Thirty years of Carter
Carter in numbers
Carter has risen from 20 boys in 1996 to 536 in 2025, though it is below its peak of 1,030 in 2018. Its biggest three-year rise came between 2014 and 2017, from 530 to 1,025. It ranked 755th in 1996, reached 60th in 2018 and ranks 97th now. On average it was given to 34 boys a year in the late 1990s, 124 in the 2000s, 650 in the 2010s and 694 in the 2020s so far.
† Shapes, averages and turning points are Baby Data calculations from the ONS counts.
Milestones
First year in each bandChange
- On last year+3%520 to 536
- 5 years-43%940 to 536
- 10 years-22%689 to 536
- 20 years+358%117 to 536
- Since 1996×2720 to 536
- Total, 1996 to 202512,041boys
† All changes and totals are Baby Data calculations from ONS counts. A total adds only the published years.
Across the three nations, 2025
Each from its own statistics office, never added togetherRank 97 · ONS · 520 in 2024
Rank 79 · NRS · 71 in 2024
Rank 114 · NISRA · 20 in 2024
England and Wales (ONS) count births in the calendar year; Scotland (NRS) and Northern Ireland (NISRA) count births registered in the year. Each comes from its own statistics office and they are never added together.
Year by year, 1996 to 2025 Show all 30 yearsHide the table
| Year | Rank | Babies | Change† | 1 in X† |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | =97 | 536 | +3% | 1 in 561 |
| 2024 | 103 | 520 | -14% | 1 in 586 |
| 2023 | 86 | 603 | -18% | 1 in 503 |
| 2022 | 75 | 738 | -11% | 1 in 421 |
| 2021 | 69 | 825 | -12% | 1 in 388 |
| 2020 | 64 | 940 | -6% | 1 in 335 |
| 2019 | 63 | 1,001 | -3% | 1 in 329 |
| 2018 | 60 | 1,030 | +0% | 1 in 328 |
| 2017 | 62 | 1,025 | +22% | 1 in 340 |
| 2016 * | 82 | 839 | +22% | 1 in 424 |
| 2015 | 94 | 689 | +30% | 1 in 520 |
| 2014 | 118 | 530 | +14% | 1 in 673 |
| 2013 | =129 | 463 | +0% | 1 in 774 |
| 2012 | 135 | 461 | +68% | 1 in 812 |
| 2011 | 194 | 274 | +46% | 1 in 1,354 |
| 2010 | =251 | 188 | -18% | 1 in 1,973 |
| 2009 | 207 | 228 | +36% | 1 in 1,588 |
| 2008 | =258 | 168 | -3% | 1 in 2,160 |
| 2007 | =240 | 174 | +23% | 1 in 2,037 |
| 2006 | =261 | 142 | +21% | 1 in 2,411 |
| 2005 | =276 | 117 | +24% | 1 in 2,825 |
| 2004 | =315 | 94 | +3% | 1 in 3,493 |
| 2003 | =308 | 91 | -14% | 1 in 3,499 |
| 2002 | =267 | 106 | +41% | 1 in 2,887 |
| 2001 | =339 | 75 | +60% | 1 in 4,062 |
| 2000 | =445 | 47 | +12% | 1 in 6,587 |
| 1999 | =481 | 42 | +20% | 1 in 7,601 |
| 1998 | =538 | 35 | -13% | 1 in 9,311 |
| 1997 | =476 | 40 | +100% | 1 in 8,239 |
| 1996 | =755 | 20 | 1 in 16,674 |
* ONS’s boys’ 2016 file repeats the October total as September, so the 2016 births total is about 932 too low and 1 in X for 2016 is slightly too low. Rank follows ONS: names with the same count share a rank (shown with =). “Under 3” means the name was given to fewer than 3 babies that year, so ONS did not publish it.
Compare Carter
Draws the second name on the chart above, on a shared scale.
Share and download
Carter is in the free dataset (CSV and JSON), with the method and how to cite it.
Source: Office for National Statistics, Baby names in England and Wales, licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0; National Records of Scotland; NISRA. Exact spellings are counted separately and names given to fewer than 3 babies are not published. Figures marked † are Baby Data calculations. How we calculate