Ancestry: Family History & DNA Negative Reviews

Ancestry: Family History & DNA App Complaints & User Negative Comments 2024

Ancestry: Family History & DNA app received 71 complaints, negative comments and reviews by users. Have you ever had a bad experience using Ancestry: Family History & DNA? Can you share your negative thoughts about ancestry: family history & dna?

Ancestry: Family History & DNA for Negative User Reviews

✓ Matches aren’t sync to other DNA matchesExample 1: A person can be matched to 4 siblings, but when clicked on one siblings Shared Matches’s, it doesn’t list the other 3 siblings that are being managed by that one sibling under shared matches but you can see them in the managers profile. Or if you search for them. Example 2: A uncle and niece share a cousin. Both are showing shared 10cm with this person. But when either the uncle or niece click on that shared cousin matches, they don’t see each other as a match. The niece sees not shared matches with the cousin. **Also, please bring back the under 8cm matches. They are very important in helping with researching and connecting. **And we shouldn’t lose information that we have collected and added to our tree, if we can’t afford our membership and have to cancel for a short time. If information is found while on a paid membership, that information should be able to be kept in the tree. Thank you!!.All Around the World-1234Version: 13.1

✓ RelationshipsMy relationship have been all mixed up and are in red? Some only have 2 options either mother or father and both side I can’t change or put them right? It’s impossible to get an answer or help fr Ancestry even although they take my subscription every month! I’m more than fed up with this incompetence this has only came about since they added the new feature to view maternal or paternal trees. However my nephew has been shown as grandson and despite severe allergies emails I’ve never had one reply or offer of help fr Ancestry…..the policy seems to be that they no longer give customers a service or help…..it’s a joke and customer services disappeared when covid hit us…… like everywhere else they have a below standard customer service team working from h9me and the service is now non existent…….1955-JoannaVersion: 14.20

✓ Very disappointed with the whole experienceI received my dna results less than 2 weeks ago and now the results have disappeared from my account. I go to DNA story and it just says to buy a kit or activate one. Where have my results gone? I wouldn’t have even bothered with this but my husband was curious. Seems it was a waste of time and money if you ask me. The app is woeful and tells you the same old hints over and over again. Any other info or articles want more $$$ and I was going to purchase a world membership but now I’m glad I didn’t..KylieahVersion: 15.0

✓ Not helpful.Unless someone in the family has already tried doing this AND you have someone (which you’re going to need more than one person if you want both sides of your family) to help you know the names of yours and their families then this isn’t helpful. You have to put it together yourself. You put in names dates and locations and it does decent at finding the right people but that’s only if like I said someone else has already done it before and it shows you what they’ve added to confirm who you are adding yourself and with our help from my family a lot of the things it’s shown me has been the wrong people or info but thanks to someone else in our family who knew a little more had added things I had been able to get it started but coming from a big family there’s only so much I can find or do to build the tree accurately. Don’t use this thinking it’ll be able to just find your family easily you will need lots of information about your family and you will have to find them and identify what’s right or wrong and it’s all very confusing the way the app works it’s hard to get around the tree the way I want to looking at things. Don’t recommend..Frim every snap userVersion: 15.15

✓ Technology vs PsychologyAncestry has helped me through a lot. I never knew my dad’s paternal side of the family neither did he. He always wanted to know who his father was, so I helped him research a bit. My father passed away in 2020 due to a car accident so I made it my life mission to know how he was and who his family was. With this app, it’s very hard. The science and the generics are great though, I can’t complain. I found matches, I never thought I’d find. It’s very complicated to communicate on it though. Let’s be honest, not many people are on the app everyday to wait for an answer hoping that someday will magically answer all your questions. It would be amazing, if with the person’s consent, if there could be a social media account (instagram, messenger, gmail or even a phone number) were we can contact the person more easily. It would be so wonderful if I could know more..UnpublishedauthorVersion: 15.4

✓ Difficult to join others treesOnce I find relatives that I know are related and your cMs show are related I should be able to easily join their family tree instead of creating my own..Tattoos by hastingsVersion: 15.6

✓ Website is better, all access membership isn’t worth it!I love ancestry, the things i’ve discovered are an amazing gift to my family. That said, the app version leaves much to be desired. The website allows you to connect with other members, view their profiles and trees (member trees are the most helpful feature on Ancestry), and send pictures. That only scratches the surface when it comes to all the goodness you’re missing out on if you use the app over the website. Additionally, the app glitches. If you delete someone on the tree it will reload you back to your home person, and often when you try to accept hints it will save the wrong one (or save one multiple times. As for the membership, while expensive they are worth it. I do think that the first or second are the best (though depending on which part of the world you want the international records from it might not help). I find that FamilySearch works better for international records, and Ancestry works best for US records. All access is basically a scam. All the newspaper article you want to look at (i truly mean ALL of the ones for my relatives) are behind another paywall. additionally the Fold3 records are largely already available on the ancestry website (draft cards, hospital admissions etc). Keep your 1st-2nd tier ancestry membership then get the higher level newspaper membership separately..HazeltheBasilVersion: 13.16

