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Updated July 2026 · real, multi-region App Store reviews
Head-to-head

Ancestry vs FamilySearch Tree

Ancestry 4.8★ · Free to download 65
Winner FamilySearch Tree
FamilySearch Tree 4.8★ · Free to download 75

FamilySearch Tree is the better choice for users seeking a free, collaborative platform with extensive historical records, while Ancestry is better for those willing to pay for more personalized DNA insights and a less collaborative tree experience.

Full reviews: Ancestry · FamilySearch Tree

FamilySearch Tree offers a robust, free platform for genealogy with a strong community aspect, though some users find it difficult to navigate and prone to errors from collaborative editing. Ancestry provides more detailed DNA analysis and a generally positive research experience for paying users, but its high cost and frequent app glitches are significant drawbacks.

Head to head

Features & Information Depth tieR3R5R11R20
Ancestry Ancestry users appreciate the extensive historical records and the ability to discover new family connections and heritage, with many finding it a valuable tool for in-depth research R5R11R20. However, some users report issues with DNA trait accuracy and a lack of updates for specific ethnic journeys R3.
FamilySearch Tree FamilySearch Tree is praised for its ability to trace ancestors, access legal documents, and preserve memories with photos . Users also highlight its extensive information and the ability to verify relatives from other platforms R110. Some users, however, find the app's functionality limited compared to the website and struggle to find specific records like maiden names .
Ease of Use & Navigation tieR4R12R13R21
Ancestry Many Ancestry users find the app difficult to navigate, search, and understand, with some describing it as "user unfriendly" or "hard to understand" R4R13. Recent updates have reportedly made the experience worse, losing chronological order in hints and removing helpful features R12R21.
FamilySearch Tree FamilySearch Tree also receives criticism for being difficult to navigate and use, with some users wishing it were easier . Recent updates have reportedly complicated the app's purpose, making it harder to copy names, navigate lists, and causing the chat function to crash .
Reliability & Performance tieR1R18R25R31
Ancestry Ancestry users report significant reliability issues, including the app losing tree ownership and DNA data, not saving family members added to trees, and constant crashing, lagging, and failure to load R1R25R31. Some users also experience hints not showing or the program not working when trying to add hints R18.
FamilySearch Tree FamilySearch Tree users frequently report glitches, freezing, lagging, and crashing, especially when opening multiple documents or navigating quickly . Updates have been cited as breaking links, impacting matching, and causing the app to send users back to the top of lists . Some users also struggle with login issues and the app not accepting password changes .
Price & Value edge: FamilySearch TreeR7R10R14R18
Ancestry Ancestry is widely criticized for its high cost, with users feeling it's "all about the money" and that they are charged for every little thing, even after paying for DNA kits R7R10R14R18. There are complaints about cancellation fees and misleading pricing R7R28.
FamilySearch Tree FamilySearch Tree is consistently praised for being completely free, with users calling it the "BEST Genealogy Platform AND ITS FREE" R92R110. This free access is a major draw, though some users still mention a perceived lack of information unless paying, which contradicts the general sentiment .
Support & Community tieR9R29R64R69
Ancestry Ancestry users report difficulties accessing their accounts and contacting support, with one user getting a blank screen when trying to get help R29. There are also complaints about not being able to access paid-for DNA tests R9.
FamilySearch Tree FamilySearch Tree has a collaborative aspect, which is both a strength and a weakness. Users appreciate the work done by missionaries and the ability to share R92. However, a significant concern is that others can easily change information on "my" tree, leading to incorrect data that is hard to correct or requires special permission R64R69R82R90. The chat function has also been reported to crash the app .
Pick Ancestry if

you are willing to pay for a service that provides extensive historical records and DNA analysis, and you prefer a more private tree experience R5R11R20.

Pick FamilySearch Tree if

you are looking for a completely free genealogy platform with a vast, collaborative database of records and a strong community focus, and you are comfortable with the potential for shared tree edits R92.

Evidence note: Both apps have a high lifetime rating, but recent reviews for both show significant frustration with app performance, bugs, and navigation. Ancestry's negative reviews are heavily skewed towards pricing and subscription issues, while FamilySearch Tree's negative reviews focus more on technical glitches and the challenges of collaborative editing.

Frequently asked

Is Ancestry free to use?
Ancestry is free to download, but many users report that you have to subscribe or pay for almost every feature, including viewing DNA results, accessing information, and connecting with family members, with subscription fees potentially reaching over $500 per year R6R10R14R27.
Can I cancel my Ancestry subscription easily?
Many Ancestry users report that it is difficult to cancel subscriptions and that the process is confusing, with some even being charged a cancellation fee of around $25 or $26.60 R7R28R49.
Is FamilySearch Tree truly free?
Yes, FamilySearch Tree is consistently praised by users for being completely free and offering extensive information and resources without any charges R92R110.
Are there issues with other users changing my tree on FamilySearch Tree?
Yes, a common complaint among FamilySearch Tree users is that others can easily change information on their tree, leading to incorrect data that can be difficult to correct or requires special permission R64R69R82R90.

What reviewers actually said

Built only from these 120 real reviews (foreign ones translated). Superscripts jump to the quote here. Apple has no per-review links, so [ref] opens that app's reviews on the App Store.

