The Wairarapa Connection serves the station several times daily with services to Wellington and Masterton.

A ticket office operates in the station building prior to the departure of commuter trains bound for Wellington.

[3] In 1884 Carterton was recorded as having a five-room station building with a 60-by-30-foot (18.3 by 9.1 m) goods shed and watering facilities.

This move led to a decline in the condition of the station buildings, a situation which in part prompted the formation of the Wairarapa Railway Restoration Society.

As part of the New Zealand Upgrade Programme announced by the government on 29 January 2020, a new passing loop will be installed at Carterton.