Autosomal DNA Transfers

If you or a family member have previously tested your autosomal DNA at AncestryDNA®, 23andMe®, or MyHeritage®, you can transfer your results to FamilyTreeDNA for free by uploading your raw data file. After transferring your file, your autosomal data is uploaded to our database, one of the world's largest genetic genealogy databases.

Family Finder™ is the name of our autosomal DNA test. If you have already taken a Family Finder test, you cannot upload data from another company to your account. Due to differences in coverage with different companies, you may see fewer matches with transfer data versus Family Finder data. This primarily only affects distant matches.

What It Includes

When you transfer, for free, you will receive a list of your autosomal matches from our database and have access to our Family Finder™ Matrix. The Matrix feature allows you to select and compare the autosomal DNA relationship between up to ten of your matches at one time.

After transferring, you can unlock all Family Finder features, which include the Chromosome Browser, myOrigins®, and ancientOrigins for only $19.

*MyHeritage raw data files do not currently include Y-DNA SNP data, so a Y-DNA haplogroup is not possible at this time with a MyHeritage transfer unlock.

Test Results We Accept

Testing methods have changed over the years for every company. As methods change, so do the file types that contain the raw data. We can only accept file versions as listed below. If you are unsure what file type you have, see the section below for file details. The file types and date ranges are listed below:

• AncestryDNA® array V1 (May 2012 - April 2016)
• AncestryDNA® array V2 (May 2016 - September 2025)
• MyHeritage® microarray tests processed between October 2016 and October 2025
• 23andMe® V3 (December 2010 - October 2013)
• 23andMe® V4 (November 2013 - September 2017)
• 23andMe® V5 (August 2017 - Present)

NOTE: MyHeritage transfers do not currently include Y-DNA SNP data, so a Y-DNA haplogroup is not possible at this time with a MyHeritage transfer or unlock.

Test Results We Do Not Accept

File formats used by different companies can vary, and not all of them are compatible with our system. Unfortunately, at this time, we cannot accept the following file types for autosomal transfers:

• 23mofang tests
• 24Genetics
• AncestryDNA® NGS tests
• AncestryDNA® results received in October 2025 - present
• CRAM file format
• CRI Genetics® tests
• Genera Tests
• LivingDNA® tests
• Nebula Genomics® tests
• MyHeritage® tests processed as Low Pass Whole Genome Sequencing
• Ultimate Compatibility File from Sequencing.com
• Whole genome sequencing

Note: We cannot accept any data files that have been altered or reformatted from the version provided by the testing company.

Identifying your Test Version

The data files available from each company are so large they are usually compressed - or "zipped" - in order to speed up the download and save space. The file format will differ for each testing company, but you can check which file you have by unzipping it, and opening the text (.txt) version of the file. The unzipped .txt file can usually be opened by your computer's built-in notepad application.

How to Unzip a file

PC (Windows)

1. Right-click the .zip file
2. Select Extract All... from the context menu
3. Choose where you want to save the files and click Extract

Mac (macOS)

1. Double-click the .zip file
2. macOS will automatically extract the contents into a new folder in the same location

iPhone & iPad (iOS)

1. Open the Files app and locate your .zip file
2. Tap the .zip file once
3. A new folder containing your unzipped files will automatically appear right next to it

Android

1. Open your device's file manager app (usually named Files by Google, My Files, or Files)
2. Locate and tap the .zip file
3. A pop-up menu will appear showing the contents. Tap Extract (or Unzip)
4. Once finished, tap Done

AncestryDNA® - Acceptable vs Unacceptable Files

The fastest way to tell if your AncestryDNA raw data will be accepted is to check the date it began processing. Anything after September 2025 is incompatible with our system. 

NOTE: The date in the header will be the date the file was downloaded, not the date the test was performed.

When you open the .txt file:

• Check the header
  • If the header says it was NGS, it is not an accepted version
  • If the header says it was Array Version 1, it is accepted
  • If the header says it was Array Version 2, it might be accepted and it might not, depending on when the test was performed by Ancestry
• Check the number of rows
  • If the file has ~680,000 rows, it's probably accepted.  These files will have mtDNA and/or Y-DNA SNPs at the bottom
  • If the file has ~430,000 rows, it's the new, unaccepted version. These files will not have mtDNA and/or Y-DNA SNPs at the bottom

23andMe® - Acceptable vs Unacceptable Files

Your 23andMe Raw data file must originate from a test taken with 23andMe. If your data file has been altered or converted from a different format by yourself or a third-party company, it will not be compatible.

When you open the file:

1. Find the number following "V" in the file name. If it's a 3, 4, or 5 it's accepted. If it's a 1 or 2, it is not accepted
2. Open the file
3. Check the data it contains. 23andMe is now offering an ethnicity result download. If it contains ancestral populations and percentages, this is not the right kind of file
4. Check the URLs in the header
   1. Accepted files have
      • # https://you.23andme.com/p/23c30f4b685d4f11/tools/data/download/ (the numbers between p/ and /tools will be different for all users)
      • # https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/assembly/GCF_000001405.13/

MyHeritage® - Acceptable vs Unacceptable Files

The fastest way to tell if your MyHeritage DNA raw data will be accepted is to check the date it began processing. Anything after November 2025 is incompatible with our system. 

NOTE: The date in the header will be the date the file was downloaded, not the date the test was performed.

When you open the file:

• Check the header
  • If it says the test method was GSA or if it does not have a test method, it is likely a microarray file and is accepted
  • If it says the test method was low pass Whole Genome Sequencing or lpWGS, it is not accepted