How common is the surname Stein?

43,389 people in the United States had the surname Stein in the 2010 Census, about 1 in every 7,116 Americans. It ranked 796th of 162,253 surnames.

What ethnicity is the surname Stein?

In the 2010 Census, 94% of people named Stein identified as white (not Hispanic), and 2.4% as Hispanic or Latino (any race).

Who is the most famous person named Stein?

Gertrude Stein, American author (1874–1946), followed by William Howard Stein.

Where is the surname Stein most common?

Wikidata records people named Stein in the United States, Austria and Austria–Hungary and 2 other countries.

Is the surname Stein getting more or less common?

More common. 43,331 people carried it in the 2000 Census and 43,389 in 2010, up 0.1%.

Is Stein also a first name?

Yes. Stein is used as a first name as well as a surname; its first-name page has the meaning and how many babies were given it.

The surname Stein

A German patronymic surname, carried by 43,389 people in the United States.

1 syllable Soundex S350

Every surname held by 100 or more people in the 2010 US Census, most common on the left (162,253 in all). Stein is more common than 99.5% of them.

Origin

German origin

Borrowed from German Stein. Doublet of Stone and Steen.

Stein is a patronymic surname: formed from a father’s (or ancestor’s) given name.

One of 1,101 German surnames on this site.

Origin from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0).

How common it is

2010 US Census

There were 43,389 people named Stein in the United States in 2010, about 1 in every 7,116 Americans. That is about the same as in 2000, when the Census counted 43,331.

#796

rank among US surnames

43,389

people in 2010

per 100,000 Americans

+0.1%

change since 2000 (was #720)

Rank	Surname	People	1 in
#787	Blankenship	43,830	7,044
#788	Gaines	43,821	7,046
#789	Palacios	43,798	7,049
#790	Cuevas	43,701	7,065
#791	Bartlett	43,648	7,074
#792	Durham	43,635	7,076
#793	Dorsey	43,631	7,076

Who is named Stein

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

94% of people named Stein identified as white (not Hispanic), 2.4% as Hispanic or Latino (any race) and 1.2% as two or more races.

White (not Hispanic) 94%
Hispanic or Latino (any race) 2.4%
Two or more races 1.2%
Black (not Hispanic) 1.0%
Asian and Pacific Islander 0.7%
American Indian and Alaska Native 0.4%

Compare: most common surnames among white Americans.

Famous Steins

24 notable people on Wikidata, most written-about first

Gertrude Stein
American author (1874–1946)
William Howard Stein
American biochemist (1911–1980)
Jill Stein
American politician and physician (born 1950)
Ben Stein
American actor, writer, commentator, lawyer, teacher, humorist, born 1944
Elias M. Stein
American mathematician (1931-2018)
Chris Stein
American guitarist (born 1950)
Josh Stein
American politician (born 1966)
Leo Stein
Austrian operetta librettist (1861–1921)
Seymour Stein
American music executive (1942–2023)
Miriam Stein
Austrian-Swiss actress, born 1988
Leo Stein
American art collector and critic (1872–1947)
Herbert Stein
American economist (1916–1999)

Notable Steins come mostly from the United States (18), Austria (3) and Austria–Hungary (1).

Spellings and sound-alikes

Useful when a record has your ancestor under another spelling

Surnames that sound like Stein

Stein has the Soundex code S350, the code US census indexes have used since the 1930s. Every surname with code S350.

Other German surnames

All 1,101 German surnames

Questions

Where does the surname Stein come from?: Borrowed from German Stein. Doublet of Stone and Steen.
How common is the surname Stein?: 43,389 people in the United States had the surname Stein in the 2010 Census, about 1 in every 7,116 Americans. It ranked 796th of 162,253 surnames.
What ethnicity is the surname Stein?: In the 2010 Census, 94% of people named Stein identified as white (not Hispanic), and 2.4% as Hispanic or Latino (any race).
Who is the most famous person named Stein?: Gertrude Stein, American author (1874–1946), followed by William Howard Stein.
Where is the surname Stein most common?: Wikidata records people named Stein in the United States, Austria and Austria–Hungary and 2 other countries.
What type of surname is Stein?: Stein is a patronymic surname, formed from a father’s (or ancestor’s) given name.
Is the surname Stein getting more or less common?: More common. 43,331 people carried it in the 2000 Census and 43,389 in 2010, up 0.1%.
Is Stein also a first name?: Yes. Stein is used as a first name as well as a surname; its first-name page has the meaning and how many babies were given it.