Ancestry.com
Is This Your Business?4.2
4.2
Author: Kalicia Bateman
LAST UPDATED: February 10th, 2022
Top Ranked Companies
The Good
- Records
- Mobile app
- Publishing options
- Billions of records available to search from
- Ability to upload images, documents and attach them to family trees
- Mobile app works on all platforms
- Relevant blog articles giving up-to-date information
- Social Media presence with helpful tips and useful research information: Facebook, Twitter, Google+, Instagram, Pinterest, Tumblr
- Instructional YouTube videos for beginners as well as more advanced research tips to more seasoned genealogists
- Community message boards and opportunities to collaborate with others sharing common ancestors
- Comprehensive learning center
- Differing levels of membership based upon your individual needs
- Customer service representatives available 7 days per week from 9AM-11PM Eastern Time
- Publishing options for your findings
- Software and books available
- Industry-leading software which is easy to use
- Ancestry.com DNA tests are cutting edge and link members to their ethnic backgrounds, but to relatives also taking the tests. Adopted individuals have flocked to take these tests and many have found their birth families through Ancestry.com DNA matching.
The Bad
- Pricing
- Load time
The Bottom Line
Was this content helpful?
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Dan Saint Charles, MO
I received several messages notifying me of the great progress and it would only be two weeks before receiving my results. Well that when on for weeks until I received a very unwelcoming notice that I had to request a new kit as the sample failed. Spending about three wasted and frustrating hours on the phone with customer service a supervisor who seemed very accommodating said she would work on my refund and call me back in twenty minutes. That never happened and when I called back and spoke with my third representative I was told there was no notes in the system. Given they work from home she couldn’t see what supervisor may have spoken with me. No apologies in their request or sorry for the inconvenience, we will send a new kit out. No everything was put back on the customer. They are the absolute worst I have ever dealt with.
7 years ago
Rose Sturgeon-Mabini Puyallup, WA
I just received my results for my ancestry DNA. I was blown away and saddened by how fraudulent it appears to be. I only submitted my DNA because I wanted to see what percentage of native American I was. My grandmother was 1/2 Cherokee Indian and my father's side also has Cherokee Indian as well. My best friend and I did it and submitted ours pretty close to the same time. We got our results back and they are almost identical with the EXACT same wording, just the percentages a tiny bit different. And......had 0% of anything related to being any native American. Never again will I believe in this.
7 years ago
Nancy Zewiey
Presently purchasing Worldwide Membership on a semi-annual basis. $330 a year. Have been purchasing and using Family Tree Maker for more than 10 years, spending $100's and thousand of hours.
As of March 29, 2017 have been unable to sync FTM with Ancestry. Despite numerous inquiries no Software Mac Kiev fails to responds. Attempting to get resolution to this problem, I researched SM which claims to be headquartered in Boston, On Google maps they are locate in the middle of the Sumner Tunnel. This is in fact a Ukrainian company [Kiev]. And totally unresponsive to th promised release of FTM 2017 which supposedly would then allow me to sync again with online trees. Real dirty pool.
2nd problem. Have purchased 6 DNA kits over the past 4 years. But for the past week have been unable to access my DNA matches I think this is due to an update which created a new aspect of online DNA matches which I could access Wednesday and it was totally accurate. My problem was assigned to a technician Tuesday but this anonymous person has taken no action and is unreachable by telephone either to me or the customer service reps.
Until the last year I would have rated the knowledge, professionalism, and understanding of Ancestry Customer Service as outstanding. The phone was immediately answered by a real person who quickly resolved my problem. Now after 5 minutes of electronic voice, and 4 to 6 minute waiting for live assistance on third of reps may not speak English fluently , have an attitude of superiority, and are not knowledgeable. Ancestry is a service business the data they distribute are free open public records already paid for by taxpayers an it is collected largely by volunteer mormons and other persons interested in amateur history and, or genetics. I am now very frustrated especiall at the fact such personal data is being freely given to the land of hackers and Putin.
9 years ago
Teresa Saldana Arlington, TX
I tried Ancestry.com during a 2- week free trial and cancelled during the time period. I received an email confirming my cancellation. Today I find out I am still being billed. I called and after their associate looking for awhile i was told they have a "sister" company. While you are on the ancestry website you are also unknowingly signing up for a free trial with their sister company..If you don't cancel that one too Ancestry continues to bill..Of course, you aren't made aware of this. When I asked the guy at Ancestry for the phone number to this sister go. I was told he handled both..I would NOT recommend Ancestry.
