Tobias
Tobias was the 283rd most popular name for boys in 2025, given to 1,201 babies. Its best year was 2016, when it ranked 246th with 1,523 babies. Over the last ten years it has moved up 33 places. More babies were named Tobias in the 2010s than in any other decade.
Meaning God is good · Hebrew, Greek
Say it tuh-BY-uhs /təˈbaɪəs/
- Rank in 2025
- #283 boys, down 20 places since 2020
- Babies in 2025
- 1,201boys
- Girls and boys
- Almost always a boy’s name2021–2025
- Peak year
- 20161,523 babies
- Total since 1880
- 29,322babies recorded
What does the name Tobias mean?
Tobias is the Greek form of Hebrew Toviyah, 'Yahweh is good' or 'the goodness of God'; DMNES, Wiktionary and Wikipedia agree. It is the name of the hero of the apocryphal Book of Tobit, as DMNES notes, and of several minor biblical figures. Wikipedia notes it is common in English-, German- and Dutch-speaking countries, and Toby is its usual English short form.
טוֹבִיָּה (Biblical Hebrew, “Toviyah, God is good”)טוֹב (Hebrew, “good”)
How sure is this? Well established.
Related names: Toby, Tobiah, Tobit, Tobia.
See also: Hebrew names, names that mean God.
Sources for this meaning
- Dictionary of Medieval Names from European Sources, ed. S. L. Uckelman, Edition 2023 no. 1, s.v. 'Tobias', Durham University / The DMNES Editors
- Wiktionary, entry 'Tobias', Wiktionary (Wikimedia Foundation); facts restated, no text reused
- Wikipedia, 'Tobias', Wikipedia (Wikimedia Foundation); facts restated, no text reused
Nicknames for Tobias
The usual nicknames for Tobias are Toby. Some parents skip the long form: for every 100 boys named Tobias in the last five years, 16 were named Toby, against 115 twenty years earlier.
| Nickname | Kind | Rank 2025 | Boys, 5 years |
|---|---|---|---|
| Toby | Traditional | #979 | 958 |
Nicknames reviewed by our editors; counts are boys given the nickname as their legal first name. Nobody records how many Tobiass go by each one.
Tobias popularity since 1880
| Year | Rank (boys) | Babies (boys) |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | #283 | 1,201 |
| 2020 | #263 | 1,295 |
| 2010 | #522 | 495 |
| 2000 | #586 | 341 |
| 1990 | #724 | 199 |
| 1980 | #547 | 246 |
| 1970 | #701 | 142 |
| 1960 | #1,177 | 45 |
| 1950 | #1,429 | 27 |
| 1940 | #1,677 | 18 |
| 1930 | #3,266 | 8 |
| 1920 | #1,741 | 21 |
| 1910 | #1,299 | 8 |
| 1900 | #1,488 | 5 |
| 1890 | #874 | 7 |
| 1880 | #800 | 7 |
How popular is Tobias, counting every spelling?
Tobias is the most common spelling of a name family that ranked #293 for boys in 2025 once every spelling is counted together, compared with #283 for Tobias on its own. Together these spellings went to 1,201 boys in 2025.
| Spelling | Babies 2025 | Official rank | Babies 2021–2025 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tobias | 1,201 | #283 | 6,148 |
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 Tobias?
1,201 of the 3,606,400 babies born in the US in 2025 were named Tobias (0.33 per 1,000 births). For a boy named Tobias 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 7 (of 430 pupils) would have a child named Tobias.
Shares of all registered births (NCHS); classes assumed to be children born the same year. How we estimate this.
How old are people named Tobias?
About 28,000 people born in the US named Tobias are alive today, with a median age of 12; half are between 6 and 25. That makes Tobias 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.
Tobias by state
How common Tobias was among boys born in each state in 2021–2025. It is notably more common than nationally in Montana (3.0×), New Mexico (2.7×), South Dakota (2.6×), Oklahoma (2.1×), North Dakota (2.0×). It is least common, relative to the national rate, in District of Columbia, New Jersey, California.
Names with a similar history
These names rose and fell in step with Tobias: their share of US boys followed the most similar curve since 1880. If you like Tobias, they share its era and feel.
Middle names for Tobias · Sibling names for Tobias
Questions about the name Tobias
What does Tobias mean?
Tobias means “God is good” (Hebrew, Greek origin). Certainty: well established.
How popular is the name Tobias?
Tobias was the 283rd most popular name for boys in 2025, given to 1,201 babies. Its best year was 2016, when it ranked 246th with 1,523 babies. Over the last ten years it has moved up 33 places. More babies were named Tobias in the 2010s than in any other decade.
Is Tobias a boy or girl name?
In 2021–2025, almost always a boy’s name given the name Tobias in the US.
Where is Tobias most popular?
In 2021–2025, Tobias was most common in Montana (2.10 per 1,000 boys), followed by New Mexico and South Dakota.