Masterpiece Generator Name Generator
How popular is the name Steve?
Births per year, rank history and how many Steves are alive today.
Steve (male) is a shortened form of the name Stephen. Although Steve itself was given to 18 babies in England and Wales in 2025 (ranked 1466th as a registered name), most Steves are registered as Stephen, which ranked 716th in 2025 with 49 babies.
Most people called Steve are registered as Stephen, and share that name's profile: the Stephen you are most likely to meet is around 69 years old. Half of all Stephens born in England and Wales are between 50 and 69, and there are at least 440,000 of them alive today. Only some Stephens go by Steve.
How many babies are named Steve or Stephen each year?
Combined registrations of Stephen, Steven, Steve. Figures before 1996 are estimates.
Where does Stephen rank as a registered name?
Where does Steve rank as a registered name?
Where this data comes from
Figures from 1996 onwards are the Office for National Statistics' annual baby-name registrations for England and Wales, which record every name given to three or more babies in a year. Figures before 1996 are estimates: the ONS published only top-100 rankings at ten-year intervals back to 1904, so counts for those years are modelled from the rankings, calibrated against Douglas Galbi's long-run research into English name frequencies, and shown with an uncertainty band. Estimates of living bearers combine these birth figures with national life tables and ONS mid-year population estimates.
One limit worth naming: these figures count names as registered at birth. Anyone who changes their name later in life - including trans people, and anyone who adopts a different name by deed poll or simply by use - is not reflected here. Birth registrations record where a name began, not the name a person lives with.
Common questions
Is Steve short for Stephen?
Yes - Steve is a shortened form of Stephen. Steves are usually registered as Stephen at birth.
When was the name Steve most popular?
The full name Stephen peaked in 1954, when around 16,800 babies in England and Wales were given the name. Steve itself peaked as a registered name in 1996, with 28 babies.
How many people are called Steve?
There's no official count of people who go by Steve, because it's a nickname rather than a registered name. What we can say: at least 440,000 people registered as Stephen born in England and Wales are alive today, and some of them go by Steve.
How old is the typical Steve?
Most people called Steve are registered as Stephen. Most living Stephens are between 50 and 69; the most common age is about 69.
Is Steve becoming more or less popular?
Declining: recent figures are a fraction of the 1954 peak.