✓ More search functionality options.The app & website are just amazing. Lots of info at your fingertips, of course, it’s still on you to verify the info is correct & that’s where being able able to search through your own tree better would be helpful. Currently, on both web & app, you can’t search any way but by name, really. However, it would be helpful to see your list of relatives like excel. Filter by dates or locations, etc could really help with being able to more easily validating info against other sources. Also, I’m not a developer so I’m not sure how this would happen but I have noticed that multiple of my ancestors came from the same lines so I have multiple entries for the same person. However, if I’ve pulled in someone that I’ve already had from let’s say someone else’s tree, there isn’t anything sitting around giving me a ping that I might have a possible duplicate. To that end, I’ve spent sooo much time just “merging” & cleaning up a tree….that part is extremely frustrating. Some sort of recognition of possible matches would be wonderful!.Chasi DavidVersion: 15.8.2

✓ It’s decent but not most accurateIn my opinion; This is not very accurate. It says my Half Brother and I have nearly the same DNA however it is impossible since we have different fathers. I have even used my family tree to track my family roots yet it says I’m a majority English which is a lie; my English side is such a small percentage that it shouldn’t even be represented. I’m a majority Germanic and it says my German side is less than 10 percent. I believe they got the DNA right and the percentages wrong which has been more complicated by the current pandemic so I understand it was probably just an accident. It took nearly 3 months to receive my results and yet I have to say I was really let down and disappointed by the lack of accuracy and performance. If you’re thinking of doing this DNA test, I’d say what until after the Pandemic so they don’t “ rush “ your order which is why mine became so inaccurate. Overall the customer support is the best part of this company, not the service itself..Inclined AlphaVersion: 11.13

✓ Too many bugs to useI love ancestry and if this app worked I would use it daily! Unfortunately it’s never worked for me. I constantly have to log out and completely reinstall, and the support people tell me to do that or use the desktop version instead. It should people that I have lots of information on as blank unknowns, it doesn’t let me see what’s in my gallery, or it shows me 2 out of 10 items. Sometimes when I move through the tree it crashes. I have thousands of hint to sift through yet it constantly shows as 0 hints when I select ‘best’. Brilliant system, poor app. Can’t wait for it to be improved because I know I’ll be addicted!.MorganNewbieVersion: 9.19

✓ Unable to editMany of my family members have incorrect or incomplete information & I can’t see how to correct it..Rita0987654321Version: 15.13.1

✓ App is very limited compared to excellent websiteUnfortunately, the App is very limited compared to their excellent website. Stick to the web,.IGodsVersion: 15.24.2

✓ 3rd reviewThe other two that were critical don’t appear, like they don’t want the truth out there. Use PC, and use both to find all the info.Sumbl1sssVersion: 15.6

✓ DO NOT DOWNLOAD THIS APPI dowloaded this app yesterday. It was largely unhelpful and gave me little to no information about my past. Then I noticed that ancestry had been tracking my location. I never gave consent to this and when I went on settings I couldn’t turn it off because I had never enabled it in the first place. I deleted the app. It was still tracking my location nearly every two minutes and at the moment I am trying to delete my account to see if that works but so far it keeps kicking me out of the app whenever I go onto account settings. I read through the privacy settings and was shocked to find that it said : ancestry MAY give your data to third party developers. So yeah, if it was me I wouldn’t be giving my full name and the maiden names of my ancestors and least of all my DNA when it MAY sell all of this private information to third party sources..Pink_piranhaVersion: 15.18.1

✓ The most you will pay for a headacheUnfortunately if you want to research your family they have locked you in. There are not many sites to compete with them and I cannot wait until they have more competition so maybe just maybe they will take the overpriced membership money and hire a compete website team. It will start off ok then you will get an update, once you do the update you won’t be able to do much! I wish I was joking but every single update costs you at least a month if not more of access to what you need to do. This time it’s hints and building your tree, it won’t take and then it will create triple. You will think you can just get ahold of customer service and their bot Leif is the gate keeper that makes it impossible to get someone to the chat. When you do get someone to the chat they will play dumb and accuse you of being the problem then after you are insanely frustrated and about to throw in the towel a new update comes through fixing all people have been accused of causing, no refund, no apology. So welcome to your new and expensive headache. I am working on printing my work and putting it in writing, I suggest you start that way bc you too will be done with them within a year..ReeViciousVersion: 15.19

