Is the desire to have children really declining among young people? The study conducted by OpinionWay for happn, the real-life dating app, reveals a different reality. While 80% of under-30s want to become parents one day, they also feel the conditions aren't there yet: social pressure, cost of living, an uncertain future… While public institutions are taking action to encourage birth rates, happn chose to listen to young people, and to singles in particular. Their message is clear: before talking bottles and strollers, the younger generation wants to be heard on their real needs and romantic aspirations. To carry their voice forward, happn has delivered around a hundred letters containing messages from under-30s to the Ministry of Health.

Having a child in 2026: your wallet, the future… and finding someone first!

Far from a lack of desire for children (80% of them want to become parents one day), it's economic and societal realities that are holding back the plans of Gen Z and millennials.

Indeed, 85% of respondents identify financial and material concerns as the main obstacles, citing the cost of living, the struggle to find housing, and job instability. On top of this comes eco-anxiety: 65% admit they find it hard to picture the future, given the state of society and ecological crises.

Finally, before thinking about the cradle, you still need to find the right person! For 17% of singles, the main obstacle is simply the absence of the right partner.

A letter seen as out of touch with real life

In February 2026, the announcement of a birth-rate letter sent by the government to under-29s sparked reactions — not always the ones hoped for. While half of young people (52%) see it as a well-intentioned idea on paper, 78% believe a simple letter won't solve their everyday problems at all.

Worse still, the approach itself didn't land well: nearly 7 out of 10 young people see this move as guilt-inducing and out of touch with their reality. For 61% of them, addressing fertility through an injunction comes far too late in the conversation anyway.

Words rather than injunctions: happn calls on the Ministry of Health

And because numbers don't tell the whole story, happn decided to go further. To give substance to this generation's expectations, the app collected hundreds of testimonials written by its users and delivered them directly to the Ministry of Health. The goal? To remind everyone that parenthood isn't just a question of age or fertility, but also depends on meeting the right person, having stability, and being able to picture the future.

"This study shows that young people aren't saying no to parenthood; they're simply explaining that they can't think about it separately from their reality. Before a child, there's often a meeting, financial stability, housing, the ability to picture the future… By collecting their testimonials, we wanted to remind people that behind birth-rate statistics, there are above all life journeys that deserve to be heard," says Claire Rénier, Communications Director at happn.