Aligning work and private life is a significant challenge for young academics because of demanding working conditions (e.g. high workload, low job security). It is particularly strong for young female academics due to growing family responsibilities. Our study aims to identify the factors influencing the work-life conflict of young academics and to test whether their effects are different according to gender. Thereby we differentiate between a conflict that arises in the work domain (work-to-life conflict) and a conflict that has its origins in the private-life domain (life-to-work conflict). Our analysis of an online survey in Germany shows that career insecurity and lacking mentor support increases both types of conflicts. Excessive working hours and attempts to segment work and private life increase the work-to-life conflict, while children increase a life-to-work conflict. We find that young female academics experience the conflict-intensifying effects of long work hours and lack of mentor support more strongly than their male counterparts do.