Name popularity a deal breaker?

No, because unless you choose something completely made up, there's always a chance of another child in a close group having the same name.
There's only one Oliver in DS' nursery but about five called Max. Two Freya. And so on...

It wouldn’t bother me. I don’t think having a popular name is so terrible anyway.

Yes it would BUT popularity is so regional!

So looking at the top names isn’t a indicator of how many ‘Oliver’s’ in your case live in your area. My boy had a top 100 name for his year, he’s the only one in his school with that name.
However a friend of mine who thought her little girl had a less popular name which is ‘Nelly’ turns out there is another one in her class and three more in the other classes and nursery.

It definitely put me off a few names. DD’s first name outside the top 200 and I’m happy about that. However, her middle name is Rose.

Once I realised realised how overused Rose was, I tried out lots of other middle names and name combinations. But nothing else went as well with her other names. So, Rose it was.

Wouldn't bother me. Oliver is a good strong name that will always be popular.

What are your other options @Heh1991

Want to echo what @Aroundtheworldin80moves says. The number of baby boys called Oliver has been declining year on year for years now. I don't know any at our nursery or baby group.

Lots of people saying they didn't like having a top 5 name in the 80s, it's worth remembering that a top 5 name in the 80s is different to a top 5 name now. The numbers are far smaller these days. It has gone from 1 in 5 men being called John (many years ago!), to 60% of babies being given a top 100 name in the 80s. That figure is now only 40%.

Obviously it's not an unusual name and you probably will stumble across another Oliver at one time or another but you could pick a name outside the top 50 that you don't like as much and find there's another in the class anyway and no Olivers.

If you love the name I'd use it.

Popularity is a factor for me. I had a popular name at school (though I have never worked with anybody with my name) and I would try to give my child a more unusual name. But what is too popular is different for everybody - some people rule out top 10 names, others rule out the top 500!

However, popular names aren't what they used to be, as parents are using a much wider pool of names than ever before. A much small percentage of babies are called the top names. Local name trends also impact this - some posters will know dozens of Olivers, some might not know any. And then you might decide that you want very unusual name so choose Odysseus, and one of the other Odysseuses born that year just happens to be in your son's class!

That being said, Oliver is a lovely name. It's been popular for a very long time, and is a classic name at the moment. I would be far more wary of using a name which has shot up rapidly in popularity such as Arlo than a classic name which has been popular for the last 25 years.

Wouldnt bother me either. If its the right name its the right name :)

Wouldn't bother me, we have a very rare surname, so any child of mine is already the only person with their name.

Anyway, I only know adult Olivers - I've been on mat leave for a year and I've not met any babies or toddlers with that name.

I only know 2 child Oliver’s , and they live 200 miles apart!

The ‘repeat names’ in my children’s classes aren’t names that appear in the top 10.

We have decided against using our first choice of name for upcoming baby, as it has suddenly become very popular. I still love the name, and I wish the popularity didn’t bother me, but for me, it would stop me enjoying the name quite as much, if you see what I mean. If I felt I would still get the same pleasure from the name, despite its popularity, then I’d still use it.

Wouldn't bother me, DS is 4 and has a top 10 name, or it was when he was born and we never meet another.

I also don't know any Oliver's.

Look at darkgreener, which tracks baby name trends
names.darkgreener.com/#oliver

Oliver was given as a name to 0.8% of babies in 2018. 8 babies in 1000. The name is on a downward trend. So statistically, he's going to be the only one with his name in his class. Probably his year at primary school is it's 2 or 3 class entry. Likely another in his year at Secondary.

My son is an Oliver and it was number 1 when he was born. I still love his name, he had another Oliver at nursery with him but there are none in his year at school.

My daughter has what is deemed a "popular" name, but there's only one other girl called that in her school!

Haven’t come across a little Oliver in years. Go for it!

(As an aside “Steve” and “Mike” aren’t names, they are nicknames and Stephen and Michael are still lovely, classic, not dated names Gruffalo)

Yes, I wouldn't use a very popular name. I try to avoid the top 100 too! Doesn't mean there aren't some lovely popular names though, Oliver is really nice.

Not at all, my daughter has a top 10 name and yet to meet another. If you love a name I would use it regardless x

For me, yes - I try to avoid the top 100! But it's more important to pick a name you love, and keep in mind that something you might choose when it is rare may peak in popularity later on, so you need to be ok with that as well.

For me personally, yes, but then I am a teacher and am probably more aware of name popularity than most. I have taught a LOT of Jacks. It is more of a consideration for boys because the top ten boys' names tend to be more prevalent in terms of raw numbers than the corresponding girls' names.

I stayed clear of top 20 names as I have a very popular name for my age group (so much that I have a SIL with the same name) and that is a bit annoying. But I didn't go all out super unusual either. That said, DS1's name was number 60 ish when he was born, now it's top 10 - he's 8 and loves meeting babies/toddlers with his name.

And it's a classic name so it won't date.

Any very popular name tends to fall out of fashion and 'date'. Steve, Mike, Jason etc all sound dated imo.

I would avoid a very popular name, yes.

There are so many lovely names to choose from!