Spellings
Carl or Karl?
In the US in 2025, 64% of babies in this name family were spelled Carl and 36% Karl. Same name, slightly different impression: here are the figures for each spelling.
Ten years ago
Carl already led in 2015, with 71% of the family's births; it has 64% in 2025. All spellings together, the family went from 641 to 294 births (−54%).
| Spelling | 2015 | 2025 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Carl | 457 | 187 | −59% |
| Karl | 184 | 107 | −42% |
How they sound
All of these spellings are said the same way: /ˈkɑrl/ (KARL). So the choice is about how it looks: it is the spelling people will read on a birth card, a name tag or an email address, and the one your child will sometimes spell out.
In France
In France in 2025: Carl 55 births (#711 among boys) and Karl 70 births (#600 among boys).
Sources: Social Security Administration (SSA), Insee (France), 2025 data. How we calculate these figures.
Which spelling is yours?
The one-minute style quiz.