 64186 |
| 44 | Tyler | 91608 | Lindsay | 63118 |
| 45 | Paul | 91019 | Kristin | 62332 |
| 46 | Jesse | 84088 | Julie | 57857 |
| 47 | Kenneth | 80266 | Vanessa | 57708 |
| 48 | Gregory | 80142 | Maria | 57134 |
| 49 | Jose | 78450 | Allison | 55570 |
| 50 | Bryan | 73086 | Kathryn | 55338 |
| 51 | Alexander | 73040 | Anna | 54641 |
| 52 | Derek | 69601 | Christine | 54090 |
| 53 | Samuel | 68278 | Natalie | 52272 |
| 54 | Chad | 66208 | Kayla | 49275 |
| 55 | Bradley | 61731 | Monica | 48202 |
| 56 | Jared | 58595 | Tara | 47042 |
| 57 | Shawn | 56534 | Jacqueline | 42584 |
| 58 | Cody | 52767 | Victoria | 42568 |
| 59 | Jordan | 52560 | Holly | 41843 |
| 60 | Edward | 49484 | Kristina | 41176 |
| 61 | Corey | 42972 | Cassandra | 39911 |
| 62 | Juan | 42614 | Chelsea | 38557 |
| 63 | Peter | 41316 | Patricia | 37351 |
| 64 | Marcus | 40949 | Brandy | 36525 |
| 65 | Donald | 40762 | Brandi | 35576 |
| 66 | Keith | 40067 | Whitney | 34482 |
| 67 | Phillip | 39678 | Cynthia | 31949 |
| 68 | Joel | 38148 | Leslie | 31593 |
| 69 | Ronald | 35203 | Catherine | 30656 |
| 70 | Shane | 35069 | Veronica | 28853 |
| 71 | Cory | 35002 | Erika | 28649 |
| 72 | Antonio | 34273 | Jenna | 27562 |
| 73 | George | 33931 | Brittney | 26711 |
| 74 | Brett | 33433 | Natasha | 26253 |
| 75 | Ian | 32877 | Brooke | 26222 |
| 76 | Carlos | 32424 | Kathleen | 25963 |
| 77 | Raymond | 31086 | Stacy | 25924 |
| 78 | Luis | 30049 | Carrie | 25505 |
| 79 | Erik | 29903 | Krystal | 25071 |
| 80 | Nathaniel | 28810 | Diana | 24551 |
| 81 | Alex | 28532 | Leah | 24461 |
| 82 | Douglas | 27690 | Kelsey | 23075 |
| 83 | Jesus | 24998 | Melanie | 23035 |
| 84 | Craig | 24663 | Hannah | 22907 |
| 85 | Gary | 24613 | Karen | 22852 |
| 86 | Casey | 23905 | Valerie | 22593 |
| 87 | Derrick | 22999 | Julia | 22396 |
| 88 | Gabriel | 22746 | Alyssa | 21974 |
| 89 | Miguel | 22653 | Alexandra | 21842 |
| 90 | Victor | 22443 | Caitlin | 20957 |
| 91 | Austin | 22189 | Jasmine | 20590 |
| 92 | Seth | 21554 | Dana | 19346 |
| 93 | Brent | 21285 | Sandra | 19288 |
| 94 | Jeffery | 20635 | Nichole | 18361 |
| 95 | Jorge | 20191 | Candice | 18358 |
| 96 | Evan | 19730 | Nancy | 18203 |
| 97 | Vincent | 19527 | Bethany | 18150 |
| 98 | Curtis | 19429 | Misty | 17405 |
| 99 | Mario | 19166 | Meghan | 17018 |
| 100 | Frank | 18571 | Heidi | 16987 |
| 101 | Francisco | 18173 | Stacey | 16708 |
| 102 | Christian | 18095 | Susan | 15646 |
| 103 | Philip | 18024 | Molly | 15454 |
| 104 | Ricardo | 17819 | Latoya | 15148 |
| 105 | Todd | 17292 | Monique | 15098 |
| 106 | Adrian | 16820 | Kara | 14269 |
| 107 | Manuel | 16807 | Brenda | 14204 |
| 108 | Cameron | 16599 | Margaret | 13954 |
| 109 | Lucas | 16282 | Katrina | 13480 |
| 110 | Wesley | 16264 | Tracy | 13418 |
| 111 | Larry | 16168 | Angelica | 13364 |
| 112 | Luke | 16040 | Jill | 13321 |
| 113 | Trevor | 15999 | Wendy | 13102 |
| 114 | Jeremiah | 15638 | Alexis | 12880 |
| 115 | Alejandro | 14446 | Casey | 12814 |
