Name Popularity (Australia)
How common is your name? Find out how many people in Australia share your name and see the most popular names by decade.
Ever wondered how many other Olivias are in your kid's class photo, or whether your name was a one-hit wonder from the '80s? This tool pulls from Australian Bureau of Statistics birth registration data to show you where your name sits in the national picture.
What the numbers look like
Take the name "Jack." In the mid-2000s, Jack was the number one boys' name in Australia for several years running. The ABS recorded around 3,500 Jacks born per year at its peak. That's roughly one in every 40 baby boys.
Compare that to something like "Clyde," which barely cracked 30 registrations a year. Both are real names. One is everywhere, the other is practically unique.
Girls' names show even sharper trends. "Charlotte" went from outside the top 50 in the early 2000s to number one by 2015, partly thanks to a certain royal baby announcement. Name trends are surprisingly reactive to pop culture and public figures.
Getting the most out of this
Try different spellings. "Caitlin," "Katelyn," and "Kaitlyn" all count as separate names in the ABS data. Combined they'd rank much higher, but individually each spelling sits lower than you'd expect.
Check decade trends if you're picking a baby name. A name that peaked 30 years ago might feel fresh again, while something trending right now could mean five kids with the same name in one classroom.
Cross-reference with the top 20 list at the bottom of the results. If your preferred name is climbing fast, expect more company.
Frequently asked questions
Where does this data come from?
The Australian Bureau of Statistics publishes birth registration counts by first name. We use the most recent available release, which covers names registered through 2024. State registries feed into the national dataset, so it covers all of Australia.
My name doesn't show up. What does that mean?
The ABS suppresses names with fewer than a certain number of registrations per year for privacy reasons. If your name is extremely rare in Australia, it won't appear in the public dataset. It doesn't mean nobody has it, it means too few people do for the ABS to publish the count.
Are nicknames and legal names counted separately?
The data reflects whatever name was registered at birth. "Bill" and "William" are separate entries. Same with "Liz" and "Elizabeth." Some parents register the short form, others the full name, so the counts don't always match what you'd expect to hear at a barbecue.