✓ Life Stories Ruin Basic NavigationEvery time I agree to take the survey about the new Life Story feature, it doesn’t pull up - so here I am. It’s cumbersome and complicated. It has ruined the experience of this app. Please remove it as a primary means of seeing information about individuals in the tree. Now all I can see are birth and death dates for a person. I have to dig in the stories for anything else like marriage dates. People who are serious about genealogy do not spend time with this feature because we don’t have stories about our ninth great grandparents. We just need a section with all the facts and notes we have recorded with the other section for sources. I tried to add an obituary the other day and it took an act of congress. The Life Story/Timeline is a catchy, social media-esque way to keep occasional users interested, but it ruins the workflow for serious users. It’s honestly a terrible idea by the developers. I could not dislike it more. Please bring back the old interface when we could see the basic info without the fluff (like on Family Tree)..BriznitVersion: 15.6

✓ Ancestry is great concept, but the App search is almost uselessI love the concept of Ancestry, however … I paid for the World Deluxe Membership, but the App only returns hits for USA and a little Canada. The App finds: US and Canada newspaper articles, (which you have to pay another company to view); gravestone pictures; USA/Canada marriage records, and USA high school yearbook pictures. Can the App with my World Deluxe membership search Finnish or Swedish records - no. I don’t have access to a sit-down computer for most of my life, so my phone is my only internet access, and the World Deluxe membership has no value to the App. My grandfather’s Canadian marriage certificate notes his mother and father, and their birth places in Europe. I find nothing when I search for them with the App. How am I supposed to fill my tree origins without App hits from Europe? So far, I have paid almost $300 for 12-months of World Deluxe without a mother or father on my grandfather’s side to show for it. I cannot keep renewing my membership at this price..Jacks_66Version: 15.13

✓ Sign in having troubleWhy can I see my matches tree it always saying loading.TootsmitchellVersion: 15.15

✓ Not intuitive how to use the appMy father had created a family tree - but it wasn’t obvious how to share it via the app - I think the only option was to log onto the site. Feels like an opportunity missed to share the trees with living relatives - either they should add the functionality or make it easier to work out how to use it..SoftwareguyVersion: 9.9

✓ Latest update dreadfulThere is no option on the latest update to change the background colour. It’s now a bright white and the ancestor boxes are also white which makes it very uncomfortable on the eyes. Not conducive to people with eyesight problems as there is no distinction between the background and the ancestor boxes. It’s possible to change the background colour on the main website but not on the app?!?! This needs changing ASAP. The app is limited, the website is better but slower. This new update looks like the graphics have been copied from find my past..John smiths motherVersion: 12.0.1

✓ False advertisingDo not believe the free 14 day trial. You may get charged & then apple itunes will not refund your money. They told me that all sales were final & that apps are not personalized. I was not told this & there is nothing on the free 14 day trial page within the app that has terms & conditions or any exclusions. I had received a previous free trial & was surprised to see another one. I clicked it thinking I’d received it because I did not keep the subscription originally. Apple itunes store kept me on the phone for over an hour refusing to refund & quoting the all sales final in the terms & conditions. There needs to be an * on the free 14 day trial page in the app with at least a short sentence stating if you’ve received a free trial that you will be charged the full subscription price for one month & not receive the free trial. This is false advertising & makes both ancestry & apple itunes store look very bad. I learned my lesson the hard way. I’m sure I wasn’t the only one. Save your money & don’t even risk it if you’ve used it before. Reclaim the records offers all records for free, same ones ancestry charges for- public free records-paid for by your ancestor’s taxes & you can use ancestry through your taxpayer $ for free at your local library. I’m so angry..AhamandaVersion: 10.36.1

✓ Membership Purchase DOES NOT WORK in the AppThe App is a scam! 😩😡🤬. You risk losing money! They tempt you with a few days free trial and charge your credit card. When your free trial ends, Ancestry deactivates your account so you can no longer see images of documents even though your card has been changed. To get your money back you have to deal with Apple. I have had an Ancestry account for years, but only activate it occasionally for a few months to see if any new information is available. This time I made the mistake of activating it through the app using Apple Pay. The app worked okay for me. If you are using an iPad, the app is more convenient than the site on Safari; however, there are a few things that can only be done on the website (e.g. inviting others to your tree if your tree is private). Occasionally the app locks up and loses connection when you try to add files to your gallery. But the main problem is activating your account through the app, especially along with the free trial offer. If you want an active membership, activate it through the website even though you will not get the free trial. Otherwise, you risk a lot of headaches trying to get a refund when Ancestry doesn’t honor your purchase at the end of the free trial..Seventh fretVersion: 10.45

✓ Unable to searchThis app has always had bugs/faults and does not have everything as per the online website. For several weeks now, the search function does not work at all. Very frustrating, as a paid member. To search I must use the online webpage..Ihatevisa69Version: 14.15

