Spend enough time at the dog park and you’re bound to meet a Max or Luna eventually—if your own pooch doesn’t already answer to one of those names.
According to Rover’s latest report on pet naming trends, Max and Luna are this year’s most popular monikers for male and female dogs, respectively. Luna topped the list of female cat names, too, while Max took fifth place on the male side. It was outpaced by Oliver, Milo, Leo, and Charlie, the latter three of which also made the top 10 list for male dog names. But that’s not to say Oliver is only a popular choice for cat owners: It came in 13th on the dog list, and it was also the third most popular baby boy name of last year.
As a testament to the ongoing influence of Disney IP, Simba and Nala made the top 10 lists for cats. And outranking Simba by just one spot on the male side was Loki (which, as a Marvel property, also technically falls under the Disney umbrella). The ninth most popular female cat name was Willow, which Swifties will surely be quick to attribute to the hit single from Taylor Swift’s 2020 album evermore.
All in all, there aren’t a ton of surprises on the lists of most common names. But Rover—a massive online hub for pet care services, with access to millions of user-submitted pet names—doesn’t confine its analysis to simple popularity rankings.
The research also explores geographical trends (Colorado’s top trending dog name is Nixon, and its top trending breed is the American Bully); clocks names appearing in its database for the first time (e.g. Anna Delvey, Beer, Wedgie, Dank, and Subpoena); and points out various other interesting details. This is where the real fun happens. Beige and Mommy, for instance, are two of this year’s top trending dog names. And if you think reality TV fans are christening their pets after their favorite Real Housewives and RuPaul’s Drag Race contestants, you’re absolutely right.
You can see the most popular names below, and find out other entertaining takeaways from Rover’s full cat report here and full dog report here.
Top Female Dog Names
- Luna
- Bella
- Daisy
- Lucy
- Lily
- Zoe
- Lola
- Sadie
- Bailey
- Stella
Top Male Dog Names
- Max
- Charlie
- Cooper
- Milo
- Buddy
- Rocky
- Bear
- Teddy
- Duke
- Leo
Top Female Cat Names
- Luna
- Lily
- Bella
- Lucy
- Nala
- Callie
- Kitty
- Cleo
- Willow
- Chloe
Top Male Cat Names
- Oliver
- Milo
- Leo
- Charlie
- Max
- Loki
- Simba
- Jack
- Ollie
- Jasper