Steel
Steel was the 3174th most popular name for boys in 2025, given to 38 babies. Its best year was 2021, when it ranked 2271st with 62 babies. Over the last ten years it has moved up 247 places. More babies were named Steel in the 2010s than in any other decade.
Meaning Not yet researched how we research meanings
- Rank in 2025
- #3,174 boys, down 451 places since 2020
- Babies in 2025
- 38boys
- Girls and boys
- Almost always a boy’s name2021–2025
- Peak year
- 202162 babies
- Total since 1880
- 865babies recorded
Steel popularity since 1880
| Year | Rank (boys) | Babies (boys) |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | #3,174 | 38 |
| 2020 | #2,723 | 46 |
| 2010 | #4,503 | 22 |
| 2000 | #5,862 | 12 |
| 1990 | #5,750 | 9 |
| 1980 | — | — |
| 1970 | — | — |
| 1960 | — | — |
| 1950 | — | — |
| 1940 | — | — |
| 1930 | — | — |
| 1920 | — | — |
| 1910 | — | — |
| 1900 | — | — |
| 1890 | — | — |
| 1880 | — | — |
How popular is Steel, counting every spelling?
Steel is a spelling of Steele, a name family that ranked #994 for boys in 2025 once every spelling is counted together, compared with #3,174 for Steel on its own. Together these spellings went to 212 boys in 2025.
| Spelling | Babies 2025 | Official rank | Babies 2021–2025 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Steele | 174 | #1,185 | 686 |
| Steel | 38 | #3,174 | 231 |
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 Steel?
38 of the 3,606,400 babies born in the US in 2025 were named Steel (0.01 per 1,000 births). For a boy named Steel 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 221 (of 430 pupils) would have a child named Steel.
Shares of all registered births (NCHS); classes assumed to be children born the same year. How we estimate this.
How old are people named Steel?
About 900 people born in the US named Steel are alive today, with a median age of 10; half are between 5 and 17. That makes Steel a young name: most people with it are children.
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.
Steel by state
How common Steel was among boys born in each state in 2021–2025. In 48 states fewer than five boys a year got the name, too few for SSA to publish, so those states show as zero.
Names with a similar history
These names rose and fell in step with Steel: their share of US boys followed the most similar curve since 1880. If you like Steel, they share its era and feel.
Questions about the name Steel
How popular is the name Steel?
Steel was the 3174th most popular name for boys in 2025, given to 38 babies. Its best year was 2021, when it ranked 2271st with 62 babies. Over the last ten years it has moved up 247 places. More babies were named Steel in the 2010s than in any other decade.
Is Steel a boy or girl name?
In 2021–2025, almost always a boy’s name given the name Steel in the US.
Where is Steel most popular?
In 2021–2025, Steel was most common in Texas (0.03 per 1,000 boys), followed by California and Florida.