Networks is in a Beta testing phase and is currently available to all Ancestry Pro Tools members.

When researching your family history, you might face problems like common names, unclear family ties, or missing records that traditional research methods can’t solve. This can feel like hitting a brick wall. When this happens, trying different research methods can help.

A great next step is to explore the people around your ancestors, like their friends, associates, and neighbors. This is often called FAN Club research. Exploring these relationships and communities can lead to new discoveries, helping you overcome research problems that you might not solve by researching your ancestors alone. This is where networks can help.

What are networks?

Networks are private workspaces where you can collect and organize information about groups of people who lived near or interacted with someone you’re researching. They don’t have to be related. Networks are attached to family trees that you own.

Networks provide tools to help you:

Group people connected by time, place, shared experiences, or other factors.
Discover record collections that relate to the group you're researching.
Add media and sources about a group for a rich and detailed view of their connections.
Stay organized using stickies to take notes, track progress, and create tasks related to the group.

Why use networks?

Networks give you a private workspace and tools to explore a person's connections beyond their immediate family. By researching people around your ancestors, you could find more information and reveal new insights into your family history. This exploration can help you discover your ancestors' stories, offer a fuller picture of their lives, and assist you in breaking through research brick walls.

Requirements for networks

To use networks, you need:

An active Ancestry Pro Tools Membership
A family tree you own. If you don’t have one, create a family tree.

Accessing networks

From the Ancestry homepage:

Under Pro Tools shortcuts (right side), click Networks.
Under Pro Tools shortcuts (right side), click More Pro Tools and select Create/view network.

Using networks

For help with using networks, select what you want to do:

Frequently asked questions

Select a question below to view the answer. Select the question again to hide it.

How are networks different from family trees and family groups?

Family Trees: Help you discover who your ancestors are and how they’re connected, allowing you to trace your family lineage. They can be set to public or private, and you can collaborate with others by inviting them to your tree.
Family Groups: Act as collaborative spaces where you can work with friends and family to research and share family history. Everyone in the group can contribute to or view the shared information.
Networks: Serve as private workspaces for your personal research use, focusing on the lives of people around your ancestors, like their friends, associates, and neighbors. This approach can give you a fuller picture of your ancestors' lives and stories beyond their immediate family and help you break through research brick walls.

Why don’t I see networks?

If you don’t see networks, it might be because:

You’re not signed in. Sign in and try again.
You’re signed in to the wrong account. If you have multiple accounts or are using a shared device, sign out and sign in to the account with your trees and Pro Tools membership, then try again.
You don’t have an active Pro Tools membership. You need an active Pro Tools membership to use networks. Check your membership status and add a Pro Tools membership if needed.
You don’t own any trees. Networks only work with trees you own; they don't work with trees you’re invited to. Create a family tree and try again.

Who can see my networks and their details?

Only you can see and edit your networks. However, when you add people and media to your networks, they’re also added to the linked family tree and its gallery. People and media in your tree follow your tree’s privacy settings.

If your tree is public, information and media about deceased people are visible to others.
If your tree is private, only invited people can see information and media about deceased people.

Details about living people are kept private. Only those you invite as an editor or grant access to can view them and their media.

What happens to my networks if I cancel Pro Tools?

To use networks, you need an active Ancestry Pro Tools Membership

If you cancel Pro Tools, you’ll have access to networks until your Pro Tools membership expires (on the “Expires” date in your Account settings).

After expiration:

Your networks and their stickies will be saved but will no longer be accessible.
Your connected tree(s) and its people, media, and sources will still be available.
Any changes to your tree(s) (like deleting people, media, or sources) will also be made in your connected networks.
If you delete a tree, the networks connected to that tree will also be deleted.

You can regain access to your networks anytime by resubscribing to Pro Tools.

Are networks available in the Ancestry App?

No. Networks and some of the other Pro Tools features are not currently available in the Ancestry mobile app. However, they are available on the Ancestry website with an active Pro Tools membership.