2000
#409
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 71,482
First available Census row
Per 100,000 26.50
Uncommon Last name
Goodman
A surname referring to a person of moral character or one who is skilled at their occupation.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 79,786 Americans carry the last name Goodman. That puts it at #469 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 23.28 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 4,296 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Goodman surname. You will find the Census Bureau frequency data, a multi-census history view, an ancestry and ethnicity breakdown based on self-reported demographics, the name's meaning and origin where available, and answers to the most common questions people ask about this surname.
For British records, Name Census UK has a British surname profile for Goodman with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
80K
1 in 4,296
Census rank
#469
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
23.3
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
70K
uncommon in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 69,577 bearers of the surname Goodman in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 23.28 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 469th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Goodman, the largest self-reported group is White at 75.7%. The next largest groups are Black (15.3%) and Two or More Races (3.8%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Goodman
The surname Goodman has its origins in England, where it first appeared in the 12th century. It is derived from the Old English words "gōd" meaning "good" and "mann" meaning "man." The name was originally used as a descriptive term for a moral, upright, or virtuous man.
In the early days, surnames were often occupational or descriptive, and Goodman was likely bestowed upon individuals who were seen as exemplary members of their community. The name appeared in various early records, such as the Pipe Rolls of Yorkshire from 1166, which mention a William Godeman.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the surname Goodman can be found in the Hundredorum Rolls of 1273, which lists a Robert Godeman in Oxfordshire. This document was a survey of landowners in England commissioned by King Edward I.
Another notable early reference is the Subsidy Rolls of Worcestershire from 1327, which include a John Godeman. These rolls were tax records that provide valuable information about the distribution of surnames in medieval England.
In the 15th century, the Goodman surname appeared in the Paston Letters, a collection of correspondence between members of the influential Paston family in Norfolk. One letter from 1472 mentions a John Goodman who was a servant to Sir John Paston.
Throughout history, several notable individuals have borne the surname Goodman. One of the earliest was John Goodman (c. 1592-1664), an English Puritan clergyman and botanist who was one of the first settlers of Newbury, Massachusetts.
Another prominent figure was Benjamin Goodman (1839-1893), an English agricultural chemist and former president of the Royal Agricultural Society. He made significant contributions to the understanding of soil fertility and crop nutrition.
In the literary world, Walter Goodman (1838-1912) was a renowned English novelist and playwright, best known for his works "The Wonderful Visit" and "The Divorce of Lady Russell."
On the artistic front, John Goodman (1909-1980) was a highly acclaimed American painter and printmaker, celebrated for his abstract expressionist works and his influential role as a teacher at the Art Students League of New York.
Finally, Benny Goodman (1909-1986), known as the "King of Swing," was an American clarinetist and bandleader who played a pivotal role in the development and popularization of swing music during the 1930s and 1940s.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Goodman
Among Census respondents with the surname Goodman, the largest self-reported group is White at 75.7%. The next largest groups are Black (15.3%) and Two or More Races (3.8%).
The bar chart below shows how Goodman bearers described their own race and ethnicity on the 2020 Census form. The Census Bureau groups responses into six broad categories: White, Black or African American, Hispanic or Latino, Asian and Pacific Islander, American Indian and Alaska Native, and Two or More Races. When a category has too few respondents for a given surname, the Bureau suppresses the figure to protect individual privacy, which is why some names show fewer than six slices.
Percentages are shown for every Census year so the breakdown stays comparable over time. When the source file also includes raw headcounts, Name Census shows those alongside the percentages in the legend.
Keep in mind that these are self-reported numbers. A person's surname does not determine their race or ethnicity, and the distribution you see here reflects the specific population who happened to carry the Goodman surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White75.7% · 52,681
- Black or African American15.3% · 10,668
- Two or more races3.8% · 2,644
- Hispanic or Latino3.4% · 2,371
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.0% · 693
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.7% · 520
Timeline
Historical Census data for Goodman
Goodman appears in 3 published Census surname files: 2000, 2010, 2020. The cards below show how the name's rank and bearer count changed across each release.
