Head to head · Girls' names
Ivanna vs Makayla
#566 vs #566 in 2025
Ivanna and Makayla share the same spot on the 2025 charts (#566). The records cannot split them; sound and story 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
The tape is even: Ivanna and Makayla each lead 2 measures of 6.
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
- 1950s: Ivanna #5753, Makayla — — Ivanna higher
- 1960s: Ivanna #6348, Makayla — — Ivanna higher
- 1970s: Ivanna #8039, Makayla #6087 — Makayla higher
- 1980s: Ivanna #6386, Makayla #2539 — Makayla higher
- 1990s: Ivanna #1845, Makayla #318 — Makayla higher
- 2000s: Ivanna #1407, Makayla #49 — Makayla higher
- 2010s: Ivanna #654, Makayla #139 — Makayla higher
- 2020s: Ivanna #582, Makayla #438 — Makayla higher
Makayla stood higher in 6 of 8 decades; Makayla has held the lead since the 1970s.
Rank by decade
| Decade | Ivanna | Makayla |
|---|---|---|
| 1950s | #5753 | — |
| 1960s | #6348 | — |
| 1970s | #8039 | #6087 |
| 1980s | #6386 | #2539 |
| 1990s | #1845 | #318 |
| 2000s | #1407 | #49 |
| 2010s | #654 | #139 |
| 2020s | #582 | #438 |
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
Ivanna
God is gracious
The sense comes from the Hebrew name Yochanan, which lies behind John, Jane, Joan and every Ivan.
Yochanan → Ioannes → Ioann → Ivan → Ivanna
How it traveled
The root is Hebrew Yochanan, carried into Greek as Ioannes by the translators and writers of the early Christian era, and from there into Church Slavonic as Ioann. Slavic speech wore it down to Ivan, one of the most widely used men's names in Eastern Europe for centuries, and Ivanna is its feminine form — spelled with the double n in Ukrainian, with a single n as Ivana in Czech, Croatian, Serbian and Slovak.
Makayla
"Who is like God?" — a rhetorical question, from Hebrew
The meaning belongs to the root name, Hebrew Mikha'el, of which Michaela is the feminine form and Makayla a phonetic English spelling. The question was asked rhetorically: no one is.
Mikha'el → Michael → Michaela → Mikayla → Makayla
How it traveled
Mikha'el appears in the Hebrew Bible as the name of an archangel, and passed through Greek and Latin into nearly every European language as Michael. A feminine counterpart, Michaela, developed on the Latin pattern and became standard in German, Czech and Italian-speaking regions.
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
Ivanna
ee-VAH-nah
That is the Slavic and Spanish pronunciation and the usual one. Some English speakers reach for ih-VAN-uh instead, rhyming the middle with 'van'; both are heard in the US, so it is worth deciding early which one your family uses.
- Iva — The most common short form, and a standalone given name in South Slavic countries.
- Ivy — An English-language shortening that doubles as a well-established name of its own.
- Vanna — Informal, taken from the second half; also stands alone in Italian usage.
- Ana — Widely used in Spanish-speaking families, and a full given name in its own right.
- Also Ivi, Nana.
Makayla
muh-KAY-luh
Stress falls on the middle syllable. Some families say may-KAY-luh, giving the first syllable a fuller vowel; both are heard and neither needs correcting.
- Kayla — The most common short form, and a fully established given name in its own right, which means it works on a résumé as well as at home.
- Mak — Informal, usually spoken among friends and family; sometimes written Mac.
- Mika — Informal, and also used independently as a given name in several languages.
- Kay — A clipped, older-fashioned short form, more often used by adults than by classmates.
- Also Makky.
Is it right for you
The differences that decide it, laid out by what you want
Choose by what you want
Choose Ivanna if you want…
- a name on the way upup 31 places on the charts in five years
- a name that ages quietlyan estimated 40% chance of feeling dated by 2040, against 78% for Makayla
Choose Makayla if you want…
- a name past its most crowded yearsMakayla is stepping back from its peak
- a name that feels very nowMakayla is stepping back from its peak
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
Ivanna
Strengths
- Shares a root with John, Jane, Joan and Juana, so the name has a long, unbroken documented line behind it.
- Reads correctly in both Spanish and Slavic languages without respelling — useful in a bilingual family.
- Several ready-made short forms, including Iva, Ivy and Ana, each of which also works as a name on its own.
To consider
- The single-n Ivana is the more familiar spelling to many Americans, so expect a lifetime of gentle corrections — and of forms coming back with one n.
- Pronunciation splits between ee-VAH-nah and ih-VAN-uh depending on who is reading it aloud. Neither is wrong, but she will be introducing herself often.
- Said quickly in English, the first two syllables can land close to 'I wanna'. Most people never notice; a few schoolyards will.
Makayla
Strengths
- Fully transparent to read aloud — the spelling was built to match the sound, so almost no American reader hesitates over it.
- Comes with Kayla, a short form that also stands alone as a given name, giving a formal and an informal option without effort.
- Traces back to Michael, a name documented in continuous use for well over two thousand years.
To consider
- The spelling field is crowded: Mikayla, Michaela, Micaela, Mikaela and McKayla all sound near-identical. Expect to spell it out on the phone for life, and expect forms to come back wrong now and then.
- The name is stepping back from a high point rather than climbing, so among adults it reads as belonging to a particular recent stretch of years — while a child given it now will likely be the only one in her class.
- The -ayla ending sits close to a whole family of names built the same way, which can mean occasional mix-ups with a Kayla, Makenna or Michaela in the same room.
Documented properties of each name — how it spells, travels and shortens — not opinions about the child.
How each is likely to age
Ivanna
40%chance Ivanna feels dated by 2040
Ivanna sits in the calm middle of the cycle — neither chasing a wave nor sliding off one. Middle-of-the-cycle names age slowly and predictably.
Makayla
78%chance Makayla feels dated by 2040
Makayla is coming down from a big peak (#37 in 2008). This is the stretch of the cycle where a name starts to sound like the decade it ruled.
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 Ivanna and Makayla 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 Ivanna and Makayla?
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 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
- Classics hiding in plain sight
- Generation Z names (born 1997–2012)
- all guides
Where Ivanna and Makayla each sit in the library — alternatives in the same style, ranked by the same records.
Ivanna or Makayla — the short answers
- Which is more popular, Ivanna or Makayla?
- They tie in 2025: Ivanna ranked #566 with 530 babies; Makayla ranked #566 with 530 babies.
- Which name is rising faster, Ivanna or Makayla?
- Ivanna. Over the last five years Ivanna moved up 31 places; Makayla moved down 241 places.
- Which is the older name, Ivanna or Makayla?
- Ivanna entered the US charts in 1954; Makayla entered the US charts in 1971. On the American record, Ivanna is the older name.
- How many people are named Ivanna and Makayla?
- About 10,000 people named Ivanna are estimated to be alive in the US today. About 107,000 people named Makayla are estimated to be alive in the US today.
- Will there be other Ivannas or Makaylas in the classroom?
- Ivanna will almost certainly be the only one in school. Makayla 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
Sixty more head-to-heads are dealt in the arena every day — or line up Ivanna, Makayla and the rest of your shortlist with your last name in one printable report.
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