| Carter | Landon | |
|---|---|---|
| Meaning | Cart driver | Long hill |
| Origin | English | English |
| Gender | Boy | Boy |
| Pronunciation | KAR-ter | LAN-dun |
| Syllables | 2 | 2 |
| First appeared | 1881 | 1882 |
| Peak year | 2015 (10,814) | 2010 (10,483) |
| In 2025 | 6,024 | 2,840 |
| Trend | Steady | Declining |
Source: US Social Security Administration.
| Decade | Carter | Landon |
|---|---|---|
| 2020s | 39,334 | 23,240 |
| 2010s | 95,261 | 79,325 |
| 2000s | 52,320 | 61,132 |
| 1990s | 9,725 | 12,510 |
| 1980s | 1,680 | 5,966 |
| 1970s | 1,359 | 1,912 |
| 1960s | 1,345 | 682 |
| 1950s | 1,612 | 337 |
| 1940s | 1,340 | 318 |
| 1930s | 863 | 477 |
| 1920s | 881 | 357 |
| 1910s | 680 | 223 |
| 1900s | 199 | 47 |
| 1890s | 134 | 42 |
| 1880s | 100 | 35 |
Carter is an English occupational surname for one who drives or makes carts.
Landon comes from an English surname and place name meaning “long hill.” A surname-name, it climbed the US charts through the 2000s.
Carter is more popular than Landon today: about 6,024 US babies were given the name Carter in 2025, compared with 2,840 named Landon.
Carter means Cart driver (English origin), while Landon means Long hill (English origin).
In US records, Carter first appears in 1881 and Landon in 1882, so Carter has the longer recorded history.