Surname Rarity Checker / How rare is Johnson
How Rare Is the Last Name Johnson?
Johnson is the 2nd most common surname in the United States. About 1,932,812 Americans carry it, which works out to roughly 1 in 137 people, or 0.728% of the population. That is one of the most common surnames in the country. Here is the full picture from the Census surname file, plus a card you can save and share.
- Rarity
- 1 in 137
- Tier
- Very Common
- U.S. rank
- 2nd
- Share of people
- 0.728%
- People named
- 1,932,812
- Source
- Census 2010
Based on the U.S. Census Bureau 2010 surname file, which counts 265,667,228 people across 162,253 surnames held by 100 or more people.
Where the surname Johnson comes from
Johnson simply means 'son of John', and John was the most-given name in medieval England for centuries. Patronymic surnames like this one form independently in many families at once, which is why so few Johnsons are actually related.
Want to check a different last name? Try the surname rarity checker. Last names are only half the picture: the first-name rarity checker runs the same math on given names, and how common is my name combines the two.
Frequently asked questions
- How rare is the last name Johnson?
- Johnson is in the Very Common tier. About 1 in 137 Americans share it, which is 0.728% of the population, and it ranks 2nd of all U.S. surnames. In total 1,932,812 people carried it in the 2010 Census.
- Is Johnson a rare last name?
- No. Johnson is a well-established surname rather than a rare one. It is in the Very Common tier, ranked 2nd of all U.S. surnames, with about 1 in 137 Americans sharing it.
- How common is the surname Johnson?
- About 1 in 137 Americans carry the surname Johnson, which is 0.728% of the population and 2nd of all U.S. surnames. That places it in the Very Common tier.
- How many people have the last name Johnson?
- 1,932,812 people in the United States, according to the Census Bureau's 2010 surname file, which counted 265,667,228 people across 162,253 surnames.
- Where does the surname Johnson come from?
- Johnson simply means 'son of John', and John was the most-given name in medieval England for centuries. Patronymic surnames like this one form independently in many families at once, which is why so few Johnsons are actually related.