Surname Rarity Checker / How rare is Thompson
How Rare Is the Last Name Thompson?
Thompson is the 23rd most common surname in the United States. About 664,644 Americans carry it, which works out to roughly 1 in 400 people, or 0.250% of the population. That is a common surname, though far from the top of the list. Here is the full picture from the Census surname file, plus a card you can save and share.
- Rarity
- 1 in 400
- Tier
- Common
- U.S. rank
- 23rd
- Share of people
- 0.250%
- People named
- 664,644
- 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 Thompson comes from
Thompson means 'son of Thom', a short form of Thomas. The silent p crept in through English spelling habits, which is why Thomson and Thompson are the same name split by a letter.
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 Thompson?
- Thompson is in the Common tier. About 1 in 400 Americans share it, which is 0.250% of the population, and it ranks 23rd of all U.S. surnames. In total 664,644 people carried it in the 2010 Census.
- Is Thompson a rare last name?
- No. Thompson is a well-established surname rather than a rare one. It is in the Common tier, ranked 23rd of all U.S. surnames, with about 1 in 400 Americans sharing it.
- How common is the surname Thompson?
- About 1 in 400 Americans carry the surname Thompson, which is 0.250% of the population and 23rd of all U.S. surnames. That places it in the Common tier.
- How many people have the last name Thompson?
- 664,644 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 Thompson come from?
- Thompson means 'son of Thom', a short form of Thomas. The silent p crept in through English spelling habits, which is why Thomson and Thompson are the same name split by a letter.