The village lies on the south side of the River Tweed about 3 miles (5 km) west of Coldstream.

According to the United Kingdom Census 2011, it is the place in England with greatest proportion of Scottish-born people, at approximately 33%.

[3] Carham on the Tweed, where a stream divides Northumberland from Scotland, was the scene of two battles in Anglo-Saxon times.

Leland tells us that in the 33rd year of Ecbright the Danes arrived at Lindisfarne and fought with the English at Carham where Eleven Bishops and two English Countes were slayne, and a great numbre of people.A field between the glebe and Dunstan Wood, where bones have been from time to time disinterred, is probably the site of the battle.

[7] Carham Hall, located NE of the hamlet, was a 14th Century tower house built to defend against border reivers.