Popular Names of 1988

The 20 most popular names given to female and to male babies born in 1988, as recorded, with each name’s rank in 2025.

Table 1. Female names, 1988
Rank	Name	Number	Rank in 2025
1	Jessica	51,556	665
2	Ashley	49,977	164
3	Amanda	39,459	493
4	Sarah	28,374	90
5	Jennifer	27,893	586
6	Brittany	26,816	928
7	Stephanie	22,843	557
8	Samantha	20,700	151
9	Nicole	20,315	383
10	Elizabeth	20,042	17
11	Lauren	19,637	401
12	Megan	18,570	889
13	Tiffany	18,364	880
14	Heather	18,033	1,264
15	Amber	16,676	520
16	Melissa	16,546	420
17	Danielle	16,253	549
18	Emily	15,869	34
19	Rachel	15,348	250
20	Kayla	13,433	364

Table 2. Male names, 1988
Rank	Name	Number	Rank in 2025
1	Michael	64,171	21
2	Christopher	53,014	68
3	Matthew	45,876	32
4	Joshua	42,653	66
5	Andrew	35,745	73
6	David	35,329	35
7	Justin	35,055	233
8	Daniel	34,718	22
9	James	32,523	6
10	Robert	30,319	92
11	John	29,427	23
12	Joseph	29,019	29
13	Ryan	27,747	99
14	Nicholas	25,303	112
15	Jonathan	24,349	89
16	William	24,126	9
17	Brandon	23,744	261
18	Anthony	23,644	46
19	Eric	20,175	273
20	Kevin	20,168	221

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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.