Ernest Boy
How popular is Ernest?
#1,038 boy name in 2025
213 baby boys were named Ernest in the US in 2025, making it the 1038th most popular boy name.
Ernest popularity over time
Boys Girls
| Rank in 2025 | #1,038 for boys (▲ 38 from 2024) |
|---|---|
| Babies in 2025 | 213 boys |
| 10-year trend | Steady (-1% babies vs 2015) |
| Earlier ranks | #955 in 2015, #1,009 in 2020 |
| Peak year | 1921 (5,697 boys) |
| Highest rank | #21 in 1885 |
| First recorded | 1880 |
| Boys vs girls (last 10 years) | 100% boys, 0% girls |
| Chance a classmate shares it | 0.2% in a class of 25 kids born in 2025 |
Ernest counting every spelling
Social Security counts each spelling as its own name. Adding together the spellings that sound alike, the Ernest family of names ranked #900 for boys in 2025 (#944 the year before), with 238 babies in all.
| Spelling | Boys in 2025 | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Ernest | 213 | 89% |
| Earnest | 25 | 11% |
Spellings are grouped by how they sound, using our own rules, so a few groupings may not match how your family says the name.
Where Ernest is most popular
Babies named Ernest per 1,000 boys born in each state, 2021 to 2025. Darker means more common.
- Minnesota: 0.3 per 1,000 (38 boys)
- Indiana: 0.3 per 1,000 (42 boys)
- Wisconsin: 0.2 per 1,000 (24 boys)
- Pennsylvania: 0.2 per 1,000 (44 boys)
- Michigan: 0.2 per 1,000 (31 boys)
Ernest by decade
| Decade | Baby boys | Best rank |
|---|---|---|
| 1880s | 6,700 | #21 |
| 1890s | 7,877 | #22 |
| 1900s | 8,657 | #28 |
| 1910s | 37,134 | #31 |
| 1920s | 53,653 | #37 |
| 1930s | 39,346 | #43 |
| 1940s | 41,762 | #58 |
| 1950s | 39,680 | #81 |
| 1960s | 26,892 | #120 |
| 1970s | 16,756 | #143 |
| 1980s | 11,236 | #180 |
| 1990s | 6,054 | #283 |
| 2000s | 3,332 | #514 |
| 2010s | 2,211 | #846 |
| 2020s | 1,209 | #1,009 |
Boy names about as popular as Ernest
Questions
- Is Ernest a boy or girl name?
- Ernest is mostly a boy name. Over the last 10 years, 100% of babies named Ernest were boys.
- How popular is the name Ernest?
- 213 baby boys were named Ernest in the US in 2025, making it the 1038th most popular boy name.
- When was Ernest most popular?
- Ernest peaked in 1921, when 5,697 boys were given the name. Its highest rank was #21 in 1885.
- How many people are named Ernest?
- 304,354 babies have been named Ernest in the US since 1880. We estimate about 115,902 of them are alive in 2026, with a median age of 65.
- Where is Ernest most popular?
- From 2021 to 2025, Ernest was most common in Minnesota, at 0.3 of every 1,000 boys born there.
Source: Social Security Administration baby name data, 1880 to 2025 (names given to at least 5 babies of a sex in a year). Living-people and median-age figures are our estimates using US life tables. How we calculate.