Watson

boys’ nameAt its peak · modern nameCompare

Watson is ranked 864th among boys in 2024 (278 births). Its best rank was 397th, in 1882.

Rank in 2024: #864down 59 from 2023
Births in 2024: 2780.02% of boys
Peak year: 2021466 births
Best rank: #397in 1882
Since 1880: 6,474people given the name

Babies named Watson, by year of birthboys

The story in the numbers

6,474 boys have been named Watson in the United States since 1880, according to Social Security records. The busiest single year was 2021, with 466 births.

It has never been more used than now: its record year is 2021, within the last few years of data.

Half of everyone given the name was born by 2012, and the 2020s alone account for 29%. It has spent 55 of 145 years in the top 1,000.

Rank among boys, year by year

Higher on the chart = more popularrank (gaps = outside the top 1,000)

By decade

Decade	boys named Watson
1880s	105
1890s	126
1900s	123
1910s	543
1920s	537
1930s	375
1940s	334
1950s	250
1960s	154
1970s	105
1980s	129
1990s	155
2000s	219
2010s	1,459
2020s	1,860

In 2021, its biggest year

Watson was the 597th most given boy’s name that year. The top five boys’ names of 2021 were Liam, Noah, Oliver, Elijah and James. See all of 2021.

Names that rose and fell with Watson

Same sex, most similar popularity curve over 145 years, in five-year steps — the shape of the line, not the size.

What this page does not tell you. The Social Security data records how many babies were given a name, not what the name means or where it comes from — so neither do we. Counts cover people with a Social Security number; names given to fewer than five babies in a year are withheld. More on the data.