✓ Update !!Update the app !!!! There is no reason why my family tree is downloading and taking forever to download everyone in it when I go on the app !!!!.Caps101Version: 15.6

✓ An expensive and bewildering set of paywallsIt has information that I can’t get anywhere else but it also tries continually to get you to subscribe to add-ons, often to obtain information you can get for free from somewhere else. Ancestry occasionally sends me an email, telling me that I’ve got a new hint. I get all excited and open the app to get “this hint no longer exists’ what gives? Is this a gimmick to get you to go back to the app?.VettiVersion: 14.1.1

✓ Why. When I do there is now responseTerrible app with lots of issues.BrendagoodsportVersion: 15.1.1

✓ No refunds for auto renewalThis information was apparently available and I believe that, but I also believe it is predatory to not make this explicitly clear. I am out $64 for an app I didn't like, and that's not because I'll have to figure out how to buy groceries this month because of that, it is the experience I've had with the product. I also realize that IS my fault, I agreed to something in which I apparently missed the clause about refunds. But for a premium app in 2022, this really didn't impress me. Maybe I didn't give it enough time, but it felt limiting in what I could do. Perhaps it just wasn't intuitive, but I should have been able to find my great grandfather's "profile" and add him as a family member. I also couldn't figure out how to remove myself as the child of my step great grandfather which was frustrating and a tad upsetting - I'm not that man's daughter. I really hadn't looked at ancestry too much until now, heard about it for years though, and so with the policy I greatly disagree with as well as a dissatisfactory experience with the product, I don't recommend it personally. I believe it can be a great tool for those that are really dedicated, but I just find it too frustrating and unfulfilling to persisit with my own endevors. Perhaps too it would be a much better experience with a DNA kit. I want to convey there may be a lot of reasons this seemed like a poor product to me that are just things I didn't do right..CyborgspacemonkeyVersion: 14.19

✓ Crashes with any saveI’ve been using Ancestry app on iPad for years, but since a few weeks ago, anytime I save a hint, the app crashes and I have to force close the app. I don’t know what was in the last update, but please fix. Ancestry without option to work on a tablet makes it partially useless. FIX ASAP please..Danco-306Version: 15.24.1

✓ No chromosome browserIt would be perfect if they would let us compare our chromosomes..BuenamusaVersion: 15.11.1

✓ Keeps crashingUsually I would give it a 5 star because I think it’s so cool to find out my genealogy, however since the last update it crashes about 2 seconds after I open the app. I’ve tried all the usual ways, turn it off and on again, etc. but to no avail..Liv IreneVersion: 15.12.1

✓ Lots of mistakesPretty good at finding things but as you go along you will see how many mistakes are made by the people transferring the old records to digital. Names spelled wrong also dates wrong. I even found things filed in the wrong place, I was searching for a family member when it popped up with US obituary, as I was in the UK I thought this would be someone else, I did click on it out of curiosity and it turned out to be an obituary from the Bolton News in the UK. I would have completely missed this if I had not clicked on it The other issue is that we pay monthly to see all records so we can find our family tree, however we are only given basic lists and if you want to see birth certificates etc, you have to pay a lot extra. I assume this will be with all these ancestry sites, but it is frustrating sometimes..SasbritVersion: 13.24.1

✓ DisappointedAncestry’s ethnicity estimates are great, but, as a service they need to step it up and stop expecting people to pay for every little bit of information they can provide. The chromosome painter and parental matches were helpful, maybe a little inaccurate at times at times, but, it had potential to improve. Now, it is behind a pay wall and you can no longer view it unless you pay the reoccurring fee of 30 something dollars. I paid a lot of money for this service and essentially am getting only 2 things out of it: matches, and an estimate. That is literally it. Is 100 dollars a reasonable price for two simple things? No. It’s just not justifiable what they’re doing and they will probably lose customers if they keep making them pay extra for the most basic features they can provide. I actually want to see Ancestry becoming the most trustworthy and helpful ancestry service of all. They already have a huge database, which is great. But as of lately, I’ve been disappointed. Why make us pay extra for things that other, less accurate testing companies already provide under the price you pay for the actual test itself? It just makes no sense..Mhm😴Version: 15.16

✓ Don’t Update - Profile Changes are GarbageThe latest update removes all the useful information from a person’s profile. In an attempt to make a “story” you no longer see a person’s birth & death dates. Valuable screen space is taken by useless / unnecessary “create a story” garbage. I use this app for family research but am now looking to only using in a web browser. Boo Ancestry! you took a useful app and turned it to garbage. Wish I could go back to a previous release. EDIT: still garbage. If you have more than one tree, there is no way to change active tree. It used to exist but the latest update removed functionality. Every update is a new adventure of what’s missing now….RstwoheeVersion: 15.9.1

