Should I have kids?
No amount of reasoning produces certainty here, and waiting for it is itself a decision. What you can get clear on is which version of the regret you are more willing to carry.
What to actually weigh
Whose voice is the wanting in?
Parents, partners, and the general ambient assumption all speak in the first person once they have been internalised long enough. Separating them takes deliberate effort.
What are you actually imagining?
People picture a child. The decision is about a decade of daily logistics, a changed relationship, and a different working life. Picture the Wednesday, not the photograph.
Which regret is more survivable?
There is no risk-free branch. Both paths close something. The workable question is which loss you could live alongside without it souring everything else.
Frequently asked
How do I know if I want children?
Certainty is rare, and its absence is not an answer. More useful is noticing whether the hesitation is about children specifically, or about timing, money, or the relationship you would have them in.
Is it selfish to not want kids?
No. It is a life choice with tradeoffs, like the other one. The framing usually arrives from outside, which is worth noticing when you are trying to hear your own view.