TikTok couples are sharing perks of their 'double-income, no-kids' lifestyle. They often go viral, but face backlash from viewers who question the choice.

• Couples are sharing the benefits of being a double-income, no-kids household, known as DINKs.
• TikTok videos show how they spend their extra time and money, and often go viral.

Couples who work full-time jobs without the added responsibility of kids are sharing the perks of their lifestyle on TikTok, as part of an ongoing trend centered around the term "Dink," which stands for "double income, no kids."

The term dates back to 1987 at least, when the Los Angeles Times first reported on the moniker and "the millions of baby-boom couples who work for wages and, so far, don't have children."

It's had a recent spike of attention on TikTok, as online couples have discovered the term for the first time, or realized they've been living the DINK lifestyle all along.

Some have made videos about the things they're able to do with the additional time and income that would otherwise be spent on children, such as generous gift-giving and impromptu nights out, others have shared videos of themselves expressing happiness at being free of having children in their lives.

The videos have racked up millions of views and thousands of reactions online, but it's also sparked a debate about the pros and cons of the lifestyle.

TikTokers are bonding with fellow DINKs as they share their child-free lives

One of the videos that went mega-viral and appeared to resonate with like-minded people on the app was posted by a user who goes by Ness Baker in December 2022.

In the upload, the TikToker could be seen tidying an apartment, going food shopping, and lounging in bed with her partner, while a popular TikTok sound that's been used in over 380 DINK-themed videos could be heard in the background. The audio featured a voice that said they had just learned the term DINK, as well as the extended version DINKWAD (DINK with a dog). "Bro, sign me up," the voice said at the end of the clip, as the couple in the video cuddled their pet.

The video received over 10.3 million views and 6,900 comments, prompting a response from many who said they shared a similar lifestyle themselves and suggested acronyms that related to their own situation.

"I guess I'm a SINKWAC," one viewer wrote, referring to the fact they had a cat instead of a dog. "DINKWFDAC … double income no kids with four dogs and chickens," another comment read. Other viewers commented to say they were currently single but aspired to become a DINK when they met the right person.

The videos also sparked heated debates about celebrating the lifestyle

Not everyone on TikTok has been supportive of DINKs sharing the positive aspects of their lives.

"Good luck dying alone at 60-70 with no kids or grandkids to take care of you," one viewer wrote beneath Baker's video, in a top comment that received over 5,400 likes. The strong reaction sparked a lengthy discussion and over 1,100 response comments, as viewers debated the notion that the point of kids was to create a future carer.

A TikToker who goes by Kate Anderson said she too received negative remarks after she posted a video on January 12, in which she asked via a voiceover, "Why is nobody talking about being DINKs?" In the upload, which received over 11.4 million views, the TikToker said she was "freshly married" and wanted to share how she and her spouse lived in their early thirties with two incomes and no kids. In the upload, they visited the grocery store Costco and said they had "lots of money to spend on goodies" because they didn't have extra mouths to feed.

Over 6,700 people commented on the video. Many said they were fellow DINKs who shared their favorite perks of the lifestyle, such as uninterrupted sleep and child-free vacations, but not everyone was so positive.

In a follow-up video, the TikToker responded to some of the most frequently asked questions she said she had received on her original video, including some she described as "out of pocket" in the video caption.

She said these included comments which described her situation as sad, or said she was going to die alone. The TikToker also addressed a comment that accused her of hating children. "We have friends with kids and we also have nephews and we love spending time with them, and of course spoiling them," she said in the video.

The topic of having children or not commonly sparks debate on social media

According to a Pew Research Center survey published in 2021, 44% of non-parents aged between 18 and 49 in the US say they are not at all likely, or not too likely, to ever have children, citing reasons such as simply not wanting to have kids, or financial reasons. This has risen by 7% since 2018, according to the same survey.

An ongoing conversation has also spilled over into social media, where creators discuss their choice to not have children, often receiving heated responses.

In February, 42-year-old TikToker Natalie Bright shared a clip of herself dancing in the streets of New York as she listed hurtful comments she'd received after sharing her decision not to have children, which she said included, "Who's going to take care of you when you're 70," "You don't know true love until you give birth," "You will die alone," and "You failed at life."

In March, a newsletter written by content creator Madalin Giorgetta about her decision to not have children was picked up by various news outlets, sparking a wave of hate and abuse towards her, she previously told Insider.

Despite the controversy it can engender, DINKTok shows no signs of slowing down.

The hashtag #dink currently has over 205 million views on TikTok, and in the weeks following the backlash, Anderson continued to post a series of further videos detailing her DINK lifestyle. They include children-free vlogs, date nights, and insights into how they save money, and budget.

For more stories like this, check out coverage from Insider's Digital Culture team here.