Customer Reviews of the Major Dna Testing Sites
Personal Dna tests are more accessible now than e'er before. From the comfort of your ain abode, you can learn nearly your genetics at an affordable cost. Whether you want to acquire more than most your health or your family, there are plenty of reputable DNA tests on the market today.
Though it'south a thorny and controversial topic, some tests as well merits to reveal your "ethnicity." At that place are as well DNA test services that tin can shed light on your genetic predisposition for diseases and physiological traits, ranging from your eye color to your tolerance for cilantro.
While they used to cost about $1,000 back in the 2000s, you can now get a sophisticated DNA information analysis of your genetic makeup for a fraction of that toll, thank you to trailblazers such as 23andMe and Beginnings, and upstarts like Living DNA.
Watch this: Here's how genetic genealogist CeCe Moore finds potential...
There are iii types of Deoxyribonucleic acid tests -- each with its own particular strengths, limitations and rationales.
- An autosomal DNA test is the best investment for well-nigh beginners; it can identify relatives between five and vii generations dorsum, across both maternal and paternal lines.
- Only men can effectively use a Y-DNA test, which identifies male relatives on the paternal line reaching dorsum 60,000 years. If you're looking to trace the history of your family'southward surname, this is the examination to use.
- Mitochondrial DNA testing, as well known as mtDNA testing, tin can determine genetic relationships on a maternal line from up to 150,000 years ago; both men and women can accept this blazon of examination.
Each testing company will requite you an assay of your Dna test results. These results could include your geographical origin -- some merits to exist able to pinpoint a specific country, town or even "tribe" -- also as your genetic ancestry composition and your susceptibility to particular genetic diseases. We should annotation that these tests don't serve a diagnostic purpose. A md-administered genetic test and a follow-up with a genetic advisor is important if you think you have a genetic affliction. No online testing visitor offering results from a saliva sample can substitute for a health test administered by your dr..
Certain companies will also serve up "matches" from their DNA databases, which will give you lot a head get-go on connecting with possible relatives and offer some degree of family unit-tree inquiry support. AncestryDNA, for example, offers a subscription service that includes admission to hundreds of databases containing nativity, death and marriage announcements, census documents, newspaper archives and other historical records.
Some DNA companies sell tests designed for specific ethnicities or specialized kits that merits to shed light on your optimal skin care regimen or weight; others offer tests designed to identify the genetic makeup of your cat or dog. (Yes, y'all tin can go a dog Deoxyribonucleic acid test.) The experts I spoke to were dubious of the efficacy and value of these tests, all the same, and recommended avoiding them.
Though there's no blood involved with modern Dna testing -- you either swab the inside of your cheek or fill a small exam tube with your saliva -- in that location are plenty of reasons to be wary of the companies that sell these kits. Your success in Dna test genealogy is largely dependent on supplying highly personal information about yourself and your relatives, from your genetic data to your mother'south maiden name (a traditional cornerstone of password security).
Concerns over information privacy and security are well-founded, and experts warn that regulation,especially in the US, lags far backside the applied science. You lot should also know that some Deoxyribonucleic acid testing companies may share data with pharmaceutical companies and law enforcement agencies. Lesser line: Recall critically earlier volunteering data most your health history and familial connections to whatever Dna testing visitor or arrangement.
Read more: In the Future, Not Fifty-fifty Your DNA Will be Sacred
DNA testing, and genealogy more broadly, involves a complicated mixture of genetics, probabilities and guesswork. The various DNA testing services employ different labs, algorithms, equipment and criteria to analyze your genetic material. Although you should expect some caste of overlap between analyses from different companies, they may differ significantly. There'southward also an element of disquisitional mass -- the larger the company's database, the larger the sample they utilise to analyze your results, and the more accurate your examination issue should exist.
We tried some of the top Deoxyribonucleic acid testing services, assessing the breadth and depth of their offerings, methodologies, reputation and cost. Take a look at our recommendations beneath.
23andMe
Best Deoxyribonucleic acid test for beginners
23andMe
Founded in 2006, 23andMe is one of the pioneers of Deoxyribonucleic acid testing for consumers. In 2017 it became the first such service to win the FDA'due south approving equally a risk screener for diseases. Information technology has become ane of the most well-known Dna testing companies -- and well-funded, since taking in a $300 million stake from GlaxoSmithKline, which uses the company'due south client information to research and design new drugs. Still, the visitor recently announced a circular of layoffs, citing a slowdown in the DNA testing marketplace probable caused past increasing concerns about privacy.
