Jesse
Top 1000
About Jesse
King David's father turned 1980s cowboy, Jesse is now down in popularity but still a Biblical classic, ranking in the US Top 1000 for its entire history. The name is associated with a wide variety of bearers, from outlaw Jesse James to Olympic athlete Jesse Owens to activist Jesse Jackson to current actors Jesse Tyler Ferguson and Jesse Eisenberg. The spelling Jesse is more usual as a boys' name while Jessie is more traditional for girls.
Pronounced JES-ee.
As of October 2026, Jesse ranked #184 in US births in 2025 SSA, peaked at #26 in 1887, Nameberry popularity #193.
Editor's take: The name Jesse is a boy's name of Hebrew origin meaning "God exists".
Popularity & trends
Data table
| Year | US rank | Births | Per million |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2014 | #172 | 2,469 | 1,285.4 |
| 2015 | #178 | 2,357 | 1,229.7 |
| 2016 | #174 | 2,309 | 1,216.7 |
| 2017 | #186 | 2,105 | 1,137.3 |
| 2018 | #186 | 2,144 | 1,180.5 |
| 2019 | #199 | 1,978 | 1,102.4 |
| 2020 | #203 | 1,885 | 1,092.1 |
| 2021 | #203 | 1,905 | 1,088.9 |
| 2022 | #192 | 1,975 | 1,131.2 |
| 2023 | #202 | 1,823 | 1,065.7 |
| 2024 | #187 | 1,980 | 1,149.2 |
| 2025 | #184 | 2,002 | 1,172.1 |
World rankings
Similar names
These 20 names were selected by our users looking for other names like Jesse.
Jesse on lists
Famous Jesses
- Jesse Lee Soffer
American actor
- Jesse
Biblical father of King David, "The Jesse Tree"
- James Cleveland "Jesse" Owens
American Olympic athlete and civil rights icon
- Jesse Gordon Spencer
Australian actor
- Jesse Louis Jackson
Sr., American civil rights activist and politician
- Jesse Woodson James
American outlaw
- Jesse Ventura (born James George Janos)
American politician; former governor of Minnesota; actor, author, pro wrestler
- Jesse Louis Lasky
American movie producer
- Jesse McCartney
American singer/actor
- Jesse Adam Eisenberg
American actor
- J. Wesley "Jesse" Williams
American actor
- Jesse Eden Metcalfe
American actor
- Jesse Bradford
American actor
- Jesse Tyler Ferguson
American actor
- Jesse Royal Carmichael
keyboardist with band Maroon 5
- Jesse James
American TV personality and creator of motorcycles
- Jesse Weaver Jr. aka Schoolly D
American rapper
- Jesse Levine
American,Canadian tennis player
- Jesse Huta Galung
Dutch tennis player
- Jesse Alexander Helms
Jr., U.S. Senator from North Carolina
- Jesse Moss
Canadian Actor
- Jesse Lanier Cooper
son of actress Marianne Leone Cooper
- Jesse James Wood
English Musician and son of Rolling Stone Ronnie Wood
- Jesse Plemons
American actor
- Jesse "Dr." Blum
American musician of band MisterWives
- Jesse Lamont Martin (b. Watkins)
American actor and singer
- Jesse Jameson Ortiz (b. 2009)
son of American actress Jenna Jameson
- Jesse Lingard
English footballer for Manchester United
Jesse in pop culture
- Jesse Blackthorn
a Cassandra Clare character from The Shadowhunters Chronicles
- Jesse Katsopolis
character on "Full House"
- Jesse Wallace
character in the "Before Sunrise" films
- Jesse Thierry
character in the novel "Out of the Easy"
- Jesse Bruce Pinkman
character on TV's "Breaking Bad"
- Jesse Swanson
character in the movie "Pitch Perfect"
- Jesse St. James
character on TV's "Glee"
- Jesse Fitzgerald
character in Jodi Picoult's novel "My Sister's Keeper"
- Jesse Kinsella
character on television series "Hart of Dixie"
- Jesse Custer
character in DC Universe's "Preacher"
- Jesse
character from "My Babysitter's a Vampire"
- "Celeste and Jesse Forever
" 2012 American film
- Jesse McKay
character in 1991 Nancy Drew novel "The Secret at Seven Rocks"
- Jesse Aarons
character in the book "Bridge to Terabithia"
- Jesse
character in the game "Minecraft Story Mode"
- Jesse
character in animated series "Star Wars: The Clone Wars"
- Jesse Sallander
senior nurse on "Code Black"
- Jesse McCree
character from the video game "Overwatch"
- Jesse Tuck
character in the book, movie, and musical "Tuck Everlasting"
- Jesse Cosay
main character in the animated series “Infinity Train”