| 116 | Blake | 13313 | Desiree | 12505 |
| 117 | Oscar | 13005 | Denise | 12109 |
| 118 | Roberto | 12564 | Kendra | 12017 |
| 119 | Terry | 12272 | Ana | 11832 |
| 120 | Ruben | 11988 | Miranda | 11746 |
| 121 | Sergio | 11765 | Mayra | 11616 |
| 122 | Fernando | 11615 | Sabrina | 11490 |
| 123 | Caleb | 11366 | Rachael | 11198 |
| 124 | Hector | 11305 | Claudia | 11056 |
| 125 | Troy | 11251 | Renee | 10978 |
| 126 | Martin | 11165 | Morgan | 10932 |
| 127 | Mitchell | 11153 | Tina | 10924 |
| 128 | Randy | 11150 | Adriana | 10922 |
| 129 | Javier | 11120 | Lacey | 10428 |
| 130 | Dennis | 11015 | Candace | 9679 |
| 131 | Russell | 10296 | Teresa | 9122 |
| 132 | Jerry | 9497 | Joanna | 8955 |
| 133 | Taylor | 8922 | Dawn | 8939 |
| 134 | Bobby | 8849 | Pamela | 8898 |
| 135 | Eduardo | 8432 | Kristy | 8878 |
| 136 | Willie | 8274 | Linda | 8713 |
| 137 | Devin | 8267 | Kelli | 8331 |
| 138 | Alan | 8209 | Cristina | 8277 |
| 139 | Shaun | 8066 | Cindy | 8252 |
| 140 | Carl | 7953 | Lori | 8111 |
| 141 | Billy | 7682 | Alison | 7922 |
| 142 | Johnny | 6792 | Mallory | 7845 |
| 143 | Johnathan | 6336 | Anne | 7844 |
| 144 | Jonathon | 6192 | Abigail | 7764 |
| 145 | Lance | 5821 | Brianna | 7762 |
| 146 | Tony | 5742 | Marissa | 7761 |
| 147 | Cesar | 5716 | Christy | 7709 |
| 148 | Raul | 5665 | Krista | 7317 |
| 149 | Chase | 5390 | Gina | 7125 |
| 150 | Edgar | 5372 | Felicia | 6964 |
| 151 | Jimmy | 5351 | Jillian | 6943 |
| 152 | Logan | 5343 | Alisha | 6696 |
| 153 | Randall | 5275 | Tonya | 6558 |
| 154 | Jamie | 5259 | Tabitha | 6341 |
| 155 | Jaime | 5230 | Tanya | 6251 |
| 156 | Angel | 5198 | Gabriela | 6236 |
| 157 | Clinton | 4903 | Sheena | 6076 |
| 158 | Levi | 4695 | Daisy | 5854 |
| 159 | Spencer | 4655 | Katelyn | 5432 |
| 160 | Ricky | 4440 | Jordan | 5338 |
| 161 | Drew | 4290 | Yesenia | 5299 |
| 162 | Mathew | 3941 | Latasha | 5221 |
| 163 | Reginald | 3911 | Kari | 5217 |
| 164 | Garrett | 3736 | Jenny | 4993 |
| 165 | Armando | 3716 | Dominique | 4551 |
| 166 | Ethan | 3658 | Beth | 4489 |
| 167 | Tyson | 3530 | Theresa | 4433 |
| 168 | Rodney | 3526 | Colleen | 4380 |
| 169 | Allen | 3400 | Melinda | 4304 |
| 170 | Colin | 3375 | Robin | 4241 |
| 171 | Bryce | 3177 | Priscilla | 4184 |
| 172 | Kristopher | 3173 | Haley | 4024 |
| 173 | Dylan | 3129 | Bianca | 3911 |
| 174 | Maurice | 2945 | Ashlee | 3885 |
| 175 | Brad | 2940 | Meagan | 3686 |
| 176 | Jermaine | 2932 | Taylor | 3605 |
| 177 | Grant | 2927 | Abby | 3543 |
| 178 | Henry | 2718 | Evelyn | 3540 |
| 179 | Andre | 2710 | Tammy | 3439 |
| 180 | Ross | 2691 | Kristi | 3379 |
| 181 | Cole | 2557 | Jaclyn | 3303 |
| 182 | Walter | 2426 | Ebony | 3264 |
| 183 | Salvador | 2422 | Alexandria | 3117 |
| 184 | Marc | 2346 | Tamara | 3085 |
| 185 | Terrance | 2160 | Kaitlin | 3041 |
| 186 | Lee | 2154 | Chelsey | 3038 |
| 187 | Micheal | 2136 | Cassie | 3006 |
| 188 | Isaac | 2111 | Britney | 2946 |
| 189 | Cedric | 2075 | Michaela | 2922 |
| 190 | Calvin | 1951 | Angel | 2774 |