✓ GarbageApp doesn’t keep photo tags and doesn’t allow uploads as the system continues with an error. Developers don’t care. Glad I didn’t pay for a subscription..Sucker ballVersion: 15.24.3

✓ Very good, but app crashes randomlyI’ve used this useful app on my iPhone XS and iPad Pro for some time. It’s a bit clunky and not as comprehensive as the Ancestry website, but the interface is better suited to mobile device access. Recently I’ve had problems with the app regularly crashing, particularly a few seconds after an image is downloaded from my online tree to the device - I subsequently discovered that the issue was related to my previously changing ‘Background App Refresh’ in the Ancestry settings to ‘Off’. Once the default setting was restored the problem lessened considerably, but unfortunately it still occurs frequently..KerenhappuchVersion: 11.10.1

✓ App will not update info entered using Edit PersonI use the app on an iPad. For a couple months now, if I try to make an update using Edit Person, the data is not updated..Buddy4153Version: 16.1.1

✓ Not using the right namesThe results I got were accurate geographically wise, however the names used were not. I have reached several KURDS that have done this DNA test and they all come back as either Persian or Turkish. There are independent ethnic groups that live everywhere in the world and they have been there for centuries. You can not call them the largest ethnic group next to them. I might have Persian DNA in me but I am a Kurd and in the map it tracks me back to Kurdistan. I don’t care if due to British and French colonization, we were not able to have a defined country called Kurdistan, but the place is home of Kurds divided between 4 countries made by colonization to serve their interests in the Middle East. You should be more aware about this point. Kurds are so unhappy with the lack of knowledge about history you show in your results.Rawa khazanVersion: 15.21

✓ AncestryOnly had two days and working well, however still prefer using my computer for searches. I can see potential to update recent info at family gatherings 😀 Quick access to show family members has been wonderful Still using app after several years and finding it useful for quick entries and showing family. Also a reference point when out on research locations.KincestryVersion: 10.34

✓ Fantastic app for research!I loved this app - it was so easy to update and add at a tap. My previous review is below, where I gave it 5 stars. Now it is clunky and cumbersome to use. Adding relationships and editing people requires more clicks and is much slower than before. I have reduced my star rating. Not sure who has designed this update but it is awful!! Previous Review: Great app, making it easy to put together your tree, add photos and stories into one place. The hints make research easy, giving you suggestions to add to your tree. Remember they may not all be correct though! Only suggestion to improve would be that the hints link to other public trees to expand research. It does this indirectly sometimes via a photo etc but a direct connection would enhance this app no end. Recommended!!!.Linda-AnnaVersion: 8.9

✓ Good but priceyThis is my first family tree adventure. It’s really nice to see how far you can go back, and Ancestry is definitely impressive with what it can access. I signed up and ticked all the boxes but ended up paying over £70 per month, which is absolutely mad for what it is. Considering these records can be accessed free, charging that much is crazy and would put a lot of people off trying a tree from Ancestry. I’m glad I can still access my tree, even after I’ve stopped the subscription. On reflection, I would think carefully on what you select for records to access. Also, the desktop version does not work very well. The app is good, it’s easy..PorridgenHoneyVersion: 15.19

✓ Does not work on IOS12.1.2Ancestry doesn’t even care that it doesn’t work on IOS12.1.2 and even said the problem was with Apple updating to IOS 12.1.2 and Apple need to fix it. Quite obviously Ancestry need to fix their month old app that doesn’t open on IOS12.1.2. Come on Ancestry! Don’t blame others when it is your fault..Ancestry CustomerVersion: 9.21

✓ When you need it it does not workFor over a year almost each time I try to use this app I have problems. It does not keep me logged in. When I am logged in it has trouble loading data such as parts of the tree with a specific person. Just frustrating and I end up using a browser to see what I want to see. Would love to see some fixes to to this..DarenSVersion: 15.8.2

✓ Layout of ProfileI absolutely HATE the changes to the profile page. Please go back to way it was previously. I want to see the names of the family members immediately on opening a person’s profile. I wish you could have a much better photo enhancement program. The ability to crop and slightly rotate would be appreciated. I asked for this a couple of years ago but it seems that you don’t care..Adanac77Version: 15.3.3

✓ Family tree viewThe app keep crashing when selecting family tree view.ThetardifsVersion: 15.7.1

✓ WarningI believe through alleged first hand experience that some alleged Hertfordshire Constabulary police officers are allegedly appearing to allegedly hack my alleged ancestry account and allegedly alter the privacy settings of one’s alleged tree. Therefore allegedly and potentially altering one’s human right and need for privacy. However I am also a victim of alleged domestic abuse & an adult child of a dependent alcoholic. I am a former public servant of St Albans City & District Council. They have also allegedly appeared to have allegedly gained alleged remote access to my alleged iPad and alleged iPhone. In the interests of users I think that in the near future, it would useful to have an IP log available to users of anything that is altered, edited and deleted on the account. I believe through first hand experience that there are alleged police officers out there that will allegedly appear to delete alleged photographs allegedly without an alleged warrant. Regardless and despite of the Domestic Abuse Act 2021, I allegedly appear to have had over 18 items of alleged criminal damage to my property by alleged police officers or those allegedly appearing to work upon their alleged instruction and only their alleged instruction. I have had alleged criminal damage to almost 300 year old documents. If you read the news there are many stories of alleged police misconduct..Pat StevensVersion: 14.1.1

