Carter Name Meaning

Carter is an English name meaning “cart user.” Once uncommon in use, he’s risen to become a favorite among American parents.

Carter covers a lot of bases when it comes to trends. Like Carson and Lucas, he has the edgy surname feel parents are loving. He also has the hardworking roots of an occupational name like Mason or Cooper. To complete the trifecta, he’s also a unisex name, though more common among boys that girls. For history lovers, Carter has the added bonus of being a presidential name, as he’s the surname of President Jimmy Carter.

Carter has an upscale feel like Preston or Parker yet manages to avoid feeling pretentious or out of reach. He’s a popular choice on the playground but doesn’t feel as trendy as other names on the scene. He’s in his own unique realm of funky fresh, keeping things cool with his smooth sound and effortless appeal.

While the name is relatively new in popularity stateside, Carter ages well from childhood and beyond. He doesn’t feel juvenile in any way and wears well on professionals and students alike.

A less popular alternative spelling of the name is Karter and similar names include Carson, Connor, and Thatcher.

Infographic of Carter name meaning, which is A name of English origin, Carter means cart user.
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Carter Name Popularity

How popular is the name Carter? Here’s everything we know.

Year Rank # Births % Births
1910 — 0 0%
1911 — 0 0%
1912 — 16 0.0032%
1913 — 5 0.0009%
1914 — 38 0.0055%
1915 — 39 0.0043%
1916 — 51 0.0053%
1917 — 52 0.0052%
1918 — 50 0.0047%
1919 — 65 0.0062%
1920 — 62 0.0056%
1921 — 31 0.0027%
1922 — 50 0.0045%
1923 — 36 0.0032%
1924 — 73 0.0063%
1925 — 46 0.0041%
1926 — 43 0.0039%
1927 — 41 0.0037%
1928 — 33 0.0031%
1929 — 32 0.0031%
1930 — 22 0.0021%
1931 — 37 0.0037%
1932 — 20 0.002%
1933 — 35 0.0038%
1934 — 52 0.0054%
1935 — 52 0.0054%
1936 — 42 0.0044%
1937 — 43 0.0044%
1938 — 72 0.007%
1939 — 30 0.0029%
1940 — 25 0.0024%
1941 — 47 0.0042%
1942 — 46 0.0036%
1943 — 76 0.0058%
1944 — 80 0.0065%
1945 — 77 0.0063%
1946 — 97 0.0066%
1947 — 121 0.0072%
1948 — 93 0.0058%
1949 — 122 0.0076%
1950 — 116 0.0072%
1951 — 123 0.0073%
1952 — 84 0.0048%
1953 — 113 0.0064%
1954 — 130 0.0071%
1955 — 101 0.0055%
1956 — 137 0.0073%
1957 — 68 0.0035%
1958 — 100 0.0053%
1959 — 90 0.0047%
1960 — 88 0.0046%
1961 — 72 0.0038%
1962 — 76 0.0041%
1963 — 96 0.0053%
1964 — 82 0.0047%
1965 — 59 0.0036%
1966 — 55 0.0035%
1967 — 88 0.0058%
1968 — 70 0.0047%
1969 — 101 0.0066%
1970 — 103 0.0065%
1971 — 119 0.0079%
1972 — 99 0.0073%
1973 — 59 0.0046%
1974 — 69 0.0053%
1975 — 104 0.0081%
1976 — 104 0.0081%
1977 — 53 0.0039%
1978 — 20 0.0015%
1979 — 19 0.0013%
1980 — 40 0.0027%
1981 — 46 0.0031%
1982 — 69 0.0046%
1983 — 49 0.0033%
1984 — 78 0.0052%
1985 — 112 0.0074%
1986 — 117 0.0078%
1987 — 155 0.0102%
1988 — 206 0.0132%
1989 — 255 0.0158%
1990 — 272 0.0164%
1991 — 370 0.0227%
1992 — 455 0.0285%
1993 — 513 0.0329%
1994 — 504 0.0328%
1995 — 894 0.0593%
1996 — 1,199 0.0801%
1997 — 1,523 0.103%
1998 — 1,785 0.1193%
1999 — 1,938 0.1294%
2000 — 2,547 0.1667%
2001 — 3,430 0.2276%
2002 — 3,473 0.2318%
2003 — 4,171 0.2742%
2004 — 5,003 0.3282%
2005 — 5,899 0.3858%
2006 — 6,431 0.4107%
2007 — 6,100 0.3866%
2008 — 7,062 0.4569%
2009 — 8,167 0.5464%
2010 — 8,152 0.5657%
2011 — 8,596 0.6033%
2012 — 9,258 0.6497%
2013 — 9,569 0.6721%
2014 — 10,671 0.7324%
2015 — 10,771 0.7403%
2016 — 10,168 0.7052%
2017 — 9,753 0.6988%
2018 — 9,312 0.6778%
2019 — 8,631 0.6376%
2020 — 7,386 0.5803%
2021 — 7,163 0.586%
2022 — 6,213 0.471%
2023 — 5,870 0.4535%

Alaska (AK)

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Arizona (AZ)

California (CA)

Colorado (CO)

Connecticut (CT)

