2000
#103
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 201,650
First available Census row
Per 100,000 74.75
Common Last name
Simmons
Derived from the Hebrew name "Shimon," meaning "he has heard" or "he who hears."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 229,177 Americans carry the last name Simmons. That puts it at #119 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 66.86 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 1,496 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Simmons 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 Simmons with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
229K
1 in 1,496
Census rank
#119
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
66.9
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
200K
common in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 199,853 bearers of the surname Simmons in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 66.86 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 119th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Simmons, the largest self-reported group is White at 55.5%. The next largest groups are Black (35.2%) and Two or More Races (4.8%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Simmons
The surname Simmons is of English origin, derived from the medieval given name Sim, a shortened form of Simon. The name Simon itself is derived from the Hebrew name Shim'on, meaning "to hearken" or "he has heard." The surname likely emerged in the 12th or 13th century as a patronymic, meaning "son of Sim."
The earliest recorded instances of the surname Simmons can be found in various English records, such as the Hundred Rolls of Oxfordshire from 1273, which mentions a Nicholas Symound. The Subsidy Rolls of Sussex from 1296 also list a John Symond. These early spellings, like Symound and Symond, reflect the evolution of the name from its original form.
The Simmons surname appears in several notable historical records, including the Domesday Book of 1086, which mentions a landowner named Simundus in Gloucestershire. In the 13th century, a Robert Simond is recorded as a witness to a charter in Northamptonshire in 1240.
Over the centuries, the Simmons surname has been associated with several notable individuals. One of the earliest was William Simmons (c. 1390-1458), an English clergyman who served as Bishop of Carlisle from 1436 until his death. In the 16th century, Thomas Simmons (c. 1510-1580) was an English printer and publisher who is known for printing the first edition of the Geneva Bible in 1560.
In the 17th century, Bartholomew Simmons (c. 1610-1687) was an English merchant and colonist who settled in Virginia in the 1630s and became a prominent landowner and planter. Another notable figure was Samuel Simmons (1628-1698), an English poet and translator who is best known for his translations of works by French authors.
During the 18th century, Ebenezer Simmons (1717-1787) was an American Baptist minister and author who played a significant role in the development of the Baptist church in New England. In the 19th century, Franklin Simmons (1839-1913) was an American businessman and philanthropist who founded the Simmons Bedding Company, a leading manufacturer of mattresses and bedding products.
These examples illustrate the long and rich history of the Simmons surname, which has been borne by individuals from various walks of life, including clergy, writers, merchants, and entrepreneurs, among others.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Simmons
Among Census respondents with the surname Simmons, the largest self-reported group is White at 55.5%. The next largest groups are Black (35.2%) and Two or More Races (4.8%).
The bar chart below shows how Simmons 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 Simmons surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White55.5% · 110,909
- Black or African American35.2% · 70,354
- Two or more races4.8% · 9,595
- Hispanic or Latino3.3% · 6,615
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.6% · 1,225
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.6% · 1,155
Timeline
Historical Census data for Simmons
Simmons 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
#114
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 210,182
+8,532 bearers (+4.2%)
Per 100,000 71.25
Rank movement Down 11 places
2020
#119
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 199,853
-10,329 bearers (-4.9%)
Per 100,000 66.86
Rank movement Down 5 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #103 | 201,650 | 74.75 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #114 | 210,182 | 71.25 | +8,532 bearers (+4.2%) | Down 11 places |
| 2020 | #119 | 199,853 | 66.86 | -10,329 bearers (-4.9%) | Down 5 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 Simmons 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 | #114 | #119 | -4.4% |
| Count | 210,182 | 199,853 | -4.9% |
| Per 100K | 71.25 | 66.86 | -6.2% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Simmons bearers went from 210,182 to 199,853 (-4.9% change). The surname moved down 5 positions in the national ranking, going from #114 to #119.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Simmons
FAQ
Simmons surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Simmons?
Name Census estimates that about 229,177 living Americans carry the surname Simmons. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 1,496 residents.
How common is Simmons?
Simmons ranks #119 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Common." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 66.86 per 100,000 residents, which is about 67 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 199,853 people with the surname Simmons. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (229,177), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 66.86 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 66.86 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 67 of them to have the surname Simmons.
Has Simmons become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Simmons went from 210,182 recorded bearers to 199,853. That is a decrease of 10,329 (-4.9%). In the national ranking it fell from #114 to #119.
What does the Census say about the background of Simmons?
Among Census respondents with the surname Simmons, the largest self-reported group is White at 55.5%. The next largest groups are Black (35.2%) and Two or More Races (4.8%). 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 Simmons in the 2020 Census, accounting for 55.5% (110,909 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Simmons appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (55.5%), Black (35.2%), Two or More Races (4.8%). 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 Simmons (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 Simmons mean?
Derived from the Hebrew name "Shimon," meaning "he has heard" or "he who hears." 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 Simmons (66.86 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 Americans have the surname Simmons?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.