The overwhelming majority of young Poles from Generation Z and Y (ages 18-44) believe that raising a child in today's times is a significant challenge (86%), involves many sacrifices (83%), one can lead a happy, fulfilled life without children (70%), and it is difficult to balance professional work with caring for children (68%). At the same time, young people see many positive aspects of parenthood. The vast majority believe that parenthood offers many learning opportunities (91%) and that having children brings great joy (86%). Furthermore, a significant majority think that parenthood is a natural stage in human life (79%) and that children give life meaning (76%).

Do you agree with the following statements?

Despite the perceived challenges of parenthood, when young people were asked how many children they would like to have in their lives—regardless of marital status, age, and whether they already had children—they most often mentioned having two children (44%). One in five would like to have three or more (20%), 15% would like only one child, and 12% would not want to have children at all. On average, young people would like to have two children (median value).

Regardless of your marital status, age, and whether you have children or not, how many children would you like to have in your life?

The vast majority of Generation Z individuals do not yet have children (88%), 8% have one child, and very few have two or more (4%). Among millennials, most already have children (67%), the most common being two children (33%), followed by one child (24%).

How many children do you have?

The comparison of preferred and actual number of children indicates that generally, young people have fewer children than they would like. This is not surprising, as the level of fulfilment of reproductive needs increases with age. The overwhelming majority of the youngest individuals aged 18-24 have fewer children than they would like (75%). This percentage decreases with age; however, it is very significant that among the oldest respondents in our sample, aged 40-44, nearly one-third (31%) have fewer children than they would like.

Level of fulfilment of reproductive needs by age

Childless individuals do not plan to have children mainly because they do not want to have offspring (34%), because they perceive children as too great a responsibility (26%), and because it is already too late for it (23%). A significant portion mentioned the need for independence and time for themselves (20%), lack of a partner (18%), and concerns about a decrease in living standards (17%). For individuals with children, this hierarchy looks different. The main reasons for not planning additional children are the fulfilment of reproductive needs (67%) and the feeling that it is already too late for children (29%). Additionally, respondents often cited material issues such as not being able to afford another child (18%), not having appropriate housing conditions (9%), fears of a decline in living standards (8%). Some mentioned professional reasons, such as not deciding to have another child due to difficulties in balancing professional work with child care (12%).

Barriers to the decision for the first and subsequent children. Why primarily don't you plan to have children? From the given list, please choose up to four answers