Head to head · Boys' names
Ethan vs John
#24 vs #23 in 2025
John is a whisker ahead (#23 vs #24 in 2025), but the curves point different ways: John is holding its place on the charts, Ethan is stepping back from its peak.
Cast your vote1 vote
Which one would you pick?
1 parent has voted — the split shows after you pick.
The tale of the tape
On the charts, John leads 6 measures of 6; Ethan leads 0.
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: Ethan #741, John #1 — John higher
- 1890s: Ethan #802, John #1 — John higher
- 1900s: Ethan #1198, John #1 — John higher
- 1910s: Ethan #1375, John #1 — John higher
- 1920s: Ethan #1618, John #2 — John higher
- 1930s: Ethan #1470, John #3 — John higher
- 1940s: Ethan #1399, John #3 — John higher
- 1950s: Ethan #1041, John #4 — John higher
- 1960s: Ethan #622, John #3 — John higher
- 1970s: Ethan #343, John #6 — John higher
- 1980s: Ethan #273, John #9 — John higher
- 1990s: Ethan #64, John #14 — John higher
- 2000s: Ethan #8, John #18 — Ethan higher
- 2010s: Ethan #8, John #27 — Ethan higher
- 2020s: Ethan #20, John #25 — Ethan higher
John stood higher in 12 of 15 decades; Ethan has held the lead since the 2000s.
Rank by decade
| Decade | Ethan | John |
|---|---|---|
| 1880s | #741 | #1 |
| 1890s | #802 | #1 |
| 1900s | #1198 | #1 |
| 1910s | #1375 | #1 |
| 1920s | #1618 | #2 |
| 1930s | #1470 | #3 |
| 1940s | #1399 | #3 |
| 1950s | #1041 | #4 |
| 1960s | #622 | #3 |
| 1970s | #343 | #6 |
| 1980s | #273 | #9 |
| 1990s | #64 | #14 |
| 2000s | #8 | #18 |
| 2010s | #8 | #27 |
| 2020s | #20 | #25 |
Average national rank across each decade. A dash means the name sat outside the recorded top of that decade.
Around the world
Ethan
- Canada#15
- France#30
- England & Wales#48
- Scotland#55
John
- Canada#73
National statistics offices, latest published year.
The names themselves
Meaning, roots, sound and the people who carried each
Where each name comes from
Ethan
firm, enduring
Hebrew eitan, firm, permanent, enduring. It is still an ordinary Hebrew adjective: a nachal eitan is a stream that runs all year rather than drying up in summer, and that image — water that does not fail — is the concrete sense behind the name.
eitan → Ethan
How it traveled
Ethan appears rarely and always with weight. The verse in Kings uses him as a measure of wisdom; Psalm 89 is headed as his; and a musician of the name is listed among those David appointed.
John
Yahweh is gracious
From the Hebrew Yoḥanan, built from the divine name and a root meaning to be gracious or show favor.
Yoḥanan → Iōannēs → Iohannes → Jehan → John
How it traveled
The name begins as Hebrew Yoḥanan, worn by several men in the Hebrew Bible. Greek-speaking writers rendered it Iōannēs, Latin took it as Iohannes, and from there it split into Jean in France, Giovanni in Italy, Juan in Spain, Ivan in the Slavic east.
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
Ethan
EE-thun
Two syllables, stress on the first, with the th of think. Hebrew Eitan puts the weight at the end, ay-TAHN, and has no th at all — the Hebrew letter is a plain t.
- E — The initial said aloud; used for either child.
- Eth — The first syllable, used within families.
- Eitan — The Hebrew form, used in Jewish families as the formal version.
John
JON
One syllable. The h is silent and always has been in English; it survives from the Latin spelling Iohannes.
- Johnny — The standard affectionate form, used across all ages, and long established as a given name in its own right.
- Jack — Grew out of the medieval diminutive Jankin and has been tied to John for centuries; now overwhelmingly used as an independent name.
