Popular Names of 1985

The 20 most popular names given to female and to male babies born in 1985, as recorded, with each name’s rank in 2025. Joshua peaked among human males this year, at 4th.

Table 1. Female names, 1985
Rank	Name	Number	Rank in 2025
1	Jessica	48,345	665
2	Ashley	47,010	164
3	Jennifer	42,661	586
4	Amanda	39,055	493
5	Sarah	24,879	90
6	Stephanie	23,243	557
7	Nicole	22,966	383
8	Heather	21,151	1,264
9	Elizabeth	20,545	17
10	Megan	20,013	889
11	Melissa	19,963	420
12	Christina	16,600	770
13	Rachel	16,360	250
14	Laura	16,002	379
15	Lauren	15,768	401
16	Amber	15,506	520
17	Brittany	15,437	928
18	Danielle	15,417	549
19	Kimberly	14,914	303
20	Amy	14,429	257

Table 2. Male names, 1985
Rank	Name	Number	Rank in 2025
1	Michael	64,934	21
2	Christopher	59,609	68
3	Matthew	47,075	32
4	Joshua	42,194	66
5	Daniel	38,559	22
6	David	38,522	35
7	James	35,862	6
8	Robert	32,094	92
9	John	31,502	23
10	Joseph	30,222	29
11	Andrew	30,178	73
12	Ryan	29,905	99
13	Brandon	29,304	261
14	Jason	26,039	165
15	Justin	25,537	233
16	William	24,606	9
17	Jonathan	24,116	89
18	Brian	23,069	339
19	Nicholas	22,384	112
20	Anthony	22,104	46

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As recorded on the Social Security card application. Names given to fewer than five babies of a sex in a year are not published, so the file is a floor.