I had 4 years off between undergrad and grad. The timing and results were appropriate for me.

I think the real "answer" is . . . is that there is no singular right answer. There are many paths, even ones that we could never foresee but stumble onto. Ones that seem so correct but turn out disappointing or limiting. Ones that we initially regret, or ones that life & circumstances shoves us kicking & screaming down, but they end up being the best thing ever. While we often think in terms of only A or B, there are also C & D all the way through double-Z. So, try to keep that in the back of your mind while you are sorting through things.