10 years ago
Jessica McManus Corsicana, TX
Over the past three years since the investment firm Permira bought Ancestry, it has steadily gone downhill. It usesd to be the best place to go for genealogy. Now the website is broken more then it's fixed. They sold Family Tree Maker to Software Mackiev, but seem to be making the takeover as difficult as possible. For the past week, the website and Family Tree Maker just aren't working well together. And I'm sure it will be the same whenever RootsMagic also begins to sync with Ancestry.
The customer service is non-existant and you are on hold upwards of an hour to speak to a live person. If you use email support, you get responses that are evident that no one actaully read or comprehended your words that it's ridiculous! I emailed about problems with the Ancestry version of Family Tree Maker and the support person, Bryan, emailed me with the response "I'm sorry you are experiencing problems with our website." No one in customer service or support seem to know how the website even functions. And the standard response are either clear your cache & cookies, use another browser, or "We are aware of the issue and are working on it but we have no idea when it will be fixed."
And if you are too vocal about the problems you are having with Ancestry on their facebook page, they will ban you from it. But at the same time they allow certain "trolls" to continue to harass and disrespect those who are honestly just wanting to be able to use what they pay for.
10 years ago
Melanie Wood Rohnert Park, CA
Ancestry.com. They had a nice, easy to navigate set up, one that was handy to review and double check, didn't take up too much room/too much ink if you print. Now we have a truly ludicrus and plain goofey convoluted "Story Book" for every single person that seems to gather information and facts from Pluto or something - just doesn't make sense,: events repeated over and over but with a new date for each repeteition it seems. I can't depend on your presentation anymore. You have gone way too far A.C. And I was such a fan! I was your cheerleader. Get rid of Story Book because there is comical information you've added - God only knows who came up with that stuff. Please, get real with the plain old common sense method that made sense. No more color book with crazy dates, numerous repetitions and goofey stories. I do NOT want to pay for that. Please pay attention to loyal customers!
10 years ago
Pat Forest, MS
I have been using Ancestry.com since 2000. I have had a wonderful experience. I loved it and used it every day........UNTIL they changed to this new format. I hate it! It is too busy, hard on my eyes and too much information to look at all at one time. All this information in front of you on the screen makes it hard to stay focused on what you are actually trying to research. This new format has taken a lot of the joy out of researching for me. Ancestry.com is a wonderful tool and was a good investment for your money. And it really made researching your tree very exciting and rewarding! Please, please, give us a choice on which format we want to use, after all..............we are paying for it. Doesn't customer satisfaction count for anything?
10 years ago
Barb Third Ellicott City, MD
Once upon a time, there were thousands of cubicle dwellers. Contentedly in their spare time, many worked for years personalizing their space with family photos, framed documents, tales of true adventures,...in short, they made a house a home. One day, each person entered his home to find complete chaos. Unfamiliar, mass-produced and plastic furniture was anchored where antiques had stood. Carefully tended bookshelves were in disarray. Ancestral photo frames had been torn off, leaving beloved bodies to appear beheaded. Generic pictures from children's encyclopedias hung like giant posters on the walls. The walls themselves were covered gray and black, and purple arrows pointing to maps that led to nowhere had been spray-painted throughout. Family treasures were later found crammed in closets. The bank that held the mortgages proclaimed, “the times, they are a'changing,” saying newcomers who had few furnishings, records, or history lessons needed more. Hundreds of people wrote and wailed for months, to no avail. Final reactions varied: Pack up and move. Lock up and leave. Stay and accept. A few liked the Instant Family feel. This is what the executives of Ancestry.com did to millions of Family Trees they'd been paid to preserve. Inexperienced and unintelligent computer programmers were allowed to turn a decent genealogical website into a disappointing, flaw-filled waste of time. What a travesty!
11 years ago
mary Myrtle Beach, SC
Here are 3 examples of the offensive, juvenile, incorrect nonsense being added by Ancestry to MY carefully constructed historical display: My grandmother was born in India to American citizen missionaries. The way Ancestry tells it she “moved from India to the US at a time when immigrants were expected to quickly assimilate into American society,” This insightful gem is accompanied by a helpful photo of “huddled masses.”
Uncle Henry went to “Bleeding Kansas” in 1855 because he was a Quaker and abolitionist. He rode with John Brown, was charged with treason, and eventually became a major in the Union Army. Ancestry implies, photo and all, that he was a homesteader in a covered wagon. They even added the now infamous HUGE shot of the #^$& grasshoppers!
