AncestryDNA VS The Genealogist
The Genealogist and AncestryDNA are both companies that can allow you to discover more about yourself and your ancestry by utilizing your DNA and any available genealogical sources. Exploring your genetic roots and learning more about your family and distant relatives can be an exciting, life-altering experience, so we are here today to help you determine which of these two DNA testing providers better fits your needs, analyzing their available ancestry tests, average turnaround times, privacy and security policies, value for money, and more.
Highlights
- Offers an extensive list of genealogical sources and data sets
- Family Tree DNA testing portfolio, staff, and processing lab
- Solid privacy & security policy and worldwide shipping
- Price: $142.43
- Shipping:
- More than 700,000 DNA markers checked for optimal precision
- Search for potential matches among 7 million DNA signatures
- Download your raw DNA data file to use with other companies
- Price: $99.00
- Shipping:35 Countries
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- Submitted By RLF on 09/21/2018I'm an American. I subscribed to the The Genealogist UK based on glowing online reviews like those found here. I'm truly baffled by the praise this website receives. The only resource that was of even marginal pertinence to me was the PCC wills. I was able to glean a few useful bits from those. But, other than that, I was disappointed by their other paltry offerings. For example, they will link to articles in books and journals, but those are already available for free through: Google Books, HathiTrust, and Archive.Org. Even their births, marriages and deaths are free at Familysearch. I was really hoping they would have wills and other local county records that simply can't be found outside of the UK. Another example: I learned through my research that the Hertfordshire Archives have wills that aren't covered by the PCC records or available in printed form or online. This is also true of most other English counties. There is a wealth of county probate information locked away in these records. These are the sort of records I need to see to do adequate research. This is what I was hoping to find at the Genealogist. If they do not offer these there's no point is spending my money here. One final point -- I think that there may be many researchers who, when they see what is offered here, go away with the impression that that is all there is. Nothing could be further from the truth.
- Submitted By Alex Miller on 12/28/2017Tell me if I'm missing something here but isn't family tree dna cheaper like a lot??
- Submitted By Indiana George on 11/18/2017I ordered from the Genealogist website, I get notification my fam. tree dna account is ready, my credit card says something else... What's going on here guys?!
- Submitted By Jean Patrick on 10/12/2017Great service! Took a while to get the final results but that didn't diminish the overall experience for me.
- Submitted By Alan on 04/27/2019Interesting results that align closely with the likes of Gedcom/gedmatch. When you think about that many people constantly migrate from one region to another (or historic invations and conquests) everyone's bloodline gets pretty much mixed up so no test will be able to guess where our ancestors decided to locate. Despite this, I was shown to have 25% French. We always thought it was Germanic, but then, there was a lot of migration across the ages through this area. It accurately showed our dna from 3 continents, though there was much discussion in my family of the countries selected. Only downside is that Ancestry won't accept results from other testers (eg, Myheritage etc) but accuracy is probably about as good as it could get.
- Submitted By STEVEN WOOTEN on 04/13/2019AncestryDNA is a complete rip off. Everything they told us, we knew from googling our last name (which I had done). They did not include anything outside of that information. They did not include anything from my Native American ancestry at all. A person can look at me and tell it's there. I certainly do not look like I am completely Irish and British considering my dark skin, hair, and eyes. What a total waste of time and money. I do not recommend ever using them. There has to be more reputable companies out there.
- Submitted By Sofia on 19/02/2019I have been really disappointed with my results!!!! I am 100% sure I am half Russian and half Italian but the results showed that I am 0% Russian an 27% Italian. Even my Native American results (which were 1%) were higher than Russian! I can not believe it, because my mums side is fully Russian. I hope the company will improve in the future.
- Submitted By Abigail Hunt on 10/15/2018After testing with Family Tree DNA, my husband and I decided to expand our list of relatives and explore the database offered by Ancestry. We found so many new relatives, some of which were located in Europe, out of all places. If you’re adamant about researching your genetic past in-depth, doing a single test is not enough, not by a long shot. Ancestry gave us much more information than FTDNA, but we still have to do the 23andMe test and check their database as well.
Winner
AncestryDNA offers one of the best and most precise ancestry DNA tests on the market, paired with an active online community and billions of historical records to complement your exploration. Learn more about its complete offer in our objective AncestryDNA review.
Scope Of DNA Tests
The Genealogist basically acts as an affiliate for Family Tree DNA, which means it offers the DNA testing giant’s entire testing portfolio. This includes its signature Family Finder DNA Test, which explores 690,000 genetic markers and covers 22 worldwide regions. Your DNA is checked against the company’s database of about 500,000 DNA profiles. The company also offers Y-chromosome tests, which inspect 37, 67, 111 or 500 genetic markers. Mitochondrial sequencing is available through its mtFull Sequence Test.
AncestryDNA test also analyzes your entire genome, which means it inspects all 23 pairs of chromosomes. The test explores more than 700,000 locations in your DNA and covers 350 worldwide regions. The company features a massive database with more than 7 million different profiles.
Test Processing Times
AncestryDNA yields test results in 6-8 weeks and the average turnaround time for The Genealogist is between 4 and 10 weeks.
Privacy & Security
Both companies are quite adamant when it comes to the overall privacy and security of their users. They feature very strict privacy policies and make sure nobody gains access to your personal information without your explicit consent. They will never sell your sensitive info or share it with any third parties.
Value For Money
The Genealogist offers the entire testing portfolio of Family Tree DNA, as we already mentioned. This includes its autosomal ancestry test called Family Finder (99.95£), as well as its Y-Test (Y-DNA37 – 124.95£; Y-DNA67 – 189.95£; Y-DNA111 – 259.95£) and mtFull Sequence (154.95£). You also have access to Family Tree DNA’s convenient bundles, which include Family Finder + mtDNA Full Sequence (229.95£), Family Finder + Y-DNA37 (189.95£), and Comprehensive Genome – Family Finder + Y-DNA67 + mtFull Sequence (429.95£). Although the prices are a bit higher than going directly through Family Tree DNA, The Genealogist also offers an abundance of genealogical data, which more than makes up for the price difference.
AncestryDNA, on the other hand, offers its ancestry test at the price of 99.00$ and also covers your autosomal and gender chromosomes. The Genealogist offers a bit more flexibility, but AncestryDNA allows you to examine your entire ancestry with one simple test, so it all comes down to your personal needs and preferences. Both companies provide excellent value for the price, but AncestryDNA offers much more genealogical sources. If you’re only interested in genetic ancestry testing, we recommend going with The Genealogist since Family Treat DNA features a larger database, but if you want to explore the genealogical side of the story, AncestryDNA is a pretty clear-cut choice.
Overall Experience
The Genealogist represents a noble effort to combine genetic testing and genealogy and offers pretty remarkable services backed up by Family Tree DNA’s impressive range of tests and convenient testing bundles. Having said that, it still has a long way to go before it can compete with the likes of AncestryDNA.
AncestryDNA is an integral part of the largest genealogical enterprise in the world and can currently be challenged only by MyHeritage. Admittedly, the company’s efforts at genetic testing might still require some additional polish, but its genealogical database is without a match at this point.