2000
#1,883
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 17,488
First available Census row
Per 100,000 6.48
Uncommon Last name
Pinto
A surname of Spanish and Portuguese origin referring to a person with mottled or patchy skin or hair.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 25,010 Americans carry the last name Pinto. That puts it at #1,600 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 7.30 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 13,705 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Pinto 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 Pinto with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
25K
1 in 13,705
Census rank
#1,600
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
7.3
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
22K
uncommon in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 21,810 bearers of the surname Pinto in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 7.30 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 1600th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Pinto, the largest self-reported group is White at 45.3%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (40.3%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (5.9%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Pinto
The surname Pinto is of Portuguese origin, and it is derived from the word "pinto," which means "chick" or "young rooster" in Portuguese. The name can be traced back to the late Middle Ages in Portugal, where it was likely used as a nickname or descriptive name for someone who had a resemblance to a young chicken or rooster.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the surname Pinto can be found in the "Livro das Linhagens" (Book of Lineages), a medieval Portuguese genealogical manuscript from the 13th century. This document mentions several individuals with the surname Pinto, suggesting that the name was already well-established by that time.
During the Age of Discovery in the 15th and 16th centuries, many Portuguese explorers and navigators bore the surname Pinto. One notable example is Fernão Mendes Pinto (c. 1509-1583), a Portuguese explorer and writer who traveled extensively throughout Asia and documented his adventures in his famous work "Peregrinação" (The Travels).
The Pinto surname also has a strong connection to the Azores Islands, an autonomous region of Portugal located in the mid-Atlantic Ocean. Many families with the surname Pinto can trace their roots back to these islands, where the name has been present for centuries.
In the 16th century, the Pinto name was associated with the Portuguese conquest and colonization of Brazil. Several early settlers and administrators in the Portuguese colony bore this surname, including Fernão Pinto de Sousa Coutinho (c. 1635-1703), a Portuguese military officer and colonial governor of Rio de Janeiro.
Another notable figure with the surname Pinto is Isaac Pinto (1717-1787), a Dutch-Jewish philosopher, writer, and financier who was born in Holland but traced his ancestry back to Portugal. He was a prominent figure in the Dutch Enlightenment and wrote extensively on topics such as economics, philosophy, and religion.
In more recent times, the Pinto surname has spread globally due to Portuguese emigration and diaspora communities. Some notable individuals with this last name include Roberto Pinto (1975-), a Chilean footballer who played for several European clubs; Andrés Pinto (1969-), a Colombian artist and sculptor; and Inês Pinto (1979-), a Portuguese actress and model.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Pinto
Among Census respondents with the surname Pinto, the largest self-reported group is White at 45.3%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (40.3%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (5.9%).
The bar chart below shows how Pinto 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 Pinto surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White45.3% · 9,882
- Hispanic or Latino40.3% · 8,798
- Asian and Pacific Islander5.9% · 1,282
- Black or African American3.4% · 743
- American Indian and Alaska Native2.7% · 591
- Two or more races2.4% · 514
Timeline
Historical Census data for Pinto
Pinto 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
#1,687
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 21,366
+3,878 bearers (+22.2%)
Per 100,000 7.24
Rank movement Up 196 places
2020
#1,600
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 21,810
+444 bearers (+2.1%)
Per 100,000 7.30
Rank movement Up 87 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #1,883 | 17,488 | 6.48 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #1,687 | 21,366 | 7.24 | +3,878 bearers (+22.2%) | Up 196 places |
| 2020 | #1,600 | 21,810 | 7.30 | +444 bearers (+2.1%) | Up 87 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 Pinto 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 | #1,687 | #1,600 | 5.2% |
| Count | 21,366 | 21,810 | 2.1% |
| Per 100K | 7.24 | 7.30 | 0.8% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Pinto bearers went from 21,366 to 21,810 (+2.1% change). The surname moved up 87 positions in the national ranking, going from #1,687 to #1,600.
FAQ
Pinto surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Pinto?
Name Census estimates that about 25,010 living Americans carry the surname Pinto. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 13,705 residents.
How common is Pinto?
Pinto ranks #1,600 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Uncommon." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 7.30 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 21,810 people with the surname Pinto. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (25,010), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 7.3 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 7.30 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 Pinto.
Has Pinto become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Pinto went from 21,366 recorded bearers to 21,810. That is an increase of 444 (+2.1%). In the national ranking it rose from #1,687 to #1,600.
What does the Census say about the background of Pinto?
Among Census respondents with the surname Pinto, the largest self-reported group is White at 45.3%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (40.3%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (5.9%). 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 Pinto in the 2020 Census, accounting for 45.3% (9,882 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Pinto appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (45.3%), Hispanic (40.3%), Asian/Pacific Islander (5.9%). 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 Pinto (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 Pinto mean?
A surname of Spanish and Portuguese origin referring to a person with mottled or patchy skin or hair. 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 Pinto (7.30 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 share the surname Pinto?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.