| 191 | Jay | 1826 | Karina | 2534 |
| 192 | Roger | 1724 | Leticia | 2530 |
| 193 | Lawrence | 1617 | Kaitlyn | 2529 |
| 194 | Roderick | 1583 | Rosa | 2490 |
| 195 | Clayton | 1529 | Jaime | 2224 |
| 196 | Jon | 1528 | Mandy | 2171 |
| 197 | Courtney | 1511 | Caroline | 2165 |
| 198 | Francis | 1431 | Marquita | 2019 |
| 199 | Brady | 1332 | Rebekah | 1998 |
| 200 | Ivan | 1246 | Mindy | 1947 |
| 201 | Darius | 1187 | Tasha | 1783 |
| 202 | Tanner | 1145 | Sonia | 1685 |
| 203 | Noah | 1111 | Trisha | 1642 |
| 204 | Danny | 1010 | Meredith | 1579 |
| 205 | Louis | 1001 | Kylie | 1562 |
| 206 | Brendan | 915 | Paige | 1554 |
| 207 | Kelly | 910 | Lorena | 1520 |
| 208 | Jake | 908 | Shawna | 1517 |
| 209 | Wayne | 890 | Barbara | 1498 |
| 210 | Colby | 872 | Ann | 1471 |
| 211 | Kelvin | 864 | Kate | 1466 |
| 212 | Demetrius | 846 | Kiara | 1439 |
| 213 | Arturo | 820 | Jodi | 1394 |
| 214 | Dana | 800 | Sharon | 1308 |
| 215 | Colton | 789 | Bridget | 1285 |
| 216 | Omar | 784 | Stefanie | 1212 |
| 217 | Rafael | 776 | Michele | 1124 |
| 218 | Gerald | 744 | Latonya | 1062 |
| 219 | Kurt | 701 | Virginia | 974 |
| 220 | Heath | 652 | Chasity | 889 |
| 221 | Ronnie | 624 | Sierra | 849 |
| 222 | Darren | 601 | Gabrielle | 785 |
| 223 | Bruce | 590 | Martha | 776 |
| 224 | Eddie | 559 | Emma | 767 |
| 225 | Micah | 548 | Janet | 760 |
| 226 | Skyler | 434 | Audrey | 753 |
| 227 | Hunter | 430 | Maribel | 742 |
| 228 | Preston | 429 | Savannah | 739 |
| 229 | Kendrick | 410 | Aimee | 720 |
| 230 | Albert | 408 | Lacy | 699 |
| 231 | Quentin | 348 | Donna | 692 |
| 232 | Jarvis | 343 | Summer | 667 |
| 233 | Terrence | 337 | Regina | 665 |
| 234 | Landon | 320 | Camille | 624 |
| 235 | Shannon | 284 | Jessie | 624 |
| 236 | Dillon | 263 | Adrienne | 623 |
| 237 | Bret | 246 | Autumn | 619 |
| 238 | Chance | 244 | Carly | 511 |
| 239 | Tommy | 235 | Aubrey | 483 |
| 240 | Byron | 228 | Janelle | 441 |
| 241 | Bronson | 228 | Cheryl | 426 |
| 242 | Ernest | 226 | Breanna | 426 |
| 243 | Joe | 210 | Yolanda | 395 |
| 244 | Keoni | 209 | Malia | 376 |
| 245 | Tyrone | 200 | Sasha | 376 |
| 246 | Kawika | 198 | Carolyn | 345 |
| 247 | Bryson | 193 | Briana | 332 |
| 248 | Beau | 186 | Leilani | 296 |
| 249 | Marvin | 180 | Carla | 291 |
| 250 | Trenton | 174 | Krystle | 283 |
| 251 | Neil | 174 | Olivia | 271 |
| 252 | Ikaika | 170 | Suzanne | 251 |
| 253 | Brock | 161 | Hailey | 250 |
| 254 | Frederick | 157 | Kerri | 246 |
| 255 | Arthur | 155 | Renata | 245 |
| 256 | Jamal | 153 | Chelsie | 232 |
| 257 | Dominic | 145 | Marie | 214 |
| 258 | Dane | 138 | Hilary | 212 |
| 259 | Reid | 133 | Kristine | 208 |
| 260 | Roy | 131 | Tiana | 200 |
| 261 | Barry | 124 | Kirsten | 183 |
| 262 | Geoffrey | 123 | Maggie | 176 |
| 263 | Riley | 121 | Robyn | 174 |
| 264 | Tristan | 114 | Darcy | 174 |
| 265 | Damien | 111 | Tamika | 172 |
| 266 | Xavier | 107 | Maile | 152 |
| 267 | Franklin | 106 | Naomi | 151 |
| 268 | Bryant | 104 | Deanna | 149 |