2010
#451
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 73,136
+1,654 bearers (+2.3%)
Per 100,000 24.79
Rank movement Down 42 places
2020
#469
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 69,577
-3,559 bearers (-4.9%)
Per 100,000 23.28
Rank movement Down 18 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #409 | 71,482 | 26.50 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #451 | 73,136 | 24.79 | +1,654 bearers (+2.3%) | Down 42 places |
| 2020 | #469 | 69,577 | 23.28 | -3,559 bearers (-4.9%) | Down 18 places |
For 2020, the Census Bureau published race and Hispanic-origin columns as counts rather than percentages. Name Census converts those counts back into shares so the ancestry section stays comparable with the older surname files.
Year on year
2010 vs 2020 Census
How has the Goodman surname changed between Census years? The chart shows bearer count side by side, and the table compares rank, count, and frequency.
Census year comparison
20102020
| Metric | 2010 | 2020 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rank | #451 | #469 | -4.0% |
| Count | 73,136 | 69,577 | -4.9% |
| Per 100K | 24.79 | 23.28 | -6.1% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Goodman bearers went from 73,136 to 69,577 (-4.9% change). The surname moved down 18 positions in the national ranking, going from #451 to #469.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Goodman
FAQ
Goodman surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Goodman?
Name Census estimates that about 79,786 living Americans carry the surname Goodman. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 4,296 residents.
How common is Goodman?
Goodman ranks #469 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Uncommon." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 23.28 per 100,000 residents, which is about 23 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 69,577 people with the surname Goodman. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (79,786), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 23.28 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 23.28 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 23 of them to have the surname Goodman.
Has Goodman become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Goodman went from 73,136 recorded bearers to 69,577. That is a decrease of 3,559 (-4.9%). In the national ranking it fell from #451 to #469.
What does the Census say about the background of Goodman?
Among Census respondents with the surname Goodman, the largest self-reported group is White at 75.7%. The next largest groups are Black (15.3%) and Two or More Races (3.8%). These figures come from the 2020 Census Bureau surname tables, based on how respondents described their own race and ethnicity.
Which group reports this surname most often?
White is the largest self-reported group for the surname Goodman in the 2020 Census, accounting for 75.7% (52,681 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Goodman appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (75.7%), Black (15.3%), Two or More Races (3.8%). For 2020, the source file also published raw headcounts for each group, which is why this page can show both percentages and counts in the ancestry section.
Is this page using the latest Census data?
Yes. This page is using the latest surname file currently loaded on Name Census, which is 2020. The historical section above also keeps any older Census surname entries we have for Goodman (2000, 2010, 2020).
Does the Census include every surname?
No. The Census Bureau only publishes surnames that appeared at least 100 times in a given decennial Census. That means very rare surnames are excluded entirely, and a surname can appear in one Census release but disappear from a later one if it falls below the reporting threshold.
Why don't the ancestry percentages always add up to exactly 100%?
There are two main reasons: rounding and suppression. The Census Bureau rounds published values, and it may suppress very small cells to protect privacy. For 2020, the Bureau also published raw group counts rather than direct percentages, so Name Census converts those counts back into shares for comparability across census years.
What does Goodman mean?
A surname referring to a person of moral character or one who is skilled at their occupation. The fuller origin note on this page goes into more detail.
Where does the surname data come from?
All surname statistics on Name Census are drawn from the US Census Bureau's decennial surname frequency tables. These files list every surname that appeared 100 or more times in the 2020 Census, along with a count, a per-100,000 rate, and a self-reported demographic breakdown. You can read the full explanation on our methodology page.
How does Name Census estimate living bearers?
For surnames, Name Census does not age cohorts the way it does for first names. Instead, it takes the Census Bureau's published frequency for Goodman (23.28 per 100,000) and applies that rate to the current U.S. resident population to estimate how many living Americans have the surname today.
How many people are called Goodman?
Our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers how many Americans have the surname Goodman at a glance, with the living-bearer count up front.