2000
#674
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 46,437
First available Census row
Per 100,000 17.21
Uncommon Last name
Mercado
An occupational surname referring to a merchant or trader, derived from the Spanish word for "market."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 70,837 Americans carry the last name Mercado. That puts it at #533 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 20.67 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 4,839 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Mercado 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 Mercado with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
71K
1 in 4,839
Census rank
#533
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
20.7
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
62K
uncommon in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 61,773 bearers of the surname Mercado in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 20.67 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 533rd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Mercado, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 85.2%. The next largest groups are Asian/Pacific Islander (7.7%) and White (5.5%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Mercado
The surname Mercado is of Spanish origin, derived from the word "mercado," meaning "market" or "marketplace." It dates back to the medieval period in Spain, when surnames were adopted to identify individuals by their occupation, location, or other distinguishing characteristics.
The name Mercado likely originated among merchants, traders, or individuals who lived near or worked in a marketplace. It first appeared in records from the 12th and 13th centuries in various regions of Spain, such as Castile, Aragon, and Andalusia.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the surname Mercado can be found in the Libro de las Behetrías de Castilla, a 14th-century manuscript that documented landholdings and the rights of noble families in the Kingdom of Castile. The name is also mentioned in the Catastro de Ensenada, a census conducted in the 18th century during the reign of King Ferdinand VI of Spain.
Notable individuals with the surname Mercado include Juan de Mercado (1540-1598), a Spanish composer and organist during the Renaissance period. Another prominent figure was Tomás de Mercado (1523-1575), a Spanish theologian and economist known for his work on the theory of just price.
In the 16th century, the name Mercado was associated with several conquistadors and explorers, such as Pedro de Mercado, who participated in the Spanish conquest of Mexico alongside Hernán Cortés. Another notable figure was Juan Mercado, a 17th-century Spanish navigator and cartographer who explored the Pacific Ocean and contributed to the mapping of the Philippines.
The surname Mercado also has a long history in Latin America, particularly in countries like Mexico, Peru, and Argentina, where it was introduced by Spanish settlers and conquistadors during the colonial period. One notable bearer of the name was Tomás Mercado y Revilla (1623-1697), a Spanish-born Catholic prelate who served as the Bishop of Cusco in Peru.
Throughout history, the surname Mercado has been linked to various places and regions, such as the town of Mercado in the province of Ourense, Spain, and the Mercado de San Miguel in Madrid, a famous covered market dating back to the early 19th century.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Mercado
Among Census respondents with the surname Mercado, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 85.2%. The next largest groups are Asian/Pacific Islander (7.7%) and White (5.5%).
The bar chart below shows how Mercado 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 Mercado surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Hispanic or Latino85.2% · 52,612
- Asian and Pacific Islander7.7% · 4,783
- White5.5% · 3,411
- Two or more races0.8% · 480
- Black or African American0.6% · 391
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.2% · 96
Timeline
Historical Census data for Mercado
Mercado 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
#555
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 60,761
+14,324 bearers (+30.8%)
Per 100,000 20.60
Rank movement Up 119 places
2020
#533
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 61,773
+1,012 bearers (+1.7%)
Per 100,000 20.67
Rank movement Up 22 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #674 | 46,437 | 17.21 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #555 | 60,761 | 20.60 | +14,324 bearers (+30.8%) | Up 119 places |
| 2020 | #533 | 61,773 | 20.67 | +1,012 bearers (+1.7%) | Up 22 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 Mercado 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 | #555 | #533 | 4.0% |
| Count | 60,761 | 61,773 | 1.7% |
| Per 100K | 20.60 | 20.67 | 0.3% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Mercado bearers went from 60,761 to 61,773 (+1.7% change). The surname moved up 22 positions in the national ranking, going from #555 to #533.
FAQ
Mercado surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Mercado?
Name Census estimates that about 70,837 living Americans carry the surname Mercado. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 4,839 residents.
How common is Mercado?
Mercado ranks #533 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Uncommon." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 20.67 per 100,000 residents, which is about 21 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 61,773 people with the surname Mercado. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (70,837), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 20.67 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 20.67 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 21 of them to have the surname Mercado.
Has Mercado become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Mercado went from 60,761 recorded bearers to 61,773. That is an increase of 1,012 (+1.7%). In the national ranking it rose from #555 to #533.
What does the Census say about the background of Mercado?
Among Census respondents with the surname Mercado, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 85.2%. The next largest groups are Asian/Pacific Islander (7.7%) and White (5.5%). 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 Mercado in the 2020 Census, accounting for 85.2% (52,612 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Mercado appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are Hispanic (85.2%), Asian/Pacific Islander (7.7%), White (5.5%). 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 Mercado (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 Mercado mean?
An occupational surname referring to a merchant or trader, derived from the Spanish word for "market." 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 Mercado (20.67 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 are called Mercado?
See how many Americans have the surname Mercado on HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site built around that single question.