Head to head · Boys' names
Samuel vs Sebastian
#18 vs #16 in 2025
Sebastian is a whisker ahead (#16 vs #18 in 2025), but the curves point different ways: Sebastian is climbing the charts fast, Samuel is back after a long quiet spell. On momentum, Samuel has the edge.
Cast your vote3 votes
Which one would you pick?
3 parents have voted — the split shows after you pick.
The tale of the tape
The tape is even: Samuel and Sebastian each lead 3 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
- 1880s: Samuel #18, Sebastian #793 — Samuel higher
- 1890s: Samuel #25, Sebastian #891 — Samuel higher
- 1900s: Samuel #32, Sebastian #853 — Samuel higher
- 1910s: Samuel #37, Sebastian #581 — Samuel higher
- 1920s: Samuel #47, Sebastian #561 — Samuel higher
- 1930s: Samuel #61, Sebastian #698 — Samuel higher
- 1940s: Samuel #65, Sebastian #877 — Samuel higher
- 1950s: Samuel #74, Sebastian #1053 — Samuel higher
- 1960s: Samuel #81, Sebastian #730 — Samuel higher
- 1970s: Samuel #61, Sebastian #701 — Samuel higher
- 1980s: Samuel #52, Sebastian #543 — Samuel higher
- 1990s: Samuel #34, Sebastian #220 — Samuel higher
- 2000s: Samuel #25, Sebastian #81 — Samuel higher
- 2010s: Samuel #23, Sebastian #40 — Samuel higher
- 2020s: Samuel #20, Sebastian #16 — Sebastian higher
Samuel stood higher in 14 of 15 decades; Sebastian took the 2020s.
Rank by decade
| Decade | Samuel | Sebastian |
|---|---|---|
| 1880s | #18 | #793 |
| 1890s | #25 | #891 |
| 1900s | #32 | #853 |
| 1910s | #37 | #581 |
| 1920s | #47 | #561 |
| 1930s | #61 | #698 |
| 1940s | #65 | #877 |
| 1950s | #74 | #1053 |
| 1960s | #81 | #730 |
| 1970s | #61 | #701 |
| 1980s | #52 | #543 |
| 1990s | #34 | #220 |
| 2000s | #25 | #81 |
| 2010s | #23 | #40 |
| 2020s | #20 | #16 |
Average national rank across each decade. A dash means the name sat outside the recorded top of that decade.
Around the world
Samuel
- Canada#24
- England & Wales#60
- Scotland#65
- France#70
Sebastian
- England & Wales#45
- Canada#78
National statistics offices, latest published year.
The names themselves
Meaning, roots, sound and the people who carried each
Where each name comes from
Samuel
name of God — or, in the other reading, God has heard
Hebrew Shemu'el is read two ways: shem, name, with el, God, giving the name of God; or a form of shama, to hear, giving God has heard. The narrative in First Samuel attaches a third explanation, from a verb meaning to ask, which does not fit the letters. Two of the three are serious and the third is famous.
Shemu'el → Samouel → Samuel
How it traveled
Samuel is the hinge of the story: the last of the judges and the man who anoints the first two kings, first Saul and then, when Saul fails, David. He is also the one who argues against having a king at all, warns the people exactly what a monarchy will cost them, and is overruled.
Sebastian
From Sebaste — ultimately "venerable, revered"
Latin Sebastianus meant "man from Sebaste," a city name taken from Greek sebastos, "venerable, revered" — the Greek equivalent of the imperial title Augustus. So the meaning arrives in two steps: a place first, and the honorific behind the place.
Sebastos → Sebaste → Sebastianus → Sebastian → Sebastián
How it traveled
The root is Greek sebastos, "revered," which gave its name to more than one city called Sebaste or Sebasteia in the Roman east. From that came the Latin Sebastianus, "of Sebaste," and the name attached itself firmly to a Christian martyr venerated at Rome in the third century, whose cult carried it into every Catholic language in Europe.
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
Samuel
SAM-yoo-ul
Three syllables, stress on the first. Spanish and French put the weight at the end, sah-MWEL. Hebrew Shmuel has two syllables and no vowel at all in the first, which English cannot manage.
- Sam — The default, used by most Samuels and serving either child; also a full name in its own right.
- Sammy — The warmer form, often the family version rather than the public one.
