Given name & surname
Colton
“a young horse; from the coal town”
Colton is a variant of Colt. One English interpretation is “a young horse; from the coal town.”
Meaning & origin
What it means
Colton is a variant of Colt. One English interpretation is “a young horse; from the coal town.”
Explained through its name family
Where it comes from
Colton is a variant of Colt. An origin associated with Colt is English.
Explained through its name family
The story
Published U.S. birth records include this spelling as early as 1913. This is the earliest published observation available here, rather than a date for the name’s origin.
From dated birth records
Colton through the years
- Babies since 1880
- 152,174
- 151,965 boys · 209 girls
- Most popular year
- 2013
- 6,496 babies
- 2025
- 3,426
- #103 for boys · #13,574 for girls
- 2021–25 vs 2016–20
- −29%
- Easing
Where it’s given
By the numbers
In 2025, this name appeared in 3,420 U.S. birth records for boys, ranking No. 103 among boys’ names. Average annual use for boys was 28.8% lower in 2021–2025 than in 2016–2020. Its largest published annual count for boys was 6,490 in 2013. It also appeared in 6 birth records for girls in 2025. In 2025, California had the largest reported state-level birth count for boys with this name (211). Published U.S. population figures for this spelling include 117,141 as a first name in 2020; 6,185 as a surname in 2020.
From Social Security birth records and U.S. Census name counts for this exact spelling. Other spellings are counted separately.
Colton’s family of names
In English usage, Colton as a surname has a short form in Colt. In English usage, Colton continues an earlier form in Cola. Colton has a related form in Colt.
Inner ring: spellings · middle: nicknames and forms · outer: across languages.
Nicknames & forms 3
Diminutives, pet forms, short forms and variants used alongside the name.
Spellings & scripts 1
The same name written differently, including transliterations into other scripts.
Across languages 2
Equivalents and cognates in other languages, plus older forms it grew from.
People named Colton
- Colton HaynesAmerican actor and modelborn 1986
- Colton ParaykoCanadian ice hockey defencemanborn 1993
- Colton HertaAmerican racing driverborn 2000
- Colton IversonAmerican basketball playerborn 1989
- Colton DunnAmerican comedian, actor, writer, and producerborn 1977
- Colton DixonAmerican singer-songwriter and musicianborn 1991
- Colton SissonsCanadian ice hockey playerborn 1993
- Colton Harris MooreAmerican criminalborn 1991
- Colton GilliesCanadian ice hockey playerborn 1989
Listed by how widely each person is written about, which says nothing about the name itself.
Similar names
If you love Colton, these share its style, era, origin or sound, from outside its own family.
Carson
“from the swamp” · “the son of a marsh dweller”
96% boys · 4% girls
Kayden
“a beloved companion”
97% boys · 3% girls
Colson
“of the victorious people” · “a swarthy woman; having coal-black hair”
>99% boys
Camden
“from the winding valley”
95% boys · 5% girls
Kingston
“from the king's town”
>99% boys
Kaiden
“a beloved companion”
99% boys · 1% girls
Jackson
“the son of Jack or John”
>99% boys
Kashton
Kashton is a masculine given name.
99% boys · 1% girls