Best (Free & Paid) Family Tree Chart Makers Compared [Mac, Windows, Mobile]

Family tree makers have been steadily growing their user bases over the past decade as the fascinating world of genealogy keeps attracting more and more people. For instance, the famous collaborative “Big Tree” created on the Geni platform has over 184 million connected users!

 

As the number of genealogy aficionados grows, so does the number of family tree-making tools; and it may at first seem very difficult to choose the best family tree software for Mac, Windows, or mobile platforms. Now, the good news is – in general, they’re all very good. 

 

It’s just that some platforms are better at certain things than others. Criteria such as family tree visualization, database access and integration, collaboration opportunities, and, of course, pricing are all important. 

 

This is why we have decided to compile a shortlist of the best tools for genealogy and give an unbiased opinion on what each of them succeeds at the most.

7 Best Family Tree Chart Makers Compared

 

For our side-by-side comparison, we’ve not necessarily taken the seven most popular family tree makers – rather, the absolute best (in our opinion). Some of them cater to slightly different audiences and purposes, like in the case of WikiTree with its emphasis on global collaboration or Treemily with its devotion to tree customizations and visualizations. 

 

Still, they are all great choices and each deserves its top spot in a certain nomination.

 

TLDR:

• Treemily – best value for money
• Ancestry.com – best historical database
• MyHeritage – best DNA research
• FamilySearch – best free tool
• Family Tree Maker – best integrations
• WikiTree – best collaborative tool 
• Legacy Family Tree 9 – best family tree-making toolkit

Treemily

 

 

Pricing: 

$129.99/year (paid annually), $149.99 for 2 years

 

Free version available.

About:

Treemily distinguishes itself with a focus on creating visually appealing and fully customizable family trees, from simple family charts to majestic ancestor and dynasty trees. The platform is designed to be extremely user-friendly, allowing beginners to easily build and edit their trees. 

 

Treemily also supports GEDCOM files, allowing users to import their genealogical databases to make use of them in their family tree construction process. Not to mention, collaborative functionality is also available, enabling multiple users to work on a family tree simultaneously. 

Key Features:

• Visual Customization: Treemily puts a strong emphasis on the visual aspect of family trees. Users can greatly customize the design and layout of their family trees, including, but not limited to different grids, fonts, background colors, and print sizes.  This allows for a personalized and aesthetically pleasing representation of their genealogy.

 

• User-Friendly Interface: The platform boasts a user-friendly interface, making it accessible to individuals with varying levels of genealogical expertise.

 

• Collaboration Features: Treemily supports collaborative family tree building, enabling multiple users to work on a single family tree simultaneously. This feature is particularly useful for families looking to collectively document and preserve their heritage.

 

• Media Integration: Users can enrich their family narratives by seamlessly integrating photos and other media into their family trees.

 

• Extensive Free Functionality: Unlike many other similar platforms, Treemily has the vast majority of its features enabled for free. 

Reasons to Avoid:

• Limited historical research features

 

Ancestry.com

Pricing:

U.S. Discovery version – $119 for 6 months, $229 for 12 months

World Explorer version – $169 for 6 months, $319 for 12 months

All Access version – $259 for 6 months, $479 for 12 months

Free version available.

About:

Ancestry.com provides users with access to an extensive database of historical records and offers DNA testing services for insights into ethnic origins. It also supports GEDCOM files and allows integrations with historical documents, photos, and stories to enhance the depth of family narratives. 

Key Features:

• Extensive Records Database: Ancestry.com provides access to an extensive collection of historical records, including census data, military records, and immigration records.

 

• DNA Testing Services: AncestryDNA offers users the opportunity to explore their genetic heritage, providing ethnicity estimates and connecting individuals with potential relatives in the AncestryDNA database.

 

• ThruLines: Ancestry.com’s ThruLines feature helps users visualize potential ancestral connections by displaying common ancestors shared with DNA matches.

 

• Collaborative Tree Building: The platform allows users to collaborate on family tree building, connecting with others who may share common ancestors. 

 

• Document and Photo Integration: Ancestry.com enables users to attach historical documents and photos to individual profiles, creating a rich and detailed family history.

Reasons to Avoid:

• Subscription cost may be a barrier
• Family tree designs are not particularly visual 
• GEDCOM integration may sometimes be faulty

 

MyHeritage

 

Pricing:

Premium – $89/year

Premium Plus – $139/year

Historical Archive Access – $129/year

Complete Package – $199/year

Free version available.

About:

MyHeritage combines genealogy tools with DNA testing services – its Smart Matching technology helps users connect with relatives who share common ancestors. The platform also supports GEDCOM databases and boasts a global database of historical records, aiding users in comprehensive genealogical research. 

Key Features:

• Smart Matching Technology: MyHeritage uses DNA and Smart Matching technology to connect users with others who share common ancestors, facilitating the discovery of relatives and the expansion of family trees.

 

• Global Database: MyHeritage’s global database of historical records spans multiple countries and time periods, providing users with a diverse set of resources for genealogical research.

 

• Family Tree Consistency Checker: The platform includes tools to ensure the consistency and accuracy of family trees, helping users identify and resolve potential errors.

 

• Integration with FamilySearch: MyHeritage has collaborated with FamilySearch, allowing users to import and export data between the two platforms.

Reasons to Avoid:

• Limited free features, requiring a subscription for full access to advanced tools
• Smaller database compared to some competitors

 

FamilySearch

 

Pricing: 

Free

About:

FamilySearch is a free family tree software maintained by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. It stands out for its commitment to making genealogical information accessible to all and offers a vast collection of historical records and documents. FamilySearch also supports GEDCOM files and encourages collaborative family tree building, emphasizing the connection between generations. 