23andMe segments its analysis into three master categories -- health, beginnings and traits. The basic ancestry and traits test, which is now on sale for $99, includes an analysis of your genetic makeup including your regions of origin, maternal and paternal lineage and Neanderthal ancestry. Once you opt in, the company'due south match database -- which has more than 10 1000000 profiles -- will place and offer to connect you with people who share a DNA match with you.
The company'due south DNA wellness test, which is on sale for $199, adds information about your genetic predisposition for belatedly-onset Alzheimer'southward, Parkinson's and other diseases. The service besides includes analysis of your carrier condition as a potential genetic carrier for disorders like Cystic Fibrosis and Sickle Cell Anemia besides as indicators for lactose intolerance and other "wellness" issues. The Health and Beginnings package, currently on sale for $229, provides priority lab processing, premium customer support and a personalized walkthrough of your results.
I found 23andMe's website and mobile app very like shooting fish in a barrel to navigate and brimming with interesting, comprehensible information about both my beginnings and wellness besides equally the science of genetics and genealogy. The chief dashboard offers intuitive links to exploring your ancestry, learning about the genetic risks for health weather condition, building out a family tree and connecting with relatives. Amongst all of the DNA tests I tried, 23andMe delivered the best introduction to my recent and ancient genealogy along with an analysis of my genetic health. The only real drawback is that it does non offering integrated access to historical documents.
23andMe does provide like shooting fish in a barrel access to a total range of privacy preferences and consent options, however. (That noted, 23andMe's terms of service and privacy argument is among the nearly extensive, exceeding 20,000 words.) You tin enquire the company to shop your saliva sample indefinitely for time to come testing or have them discard it. Having signed off when I first signed up, I subsequently inverse my mind well-nigh giving the visitor permission to share my data with researchers exterior of 23andMe, and was able to retract my consent with the click of a button.
Read more:Ancestry vs. 23andMe: Which Dna testing kit is best for tracing your family history?
AncestryDNA
All-time integration of Deoxyribonucleic acid analysis and historical research
Ian Knighton/CNET
Founded in Utah in the 1990s, Beginnings.com -- the parent company of AncestryDNA -- started out as a publishing and genealogy company. Since then, it has had a somewhat tumultuous corporate existence, having been bought, sold, publicly traded and and so purchased by private equity groups.
The company'due south basic Deoxyribonucleic acid kit service, currently on auction for $59, provides you lot with an "ethnicity estimate" derived from its proprietary sequencing techniques. It's noteworthy that the company's genetic testing, which is outsourced to Quest Diagnostics, is distinct from most other companies that use paternal Y chromosome and/or maternal mitochondrial DNA methodologies, and less is known about the detail criteria information technology uses.
That noted, AncestryDNA says its database contains more than 18 million profiles, making information technology the largest of all of the DNA examination kit services. The company too maintains a powerful tool for searching through hundreds of historical document databases -- merely any noun research will quickly bring you lot to a paywall. Ancestry'due south databases are farther bolstered by its partnership with FamilySearch.org, a genealogical records site run by the Mormon church.
An entry-level membership, which provides access to more than 6 billion records in the The states, costs $99 for half dozen months or $25 per month, after a gratuitous two-week trial. The "Globe Explorer" membership, for $forty per month, broadens your access to the company'southward 27 billion international records, and the "All Admission" tier, starting at $fifty per calendar month, includes unlimited admission to Ancestry's historical and contemporary database of more than xv,000 newspapers and military records from around the world.
AncestryDNA offers a personalized health report with "actionable insights," access to genetic counseling resources, an online tool to help you map your family unit's wellness over generations and a next-generation sequencing service for screening your genetic hazard for heart disease, some cancers and claret disorders. Yet, the results are non diagnostic -- though the test result must be approved past 1 of the visitor's physicians -- and the service does non have FDA approving. For now, 23andMe maintains the reward when information technology comes to introductory DNA testing for health risks and genetic screening. Just AncestryDNA's service is particularly well-suited for leveraging an introductory Dna analysis into deep historical enquiry to build out a family unit tree.
AncestryDNA allows you to download your total Dna results profile and upload the raw information into other tools, and it provides reasonably good control over your privacy preferences, though the options are not as granular as others.
