Head to head · Boys' names
Collin vs Leland
#493 vs #494 in 2025 · both holding its place on the charts
Collin is a whisker ahead (#493 vs #494 in 2025) and both are holding its place on the charts. The records will not split these two — sound, story and your own last name will.
Cast your vote
Which one would you pick?
Your gut first, the numbers after — the split shows once you pick.
The tale of the tape
On the charts, Collin leads 4 measures of 6; Leland leads 1.
Ranks, counts and years are measured in the official US birth record; the classroom and living figures are estimates computed from it. The dot marks the side each measure favours on the charts — more common, not better.
What the records say
146 years of US births, drawn on one scale
Two curves, one scale
Who owned which decade
- 1880s: Collin —, Leland #429 — Leland higher
- 1890s: Collin #1079, Leland #236 — Leland higher
- 1900s: Collin #1068, Leland #222 — Leland higher
- 1910s: Collin #1837, Leland #204 — Leland higher
- 1920s: Collin #1891, Leland #179 — Leland higher
- 1930s: Collin #1905, Leland #201 — Leland higher
- 1940s: Collin #1143, Leland #236 — Leland higher
- 1950s: Collin #1081, Leland #318 — Leland higher
- 1960s: Collin #850, Leland #418 — Leland higher
- 1970s: Collin #587, Leland #541 — Leland higher
- 1980s: Collin #340, Leland #615 — Collin higher
- 1990s: Collin #157, Leland #809 — Collin higher
- 2000s: Collin #146, Leland #790 — Collin higher
- 2010s: Collin #260, Leland #381 — Collin higher
- 2020s: Collin #472, Leland #493 — Collin higher
Leland stood higher in 10 of 15 decades; Collin has held the lead since the 1980s.
Rank by decade
| Decade | Collin | Leland |
|---|---|---|
| 1880s | — | #429 |
| 1890s | #1079 | #236 |
| 1900s | #1068 | #222 |
| 1910s | #1837 | #204 |
| 1920s | #1891 | #179 |
| 1930s | #1905 | #201 |
| 1940s | #1143 | #236 |
| 1950s | #1081 | #318 |
| 1960s | #850 | #418 |
| 1970s | #587 | #541 |
| 1980s | #340 | #615 |
| 1990s | #157 | #809 |
| 2000s | #146 | #790 |
| 2010s | #260 | #381 |
| 2020s | #472 | #493 |
Average national rank across each decade. A dash means the name sat outside the recorded top of that decade.
The names themselves
Meaning, roots, sound and the people who carried each
Where each name comes from
Collin
a young hound, or little Nicholas
Two unrelated lines meet here. The Gaelic Cailean means a whelp or young dog, which was a compliment in a hunting culture rather than an insult. The English Colin is Col, an old short form of Nicholas, with the French diminutive ending -in. Both were in use in Britain by the Middle Ages, and the spelling with two l's usually points to the Gaelic surname.
Cailean → Colin → Collin
How it traveled
Cailean Mòr Caimbeul died in the thirteenth century and gave the Campbell chiefs their Gaelic title, which is why the name is bound so tightly to that clan. Separately, English shepherds in Elizabethan poetry are constantly called Colin, from the French diminutive — the two Colins were already being confused four hundred years ago.
Leland
fallow land; untilled ground
From Old English lǣge (fallow, left unploughed) plus land. Some references soften this to "meadow land," which describes the same kind of open, uncropped field.
lǣge land (Old English) → Leyland (Lancashire place name) → Leland (English surname) → Leland (American given name)
How it traveled
The name comes from the English landscape before it belonged to any person: Leyland in Lancashire takes its name from ground left fallow, and families from such places carried the name with them as a surname. In America, surnames migrated freely into first-name position, and Leland made that jump early and stayed.
Where a reading is contested the note says so — this page does not turn a guess into a fact. The chain is each name's recorded forms, oldest first; the story is its opening, told in full on the name's own page.