Key Features:

• Free Access to Historical Records: FamilySearch provides free access to a vast collection of historical records, including census records, vital records, and more, supporting users in their genealogical research.

 

• Collaborative Tree Building: The platform encourages collaborative family tree building, allowing multiple users to contribute to a shared family tree. This collaborative effort enhances the accuracy and completeness of family histories.

 

• FamilySearch Indexing: Users can participate in the FamilySearch Indexing project, contributing to the digitization and indexing of historical records for the benefit of the genealogical community.

 

• Temple Ordinance Reservation: For members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS), FamilySearch includes a feature for reserving temple ordinances for their ancestors.

Reasons to Avoid:

• Rather limited functionality
• Doesn’t support all family lines (struggles with the concepts of divorce, step-siblings, etc.)
• Lacking in providing supporting information

 

Family Tree Maker

 

Pricing:

$79.95 for lifetime use

About:

Family Tree Maker is genealogy software known for its user-friendly interface and integration with Ancestry.com. The integration allows for seamless syncing and access to an extensive collection of historical records. It also offers well-rounded family tree-building functionality, supporting multimedia elements, GEDCOM files, as well as charting and reporting tools.

Key Features:

• Ancestry.com Integration: Family Tree Maker 2023 seamlessly integrates with Ancestry.com, allowing users to sync their family trees with Ancestry.com and access the platform’s extensive historical records database.

 

• User-Friendly Interface: The software features a user-friendly interface with intuitive tools for building and editing family trees.

 

• Multimedia Support: Family Tree Maker supports the integration of multimedia elements, such as photos, videos, and documents, enhancing the storytelling aspect of family histories.

 

• Charting and Reporting: Users can create a variety of charts and reports to visually represent their family trees and genealogical data.

Reasons to Avoid:

• Doesn’t provide incorrect info warnings
• Not the most powerful in terms of features

 

WikiTree

 

Pricing:

Free

About:

WikiTree is another piece of family tree software free of charge – it focuses on creating interconnected family trees with an emphasis on collaboration and sourcing information. It maintains a single global family tree, promoting the idea that we are all interconnected, and supports GEDCOM uploads for importing and exporting family tree data. 

Key Features:

• Collaborative Editing: WikiTree is built on the principle of collaborative editing. The single global family tree allows users to collaborate on a shared platform, creating an interconnected web of family connections.

 

• Sourcing Information: WikiTree places a strong emphasis on sourcing information. Users are encouraged to provide sources for the information added to profiles, enhancing the reliability of the shared family tree.

 

• DNA Integration: The platform integrates with DNA test results, allowing users to connect genetic data with their family tree and potentially discover new relatives.

Reasons to Avoid:

• The steep learning curve for users unfamiliar with collaborative wiki-style editing
• Limited control over content added by others, leading to potential disputes or inaccuracies
• Dependency on an open collaboration model, which may introduce challenges related to data accuracy

 

Legacy Family Tree 9

 

Pricing:

$34.95 for lifetime use

 

Free version available.

About:

Legacy Family Tree users benefit from a comprehensive set of robust tools for building and editing family trees. The software nicely integrates with GEDCOM databases, and prioritizes source documentation and citation features, contributing to the reliability of genealogical data. 

Key Features:

• Comprehensive Family Tree Toolset: Legacy Family Tree 9 offers a very wide range of tools for building and editing family trees, catering to users with varying levels of genealogical expertise.

 

• Flawless GEDCOM Integration: The software integrates with GEDCOM databases, better than any other similar tool, enhancing your research capabilities. 

 

• Simple to Use: Its UX is very easy to navigate, making the tool 100% beginner-friendly. 

 

• Multimedia Support: Users can enrich their family stories by attaching photos, documents, and other multimedia elements to individual profiles.

Reasons to Avoid:

• Poor, outdated design
• Despite its intuitiveness, more complex features require a considerable learning curve

 

Recap & Conclusion

 

	Pricing	Key Features
Treemily	$129.99/year (paid annually) $149.99 for 2 years; Free version available	Visual customization User-friendly interface; Collaboration Features; Media Integration; Extensive Free Functionality
Ancestry	U.S. Discovery version – $119 (for 6 months), $229/year; World Explorer version – $169 (for 6 months), $319/year; All Access version – $259 (for 6 months), $479/year Free version available	Extensive Records Database DNA Testing Services ThruLines Collaborative Tree Building Document and Photo Integration
MyHeritage	Premium – $89/year Premium Plus – $139/year Historical Archive Access – $129/year Complete Package – $199/year Free version available	Smart Matching Technology: Global Database Family Tree Consistency Checker Integration with FamilySearch
FamilySearch	Free	Free Access to Historical Records Collaborative Tree Building FamilySearch Indexing Temple Ordinance Reservation
Family Tree Maker	$79.95 for lifetime use	Ancestry.com Integration User-Friendly Interface Multimedia Support Charting and Reporting
WikiTree	Free	Collaborative Editing Sourcing Information DNA Integration
Legacy Family Tree 9	$34.95 for lifetime use Free version available	Comprehensive Family Tree Toolset Flawless GEDCOM Integration  Simple to Use Multimedia Support

 

What is the best family tree website? All established family tree makers will have a lot to offer to their users, regardless of how advanced they are in their hobby. The main considerations will most likely be your budget, your approach to research as well as your visual design preferences. 

 

While, as creators of Treemily, we would definitely recommend it as one of your top choices and probably the best value for money, we can’t deny the great features of other platforms. If Treemily is extremely versatile, visually appealing, and affordable, a tool like MyHeritage allows for great DNA research, whereas WikiTree offers a totally different, fully collaborative experience. 

 

So make sure to try out free versions of the above tools (including Treemily) and make a choice of the best family tree software for yourself!

 

 

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