2000
#1,514
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 21,725
First available Census row
Per 100,000 8.05
Uncommon Last name
Painter
An occupational surname referring to someone who paints as a profession, such as an artist or decorator.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 23,788 Americans carry the last name Painter. That puts it at #1,690 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 6.94 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 14,409 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Painter 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 Painter with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
24K
1 in 14,409
Census rank
#1,690
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
6.9
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
21K
uncommon in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 20,744 bearers of the surname Painter in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 6.94 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 1690th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Painter, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.1%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.7%) and Hispanic (2.6%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Painter
The surname Painter is an English occupational surname derived from the Old French word "peintour" and the Middle English word "peintor", meaning a painter or decorator. The name originated in England during the medieval period and referred to someone who painted decorations, especially on buildings or furniture.
The surname Painter is first recorded in the Hundred Rolls of Cambridgeshire in 1273, where it appears as "Johanne le Peyntour". This early record suggests that the name was already in use by the 13th century. Other early spellings of the name include Peyntor, Paynter, and Painter.
In the Pipe Rolls of Northamptonshire from 1197, there is a reference to a "William le Peintour", which is one of the earliest known instances of the name. This record indicates that the occupation of painting was well-established in England by the late 12th century.
The surname Painter is also found in the Domesday Book of 1086, where it appears as "Peintor" in the county of Oxfordshire. This ancient record suggests that the name and occupation were present in England even before the Norman Conquest.
One of the earliest known bearers of the surname was John Painter, a cleric and writer who lived in the late 14th century. He is recorded as the author of a theological work titled "Opusculum de Ecclesia" (Little Work on the Church).
Another notable individual with the surname Painter was William Painter (c. 1540-1594), an English author and translator who is best known for his work "The Palace of Pleasure", a collection of stories translated from various sources.
In the 16th century, there was a family of Painters in the town of Arundel, West Sussex, who were prominent in the local community. One member, John Painter (c. 1520-1580), served as the Mayor of Arundel and was a respected figure in the town.
Robert Painter (c. 1648-1719) was an English clergyman and author who wrote several works, including "A Modest Plea for the Baptismal and Former Ages", published in 1687.
In the 18th century, Thomas Painter (1735-1799) was a prominent English painter and engraver who was elected a member of the Royal Academy of Arts in 1784.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Painter
Among Census respondents with the surname Painter, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.1%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.7%) and Hispanic (2.6%).
The bar chart below shows how Painter 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 Painter surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White91.1% · 18,892
- Two or more races3.7% · 762
- Hispanic or Latino2.6% · 536
- Black or African American1.2% · 243
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.8% · 157
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.7% · 154
Timeline
Historical Census data for Painter
Painter 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
#1,641
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 21,969
+244 bearers (+1.1%)
Per 100,000 7.45
Rank movement Down 127 places
2020
#1,690
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 20,744
-1,225 bearers (-5.6%)
Per 100,000 6.94
Rank movement Down 49 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #1,514 | 21,725 | 8.05 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #1,641 | 21,969 | 7.45 | +244 bearers (+1.1%) | Down 127 places |
| 2020 | #1,690 | 20,744 | 6.94 | -1,225 bearers (-5.6%) | Down 49 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 Painter 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 | #1,641 | #1,690 | -3.0% |
| Count | 21,969 | 20,744 | -5.6% |
| Per 100K | 7.45 | 6.94 | -6.8% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Painter bearers went from 21,969 to 20,744 (-5.6% change). The surname moved down 49 positions in the national ranking, going from #1,641 to #1,690.
FAQ
Painter surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Painter?
Name Census estimates that about 23,788 living Americans carry the surname Painter. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 14,409 residents.
How common is Painter?
Painter ranks #1,690 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Uncommon." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 6.94 per 100,000 residents, which is about 7 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 20,744 people with the surname Painter. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (23,788), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 6.94 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 6.94 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 7 of them to have the surname Painter.
Has Painter become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Painter went from 21,969 recorded bearers to 20,744. That is a decrease of 1,225 (-5.6%). In the national ranking it fell from #1,641 to #1,690.
What does the Census say about the background of Painter?
Among Census respondents with the surname Painter, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.1%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.7%) and Hispanic (2.6%). 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 Painter in the 2020 Census, accounting for 91.1% (18,892 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Painter appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (91.1%), Two or More Races (3.7%), Hispanic (2.6%). 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 Painter (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 Painter mean?
An occupational surname referring to someone who paints as a profession, such as an artist or decorator. 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 Painter (6.94 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 have the last name Painter?
See how many people are called Painter on HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site built around that single question.