District of Columbia (DC)

Delaware (DE)

Florida (FL)

Georgia (GA)

Hawaii (HI)

Iowa (IA)

Idaho (ID)

Illinois (IL)

Indiana (IN)

Kansas (KS)

Kentucky (KY)

Louisiana (LA)

Massachusetts (MA)

Maryland (MD)

Maine (ME)

Michigan (MI)

Minnesota (MN)

Missouri (MO)

Mississippi (MS)

Montana (MT)

North Carolina (NC)

North Dakota (ND)

Nebraska (NE)

New Hampshire (NH)

New Jersey (NJ)

New Mexico (NM)

Nevada (NV)

New York (NY)

Ohio (OH)

Oklahoma (OK)

Oregon (OR)

Pennsylvania (PA)

Rhode Island (RI)

South Carolina (SC)

South Dakota (SD)

Tennessee (TN)

Texas (TX)

Utah (UT)

Virginia (VA)

Vermont (VT)

Washington (WA)

Wisconsin (WI)

West Virginia (WV)

Wyoming (WY)

Data via SSA.gov.


Names Like Carter

If you like Carter, you’ll love these other names like Carter.


What names are diminutives of Carter?

A diminutive is a name that’s like Carter sounds, you might also like these names that sound like Carter, but shorter.

Name Meaning Origin Popularity Other Gender
Art

A diminutive form of Arthur.

Irish

Arte

Celtic

Artie

Follower of the goddess Artemis

Greek

Carr

From the swampy place.

Scandinavian


What names are variants of Carter?

Mix it up with these names that are a variation of the name Carter.

Name Meaning Origin Popularity Other Gender
Cartere

Drives a cart

English

Cartier

One who transports goods

English

Cartrell

One who transports goods

English


What names sound like Carter?

If you like how Carter sounds, you might also like these names that sound like Carter.

Name Meaning Origin Popularity Other Gender
Carl

A variant form of Charles.

German

Carlisle

Fort at Luguvalium

English

Carlo

Free man

Spanish

Carlos

Free man

Spanish

Carlton

Free peasant settlement

English

Carmelo

Orchard;, garden

Italian

Carmen

Song

Latin

Carmine

Song

Latin

Carsan

Son of the marsh-dwellers

Scottish

Carsen

Son of the marsh-dwellers

Scottish

Carson

Son of Carr

Scottish

Carsten
Carsyn

Alternate Spelling of Carson

American

Cartland

From the land between the streams

English

Carver

One who carves wood

English

Carville

Kári settlement

French

Carwyn

Love, fair, blessed

Welsh

Karl

Free man

German

Karsten

A variant form of Christian.


What names are similar to Carter?

Find a name that’s like Carter, but just a little bit different.

Name Meaning Origin Popularity Other Gender
Caleb

Whole heart

Hebrew

Cameron

Crooked nose

Scottish

Conner

Dog lover

Irish

Cooper

Barrel maker

English

Dylan

Great tide

Welsh

Jackson

Son of Jack

English

Landon

Long hill

English

Marshall

Caretaker of horses

English

Mason

Stoneworker

English

Ryan

Little king

Irish


Lists With Carter

Find inspiration in these baby boy name lists featuring the name Carter.


Siblings of Carter

Mamas with kids named Carter also have kids with these names.

Name Meaning Origin Popularity Other Gender
Harvey

Battle ready

English

Delaney

From the alder grove

English

Sawyer

Wood Cutter

English

Cohen

Priest

Hebrew

Kate

Pure

English

Caison
Chloe

Green sprout

Greek

Blessing

Consecration

English

Dierks

16 Comments

  1. Carter was my maiden name and my family was all girls. So once I found out I was having a boy I knew I wanted him to have my family name! Luckily my Husband loved it too! It’s a simple and classic name that is timeless and family oriented for me!

  2. I have two older sons and I had myself and my husband put in names and we narrowed it down from 26 names to Carter we all liked it.

  3. After my husbandman (my children’s Dad).

  4. I like the name

  5. I just like the way it sounds, it’s simple enough, won’t be complicated to spell and goes with pretty much any middle name and last name.

  6. Carter is my Dad’s name and I always thought it was unique and different!

  7. I just loved the name!

  8. I actually named my daughter Karter and it’s unique but it’s also has a special meaning it’s my mother’s last name and since my mom only has girls and girl granddaughter I thought it would be a honor to give her that name

  9. Carter was a very strong name and I chose this name for him because no one in the family was named carter. I wanted him to have something different from everyone so he has something for himself to carry on in his life.

  10. I just really liked the name and since I was having such a hard time deciding on a name, that is what I chose…I just think its super cute/sweet and it really fits him perfectly…plus his daddy and all of our family really like it too so thats a bonus…?

  11. Me and his dad loved the name

  12. We just loved how it sounded with our very long last name. It also went along well with our daughter’s name, Kate.

  13. He was born premature and carter was a name his daddy always wanted to name his first baby

  14. I wanted something different and don’t know many people who have the name Carter so it’s unique. I find it to be a very strong name

  15. Strong Surname for a first name

  16. We loved Johnny Cash and June Carter, so we chose Carter for our first baby boy!


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