- Jon — A clipped spelling used both as a short form and as a separate given name; sounds identical to John.
- Johnnie — An older spelling of the same short form, more common among earlier generations.
- Also J.J..
Who has carried each name
Ethan
Ethan Hawke (b. 1970) — Four-time Oscar nominee (Boyhood, Training Day)
Ethan Allen (b. 1738) — Revolutionary War hero of the Green Mountain Boys
John
John F. Kennedy (b. 1917) — The president who launched America to the Moon
John Lennon (b. 1940) — Beatle who imagined a better world
John Adams (b. 1735) — Founding Father and second US president
Source: Wikidata — the one source on this page that is not an official agency.
Is it right for you
The differences that decide it, laid out by what you want
Choose by what you want
Choose Ethan if you want…
- a name past its most crowded yearsEthan is stepping back from its peak
- a name with more sound in itEthan runs 2 syllables, John 1
- a name that charts abroad tooEthan is on the national lists of Canada, France, England & Wales and Scotland
- a newer arrivalEthan entered the US charts in 1882
Choose John if you want…
- a name on the way upup 4 places on the charts in five years
- a name with fewer syllablesJohn is 1 syllable to Ethan's 2
- plenty of nickname options5 recorded short forms — Johnny, Jack and Jon
- a long American recordJohn 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
Ethan
Strengths
- A settled Hebrew meaning that is still an everyday adjective in the language.
- Two syllables and a spelling nobody has to be told.
- It works unchanged in English, French, Spanish and Hebrew.
To consider
- It has been among the most given names in the country for two decades, so it carries no signal.
- It resists shortening, which suits some families and frustrates others.
- The very few girls given this spelling will be read as boys on every form.
John
Strengths
- Everyone can spell it and everyone can say it, in English and well beyond — no correcting, no repeating over the phone.
- Has a form in almost every European language: Juan, Jean, Giovanni, Ivan, Seán, Johannes.
- Carries ready-made short forms with their own long histories, from Johnny to Jack.
To consider
- It has been common for so long that most families already have a John somewhere — a father, an uncle, a grandfather. Worth checking who might feel claimed or skipped over.
- In American slang, "john" means a toilet and also a prostitute's client, and "John Doe" stands for an unidentified person. Old associations, widely known, mostly harmless.
- John and Jon sound identical, so expect the occasional wrong spelling on forms and email.
Documented properties of each name — how it spells, travels and shortens — not opinions about the child.
How each is likely to age
Ethan
85%chance Ethan feels dated by 2040
Ethan is coming down from a big peak (#2 in 2009). This is the stretch of the cycle where a name starts to sound like the decade it ruled.
John
12%chance John feels dated by 2040
John has held the top-100 across 15 different decades — it has never depended on fashion, and names like that read the same at any age.
A reading of where each name sits on the long naming cycle — computed, not measured, and explained on the data page.
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 Ethan and John 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 that carry both names
Every list here names both Ethan and John — the same style, ranked by the same records.
Ethan or John — the short answers
- Which is more popular, Ethan or John?
- John, in 2025: John ranked #23 with 8,027 babies; Ethan ranked #24 with 7,852 babies.
- Which name is rising faster, Ethan or John?
- John. Over the last five years Ethan moved down 11 places; John moved up 4 places.
- Which is the older name, Ethan or John?
- Ethan entered the US charts in 1882; John was already in use when US records began in 1880. On the American record, John is the older name.
- How many people are named Ethan and John?
- About 479,000 people named Ethan are estimated to be alive in the US today. About 2,822,000 people named John are estimated to be alive in the US today.
- Will there be other Ethans or Johns in the classroom?
- Roughly 1 in 9 classrooms will have a child named Ethan. Roughly 1 in 9 classrooms will have a child named John.
US figures from the Social Security Administration, 1880–2025; international figures from national statistics agencies. Votes are battle voters on this site, not the birth record. Data & methodology
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