Current Research, 318
June 4, 2026
Currently, 100 women in Germany have 135 children; ten years ago, the figure was 159. The increasing childlessness in Germany is primarily an expression of growing insecurity – not a lack of desire for a family. Those who choose not to have children usually cite not just one reason, but a whole range of mutually reinforcing concerns. For example, two-thirds cite the high financial burden as a reason against having children. However, a majority also mentions worries about their children's future security, the desire for freedom and independence, and a lack of supportive government services.
Time comparison: Uncertainty displaces professional arguments
In a ten-year comparison, three shifts are particularly noticeable: Concern for a good future for children has gained significantly in importance (+13 %), as has the reference to a lack of state support (+14 %). At the same time, professional arguments are mentioned much less frequently: The notion that a career is difficult to reconcile with family life is losing importance (-8 %), as is the statement that professional success is more important than starting a family (-12 %).
Professor Dr. Ulrich Reinhardt, scientific director of the foundation, says:
„"Today, the focus is not on professional conflicts with family life, but on a lack of suitable conditions. In a time of perceived uncertainty, many citizens worry whether their children will still live safely and prosperously."“
Women wait for reliability, men for a career break.
The gender differences also reveal clear trends: Women more frequently cite the lack of a partner, in addition to external factors, which points to changing partnership and educational trajectories. Men, on the other hand, more often state that they prioritize their professional career. For many women, starting a family thus depends more heavily on reliable external conditions and a suitable, equal partnership.
Childless: Self-determined instead of family-bound
For childless individuals, the reasons for not having children primarily focus on their own life plans and the conditions under which starting a family even seems conceivable to them. The desire to remain free and independent is cited particularly frequently. For them, childlessness is not merely a sacrifice, but often a conscious decision in favor of self-determination and more open biographical options.
Furthermore, the question of partnership is of great importance. For many childless people, the lack of a suitable partner is one of the main obstacles on the path to starting a family. Reinhardt:
„"From the perspective of many childless people, starting a family requires not only the desire for children, but also a stable relationship that offers reliability, shared perspectives and a viable everyday basis. Where this prerequisite is lacking, parenthood is postponed or completely rejected."“
Thirdly, the financial burden remains a key factor. Children are considered expensive, and from the perspective of those without children, this idea is linked to the worry of having to restrict their own freedom, consumption opportunities, and future plans.
Conclusion: Families need good conditions – and the courage to use them.
Ultimately, the results paint a clear picture: childlessness today is less an expression of a lack of desire for a family than a consequence of growing uncertainty and high expectations regarding the conditions for starting a family. It is not a single obstacle that is decisive, but rather the interplay of financial concerns, anxieties about the future, desires for freedom, and biographical uncertainties.
At the same time, the differences between genders, as well as between childless individuals and parents, highlight the diverse perspectives on having children. Therefore, policymakers and businesses are called upon to create reliable and supportive framework conditions – but so too are citizens themselves, who must summon the courage to start a family. For when societal conditions become more reliable, partnerships are experienced as more stable and equal, and the future seems more predictable, the willingness to not only desire a family, but to actually start one, is likely to increase.
