What it's really like to celebrate your birthday on Christmas Day

Mr Barber was born at 5.30am on Christmas Day in 1998.

His mum, Sandra, remembers it as a scorching day. While for his sister, Alice, there were far more exciting things happening than the arrival of a baby brother.

Mr Barber said his due date was Christmas Day so it wasn't completely unexpected when he arrived on the Christian holiday.

"They told me my sister opened her presents and then came up and rode her tricycle around the hospital. She didn't really care what Mum had just been through, all she cared about was the tricycle," he said.

"She thinks I'm a pretty good present but I think she just said that to make me feel better."

According to the Australian Bureau of Statistics, Christmas Day is the second least common birth date in Australia. February 29, which only occurs every four years, is the rarest.

Between 2015 and 2024, only 3906 people were born on December 25 across Australia.

In comparison, the most popular birthdays are shared by more than 8,800 people.

While it was hard to get friends around for birthday parties when he was growing up, Mr Barber, from NSW's Central West, said he was used to having his birthday on Christmas.

He said his family had always made sure the day was special for him.

His family celebrates Christmas until after lunch, and then the focus is on Mr Barber's birthday.

"I get to pick my birthday dinner but everyone's usually still eating prawns and ham and whatever's left over so it's usually just me eating it by myself," he said.

Growing up he would usually get two separate presents - birthday and Christmas - but now he's normally given a joint gift from his parents with the classic staples of socks, undies and money.

And while he had to wait until New Year's Eve to celebrate his 18^th with his mates, Mr Barber said one of the benefits of being born on December 25 was that he always had the day off work.