There are a wealth of genealogy websites today, both paid and free, for those looking to research their biological heritage and piece together a family tree. Genealogy websites assist people in learning more about their forefathers and mothers. They offer access to a variety of records, databases, and tools.
We are lucky to live in an era when we can conduct much of our genealogy research using computers. Beginners to genealogy now have it easier than in the past, when starting your genealogy meant writing to relatives, cold calling people with your surname to see if they are related, poring over published family and county histories that were over a century old, and going to the library to look up or order records.
There are many different types of ancestry websites on the internet, and while they all have different tools and records, they all have their own strengths and applications.
However, choosing which ones to use to begin with might be difficult. While some sites require a fee, others of the best are completely free. Don’t give up if you don’t get a match right away. If you’re stumped, try spelling your ancestor’s last name a few different ways, as typos are common in historical records.
This list of genealogy websites is inspired by Origins Genealogy, a genetic genealogy company that assists adoptees in finding their birth parents. Origins has created their own list of genealogy websites for beginner genealogists; we recommend you check it out!
Best Genealogy Websites, Free and Paid, in 2022
For this list of the best free and premium genealogy websites in 2022, we had to test each of them ourselves. We needed many hours of research, phone calls to family members, and a few customer service calls. After purchasing a subscription, if it was required, we used all of the website’s functions. It was necessary to submit the names and dates of birth of genuine people in order to check if the genealogical websites might supply any valuable information.
Ancestry.com
With good reason, this is the most popular genealogical website on the internet. It includes millions of genealogy records from all around the world for you to search through, as well as millions of other users with whom you may have ancestors with whom you can communicate.
It’s a premium subscription site, but it offers a free trial to see if it’s a good fit for you. It will, nevertheless, be valuable to almost everyone. The majority of documents are indexed, but those that aren’t can be browsed. The majority of records have been digitized. This site even has old photographs of your ancestors. There is something for everyone here, regardless of where your family comes from.
FamilySearch
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (often known as the Mormons) owns this well-known, free website. Thousands of millions of free digital documents from throughout the world can be found right here.
You can access millions of documents by using the Advanced Search feature, which allows you to search by surname, record type, and/or location. Even beyond FamilySearch’s huge databases, the FamilySearch Wiki is a “go-to” site for finding out what exists for a wide range of family history issues.
In fact, the service is similar to a free version of Ancestry.com except for the DNA and the opportunity to communicate with other users. Although Ancestry.com has more records than FamilySearch, FamilySearch has some that Ancestry does not, and vice versa. Combining the two sites can help you fill in the blanks in your genealogy research.
Access Genealogy
Hundreds of links to genealogy data are available by state or topic. This is a very useful and practical website. It has census records for all 50 states, military records dating back to the 17th century, cemetery records, and a variety of other databases for researchers to search.
It also features a sizable collection of Native American resources, as well as a diverse collection of African American records. These documents span everything from American Indian school records to slave trade records, allowing you to not only identify your ancestors but also to learn more about their lives.
Find My Past
Thanks to almost two billion highly detailed documents in these areas, Find My Past is the go-to location for anyone with ancestors in Ireland or Great Britain and Ireland. Yes, it’s not as many as some of the biggest names in the field, but in such a narrow field, these records are extensive. With over 18 million people registered and records dating back to AD 850, they are some of the oldest records available.
Furthermore, the site just announced a partnership with the British Newspaper Archive, which would allow it to grow its digital record database in this area. This should make finding local tales about your family much easier. We particularly liked the site’s family tree style, which is a lot simpler and friendlier to the eye than some of the other options.
The USGenWeb Project
The USGenWeb Project began in 1996 as a genealogy database for the state of Kentucky. Since then, it’s expanded to include genealogical records for all 50 states, including census records, military records, obituaries, newspapers, and maps among the resources. This makes it one of the most comprehensive free ancestry websites available, albeit its site map is extremely large and takes some getting used to before you can traverse it effectively. It does, however, include a variety of extensive tips on how to perform your own ancestry search, including a beginner’s guide.
It’s a volunteer-run, entirely free project. This means that the quality of each state’s website differs; some have large volumes of digitized census information and military files that are easy to read, while others are riddled with broken links and outdated graphics. You can’t complain because it’s a free resource, but it does mean that finding useful material on the site will be difficult.
Olive Tree Genealogy
Olive Tree Family Tree is a fantastic ancestry website for people who desire to trace their genealogy all the way back to their forefathers’ arrival in America. It has been providing links to ship passenger records for German Palatine, Mennonite, and Huguenot immigrants online since 1996.
Naturalization documents, voter registration records, and recorded vows of loyalty are also included, making it a remarkably comprehensive storehouse of information on early Americans. More general records, such as military databases, orphan lists, asylum registries, and a Canadian immigration component, are also available.
While its design isn’t the cleanest or most attractive of all the free ancestry websites on the internet, it does have a genealogy tutorial part where beginners may learn how to piece together their family tree.
National Archives
As the name suggests, Family History Archives is the family history site of choice for researchers who need to go deep into a subject. They have a large number of important genealogical records. It’s no wonder that this is one of the most popular genealogy websites, with over 1.3 billion digital documents and 50,000 new digitized entries added every day.
The Archives is an excellent resource for the more skilled family historian who has done substantial work in establishing a family tree but needs assistance filling in some difficult gaps. Although the majority of the documents are not accessible online, you can use their website to find records of interest and educate yourself on those that are.
When you find a record of interest, you can purchase a copy of the microfilm and see it in a National Archives research room near you.
The lack of relative suggestions and the difficulty of acquiring a DNA kit/testing are two things that users detest about Archives.
Chronicling America
Were your forefathers or mothers in the news? You might be able to learn more on this website. Chronicling America, a part of the Library of Congress website, provides searchable pictures of US newspapers from 1792 through 1963.
You can either use the basic search option to find a newspaper and explore the photographs, or use the advanced search function to find a newspaper by state or newspaper, keywords, and dates.
But it’s the newspaper directory, which shows you what papers were published where your ancestors lived and where you can access their archives, that makes this one of my favorite free websites.
The Library of Congress
The Library of Congress (LOC) houses one of the world’s greatest collections of printed and recorded materials, as well as an excellent source of free photographs and a repository for all copyrighted materials in the United States and beyond. In addition to the important U.S. Newspaper Directory and Chronicling America, LOC maintains collections of nearly all city directories and county histories in the United States; houses a comprehensive directory of all known copyrighted newspapers by timeframe and where they can be found today; and offers comprehensive historical materials of all kinds.
The Library of Congress website has digitized pictures of newspapers (mainly from the 1800s and 1900s), books, maps, films, maps, prints, photos, personal narratives (primarily from the Veterans History Project), and drawings from many sources. Look for archive finding aids in library catalogs or use search engines to see what’s available.
Cyndi’s List
Consider Cyndi Ingle’s free website your internet genealogy table of contents. Lists of websites dedicated to investigating specific locations, sorts of documents, ethnic and religious groupings, and more can be found. Beginner’s guides and hints can be found in the beginners category. However, keep an eye out for areas that interest you, such as military research or DNA.
Cyndi’s List is a massive directory of genealogical websites from all over the world. City directories, wills, marriage certificates, church, military, and adoption data are all available on CyndisList.com.
A Wealth of Online Genealogical Resources
With so many free and paid genealogy websites and databases to aid you in building out your family tree, what are you waiting for! No matter which countries your ancestors hailed from, you’ll find the right resources among the sites listed in this article. Happy hunting!
