Ricardo
Ricardo was the 380th most popular name for boys in 2025, given to 833 babies. Its best year was 1992, when it ranked 115th; the most babies were born in 1998 (3,044). Over the last ten years it has moved down 103 places. More babies were named Ricardo in the 1990s than in any other decade.
Meaning strong ruler (Spanish form of Richard) · Germanic, Spanish
Say it rih-KAR-doh /rɪˈkɑrdoʊ/
- Rank in 2025
- #380 boys, down 41 places since 2020
- Babies in 2025
- 833boys
- Girls and boys
- Almost always a boy’s name2021–2025
- Peak year
- 19983,044 babies
- Total since 1880
- 147,169babies recorded
What does the name Ricardo mean?
Ricardo is the Spanish and Portuguese form of Richard. DMNES derives Richard from Old High German rīh, "ruler", and hart, "strong, hard", and Harrison (1918) glosses it "powerfully brave". The name came to England with the Normans and became royal there, with Richard the Lionheart. In the US Ricardo is used mainly in Latino families.
rīh (Old High German, “ruler, powerful”)hart (Old High German, “hard, strong, brave”)
How sure is this? Well established.
Related names: Richard, Riccardo, Ricky, Rico.
See also: Germanic names, names that mean strength, names that mean king or queen.
Sources for this meaning
- Wiktionary, entry 'Ricardo', Wiktionary (Wikimedia Foundation)
- Dictionary of Medieval Names from European Sources (ed. S. L. Uckelman), Edition 2023 no. 1, s.v. 'Richard', DMNES, Durham University
- Henry Harrison, Surnames of the United Kingdom: A Concise Etymological Dictionary, vol. 2 (1918), s.v. 'RICHARD', Morland Press (public domain; Internet Archive scan)
Nicknames for Ricardo
The usual nicknames for Ricardo are Ricky, Rick and Richie. Some parents skip the long form: for every 100 boys named Ricardo in the last five years, 32 were named Ricky, against 29 twenty years earlier. Richie is also gaining on the full name.
| Nickname | Kind | Rank 2025 | Boys, 5 years |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ricky · also for Richard, Eric, Rick | Traditional | #949 | 1,435 |
| Rick · also for Richard, Eric, Derek | Traditional | #3,077 | 216 |
| Richie · also for Richard | Modern | #1,861 | 391 |
Nicknames reviewed by our editors; counts are boys given the nickname as their legal first name. Nobody records how many Ricardos go by each one.
Ricardo popularity since 1880
A few girls are given the name too: 713 since 1942.
| Year | Rank (boys) | Babies (boys) |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | #380 | 833 |
| 2020 | #339 | 963 |
| 2010 | #195 | 1,886 |
| 2000 | #134 | 2,918 |
| 1990 | #120 | 2,802 |
| 1980 | #117 | 2,324 |
| 1970 | #172 | 1,653 |
| 1960 | #215 | 1,311 |
| 1950 | #265 | 614 |
| 1940 | #399 | 207 |
| 1930 | #391 | 216 |
| 1920 | #774 | 74 |
| 1910 | #1,180 | 9 |
| 1900 | — | — |
| 1890 | — | — |
| 1880 | — | — |
How popular is Ricardo, counting every spelling?
Ricardo is the most common spelling of a name family that ranked #386 for boys in 2025 once every spelling is counted together, compared with #380 for Ricardo on its own. Together these spellings went to 849 boys in 2025.
| Spelling | Babies 2025 | Official rank | Babies 2021–2025 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ricardo | 833 | #380 | 4,446 |
| Riccardo | 16 | #5,794 | 70 |
Spellings count together when they sound the same in American English and are used for the same sex; nicknames and forms that sound different (such as Theo and Theodore) are kept apart. How we group spellings.
How many kids will share the name Ricardo?
833 of the 3,606,400 babies born in the US in 2025 were named Ricardo (0.23 per 1,000 births). For a boy named Ricardo born in 2025, the chance that another child with the same name is in a class of 20 children the same age is under 1 in 50. If every grade liked the name as much as the 2025 babies do, only about one elementary school in 10 (of 430 pupils) would have a child named Ricardo.
Shares of all registered births (NCHS); classes assumed to be children born the same year. How we estimate this.
How old are people named Ricardo?
About 131,000 people born in the US named Ricardo are alive today, with a median age of 33; half are between 22 and 48. That makes Ricardo mostly worn by adults in their thirties to fifties.
Babies given the name each year (SSA) times the share of that birth year still alive (SSA life tables). Counts people born in the US only. Method.
Ricardo by state
How common Ricardo was among boys born in each state in 2021–2025. It is notably more common than nationally in New Mexico (2.6×), Texas (2.6×), Arizona (2.4×), California (2.2×), Nevada (1.7×). It is least common, relative to the national rate, in Iowa, Kentucky, Wisconsin.
Names with a similar history
These names rose and fell in step with Ricardo: their share of US boys followed the most similar curve since 1880. If you like Ricardo, they share its era and feel.
Middle names for Ricardo · Sibling names for Ricardo
Questions about the name Ricardo
What does Ricardo mean?
Ricardo means “strong ruler (Spanish form of Richard)” (Germanic, Spanish origin). Certainty: well established.
How popular is the name Ricardo?
Ricardo was the 380th most popular name for boys in 2025, given to 833 babies. Its best year was 1992, when it ranked 115th; the most babies were born in 1998 (3,044). Over the last ten years it has moved down 103 places. More babies were named Ricardo in the 1990s than in any other decade.
Is Ricardo a boy or girl name?
In 2021–2025, almost always a boy’s name given the name Ricardo in the US.
Where is Ricardo most popular?
In 2021–2025, Ricardo was most common in New Mexico (1.37 per 1,000 boys), followed by Texas and Arizona.