Tom Cole
There are approximately 49 people named Tom Cole living in the United States today. That makes this name combination very rare, occurring at a rate of about 1 in 6,994,986 Americans.
This estimate combines SSA birth records for the first name Tom with Census Bureau frequency data for the surname Cole. Below you will find a breakdown of both names, including popularity trends, gender data, and ancestry information.
Expected bearers
49
1 in 6,994,986
Named Tom
73K
Alive today
Named Cole
227K
Alive today
US population
343M
Denominator
Estimated living: 73K
Rarity: Uncommon
Gender: Male
Peak year: 1959
Average age: 67
Estimated bearers: 227K
Rarity: Common
Census rank: #126
Per 100K: 66.20
Top ancestry: White (75.3%)
First name trend
Tom: popularity over time
Year-by-year SSA birth registrations for the first name Tom. The peak year was 1959 with 5,080 births. The average person named Tom today is 67 years old.
Babies born per year
Ethnicity
Ancestry of the Cole surname
Self-reported race and ethnicity breakdown for people with the surname Cole, from the 2010 US Census Bureau. The largest group is White at 75.3%.
- White75.3%
- Black or African American18.9%
- Hispanic or Latino2.4%
- Two or more races2.1%
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.7%
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.6%
Methodology
How we calculated this
The first name Tom has a living-bearer frequency of 0.0214% of the US population, based on 73,314 estimated living Americans carrying this first name (from SSA birth records going back to 1880, adjusted for mortality using CDC life tables).
The surname Cole appears at a rate of 66.20 per 100,000 residents in the 2010 Census Bureau surname file, which translates to a frequency of 0.0662%.
Multiplying these two independent frequencies against the current US population of 342,754,338 gives an expected count of approximately 49 people with the full name Tom Cole. This assumes statistical independence between first and last names, which is a simplification but produces reasonable estimates for most combinations.
Related
Other people named Tom
Related
Other people with the surname Cole
FAQ
Tom Cole: questions and answers
How many people are named Tom Cole?
We estimate approximately 49 people in the United States share the full name Tom Cole. That works out to about 1 in 6,994,986 Americans. This is calculated by combining the first-name frequency (0.0214%) with the surname frequency (66.20 per 100K) against the current US population.
How rare is the name Tom Cole?
We classify Tom Cole as "Very Rare". About 1 in 6,994,986 Americans share this exact first and last name combination.
Is Tom a male or female name?
Tom is predominantly male. Out of 140,303 total SSA registrations, 99.6% were male and 0.4% were female. See the full Tom 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.