“James was one of many Irish living in NYC at a time when the Big Apple was experiencing a boom in Irish immigrants.” I suspect even many 12-year-olds would know that nobody called NYC the Big Apple in 1871. Who writes this crap?
For Ancestry to respond that I may feel free to delete it is beyond the pale. Ancestry makes a mess and hands US a mop?
11 years ago
David Mcalan Palm Harbor, FL
Recently Ancestry unveiled and "new" version of their web service. I has been a pure disaster. There are new challenges every day. These include problems with searches and results; changes in background colors and screens to make it modern looking, while damaging people's eyesight (it will be nice to read about the first law suit regarding damaged vision); lost data; a ridiculous new Lifestory page; Ancestry's manipulation of data, photos, and reports you have uploaded to Ancestry; truncated photographs, extra functions added to accomplish tasks that used to require one function... a very lengthy list of issues that they will not address (maybe 20+ out of hundreds reported), The lack of customer support as been astounding. Thousands of complaints have been posted on their Facebook pages and on their blogs, all to no avail. There has been absolutely NO apology issued by their upper management for all the problems they are causing their customers. They have become a monopoly, snapping up other companies that offered genealogical services, leaving us to deal with one big, faceless conglomerate. Their team of beta testers have become Facebook hyenas, attacking every dissenter who posts and unfavorable comment. My goal is to complete the project I started and get out of Dodge, and i am not alone in this sentiment. This has become a greedy business, with one goal in mind, more and more money And, ignoring customer demand, requests, suggestions, they are forging ahead with this loser application. Customer service be dammed.
11 years ago
Pam Barton Kirksville, MO
I don't like new look too confusing and I have sent several messages about the poor transcribed census and other items I've learned to really find anything you have to go and look at actual images as so many times I have found names horribly butchered K turned in to H's J's into I's etc. If someone was looking for a family named King it will never show up as it is under Hing. I have found several of my ancestors under wrongly transcribed names and I try to correct them but do you correct all the ones you know that are wrong sometimes there is no place to correct a name and I'm not talking about the different ways a census taker spelled a name but if your are looking for a name like Sanaft and you find them spelled Janaft it will never come up on searches only looking thru the images yourself Sometimes I don't think the transcribers even tried which makes me believe if some one was looking and didn't find them they think they are not in that area but they are, just under a badly transcribed name
11 years ago
Dana R Hyde Gloversville, NY
Over the past several years, I have seen where much of my Ancestry membership money has been going: Investment in the acquisition and cataloging of many newly available databases, and upgrades to the site's user interface that make it more useful and powerful by many orders of magnitude than was the case when I initially joined. While downtime can be occasionally annoying, they work hard to minimize inconveniences and maintain partial functionality during the outages. Some years ago I interviewed for employment with the company when they were doing a couple of data-collection projects in my region; although I wasn't chosen I enjoyed the opportunity to meet their representative face-to-face in NYC.
While Ancestry is not inexpensive, they also do offer some less-comprehensive affiliated sites such as rootsweb.com that are free or at more nominal cost. While I've had a longtime interest in my dad's Canadian roots and my mom's Italian ones, I maintained my membership at the $68/yr US-Only level until I could afford to upgrade to global again this year.
The opportunity to share research and collaborate with other members has opened new doors for me. I have also been able to meet cousins I had never previously known, and substantiate my family's claim to a small indirect inheritance three years ago. While I haven't yet joined their $99 DNA program, that opens possibilities and potential that I'm just starting to imagine.
11 years ago
Chris Albany, OR
The site has the most resources compared to other sites and generally has good customer service. The cost though is too much, with so many customers they could reduce the price by half and many more people would join. There are frequent problems with the website as well and they keep changing it around, and usually for the worst, which is annoying. Since many of the documents are difficult to read, you need to label who they are about so you now have to download each one since they all now have numbers instead of people names. That was the worst because it is a big waste of time to download all the files one by one.
