Head to head · Boys' names
Colsen vs Garrett
#566 vs #564 in 2025
Garrett is a whisker ahead (#564 vs #566 in 2025), but the curves point different ways: Garrett is stepping back from its peak, Colsen is climbing the charts fast. On momentum, Colsen has the edge.
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, Garrett leads 5 measures of 6; Colsen 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: Colsen —, Garrett #533 — Garrett higher
- 1890s: Colsen —, Garrett #452 — Garrett higher
- 1900s: Colsen —, Garrett #604 — Garrett higher
- 1910s: Colsen —, Garrett #712 — Garrett higher
- 1920s: Colsen —, Garrett #736 — Garrett higher
- 1930s: Colsen —, Garrett #725 — Garrett higher
- 1940s: Colsen —, Garrett #553 — Garrett higher
- 1950s: Colsen —, Garrett #549 — Garrett higher
- 1960s: Colsen —, Garrett #458 — Garrett higher
- 1970s: Colsen —, Garrett #299 — Garrett higher
- 1980s: Colsen —, Garrett #145 — Garrett higher
- 1990s: Colsen —, Garrett #85 — Garrett higher
- 2000s: Colsen #6052, Garrett #124 — Garrett higher
- 2010s: Colsen #3693, Garrett #263 — Garrett higher
- 2020s: Colsen #1495, Garrett #472 — Garrett higher
Garrett stood higher in every recorded decade — 15 of 15.
Rank by decade
| Decade | Colsen | Garrett |
|---|---|---|
| 1880s | — | #533 |
| 1890s | — | #452 |
| 1900s | — | #604 |
| 1910s | — | #712 |
| 1920s | — | #736 |
| 1930s | — | #725 |
| 1940s | — | #553 |
| 1950s | — | #549 |
| 1960s | — | #458 |
| 1970s | — | #299 |
| 1980s | — | #145 |
| 1990s | — | #85 |
| 2000s | #6052 | #124 |
| 2010s | #3693 | #263 |
| 2020s | #1495 | #472 |
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
Colsen
son of Col — that is, son of Nicholas
The standard reading of the surname Colson is patronymic: Col (also Coll, Cole) was a common medieval English pet form of Nicholas, so Colson meant "Col's son". A competing line traces Cole instead to Old English col, "coal", used as a byname for someone dark-haired or dark-complexioned, which would make the name "son of the dark one". Both are serious; the Nicholas reading is the more widely accepted.
Nicholas → Col / Cole → Colson → Colsen
How it traveled
The name begins as an English surname, formed the same way as Jackson, Dickson and Watson — a pet form of a father's name with -son attached. Col stood in for Nicholas in medieval England, a saint's name so widespread that it bred a whole family of short forms, and Colson is one of the surnames left behind.
Garrett
from Germanic roots meaning "spear" plus either "brave" or "rule"
Garrett is a medieval English form of two different names that had already blurred together by the Middle Ages: Gerard, from ger "spear" and hard "brave, hardy", and Gerald, from ger "spear" and wald "rule". Both are serious readings, and for most bearers the two lines are impossible to separate.
Gerhard → Gerard → Gerrard → Gearóid → Garrett
How it traveled
The spear-names Gerhard and Gerwald were widespread in the Frankish and German-speaking lands well before the Norman Conquest, and Norman speakers brought Gerard and Gerald into England, where scribes flattened both into Garrard, Gerrard and Garrett. In Ireland the Norman-Irish FitzGeralds used the Irish Gearóid, which was anglicized back as Garrett, giving the name a long Irish life alongside its English one.
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
Colsen
KOHL-sen
Two syllables, stress on the first. The second syllable is a light, unstressed -sen. It sounds identical to Colson, which is the root of the spelling question rather than the pronunciation one.
- Cole — The obvious short form, and a long-established given name in its own right — useful because it works in adult and professional settings without explanation.
- Col — Informal and family-level; historically a nickname for Nicholas in its own right.
- C.J. — Used informally where a middle name starting with J allows it; common pattern for surname-style boys' names.
Garrett
GAIR-it
Two syllables, stress on the first. Some speakers use a flatter first vowel, closer to GARR-it; both are ordinary and neither needs correcting.
- Rett — Informal short form taken from the second syllable; also stands alone as a given name.
- G — Initial-only nickname, common among friends and teammates rather than family.
- Gare — Casual clipping used mostly by peers.
- Gary — Occasional short form, though it is far better established as an independent given name of its own.
Is it right for you
The differences that decide it, laid out by what you want
Choose by what you want
Choose Colsen if you want…
- a name on the way upup 1,346 places on the charts in five years
- a newer arrivalColsen entered the US charts in 2001
Choose Garrett if you want…
- a name past its most crowded yearsGarrett is stepping back from its peak
- a long American recordGarrett 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
Colsen
Strengths
- Comes with Cole ready-made — a short form already standing on its own as a given name, so there is a formal version and a casual one from day one.
- Sits inside a familiar American sound family alongside Colton, Carson and Colin, so people hear it correctly the first time.
- Rests on a documented English surname with centuries of use, rather than being built from nothing.
To consider
- Colson is the older and more common spelling, so expect to spell Colsen aloud fairly often — and expect forms, teachers and databases to correct it to -son.
- It is easily heard as Colton, Carson or Cole in a noisy room, all of which are in wide use for boys right now.
- As a first name it is genuinely new, so its history is surname history rather than a long line of bearers. That means little baggage, and also little to point to when someone asks where it comes from.
Garrett
Strengths
- A recognizable English spelling that most people can write down on the first hearing, even if the double t occasionally needs confirming.
- Belongs to a large family of names — Gerard, Gerardo, Gérard, Gearóid — so relatives abroad usually have a version they already know.
- Documented continuously in American records from the beginning of those records, and still given to children now.
To consider
- The double consonants invite Garret, Garett and Gerrett, so expect an occasional spelling check on forms and coffee cups.
- It sits close to Gareth and Garrison in sound, and adults will sometimes reach for the wrong one on first meeting.
- Garrett is still a widely borne surname, so it can read as a last name in formal or alphabetical lists.
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 Colsen and Garrett 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
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More head-to-heads
Same measures, different pair. Sixty more are dealt daily in the arena.
Lists these names appear on
- Beloved classics quietly disappearing
- One-decade wonders
- Y2K names: the class of the 2000s
- Names that fell out of the top 100 this century
- all guides
Where Colsen and Garrett each sit in the library — alternatives in the same style, ranked by the same records.
Colsen or Garrett — the short answers
- Which is more popular, Colsen or Garrett?
- Garrett, in 2025: Garrett ranked #564 with 526 babies; Colsen ranked #566 with 523 babies.
- Which name is rising faster, Colsen or Garrett?
- Colsen. Over the last five years Colsen moved up 1,346 places; Garrett moved down 200 places.
- Which is the older name, Colsen or Garrett?
- Colsen entered the US charts in 2001; Garrett was already in use when US records began in 1880. On the American record, Garrett is the older name.
- How many people are named Colsen and Garrett?
- About 1,700 people named Colsen are estimated to be alive in the US today. About 128,000 people named Garrett are estimated to be alive in the US today.
- Will there be other Colsens or Garretts in the classroom?
- Colsen will almost certainly be the only one in school. Garrett 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
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