✓ Some Good - Some Not So GoodI used to love Ancestry but sadly now it seems to have lost its way a little. As a starting point it is great, however once your tree starts to grow the ‘hints’ can become overwhelming. There are a lack of filters to sort out hints, things like removing non priority hints, eg: * functions you don’t have in your membership * non - blood relatives * ability to prioritise closest relatives * ability to prioritise dna thru links Without these filters it becomes unmanageable. You waste time opening up ‘relatives’ with ‘hints’ to see it is something you can’t see anyway. Or you have 1000+ hints and have no way of prioritising them and making best use of time. I decided to have a paid membership after having a DNA test done - yet it was so user ‘unfriendly’ (I’m dyslexic) that I hardly used it because of the above details - sad really as it has ended up putting me off working on my family tree. For the developers - please note, you know the platform inside out, please do not make assumptions that new users understand everything, please make it user friendly, looking good is not enough!.Sunlight and ShadowsVersion: 14.24

✓ Privacy concernsI received my DNA pack in the post and was in the process of registering for the service when for the first time in a long time I decided to read the T&Cs. Given that someone's DNA and related personal information like name, address etc are deeply personal identity information I was dismayed by how non-commital the legal language is on not sharing your data with third parties whether private or government agencies. Phrases like "...Ancestry may use my DNA to create new services..."...provide your DNA to other companies...". That notwithstanding any data held on US databases doesn't have any guarantees that federal and state agencies cannot access it should they wish to do so. Therefore as curious as I might be about my ancestry, the drawbacks of how weak the privacy and process language is makes this service unsuitable..Bernie M MVersion: 15.0.1

✓ 2023 November updateI am a heavy user of the app. In the most recent update we have lost the ability to message other users on an iPad with iOS 17. We get a pop-up message that says “This user is not currently receiving messages”, which gives any potential sender the idea that you have blocked them! Navigation problems remain. One of the most frustrating is that which happens when you start to delve into a DNA match’s tree. Say, if you look at their surname list, find a promising one, click to open the profile of one of their ancestors on that list, and then use the search function on that profile page to find more information, you find yourself eventually getting stuck as in a dead end on a maze. Options to save info, for instance, fall below the lower bar and you can’t respond to the “Save?” prompt. Other navigation problems occur when you research through the Thrulines portal. You can’t retrace your steps with the back button, as it will pop you back to the first Thrulines screen. Very frustrating!.Nisey1226Version: 15.22.1

✓ AncestryNot happy with the latest update, I’m spending too much time trying to figure it out instead of looking at details.Quig7Version: 16.0.2

✓ Ancestry App98% love it but a big annoyance is the constant reset to download the tree. Three times in the past few weeks. Have to delete the app and reinstall and wait for the download. Note- when trees are over 80k it takes quite a while..Onejasper1Version: 15.2

✓ IPad with M1 ChipThe app has performed well up until I purchased an iPad running the lasted iOS version 14.6 with an M1 chip. Since installing the app on that device the app only has partial functionality. Currently I am not able to select to view the profile of any person in my tree unless that person has a hint associated with them and then only by selecting the hint first. I have uninstalled and reinstalled the app on multiple occasions. The result each time is on first starting the app I can successfully view a person’s profile but after that I can no longer view any person’s profile (unless they have a hint) including the person I successfully viewed on first start up. Two other iOS devices with A series chips running iOS 14.6 work as expected. Contacted Ancestry support and the usual response as expected was not our problem despite the fact that not one other app on the iPad with the M1 chip is exhibiting a problem. Sorry Ancestry it is your problem, it is a coding issue which is being highlighted by the difference in how your app executes on a a hardware device using different hardware architecture to iOS devices utilising A series chips..JeC1951Version: 13.12

✓ Great Concept but Inevitably Hard to Piece TogetherI am struggling with how to figure out how I am related to my DNA matches. The Thru Lines are a great idea however I wish there was something similar that only showed Dna matches instead of everyone because when someone like myself is adopted and has no idea of their heritage or ancestors, it’s just a big puzzle. For instance I entered my “assumed” grandfather and I get tons of hints and thru lines for him but I have no idea if I’m related to him via DNA because so far no matches that I can find . I do admit I have thousands of relatives I can’t link in my tree even though we matched DNA, simply because idk how we are related. No common Surnames shared mostly. It’s very hard and confusing and I’m struggling to find my real ancestors because I don’t know my family nor who is who. If you could help us find a way to piece this together, you would be healing many lives that have holes in them from not knowing their families. you would help make so many lives better. Nonetheless ty for the hard work you have done so far..Tisha603Version: 13.9

