2000
#571
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 53,161
First available Census row
Per 100,000 19.71
Uncommon Last name
Franco
An Italian and Spanish surname referring to a person from France or of French descent.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 81,001 Americans carry the last name Franco. That puts it at #458 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 23.63 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 4,231 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Franco surname. You will find the Census Bureau frequency data, a multi-census history view, an ancestry and ethnicity breakdown based on self-reported demographics, the name's meaning and origin where available, and answers to the most common questions people ask about this surname.
For British records, Name Census UK has a British surname profile for Franco with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
81K
1 in 4,231
Census rank
#458
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
23.6
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
71K
uncommon in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 70,637 bearers of the surname Franco in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 23.63 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 458th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Franco, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 80.9%. The next largest groups are White (15.3%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (2.0%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Franco
The surname FRANCO is of Italian origin, derived from the Latin word "Francus" which means "free" or "freeman". It was originally used as a personal name during the Middle Ages.
The name is believed to have originated in the region of Lombardy in Northern Italy, where it first appeared in historical records as early as the 12th century. Some of the earliest recorded examples of the name include Guido Franco, a nobleman from Milan in the late 12th century, and Jacobo Franco, a merchant from Genoa in the 13th century.
As the name spread across Italy, it underwent various spelling variations such as Franchi, Franchin, and Franceschi. These variations often reflected regional dialects and local pronunciation differences.
The FRANCO surname is also associated with several notable figures throughout history. One of the most famous was Niccolo Franco, a 16th-century Italian poet and satirist born in Benevento in 1510 and died in 1569. Another prominent figure was Battista Franco, an Italian painter and etcher who lived from 1498 to 1561 and was known for his contributions to the Venetian Renaissance art scene.
In the 18th century, the name gained further prominence with the Italian philosopher and writer Francesco Franco, born in Naples in 1717 and died in 1790. He was known for his works on ethics and moral philosophy.
Another notable figure was Francisco Franco, the Spanish military general and dictator who ruled Spain from 1939 until his death in 1975. Although his surname was of Italian origin, he was born in Spain and played a pivotal role in the country's history during the 20th century.
The name FRANCO has also been associated with various place names in Italy, such as Francolise, a town in the province of Caserta, and the Francavilla municipalities found in several regions, including Abruzzo, Calabria, and Puglia.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Franco
Among Census respondents with the surname Franco, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 80.9%. The next largest groups are White (15.3%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (2.0%).
The bar chart below shows how Franco bearers described their own race and ethnicity on the 2020 Census form. The Census Bureau groups responses into six broad categories: White, Black or African American, Hispanic or Latino, Asian and Pacific Islander, American Indian and Alaska Native, and Two or More Races. When a category has too few respondents for a given surname, the Bureau suppresses the figure to protect individual privacy, which is why some names show fewer than six slices.
Percentages are shown for every Census year so the breakdown stays comparable over time. When the source file also includes raw headcounts, Name Census shows those alongside the percentages in the legend.
Keep in mind that these are self-reported numbers. A person's surname does not determine their race or ethnicity, and the distribution you see here reflects the specific population who happened to carry the Franco surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Hispanic or Latino80.9% · 57,117
- White15.3% · 10,823
- Asian and Pacific Islander2.0% · 1,417
- Two or more races0.8% · 535
- Black or African American0.7% · 504
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.3% · 241
Timeline
Historical Census data for Franco
Franco appears in 3 published Census surname files: 2000, 2010, 2020. The cards below show how the name's rank and bearer count changed across each release.
2010
#476
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 69,943
+16,782 bearers (+31.6%)
Per 100,000 23.71
Rank movement Up 95 places
2020
#458
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 70,637
+694 bearers (+1.0%)
Per 100,000 23.63
Rank movement Up 18 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #571 | 53,161 | 19.71 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #476 | 69,943 | 23.71 | +16,782 bearers (+31.6%) | Up 95 places |
| 2020 | #458 | 70,637 | 23.63 | +694 bearers (+1.0%) | Up 18 places |
For 2020, the Census Bureau published race and Hispanic-origin columns as counts rather than percentages. Name Census converts those counts back into shares so the ancestry section stays comparable with the older surname files.
Year on year
2010 vs 2020 Census
How has the Franco surname changed between Census years? The chart shows bearer count side by side, and the table compares rank, count, and frequency.
Census year comparison
20102020
| Metric | 2010 | 2020 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rank | #476 | #458 | 3.8% |
| Count | 69,943 | 70,637 | 1.0% |
| Per 100K | 23.71 | 23.63 | -0.3% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Franco bearers went from 69,943 to 70,637 (+1.0% change). The surname moved up 18 positions in the national ranking, going from #476 to #458.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Franco
FAQ
Franco surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Franco?
Name Census estimates that about 81,001 living Americans carry the surname Franco. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 4,231 residents.
How common is Franco?
Franco ranks #458 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Uncommon." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 23.63 per 100,000 residents, which is about 24 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 70,637 people with the surname Franco. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (81,001), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 23.63 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 23.63 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 24 of them to have the surname Franco.
Has Franco become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Franco went from 69,943 recorded bearers to 70,637. That is an increase of 694 (+1.0%). In the national ranking it rose from #476 to #458.
What does the Census say about the background of Franco?
Among Census respondents with the surname Franco, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 80.9%. The next largest groups are White (15.3%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (2.0%). These figures come from the 2020 Census Bureau surname tables, based on how respondents described their own race and ethnicity.
Which group reports this surname most often?
Hispanic is the largest self-reported group for the surname Franco in the 2020 Census, accounting for 80.9% (57,117 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Franco appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are Hispanic (80.9%), White (15.3%), Asian/Pacific Islander (2.0%). For 2020, the source file also published raw headcounts for each group, which is why this page can show both percentages and counts in the ancestry section.
Is this page using the latest Census data?
Yes. This page is using the latest surname file currently loaded on Name Census, which is 2020. The historical section above also keeps any older Census surname entries we have for Franco (2000, 2010, 2020).
Does the Census include every surname?
No. The Census Bureau only publishes surnames that appeared at least 100 times in a given decennial Census. That means very rare surnames are excluded entirely, and a surname can appear in one Census release but disappear from a later one if it falls below the reporting threshold.
Why don't the ancestry percentages always add up to exactly 100%?
There are two main reasons: rounding and suppression. The Census Bureau rounds published values, and it may suppress very small cells to protect privacy. For 2020, the Bureau also published raw group counts rather than direct percentages, so Name Census converts those counts back into shares for comparability across census years.
What does Franco mean?
An Italian and Spanish surname referring to a person from France or of French descent. The fuller origin note on this page goes into more detail.
Where does the surname data come from?
All surname statistics on Name Census are drawn from the US Census Bureau's decennial surname frequency tables. These files list every surname that appeared 100 or more times in the 2020 Census, along with a count, a per-100,000 rate, and a self-reported demographic breakdown. You can read the full explanation on our methodology page.
How does Name Census estimate living bearers?
For surnames, Name Census does not age cohorts the way it does for first names. Instead, it takes the Census Bureau's published frequency for Franco (23.63 per 100,000) and applies that rate to the current U.S. resident population to estimate how many living Americans have the surname today.
How many people have the last name Franco?
See how many people have the last name Franco on HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site built around that single question.