US Most Popular Male and Female Baby Names in 1988

Updated on May 9, 2026.

Data Source: Social Security Administration (SSA).

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US Most Popular Male Baby Names in 1988

In 1988, the most popular name for baby boys in the US was Michael, with a count of 64,171 boys out of a total of 1,914,283 registered names of baby boys (i.e. 3.35% of the total number of new-born baby boys in the US in 1988). The second most popular boy name was Christopher (53,014 boys, 2.77% of total). The third most popular boy name was Matthew (45,876 boys, 2.40% of total).

The table below below shows the top 1000 most popular male baby names in the US in 1988. You can click on a name to see the trend of popularity in the US over the years.

US Most Popular Female Baby Names in 1988

In 1988, the most popular name for baby girls in the US was Jessica, with a count of 51,556 girls out of a total of 1,780,854 registered names of baby girls (i.e. 2.90% of the total number of new-born baby girls in the US in 1988). The second most popular girl name was Ashley (49,977 girls, 2.81% of total). The third most popular girl name was Amanda (39,459 girls, 2.22% of total).

The table below below shows the top 1000 most popular female baby names in the US in 1988. You can click on a name to see the trend of popularity in the US over the years.