✓ DNA uploadsWhen adding connections like a step sister it doesn’t show on the tree only when you view the tree from the parent. So even tho the information is all there it’s not showing up on the tree which makes the summary inaccurate, it’s hard to edit connections in the app, if you add someone with the wrong parent you have to delete them and add it again. Adding information to each person seems too complicated or not there in the app. It may be the biggest but it’s certainly not the friendliest when it comes to uploading competition dna results to find more relatives and lost connections. This is one of those moments when capitalism should not be put before goodwill. I feel more people should be aware that while you hold the most records you don’t allow other dna results to be uploaded which could potentially find more accurate connections. I think the key take away is accuracy of results and achieving your company objectives at the sacrifice that you need to make your tests more competitive with competition. If your dna tests are affordable there should be no concerns allowing other dna upload but the thing is that’s where profits are coming before customers especially when most your site is paywall…..JoshuARGH!Version: 15.8.2

✓ Wealth of knowledgeI have been part of Ancestry for years now and sourced so much important info. I would and often do recommend Ancestry to anyone contemplating their family history. I have always helped fellow researchers when I could and I’ve also received some really useful information from others on the message boards. The many connections of living relatives has been very exciting and inspiring, allowing me to add whole branches to my tree...all the while checking resources to verify our connections are authentic. DNA is another path I’ve decided to experience..so far it has shown connections that I am checking up on..it seems a little tricky to begin with, I need more experience before I can give an opinion on that !! I’m on the highest level on Ancestry, and I absolutely blown away by the huge amount of info I now have access to. If you can stretch your budget to afford it...do it. However, I warn you there is no going back, but it will speed up your progress and if you can help others out, it helps to justify the cost and that is very satisfying !!.DebbibooVersion: 9.5

✓ My Happiness With AncesteryHaving access to relatives around our world, both past and present within an instant, in my life, through Ancestery, is quite wonderful. My ambition is to secure families marrying and linking into other families and so on within my wife’s line as well as my own, throughout history. My personal research began back in February no name1983 as we found our 2nd of 5 sons was expected. In 2017, this son gifted me with Ancestery and has paid my membership to this day in June 2023. I have been delighted in everything Ancestery has enhanced my work in my son’s gift and has catapulted it into quite an historic tree..Nickname ParkVersion: 15.10.3

✓ Infantile interface designed to make life harderThe current 12.0.1 version of the Ancestry app focuses on hints which are rarely useful, just noise, and presents them in a format that might be designed for three year olds, just three or four visible on the screen. It’s a massive downgrade from the previous version which let you choose whether to look at these (at least 4 each of best and latest hints) and a direct link to DNA matches. It hides the DNA matches two taps and one scroll away from the start screen behind More (intuitive it’s not) instead of being easy and obvious to reach. It looks as though a strategic decision has been made to separate ‘hints’ users from DNA users by putting the functions in different apps. Sadly, the new Ancestry DNA app is also a downgrade - you can no longer see the beginning of your notes from the list view, and the group markers are so small as to be useless. Ancestry seems to care very little for ease of use or user experience - this new version is awful, infantile and appears designed to slow down research..JohnlholdenVersion: 12.0.1

✓ BrutalTried 5 times to add my daughter’s child - after tapping add no dice. Finally gave up. I’ll try on the web browser. And… the family tree function is confusing when it’s displayed. Not intuitive..GesbrayVersion: 15.1.1

✓ Virtual unusable for meWhen I try to open this app it begins by automatically downloading my very large family tree, rendering it completely unusable. Let that be an OPTION instead of the default. Sometimes I just want to check my current sibling count (donor conceived, it’s a lot).Jilly241Version: 15.24.3

✓ Why did your app crashYour app has crashed,.SkyreignaVersion: 15.4

✓ Web siteI am enjoying the information. But would like to see more about traits. Who I inherited them from. Also I have difficulty he around in the site. Finding what I am looking for and getting back to where I was. I get lost easily in this web site. I find it confusing..GJ LucyVersion: 15.23.3

✓ ExpensiveI think we would get more people on here if the monthly costs weren’t so expensive.Mychelle66Version: 15.22.1

✓ Inaccurate results and difficult to use appI’m disappointed with my results. I also have hard time using this app..Adelya AslankurtVersion: 15.18

✓ DisappointedIf you do not renew the information you have gathered to date is no longer available to you..Cal.ABVersion: 15.20

