U.S. first-name statistics

How common is Denise?

Denise was the #155 most frequent first name in the 2020 Census.

People with the first name Denise

327,824

About 1 in 1,011 Americans had this first name in the 2020 Census.

Measured, privacy-protected national Census count—not a total of historical baby-name records.

National rank

#155

More common than 99.7% of listed first names

Peak year

1961

15,422 SSA-recorded births

2025 births

123

#3,076 across first names

Census frequency

1 in 1,011

Across the 2020 U.S. population

Sex distribution

Reported in the 2020 Census first-name table.

0.2% male99.8% female

Demographic distribution

Aggregated race and Hispanic-origin reporting in the 2020 Census name table.

White, non-Hispanic69.8%
Black, non-Hispanic14.0%
American Indian / Alaska Native0.62%
Asian / Pacific Islander1.35%
Two or more races2.33%
Hispanic or Latino11.9%

Reading the result

Denise across two different records

The Census count answers “how many people had this name?” using a national snapshot of living residents in 2020. The SSA series answers “when was this name popular?” using Social Security card applications associated with births.

Denise reached its highest published annual SSA count in 1961, with 15,422 recorded births. In 2025, SSA recorded 123 babies with the name.

Names do not determine a person’s identity. Demographic percentages above describe national aggregates and should never be applied to an individual.

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