Tessa
2025 SSA
Below 5 births
About Tessa
Tessa is one of those golden names that's been popular but not TOO popular for several decades now. Tessa has ranked in the Top 500 in the US since 1981 but has risen only once above Number 200.
Among baby girl names, Tessa's much more popular than either mother name Theresa or shorter form Tess. Today, many people may not even remember that Tessa originated as a short form of Theresa as it stands quite nicely on its own.
Tessa is far more popular and more durable than sister name Tess, which had a heyday in the 1990s but fell out of the Top 1000 in 2013.
Tessa is also given to boys.
Pronounced TES-ah.
As of October 2026, Tessa ranked #311 in US births in 2025 SSA, peaked at #190 in 2007, Nameberry popularity #81.
Popularity & trends
Data table
| Year | US rank | Births | Per million |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2014 | #221 | 1,526 | 854.3 |
| 2015 | #208 | 1,560 | 873.9 |
| 2016 | #229 | 1,394 | 786.7 |
| 2017 | #245 | 1,295 | 750.1 |
| 2018 | #245 | 1,329 | 781.3 |
| 2019 | #260 | 1,266 | 754.3 |
| 2020 | #279 | 1,135 | 702.1 |
| 2021 | #287 | 1,116 | 680.1 |
| 2022 | #331 | 972 | 592.6 |
| 2023 | #323 | 964 | 600.8 |
| 2024 | #303 | 1,034 | 638.2 |
| 2025 | #311 | 978 | 608.5 |
World rankings
Similar names
These 20 names were selected by our users looking for other names like Tessa.
Tessa on lists
Famous Tessas
- Tessa Lynne ThompsonGirl
American actress
- Tessa De LooGirl
pen name of Johanna Martina "Tineke" Duyvené de Wit, Dutch novelist
- Tessa RumseyGirl
American poet
- Tessa AllenGirl
American actress
- Tessa VirtueGirl
Canadian Olympic ice dancer
- Tessa GradyGirl
American actress
- Tessa BonhommeGirl
Canadian ice hockey player
- Tessa Jane JowellGirl
English MP and Minister for the Olympics
- Tessa Jane MuntGirl
English MP
- Tessa NettingGirl
YouTuber and actress
- Chantal Sophia "Tessa" DahlGirl
English novelist and actress; daughter of novelist Roald Dahl
- Tessa Ferrer (b. 1986)Girl
daughter of singer Debby Boone and actor Gabriel Ferrer
- Tessa Violet WilliamsGirl
YouTube vlogger and singer,songwriter
- Tessa BrooksGirl
American dancer and YouTuber
Tessa in pop culture
- Theresa "Tessa" GrayGirl
character in The Infernal Devices and Mortal Instruments by Cassandra Clare
- Tessa O'ConnellGirl
main character in The Bad Boy Series by Blair Holden
- Tessa YoungGirl
main character in The After Series by Anna Todd
- Tessa QuayleGirl
main character in film "The Constant Gardener"
- Tessa AltmanGirl
character on TV's "Suburgatory"
- Tessa NoëlGirl
character on TV's "Highlander: The Series"
- TessaGirl
"contadina," mistress to Tito Melema, in Romola (1862) by George Eliot
- TessaGirl
"contadina" who marries Giuseppe Palmieri in the Gilbert and Sullivan opera The Gondoliers (1889)
- Tessa ReynoldsGirl
main character in "Heaven Looks a Lot Like the Mall" by Wendy Mass
- Tessa ScottGirl
main character in "Before I Die" and film "Now is Good"
- TessaGirl
character in the Red Earth video game series
- Teletha "Tessa" TestarossaGirl
character in anime/manga "Full Metal Panic"
- TessaGirl
reaper on Supernatural
- TessaGirl
main character in blog series "Dark Intensions" and "Dark Vows"
- TessaGirl
character on Showtime's "Masters of Sex"
- Tessa CampanelliGirl
minor character on "Degrassi Junior High" and "Degrassi High", and major character in "Degrassi: School's Out!"
- Tessa DickinsonGirl
character from "100 Days of Sunlight" by Abbie Emmons
- TessaGirl
Tom Holland’s dog
- Tessa ElliottGirl
character from Glitch’s Youtube series “Murder Drones”