Why Use Ancestry?

Ancestry can help you discover your ancestors, find living relatives, and learn where in the world your DNA comes from. 
 

Getting started with finding ancestors

  1. Create a family tree and build it out at least four generations, if you're able. We use the information in your tree to find Ancestry Hints and potential relatives for you.
  2. With a membership, search records and public family trees to find 
  3. Take an https://internalancestrysupport.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/53933316730515-/hc/en-au/articles/53933330544787-Update-Q2-2022-218-New-Communities https://internalancestrysupport.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/53933269700243-/hc/en-us/articles/53933269959827-/hc/en-us/articles/53933318476179-/hc/en-us/articles/53933340474387-test to be matched with genetic relatives and learn about your ancestral origins.

 

Family trees

Create a family tree on Ancestry to keep track of all your family history information. Building family trees on Ancestry is free; you don't need a membership to create trees. Memberships start coming in handy when you reach the end of your knowledge about your family and want to start searching historical records and family trees created by other Ancestry members. With a membership, you can also view Ancestry Hints—suggestions about possible family members or related records—that appear on your family tree.

 

Historical records

With a membership, you can trace your family history back through the centuries by finding historical records. Ancestry has records from over 80 countries, with some dating back to the 13th century. When you find a new relative or a new fact about a known relative in a historical record, record the information in your family tree. Then, search again using the new information. Each new record you find can provide more facts to use in more searches, and often, reveal new family members to search for. 

 

DNA https://internalancestrysupport.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/53933269700243-/hc/en-us/articles/53933269959827-/hc/en-us/articles/53933318476179-/hc/en-us/articles/53933340474387-testing

Take an https://internalancestrysupport.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/53933316730515-/hc/en-au/articles/53933330544787-Update-Q2-2022-218-New-Communities https://internalancestrysupport.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/53933269700243-/hc/en-us/articles/53933269959827-/hc/en-us/articles/53933318476179-/hc/en-us/articles/53933340474387-test to learn about your ancestral origins and to be matched with with genetic relatives. If you're interested in learning more about your ethnic makeup, or if you want to connect with members of your biological family, DNA https://internalancestrysupport.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/53933269700243-/hc/en-us/articles/53933269959827-/hc/en-us/articles/53933318476179-/hc/en-us/articles/53933340474387-testing is the way to go. Adoptees, people who know only one parent, and people who are stuck on part of their family trees often find DNA https://internalancestrysupport.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/53933269700243-/hc/en-us/articles/53933269959827-/hc/en-us/articles/53933318476179-/hc/en-us/articles/53933340474387-testing to be most useful.

 

Frequently asked /hc/en-us/articles/53933378962707-Frequently-Asked-Questions

Why can't I find myself in historical records?
When people begin looking for records on Ancestry, they often start by searching their own names. This makes sense—how better to https://internalancestrysupport.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/53933269700243-/hc/en-us/articles/53933269959827-/hc/en-us/articles/53933318476179-/hc/en-us/articles/53933340474387-test a family history service than to see whether it contains information about the person you're most familiar with? However, because records on Ancestry are geared toward people who are deceased (both for privacy reasons and because governments usually wait to release public records until a certain number of years has passed), it's not always easy to find living people. We recommend building your tree backward as far back as possible, then searching for relatives. For more current family connections, we recommend taking a DNA https://internalancestrysupport.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/53933269700243-/hc/en-us/articles/53933269959827-/hc/en-us/articles/53933318476179-/hc/en-us/articles/53933340474387-test. 

Do I need a membership to take the DNA https://internalancestrysupport.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/53933269700243-/hc/en-us/articles/53933269959827-/hc/en-us/articles/53933318476179-/hc/en-us/articles/53933340474387-test or create a family tree?
No. You don't need a membership either to take a DNA https://internalancestrysupport.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/53933269700243-/hc/en-us/articles/53933269959827-/hc/en-us/articles/53933318476179-/hc/en-us/articles/53933340474387-test or to create a family tree. Memberships can be useful with DNA https://internalancestrysupport.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/53933269700243-/hc/en-us/articles/53933269959827-/hc/en-us/articles/53933318476179-/hc/en-us/articles/53933340474387-tests because they would enable you to see your DNA matches' public family trees, and memberships can help you expand your family tree by giving you access to historical records, but memberships are not required.

What do I do with a gift membership?
With a gift membership (a membership someone else has given you), you can search for historical records, look through the family trees created by other members of Ancestry, and find photos, stories, and more about your ancestors. To learn more, see Starting a Gift membership. 
 

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