| 269 | Jonah | 103 | Hillary | 146 |
| 270 | Dean | 103 | Rachelle | 141 |
| 271 | Dakota | 102 | Joy | 139 |
| 272 | Gavin | 102 | Lynn | 137 |
| 273 | Quinton | 100 | Tiare | 134 |
| 274 | Gilbert | 99 | Kellie | 132 |
| 275 | Trent | 94 | Rhonda | 126 |
| 276 | Dallin | 92 | Shelly | 124 |
| 277 | Stanley | 88 | Elise | 123 |
| 278 | Harry | 86 | Kasey | 122 |
| 279 | Maxwell | 85 | Becky | 116 |
| 280 | Parker | 79 | Justine | 113 |
| 281 | Unnamed | 79 | Randi | 112 |
| 282 | Jack | 77 | Mckenzie | 110 |
| 283 | Lamar | 76 | Jade | 107 |
| 284 | Jerome | 74 | Claire | 105 |
| 285 | Ashley | 74 | Bonnie | 103 |
| 286 | Dwayne | 66 | Stacie | 99 |
| 287 | Julian | 66 | Sonya | 98 |
| 288 | Clint | 62 | Kaylee | 97 |
| 289 | Dale | 58 | Bailey | 96 |
| 290 | Kekoa | 58 | Shana | 96 |
| 291 | Jamar | 50 | Sade | 90 |
| 292 | Joey | 49 | Kylee | 86 |
| 293 | Jayson | 48 | Tracey | 84 |
| 294 | Bradford | 48 | Shanice | 82 |
| 295 | Unknown | 47 | Madison | 79 |
| 296 | Ramon | 45 | Unnamed | 79 |
| 297 | Max | 43 | Chantel | 79 |
| 298 | Eugene | 42 | Hope | 78 |
| 299 | Glenn | 41 | Cara | 77 |
| 300 | Theodore | 36 | India | 76 |
| 301 | Dallas | 35 | Tameka | 76 |
| 302 | Connor | 34 | Kelsie | 75 |
| 303 | Darrell | 34 | Alana | 74 |
| 304 | Earl | 32 | Cierra | 72 |
| 305 | Devon | 32 | Shantel | 71 |
| 306 | Nelson | 32 | Marci | 71 |
| 307 | Collin | 30 | Meaghan | 70 |
| 308 | Owen | 30 | Marisa | 69 |
| 309 | Tyrel | 30 | Jana | 63 |
| 310 | Morgan | 28 | Caitlyn | 63 |
| 311 | Isaiah | 26 | Janice | 59 |
| 312 | Keola | 24 | Grace | 59 |
| 313 | Tyrell | 24 | Ashleigh | 59 |
| 314 | Ira | 24 | Jami | 57 |
| 315 | Darryl | 22 | Trista | 56 |
| 316 | Dominique | 20 | Jolene | 56 |
| 317 | Kalani | 19 | Roxanne | 56 |
| 318 | Clifford | 19 | Keri | 55 |
| 319 | Ty | 19 | Chanel | 52 |
| 320 | Sheldon | 18 | Deborah | 52 |
| 321 | Ralph | 16 | Laurie | 50 |
| 322 | Lewis | 16 | Unknown | 50 |
| 323 | Edwin | 16 | Tessa | 48 |
| 324 | Clifton | 16 | Shayna | 45 |
| 325 | Blaine | 16 | Melody | 44 |
| 326 | Jarrod | 15 | Nina | 43 |
| 327 | Kapena | 15 | Rochelle | 43 |
| 328 | Kimo | 15 | Jocelyn | 42 |
| 329 | Melvin | 15 | Charlene | 41 |
| 330 | Warren | 15 | Kiana | 40 |
| 331 | Gordon | 14 | Diane | 39 |
| 332 | Dominick | 14 | Shanna | 38 |
| 333 | Eli | 14 | Eliza | 34 |
| 334 | Roland | 14 | Toni | 33 |
| 335 | Antoine | 14 | Annie | 32 |
| 336 | Brenton | 12 | Cami | 31 |
| 337 | Norman | 12 | Taryn | 30 |
| 338 | Josiah | 12 | Kira | 30 |
| 339 | Graham | 12 | Nikki | 30 |
| 340 | Brendon | 12 | Dayna | 30 |
| 341 | Emmanuel | 11 | Liza | 30 |
| 342 | Zachariah | 11 | Brianne | 28 |
| 343 | Steve | 9 | Kerry | 26 |
| 344 | Karl | 9 | Shayla | 23 |
| 345 | Pedro | 9 | Kyla | 23 |
| 346 | Wade | 8 | Alexa | 22 |
| 347 | Nickolas | 8 | Kanani | 18 |
| 348 | Dusty | 8 | Allyson | 18 |
| 349 | Clay | 7 | Dorothy | 18 |
| 350 | Kody | 6 | Sydney | 18 |
| 351 | Tucker | 6 | Ruth | 18 |
| 352 | Colten | 6 | Amie | 16 |
| 353 | Rory | 6 | Amelia | 16 |