- Sami — The spelling used in Arabic-speaking and European families; a name of its own there.
Sebastian
suh-BAS-chun
Also said suh-BAS-tee-un, with the third syllable kept separate; both are ordinary in American English. The Spanish Sebastián shifts the stress to the end: seh-bahs-TYAHN.
- Seb — The standard English short form, informal and used from childhood onward; common in Britain as well as the US.
- Bastian — Clipped from the back of the name; also registered as a given name in its own right, particularly in German-speaking countries.
- Baz — Informal British-influenced short form, less common in the US than Seb.
- Seba — Everyday short form among Spanish speakers, drawn from Sebastián.
- Also Basti, Sebby.
Who has carried each name
Samuel
Samuel L. Jackson (b. 1948) — The highest-grossing actor in film history
Samuel Morse (b. 1791) — Invented Morse code
Samuel Beckett (b. 1906) — Nobel laureate who wrote Waiting for Godot
Sebastian
Sebastian Vettel (b. 1987) — Four-time Formula 1 world champion
Sebastian Stan (b. 1982) — Marvel's Winter Soldier
Sebastian Coe (b. 1956) — Double Olympic champion who now leads world athletics
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 Samuel if you want…
- a name with fewer syllablesSamuel is 2 syllables to Sebastian's 3
- a name that charts abroad tooSamuel is on the national lists of Canada, England & Wales, Scotland and France
- a long American recordSamuel was already in use when US records began in 1880
- a name that ages quietlyan estimated 12% chance of feeling dated by 2040, against 59% for Sebastian
Choose Sebastian if you want…
- a name with more sound in itSebastian runs 3 syllables, Samuel 2
- plenty of nickname options6 recorded short forms — Seb, Bastian and Baz
- a newer arrivalSebastian entered the US charts in 1881
- a name that feels very nowSebastian is climbing the charts fast
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
Samuel
Strengths
- Spelled identically in English, Spanish, Portuguese, French and German.
- Three thousand years of continuous documented use.
- Sam is instantly usable, serves either child, and is a full name on its own.
To consider
- It is very widely used and has been for most of the last two decades.
- Sam is shared with Samantha, Samson and Sampson, so it identifies nothing.
- The explanation the Bible itself gives for the name does not fit the name.
Sebastian
Strengths
- Spelled the same in English, German and Polish, and recognizable at sight in Spanish, French, Italian and Portuguese.
- Long-established short forms — Seb, Bastian, Seba — so nothing has to be invented.
- A documented record stretching back to Roman antiquity, with no gap in use since.
To consider
- This one is climbing quickly, and its bearers cluster in a narrow, recent age band — a Sebastian today is likely to meet others close to his own age.
- Sebastián, Sébastien and Sebastien all exist, so expect occasional accent marks added or an extra check on the spelling.
- For a generation of children the first Sebastian they meet is the singing crab in Disney's The Little Mermaid; the association tends to fade with age.
Documented properties of each name — how it spells, travels and shortens — not opinions about the child.
How each is likely to age
Samuel
12%chance Samuel feels dated by 2040
Samuel 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.
Sebastian
59%chance Sebastian feels dated by 2040
Sebastian is climbing fast right now. Steep climbs tend to come with steep descents — the quicker a name arrives, the more firmly it belongs to its moment.
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 Samuel and Sebastian 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 Samuel and Sebastian — the same style, ranked by the same records.
Samuel or Sebastian — the short answers
- Which is more popular, Samuel or Sebastian?
- Sebastian, in 2025: Sebastian ranked #16 with 8,605 babies; Samuel ranked #18 with 8,334 babies.
- Which name is rising faster, Samuel or Sebastian?
- Samuel. Over the last five years Samuel moved up 7 places; Sebastian moved up 3 places.
- Which is the older name, Samuel or Sebastian?
- Samuel was already in use when US records began in 1880; Sebastian entered the US charts in 1881. On the American record, Samuel is the older name.
- How many people are named Samuel and Sebastian?
- About 632,000 people named Samuel are estimated to be alive in the US today. About 212,000 people named Sebastian are estimated to be alive in the US today.
- Will there be other Samuels or Sebastians in the classroom?
- Roughly 1 in 8 classrooms will have a child named Samuel. Roughly 1 in 8 classrooms will have a child named Sebastian.
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
Keep playing
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