AncestryDNA Archives - OnGenealogy

How to Use AncestryDNA Matches

Here are some ideas for how to use AncestryDNA matches.

The short version: Connect your DNA to a public or private & searchable tree at Ancestry Use ThruLines to identify common ancestors Create Groups (color coded) and add matches to their proper family group (ThruLines and Shared Matches help you do this) Use Shared Matches to sort matches into family groups Encourage parents & older relatives to test

Connect your DNA to a public or private & searchable tree at Ancestry

GET A TREE* on Ancestry and link your DNA to your public or private & searchable tree. Even if it's only a tiny tree with two or three people. You will only get ThruLines results if you have your DNA linked to a public tree at Ancestry or a private & searchable tree. I have two accounts at Ancestry, each linked to a DNA test. One account has a tree with only four people: me, my father, and his p…

How to Count DNA Matches at Ancestry

DNA test sites display your DNA match count in different places, and at Ancestry, the match count is a bit hidden. Once you know where to look, and know why it might not be displaying, it's easy to remember.

How to find your AncestryDNA Match Count using a desktop computer:

Step 1 - Go to https://www.ancestry.com and Login to your account

Step 2 - On the Ancestry homepage, Select DNA from the top menu bar, then Select DNA Matches from the dropdown menu

Step 3 - Make sure your window is expanded large enough to display all relevant information. In the image below, the window is too small to show to Ancestry's Filters. Right click the corner of the window and drag it away to enlarge the window.

In the image below, the screen has been enlarged and you can see the Filter by menu options.

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DNA Day Sales & Benefits at Test Sites

Thursday, April 25th is National DNA Day in the US and these testing companies have sales: 23andMeAncestryDNAFamilyTreeDNALiving DNAMyHeritageDNA

I'll share, in italics, what I've gleaned from my test results at each site.

23andMe

23andMe has a 3-in-1 DNA test for $99 (not on sale) and a Health & Ancestry test on sale for $169 ($30 off the list price of $199). 23andMe's Ancestry test is a 3-in-1 DNA test and includes some mitochondrial and Y-DNA (Y-DNA only if you are male) results, but that portion of the testing is not as comprehensive as FamilyTreeDNA's mtDNA and Y-DNA tests.

I have 1200 DNA matches at 23andMe, mainly extended family, 3rd cousins and beyond. I don't use 23andMe for genealogy purposes. I primarily follow my 23andMe test results for the health test results-they're currently the only one of these companies offering health results (you'll need to purchase the Health & Ancestry t…