People with the first name Rafael
148,942
About 1 in 2,225 Americans had this first name in the 2020 Census.
Measured, privacy-protected national Census count—not a total of historical baby-name records.
U.S. first-name statistics
How common is Rafael?
Rafael was the #373 most frequent first name in the 2020 Census.
National rank
#373
More common than 99.3% of listed first names
Peak year
2006
1,710 SSA-recorded births
2025 births
1,639
#420 across first names
Census frequency
1 in 2,225
Across the 2020 U.S. population
Sex distribution
Reported in the 2020 Census first-name table.
99.7% male0.3% female
Demographic distribution
Aggregated race and Hispanic-origin reporting in the 2020 Census name table.
Reading the result
Rafael 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.
Rafael reached its highest published annual SSA count in 2006, with 1,710 recorded births. In 2025, SSA recorded 1,639 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.
Add a last name