How common is the surname Smith?

2,442,977 people in the United States had the surname Smith in the 2010 Census, about 1 in every 126 Americans. It ranked 1st of 162,253 surnames.

Who is the most famous person named Smith?

Will Smith, American actor, film producer and rapper (born 1968), followed by Joseph Smith.

The surnameSmith

An English occupational surname, the most common in the United States.

Pronounced /smɪθ/ 1 syllable Soundex S530 Also a first name

Every surname held by 100 or more people in the 2010 US Census, most common on the left (162,253 in all). Smith is the most common of all.

Origin

English origin

From smith or Middle English Smith (“a surname”), alternative form of Smyth, itself from smyth (“smith”). Doublet of Schmidt, Smid, and Smit.

Smith is an occupational surname: named after the work an ancestor did.

One of 1,446 English surnames on this site.

Origin from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0).

How common it is

2010 US Census

There were 2,442,977 people named Smith in the United States in 2010, about 1 in every 126 Americans, more than any other surname. That is up 2.8% since 2000, when the Census counted 2,376,206.

rank among US surnames

2,442,977

people in 2010

828

per 100,000 Americans

+2.8%

change since 2000 (was #1)

Rank	Surname	People	1 in
#1	Smith	2,442,977	126
#2	Johnson	1,932,812	160
#3	Williams	1,625,252	190
#4	Brown	1,437,026	215
#5	Jones	1,425,470	217
#6	Garcia	1,166,120	265
#7	Miller	1,161,437	266

Who is named Smith

Race and Hispanic origin as people reported it in the 2010 Census

71% of people named Smith identified as white (not Hispanic), 23% as Black (not Hispanic) and 2.4% as Hispanic or Latino (any race).

White (not Hispanic) 71%
Black (not Hispanic) 23%
Hispanic or Latino (any race) 2.4%
Two or more races 2.2%
American Indian and Alaska Native 0.9%
Asian and Pacific Islander 0.5%

Compare: most common surnames among white Americans.

Famous Smiths

574 notable people on Wikidata, most written-about first

Will Smith
American actor, film producer and rapper (born 1968)
Joseph Smith
American religious leader and founder of the Latter Day Saint movement (1805–1844)
Patti Smith
American singer, songwriter, author and poet (born 1946)
Anna Nicole Smith
American actress and television personality (1967–2007)
Jada Pinkett Smith
American actress (born 1971)
Jaden Smith
American rapper and actor (born 1998)
Bessie Smith
American blues singer (1892–1937)
Kevin Smith
American filmmaker (born 1970)
Samantha Smith
American peace activist and child actress (1972–1985)
Willow Smith
American singer-songwriter and actress (born 2000)
Vernon L. Smith
American economist, born 1927
Hamilton Smith
American microbiologist (1931–2025)

Notable Smiths come mostly from the United States (475), Australia (38) and the United Kingdom (34).

Spellings and sound-alikes

Useful when a record has your ancestor under another spelling

Variant spellings

Smithe
Smyth
Smythe

Surnames that sound like Smith

Smith has the Soundex code S530, the code US census indexes have used since the 1930s. Every surname with code S530.

Other English surnames

All 1,446 English surnames

Questions

Where does the surname Smith come from?: From smith or Middle English Smith (“a surname”), alternative form of Smyth, itself from smyth (“smith”). Doublet of Schmidt, Smid, and Smit.
How common is the surname Smith?: 2,442,977 people in the United States had the surname Smith in the 2010 Census, about 1 in every 126 Americans. It ranked 1st of 162,253 surnames.
What ethnicity is the surname Smith?: In the 2010 Census, 71% of people named Smith identified as white (not Hispanic), and 23% as Black (not Hispanic).
Who is the most famous person named Smith?: Will Smith, American actor, film producer and rapper (born 1968), followed by Joseph Smith.