Benjamin Franklin
There are approximately 295 people named Benjamin Franklin living in the United States today. That makes this name combination very rare, occurring at a rate of about 1 in 1,161,879 Americans.
This estimate combines SSA birth records for the first name Benjamin with Census Bureau frequency data for the surname Franklin. Below you will find a breakdown of both names, including popularity trends, gender data, and ancestry information.
Expected bearers
295
1 in 1,161,879
Named Benjamin
720K
Alive today
Named Franklin
140K
Alive today
US population
343M
Denominator
Estimated living: 720K
Rarity: Very Common
Gender: Male
Peak year: 1989
Average age: 31
Estimated bearers: 140K
Rarity: Common
Census rank: #251
Per 100K: 40.89
Top ancestry: White (54.4%)
First name trend
Benjamin: popularity over time
Year-by-year SSA birth registrations for the first name Benjamin. The peak year was 1989 with 15,788 births. The average person named Benjamin today is 31 years old.
Babies born per year
Ethnicity
Ancestry of the Franklin surname
Self-reported race and ethnicity breakdown for people with the surname Franklin, from the 2010 US Census Bureau. The largest group is White at 54.4%.
- White54.4%
- Black or African American38.8%
- Two or more races2.8%
- Hispanic or Latino2.7%
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.8%
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.5%
Methodology
How we calculated this
The first name Benjamin has a living-bearer frequency of 0.2101% of the US population, based on 720,290 estimated living Americans carrying this first name (from SSA birth records going back to 1880, adjusted for mortality using CDC life tables).
The surname Franklin appears at a rate of 40.89 per 100,000 residents in the 2010 Census Bureau surname file, which translates to a frequency of 0.0409%.
Multiplying these two independent frequencies against the current US population of 342,754,338 gives an expected count of approximately 295 people with the full name Benjamin Franklin. This assumes statistical independence between first and last names, which is a simplification but produces reasonable estimates for most combinations.
Related
Other people named Benjamin
Related
Other people with the surname Franklin
FAQ
Benjamin Franklin: questions and answers
How many people are named Benjamin Franklin?
We estimate approximately 295 people in the United States share the full name Benjamin Franklin. That works out to about 1 in 1,161,879 Americans. This is calculated by combining the first-name frequency (0.2101%) with the surname frequency (40.89 per 100K) against the current US population.
How rare is the name Benjamin Franklin?
We classify Benjamin Franklin as "Very Rare". About 1 in 1,161,879 Americans share this exact first and last name combination.
Is Benjamin a male or female name?
Benjamin is predominantly male. Out of 819,436 total SSA registrations, 99.7% were male and 0.3% were female. See the full Benjamin profile for detailed gender data.
Where does this data come from?
First-name data comes from the Social Security Administration's national baby name files (1880 to 2024). Surname data comes from the 2010 US Census Bureau decennial surname tables. Living-bearer estimates use CDC actuarial life tables to adjust for mortality. Read the full methodology.