11 years ago
David Stagner
This is insane, I signed up for the 14-day free trail not knowing that every month after the free trial they charge you $16.50, it took me 3 months to discover the funds being leaked out of my Paypal account. I sent ancestry.com a email asking them for a refund explaining my situation. Of course, they denied me a refund so I canceled my subscription with them only to be charged a $10 early cancellation fee. By this time I'm about to go insane, I sever all ties they had to my Paypal hoping that I wont lose any more money. The total loss: $59.50 Just thrown in the trash, thanks ancestry.com. (I don't want to give them a star, far too overrating)
11 years ago
Rebecca Darr Indian Head, MD
A family member who does not live with me was able to convince customer service to change the account I registered for and paid for to her contact info and when I contacted them about it and provided my name/phone/email/username and credit card #, amount of charge and date as well as forwarding them my initial confirmation email from the site - Ancestry refused to revert the account back to me so I have lost access to everything.
7 years ago
Carl Weil Elizabeth, CO
Each of Ancestry's very late reply's starts out "our apology"
unbelievably it goes down hill from there
three months Five broken promises to fix, expedite and get me a report- still noting but apologies and more broken promises!
"the sample was not usable"
"we forgot to send you a replacement"
"we will expedite and rush your report" [days after promised date and still nothing]
Horrible- go else where
7 years ago
Mike San Diego, CA
Encouraged to submit my family tree after DNA testing. Decided it was a good idea to have it posted so others could learn from it and I could learn something new. Some of it was done by professional genealogists. 10 months later and my family tree has not appeared on the ancestry.com trees. I'm the only one who can access the information, and I already know it. It was a big waste of time for me to submit information. I have called 4 times to find out why. Many different excuses, but problem is never fixed. Once someone hung up on me.
8 years ago
P.A. Scott Atlanta, GA
I was thrilled about this when it first came out. So interesting. I thought I would try it out. I was excited about the results too, they seemed accurate and detailed. HOWEVER, recently they claimed to have re-tested my original sample, and now have lumped me into just 2 ethnic areas. The sub-cultures I had before, were all gone now. What happened to those? My level of trust for them has decreased dramatically. I think there is something 'flawed' here. I used to get DNA testing to friends and family as unique gifts. Not anymore! I'm sorry you let me down. I feel duped!
8 years ago
karen Ingleside, TX
this company has changed my family tree. I have used this company for many years and always took pride at how they seemed to take pride in preserving the integrity of online family trees They went in and changed the layout without permission and gave me no choice. Also they changed the terms of service without ever making this known to subscribers Very dissapointed
11 years ago
Nancy Winston Saint Paul, MN
Not fair that when putting in a specific name, ancestry.com will give you a TON of other names/info! Who cares about someone else's entry, I put in a name and that is ALL I want to see! I always think that they give the other unwanted stuff because otherwise people would constantly get "record not found" or some such thing. As it is, I would rather get nothing than the WRONG thing! Get with it, ancestry.com!! Give what is asked for only!!!!
11 years ago
Marci Falls Sherwood, OR
I have been on Ancestry for some years now and have been very satisfied. However, the new format is horrible. It's too big so when you do a page print you only get half the information. It makes it impossible for research binders so when researching other sites and libraries you have needed information available.
Please go back to the old format or fix this one. Please!!!
11 years ago
Hugh Honea Centreville, VA
I have to call about every two weeks to get signed in,. You change my password for no reason and never notify me. I had to call again last night and the young lady could not help me. With my great grandmother I can not locate her parents. That's only going back to 1843. I am questioning if I should remain a customer. When I have to call your staff are very rude.
11 years ago
Julie Grimm Pittsburgh, PA
Have used ancestry for a number of years, and discovered a lot about my ancestors. However, it seems like every time I or my sister go on the site, things in our tree are changed, like someone is messing around with it. One time, a whole branch was deleted. I complained, and we were able to restore it, but now we keep discovering errors and they were not made by us. Probably going to cut my losses and discontinue paying the exorbitant fees they charge.
11 years ago
Linda Sparks Phoenix, AZ
I have been using Ancestry for years. however I am searching for another provider that will not be as full of frustrations. Since FTM 14 I have not been able to keep a single tree in synch and sometimes my FTM tree flips over to an ancestry tree. Load times as horrible, backing up to an external device is impossible and the cost has become ridiculous. How I wish they hadn't gone so downhill.
11 years ago
Meg Wheatley Forestville, CA
I've found many errors on the Census Records, given the correct information, and received the thank you e-mail. The errors, in my opinion are unwanted, if I can see them then the operator should be able to see them. I'm also am looking at cancelling next year the cost is getting to be outrageous. There is no Senior Discount offered, lets face it after being a member for so many years a loyalty discount should be extended.
