Joel Grey
There are approximately 10 people named Joel Grey living in the United States today. That makes this name combination very rare, occurring at a rate of about 1 in 34,275,434 Americans.
This estimate combines SSA birth records for the first name Joel with Census Bureau frequency data for the surname Grey. Below you will find a breakdown of both names, including popularity trends, gender data, and ancestry information.
Expected bearers
10
1 in 34,275,434
Named Joel
240K
Alive today
Named Grey
15K
Alive today
US population
343M
Denominator
Estimated living: 240K
Rarity: Common
Gender: Male
Peak year: 1985
Average age: 41
Estimated bearers: 15K
Rarity: Uncommon
Census rank: #2,845
Per 100K: 4.30
Top ancestry: White (65.2%)
First name trend
Joel: popularity over time
Year-by-year SSA birth registrations for the first name Joel. The peak year was 1985 with 4,661 births. The average person named Joel today is 41 years old.
Babies born per year
Ethnicity
Ancestry of the Grey surname
Self-reported race and ethnicity breakdown for people with the surname Grey, from the 2010 US Census Bureau. The largest group is White at 65.2%.
- White65.2%
- Black or African American23.3%
- Hispanic or Latino4.3%
- Two or more races2.7%
- American Indian and Alaska Native2.4%
- Asian and Pacific Islander2.1%
Methodology
How we calculated this
The first name Joel has a living-bearer frequency of 0.0701% of the US population, based on 240,202 estimated living Americans carrying this first name (from SSA birth records going back to 1880, adjusted for mortality using CDC life tables).
The surname Grey appears at a rate of 4.30 per 100,000 residents in the 2010 Census Bureau surname file, which translates to a frequency of 0.0043%.
Multiplying these two independent frequencies against the current US population of 342,754,338 gives an expected count of approximately 10 people with the full name Joel Grey. This assumes statistical independence between first and last names, which is a simplification but produces reasonable estimates for most combinations.
Related
Other people named Joel
Related
Other people with the surname Grey
FAQ
Joel Grey: questions and answers
How many people are named Joel Grey?
We estimate approximately 10 people in the United States share the full name Joel Grey. That works out to about 1 in 34,275,434 Americans. This is calculated by combining the first-name frequency (0.0701%) with the surname frequency (4.30 per 100K) against the current US population.
How rare is the name Joel Grey?
We classify Joel Grey as "Very Rare". About 1 in 34,275,434 Americans share this exact first and last name combination.
Is Joel a male or female name?
Joel is predominantly male. Out of 280,584 total SSA registrations, 99.1% were male and 0.9% were female. See the full Joel 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.