  1. [R3] Ancestry 3/5 · US Traits!?!: I appreciate learning about all the amazing people I’m related too and seeing my tree expand. Since my families don’t know too much where they came from, etc. But the traits we should have a way to let you know you are wrong/incorrect. More than 60% of my traits are incorrect and the parent you base them off is the wrong parent. Being a perfectionist this has been driving me absolutely
  2. [R5] Ancestry 5/5 · US The Good😊The Bad😠& The Ugly🥴= Me: Love History and Real Life. Can’t get enough of Ancestry. I have been working on my family history since the 1980’s and that was all done in Court Houses, Public Libraries and knocking on on doors. Meeting strangers for anything they could confirm/ deny/ embellish/ or add to! It was fun but Ancestry has confirmed for me all of that ground work decades ago. In my
  3. [R11] Ancestry 5/5 · US My Ancestors: I’m amazed at what I have discovered about my family.
  4. [R20] Ancestry 5/5 · US Research: I have loved researching my family. I would rate a 10 out of 10
  5. [R4] Ancestry 1/5 · US Family trees: Very user unfriendly, not able to change trees at will…
  6. [R12] Ancestry 3/5 · US Ancestry organization: A recent update in Ancestry has lost the chronological order in proposing children in the review of families in hints. Why? The order is helpful in comparing, for example, marriage date of parents with birth dates of children. Using birthday of first child should be sufficient rather than having to look at the complete list of kids
  7. [R13] Ancestry 1/5 · US AJ: You make it too hard to search!
  8. [R21] Ancestry 3/5 · US Going backwards: I’ve been using the app and desktop version for years. But I’m very disappointed with the loss of anniversaries on the home page of the app showing the dates birthdays, deaths, and anniversaries. Please bring this feature back!! It’s such a helpful reminder!!!! And I liked the addition of the trivia feature on the home page but it hasn’t been working for over a month and it hasn’t
  9. [R1] Ancestry 1/5 · US Ancestry Lost me as my Tree Owner and my DNA: How can Ancestry mess up so badly? I am the tree owner, but now, after 1500+ people on my tree, they lose my DNA AND ME. I AM NO LONGER ON MY TREE that I created??? Wow!
  10. [R18] Ancestry 3/5 · US Easy, expensive, yet unreliable performance: I’ve used Ancestry for years. It keeps getting more and more expensive. It’s frustrating when trying to add hints to a record and have the program not work or give incorrect messages, like I need to contact the owner of the tree for access, then give me my contact information.
  11. [R25] Ancestry 1/5 · US Terrible app: I keep adding my family members to my tree, and it won’t save it. It’ll look alright, but wipe it all after I close out the app. Such a waste.
  12. [R31] Ancestry 1/5 · US Information deleted: My tree was deleted my dna kit was deleted and now I have no way of tracking my DNA kit
  13. [R7] Ancestry 1/5 · US Cancellation Payment: Yesterday I had a charge on my bank account for almost $40 which is the subscription fee. I decided I wasn’t ready to get into the ancestry of my family, moneys tight, can’t afford it right now, I’ll do it when things are more stable, and then I was charged a $25 cancellation fee. Now, I will never come back to this. Good riddance.
  14. [R10] Ancestry 2/5 · US Confused: It seems that you have to subscribe to find out anything. My DNA results are in and I have no idea how to view them
  15. [R14] Ancestry 4/5 · US Disappointed: I have been paying for years, times are harder, I see almost nothing of my trees, why can’t prices go down so people can start working on their ancestry, why can’t you give back to your customers who are having a rough time in this economy
  16. [R9] Ancestry 3/5 · US Access to tests: Why can I not get access for the two DNA test that I have paid for ..??..
  17. [R29] Ancestry 5/5 · US Trouble accessing: I have been trying to access my account for a little while now and when I couldn’t remember my passcode and asked for either contacting someone or going to the Help area, all I got was a screen with two parentheses. I went on. I went on my search engine to see if there was another way I could contact ancestry to let it be known that I cannot access my account. My account is abou
  18. [R64] FamilySearch Tree 1/5 · US Too easy for others to change my research: I’m so tired of going into “my” tree to find that someone has changed information related to my immediate relatives that is now incorrect!!
  19. [R69] FamilySearch Tree 3/5 · US How can I change incorrect information?: I recently checked my mother’s information. He found several errors. it said I need special permission to edit, but I can’t find out how! My name is wrong, my sex is wrong, and my cousin is showing up as my brother! I suppose it’s garbage and garbage out.
  20. [R6] Ancestry 3/5 · US They’re changing: Took a lot of the free stuff that I did my DNA for ! SHAME ! I had you fro 16 yrs
  21. [R27] Ancestry 3/5 · US Updates: I don’t care for the last couple of updates. I also, want to express my concerns for the high cost for Ancestry. There are so many other companies with apps that do not have the outrageous price for a $500 year. I think it’s time to drop your prices. Just saying
  22. [R28] Ancestry 1/5 · US Charge to cancel: Read the fine print carefully. Ancestry memberships are purposefully set up to be confusing, and then you’ll also get to pay $26.60 for the right to cancel your membership. What a joke
  23. [R49] Ancestry 1/5 · US Cancel: Too difficult to cancel, easy to sign up.
  24. [R92] FamilySearch Tree 5/5 · US Fun, Fulfilling, Free, Family!: FamilySearch is so easy to use for both doing research and sharing.
  25. [R110] FamilySearch Tree 5/5 · US The BEST Genealogy Platform AND ITS FREE: It’s completely free and has so much information. Literally changed my life and helped me realize my biggest passion in life is doing tree research. I’m genuinely addicted to this platform
  26. [R82] FamilySearch Tree 2/5 · US Added errors: With everyone having access to my tree, I see errors which I must correct time after time.
  27. [R90] FamilySearch Tree 3/5 · GB Ok and free: It keeps imposing wrong relatives on me and I can’t correct details.

Synthesized from 120 recent App Store reviews · updated July 2026 · View on the App Store