11 years ago
pressure sales with the tools to offer good alternative plans
to expensive and prior usage resulted in erroneous results without any resolution to the program never obtained a refund or retesting for the companies inability to perform the initial testing also, no customer service to address my concerns
7 years ago
Matt Champlin, MN
A Family Tree Maker user when it was just a twig. The new online version that we're supposed to trust our hard earned information with is awful. It's probably still trying to load my first request. I have to move on. It looks like there are plenty of choices to shift to. So disappointing.
10 years ago
mary lew Pottstown, PA
I signed up for it on a trial basis....found NOTHINg and then they kept taking money out of my account even after I said cancel...you offer a trial but then you keep taking out money when you had no right. A trial is a trial which means the ONLY way you should ever collect another cent is after that person said to go ahead.
11 years ago
Lindy Guilmart Milford, CT
You need a new web designer who can do simple in readable colors.
I had a bad experience withh my DNA, I am french my great grandfather lived there and all the ancestors back as fdar as 1600 only married French. No French in my ancestry from you.
11 years ago
Patricia Dowling Port Townsend, WA
A Long Time Member, Loved The Old Format---Very Unhappy With The New---Hard To Search, Enter Photo's ----All Around Big Mess----Please Let's Get Back Where We Can Read ,Look & Understand Our Family Tree---
Patricia L. Dowling
11 years ago
Norma Smallwood Landry Pensacola, FL
I was very impressed the first time I tried this site. I was able to see census records, my grandfather's military registration card; however, when I tried to sign up for the free trial, it would not accept me unless I provided the neam of a credit/debit card. Hey, you call that free?
11 years ago
Kirk
The new version is so buggy it will discourage users. I think I will put it aside for a few months so that they can fix it. However, my feedback during the trial period was not used so I may end up cancelling.
10 years ago
Ruth Loughlin Hatboro, PA
Too much money. I only found a few things about my family and nothing on my Husbands side. I would not pay that much money when I can search else were and find what I need at a reasonable price.
11 years ago
Angie Smith Lone Oak, TX
I signed up for what I thought was just a month. Used it that month then stopped. Two months later realized they had been charging me every month. They did credit me for one month but I will not sign back up with them.
11 years ago
trudi ramey High Springs, FL
I paid for this twice...no info found in either...my dad's family lived and died in n.y. state an conn....nothing was very upset to spend money on this program
11 years ago
eizizabeth tew Starkville, MS
found pricing exorbitant and terribly hard to find things. cancelled my membership as found it of NO value at all. Hours of searching and little or nothing found.
11 years ago
Judy Gray Port Charlotte, FL
I like it. I enjoy it. But it does no good to rate it when I cannot afford to use it. Even as a gift it is too expensive for my children to buy a membership for me.
11 years ago
Review Source
Tyree Newkirk Cedar Fort, UT
I was really excited to actually try and use this to find what my family is but to be honest they make you think it’s all for free but then once you sign up for everything they ask you to pay so I was really upset!
7 years ago
Matthew Hall Moselle, MS
No person should have to pay for public records, I've tried to get records about my family in the 1980s census, but I had to pay.
6 years ago
Hugh Milliken, CO
Absolutely a rip off! You pay for a DNA kit which is about $30 and then they charge you $150 for six months. Make sure you read the small print.
8 years ago
Glenna K.
I canceled the subscription on line, but they continued to take the money out of my bank account. They are cheaters. I will NEVER use them again.
8 years ago
steve Rancho Santa Margarita, CA
Ellisisland.org was free and I got information but now it is expensive. I realize it takes funding to operate but I can't afford it any more.
11 years ago
Alexander Miropolsky Westford, MA
1. Pretty expensive
2. DNA results are so broad, so meaningless
3. Databases very limited
4. Customer service awful
7 years ago
Stu Futrell Brewerton, NY
The "Ethnicity Estimate" results were too generic and the cost of continuing this service are astronomical.
9 years ago
Vicki Roush Buckeye, AZ
I still have not received my review on my DNA. I sent it in the start of February.
10 years ago
Rhonda Christie
Didn't tell anymore than we already knew. It was a disappointment.
7 years ago
Kathleen Deibert Herrera
Was very slow to respond so finally asked for refund (which I received).
7 years ago
Lisa
TERRIBLE COMPANY
Just TRY to cancel out of your subscription!!!!!
DISGUSTING
7 years ago
Carolyn Orr Sulphur Springs, TX
To expensive.
11 years ago
jimmy conway Mayfield, KY
to expensive and after a while not much help
11 years ago