Out loud, and in short
Collin
KAH-lin
Two syllables, stress on the first. Britain says it that way too, though British Colins with one l often take a longer first vowel — KOH-lin — which is a real transatlantic difference and a source of small confusion.
- Col — The name without its ending, which is the medieval short form of Nicholas; plain and rarely written.
- Cal — A near-substitution rather than a shortening; a standing American name of its own and easier in speech.
Leland
LEE-land
Two syllables, stress on the first. The second syllable is the ordinary word land, said lightly. Nearly everyone who reads it gets it right the first time.
- Lee — The standard short form, and a long-established given name in its own right for both men and women.
- Leelan — An informal in-family respelling of the full name rather than a true shortening; rarely written down.
Is it right for you
The differences that decide it, laid out by what you want
Choose by what you want
Choose Collin if you want…
- a newer arrivalCollin entered the US charts in 1895
Choose Leland if you want…
- a long American recordLeland was already in use when US records began in 1880
Each line is a measured difference between the two names — a rank, a count, a recorded form — never a judgement of either. Save the one that answers your question; it lands on your shortlist.
The trade-offs, name by name
Collin
Strengths
- Both possible origins are respectable and old, so there is something real to tell either way.
- It is entirely familiar to every English speaker and needs no explanation.
- Six letters, two syllables, and no difficulty of spelling or saying.
To consider
- Colin with one l is the older and internationally commoner spelling, and mail will use both.
- British and American speakers give the first vowel different lengths, which travelers notice.
- It was very well used in the 1990s, so a man of that age will have met several.
Leland
Strengths
- Reads exactly as it is spelled — LEE-land — so it rarely needs correcting out loud.
- Comes with Lee already attached, a short form that stands on its own as a name and needs no explaining.
- Unbroken presence in American records from the very start of them, which is a rare thing for a surname-name.
To consider
- Most living Lelands are well past retirement age, so the name currently reads as an older man's name to many adults. Names in that position often circle back, but a child would be ahead of the curve rather than in step with it.
- The variant spelling Leyland exists and is the usual form of the English place name, so expect an occasional stray Y from people writing it down.
- Lee will happen whether or not you plan on it — worth deciding early whether that suits you, since a two-syllable name with an obvious one-syllable exit tends to get used both ways.
Documented properties of each name — how it spells, travels and shortens — not opinions about the child.
With your last name
Say both in full. The notes are facts about letters and sound — a rhyme, a shared initial, the monogram — not a verdict on either name.
Type a last name to hear Collin and Leland in full.
Weighing the whole shortlist? Run the full comparison — up to eight names with your last name, initials, classroom projections and a printable report.
Decide together
Nobody names a baby alone
Still torn between Collin and Leland?
Put both to the vote.
One link to your partner, your parents, your sister. Each of them gets the two names, a one-tap answer and room to say why — and every reply lands in one place.
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More than two in the running? Settle it with a bracket or run the full comparison with your last name.
More head-to-heads
Same measures, different pair. Sixty more are dealt daily in the arena.
Lists these names appear on
Where Collin and Leland each sit in the library — alternatives in the same style, ranked by the same records.
Collin or Leland — the short answers
- Which is more popular, Collin or Leland?
- Collin, in 2025: Collin ranked #493 with 613 babies; Leland ranked #494 with 612 babies.
- Which name is rising faster, Collin or Leland?
- Neither is rising. Over the last five years Collin moved down 28 places; Leland moved down 26 places.
- Which is the older name, Collin or Leland?
- Collin entered the US charts in 1895; Leland was already in use when US records began in 1880. On the American record, Leland is the older name.
- How many people are named Collin and Leland?
- About 79,000 people named Collin are estimated to be alive in the US today. About 33,000 people named Leland are estimated to be alive in the US today.
- Will there be other Collins or Lelands in the classroom?
- Collin will almost certainly be the only one in school. Leland will almost certainly be the only one in school.
US figures from the Social Security Administration, 1880–2025. Votes are battle voters on this site, not the birth record. Data & methodology
Keep playing
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