How common is the last name Nelson?

410,801 people in the United States have the last name Nelson, about 1 in 728. It ranks #44 of 156,621 last names in the 2020 Census.

last name

NELSON

#44

of 156,621 last names recorded in the 2020 Census

People
410,801
About
1 in 728
This common or more
11.4%
Who bears it

Of the 410,801 people with the last name Nelson, 75% reported their origin as White, 15.6% as Black and 3.9% as two or more races. These count how people described themselves on the 2020 Census, not where the name comes from.

Either side of Nelson

#42 Green · 415,664#43 Adams · 413,470#45 Baker · 401,148#46 Rivera · 398,449

Spelled almost the same

2 last names in the 2020 Census spelled within a letter or two of Nelson, most common first.

#5,218 Nelsen · 6,465#5,327 Neilson · 6,313

Also a first name

As a first name, Nelson ranks #676 of 53,615, with 78,256 people. As a baby name it peaked in 1959, with 1,084 births. See Nelson as a first name

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