Candice vs Emma
How Candice and Emma compare across 146 years of US Social Security Administration baby-name records — popularity history, peak years, current rank, and which name overtook which.
Candice
Female · English
Meaning: Variant Of Candace - Ancient Hereditary Title Used By Ethiopian Queens.
US Popularity History — Side-by-Side
Annual US births named Candice (girls) vs Emma (girls), from US Social Security Administration national records.
Source: US Social Security Administration. Names appearing fewer than 5 times per year are suppressed by SSA.
Quick Stats
| Metric | Candice | Emma |
|---|---|---|
| Peak year (most US births) | 1982 — 3,791 girls | 2003 — 22,719 girls |
| Peak rank | #78 | #2 |
| Most recent rank (2003) | #920 (258 births) | #3 (12,754 births) |
| Total US births since 1880 | 21,632 | 713,779 |
| Last 10 years (1994–2003) | 1,123 | 161,030 |
Peak comparison takeaway
At its all-time peak, Emma reached 22,719 US births in 2003 — 18,928 more than Candice's peak count.
Crossover Years
Years where one name first passed the other in annual US births. A name "winning" in a year means it had more births that year, not necessarily a higher rank.
| Year | New leader | Candice births | Emma births |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1980 | Candice | 3,012 | 0 |
| 1993 | Emma | 0 | 4,108 |
Strongest States — Last 10 Years
States where each name ranked highest, from SSA's state-level dataset. Lower average rank = name appears closer to the top of that state's girls-name list.
Candice — top 5 states
| # | State | Avg rank | Births |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Kentucky | #632 | 18 |
| 2 | Maryland | #921 | 15 |
| 3 | California | #923 | 181 |
Emma — top 5 states
| # | State | Avg rank | Births |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Texas | #1 | 17,678 |
| 2 | New York | #2 | 8,974 |
| 3 | New Jersey | #2 | 4,400 |
| 4 | Arizona | #2 | 3,425 |
| 5 | Pennsylvania | #2 | 5,543 |
Want a different comparison?
Data & methodology
Source: US Social Security Administration national baby names dataset 1880–2025 (CC0 public domain). Names with fewer than 5 occurrences in a given year are suppressed by SSA. State-level coverage runs 1910–2025. Crossover detection compares annual birth counts (not ranks) for each year both names appear. Methodology: see full notes. More comparisons →