so, like the title says, im unsure if im bi or pan <:-0! But as they are very similar im having a hard time defining what one exactly, since i dont feel strongly about one more than the other. I know i like girls, and im pretty sure i like guys, since ive had a couple of crushes on guys, but not to the extent i have with women (so, im assuming i just have a lean towards women lmao) and im comfortable with the idea of dating anyone nb!!
I believe bi and pan have a lot of overlap, however bi is generally seen as being attracted to two genders, men and women. Pan however, is being attracted to all genders; men, women, and non-binary people. I believe that’s the only difference between the two sexualities. Also, not all bi/pan people are exactly 50/50 either, I believe most people will prefer one gender to the other.
I agree with what Hawk said, and add that you don't have to pick one label over the other. You can just be what you want to be.
Just going to throw my hat in the ring with a slightly confounding curveball. I call myself bi despite also being attracted to NB people. I don't find the old-fashioned (if perhaps more literal) definition of bi people only being attracted to men and women to be a useful distinction, as most non-LGBT people I've met don't know what pansexuality is. Long story short, by most definitions I'm probably pan, but bi is easier to explain and for me explains my sexuality well enough (especially as I've never actually met anyone who's NB, much less been intimate with them).
I’ve come to the conclusion that bisexual works better for me because it is one of the letters in LGBTQ. In my age bracket (I’ve got grown kids) it is known, whereas pansexual would have to be explained to most my age. I like the bi flag colors better too. That may sound shallow, but I’m not hung up on the labels, as long as I convey that I’m attracted to more than one gender. Since Homosexual means sexually attracted to “same”, and Heterosexual means sexually attracted to “different” I consider “Bisexual” to mean attracted to same and different - and that includes NB. So not two genders, Not same-sex and opposite-sex (“hetero” prefix does not mean opposite), but both same and different genders. I have the sense that pansexual has an added meaning that the gender of the person doesn’t matter, you are attracted to the person.