✓ A Few Problems....I've been using the Ancestry app since 2012 and, during most of that time, it has performed as expected. But, within the last year or so, there are some very serious bugs that have appeared. First, without warning, data I just entered fora new male individual somehow winds up displayed in his spouse's position and the spouse is gone. If I go back to the start of my line and then back to where I entered the data, sometimes it will show both man and wife in their correct positions, but this isn't always the case. A lot of time is wasted having to re-enter data I've already entered. Another thing I don't care for is this new addition of the "unknown" gender (what we used to call sex), which must always be reset to male or female, despite their very masculine or feminine names. There have been a few other glitches, but the first I mentioned here is the worst. Just to make myself perfectly clear, I am no beginner when it comes to either using computers or genealogy. I have been using computers since 1983 and I've beeen a genealogist since 1984. So, this isn't my fault, it's your developer's screwup..GaryReaVersion: 15.24.3

✓ Matches by date etcAfter the recent update I cannot see how to reorder the matches to see new matches or matches by date. Has this useful feature been taken out of the app? Update Just realised I can still access this by going into matches by clicking on Thrulines. Previously could also do this from matches page which does not now seem possible. Using thrulines is not as useful as if you look at a tree you have to then start by going through the original thrulines menu to look at another match. Previous version of app worked better..@/+deVersion: 15.20

✓ We need more affordable DNA offersGreat connection to help find ancestors BUT people must be aware that work needs put into the research of finding family and be willing to answer messages when contacted by confirmed family connections. If not willing, then it’s a pointless, expensive, exercise. If ancestry could do more offers during the year and make it more affordable for people to do theirs, maybe ancestry would get better hints? Unfortunately researching app works mostly for America than British Northern Ireland records. I pay monthly PREMIUM subscription but I’m still blocked from viewing newspaper articles etc.LuvfurbabiesVersion: 15.18

✓ Won’t remember my login and password!Why do I have to login every time I use this app? Didn’t used to require that. Users need to be able to decide if they can stay logged in or not! Finally allowed users to choose their background and that helps, but the look and feel of the app is still off compared with the browser version. Default graphics are cartoonish and amateur hour garbage. Why can I not collapse a level in my tree anymore? Discoveries tab still a confusing mess of unwanted fluff that takes way too long to load. Still would like DNA information in its own section like the web version. Really dislike change for change’s sake because you always break something, make it worse, and make serious genealogical research into eye-candy fluff. Let’s get some serious genealogists on board to critique this app, get rid of the fluff and eye-candy, and get some professional quality back into this app. Also, while you are at it, how about radically reducing your subscription rates so most people can actually stay subscribed for the long haul? You charge too much for providing access to public records. These are PUBLIC records and should be free to all. We know you have access to all the data created by familysearch volunteers. Anything they provide for free should be free on your site as well. As I’ve said before, be courageous and drop your subscription prices. If you do, more people will stay subscribed over the long haul and your bottom line would be much healthier..Jj5365Version: 13.0

✓ Needs improvementThe app is useful for being able to refer to your family tree and replying to messages without having to log on to your computer. It’s also quite good for looking at your DNA ethnicity. However, in nearly every other aspect it is inferior compared to accessing the website via a browser. In the app, searches are harder to navigate and filter e.g by others family trees and if someone sends a message, clicking on their profile doesn’t show you anything useful like their trees. I end up just going on a browser in the end because the app is so limited.PyebryVersion: 15.13.1

✓ Everything Costs moneyIt was great to see who my connections are but every page you try to click on costs money. When it shows you photos or certificates it all costs money, you cannot click on a lot in the app without being asked to pay the fee..Km4@bcVersion: 15.24.3

✓ AncestryThis is a very useful site but I think people need to be more careful when accepting hints. Sometimes hints are suggested which unavoidably involve someone with the same first name and surname as someone in the family but they may be from a different family. Because sometimes these hints are accepted as belonging to a particular tree when they do not an incorrect family may become attached which is difficult to correct. People post photographs in good faith which have been incorrectly identified. You actually need to have traced your family yourself from primary sources such as Civil Registrations of Births, Deaths and Marriages, Parish Records, Wills and other sources before you can accept hints and attach individuals and facts to your ancestors. It is difficult to have corrections made but otherwise it is a very useful website. Thank you. Gael Phillips Australia.GaelepVersion: 11.14

✓ Ancestry app needs improvementAdding date of birth different in each place to put in date. If year is there and you want to add day and month the year disappears which it didn’t use to. Spellcheck is very annoying when names are spelt in various ways The updates to app annoy me as it comes up with hints not my family tree The updates made to the app make the app mostly annoy me. App worked better a year ago..2222222444444444Version: 13.13.1

Ancestry: Family History & DNA works most of the time. If it is not working for you, we recommend you excersise some patience and retry later or contact Ancestry: Family History & DNA.