Read more: What AncestryDNA taught me nearly Deoxyribonucleic acid, privacy and the complex world of genetic testing
FamilyTreeDNA
Best analysis and tools for intermediate users
FamilyTreeDNA
Founded in 2000, FamilyTreeDNA offers a comprehensive suite of reports and interactive tools to analyze your Dna and build a family tree. With a credible claim to "the earth's most comprehensive DNA matching database," FamilyTreeDNA offers all three types of tests -- autosomal Dna, Y-DNA and mtDNA. And information technology's the sole company to own and operate its own testing facility: The Cistron-past-Cistron genetic lab, located in Houston.
The company's entry-level "family ancestry" bundle ordinarily costs $79, though its testing kit is sometimes on sale for less. The exam results provide information near your ethnic and geographic origins, identifies potential relatives and offers access to the company's massive DNA database. I paid $275 for a broad DNA examination that included assay of my mtDNA and Y-DNA -- tests that currently cost $119 and $159, respectively, when you lot purchase them individually -- as well as the "Family Finder," the company'due south autosomal test.
Though the user interface is a flake more complicated than what you'll find on other sites, FamilyTreeDNA provides the near complete suite of introductory tools of any provider I tested. For each type of test, y'all are presented with matches -- I got more than 22,000 for my autosomal Deoxyribonucleic acid examination -- a chromosome browser, migration maps, haplogroups and connections to ancestral reference populations, data about mutations and a link that allows you to download your raw information. Suffice to say, there are numerous threads to pull on to acquire about yourself, your family and your health.
FamilyTree besides offers a number of college-end tests, for those interested in earthworks deeper, including a range of Y-DNA tests that volition trace the path of your male ancestors and the history of your surname. The company besides allows you lot to upload raw Dna information files from other services and transfer your autosomal information to its database to aggrandize your universe of matches and relationships.
From a data security and privacy perspective, at that place are several things I discover appealing about FamilyTreeDNA. The company does its ain Dna testing in house, processing and storing your sample in its lab. Posted prominently on the front page of its website is a promise that the company will never sell your DNA to third parties. Similar most other companies, nevertheless, FamilyTreeDNA may use your amass genetic information for internal research and may comply with requests from constabulary enforcement -- unless you opt out.
Other DNA testing options
The three services above are our height choices for the best DNA exam. But they weren't the only ones we tested. What follows are some boosted options, none of which eclipsed the 23andMe, Beginnings or FamilyTreeDNA in whatsoever pregnant fashion.
MyHeritage
Based in Israel, MyHeritage was founded in 2003, and like a number of other services profiled hither, started out equally a genealogy software platform. Over fourth dimension, it acquired a number of historical databases and eventually added Dna testing in 2016. (MyHeritage outsources its Dna analysis to FamilyTreeDNA.) In 2018, MyHeritage committeda security alienation, exposing the e-mail addresses and hashed passwords of more than 92 1000000 users.
MyHeritage offers a free tier of service that includes some bones family unit tree-edifice and admission to excerpts of historical documents. It won't go you too far.
The basic Deoxyribonucleic acid testing and analysis service, which is now on sale for $59, includes the usual fare -- a report of your genetic makeup beyond the visitor's 42 supported ethnicities, the identification of relatives and connections to them where possible. All things considered, I preferred FamilyTreeDNA'due south presentation of my Deoxyribonucleic acid data. Merely MyHeritage highlighted a commencement cousin living in the Us, with whom I shared about fifteen% of my Deoxyribonucleic acid, and offered to prove me her family tree -- if I paid a $209 annual subscription fee.
Yep, that's expensive -- a costless 14-day trial is bachelor -- merely the company maintains an impressive online database of historical documents that includes three.5 billion profiles in addition to information well-nigh over 100 meg subscribers and their collective 46 one thousand thousand family trees. This enormous database is powered by Geni.com, a genealogy social media site that'southward also MyHeritage'due south parent company. According to the New York Times, Geni.com has assembled "the world'south largest, scientifically vetted family tree."
In 2019, MyHeritage launched a health test similar to the one offered by 23andMe. As role of this try, the visitor partnered with PWNHealth, a network of US physicians who oversee the process. I was required to consummate a personal and family health history questionnaire -- it was sixteen questions -- which was then ostensibly reviewed by a doc. Though the company says it may recommend a "genetic counseling" session administered by PWNHealth, my health results were only delivered along with my ancestry analysis.
On the plus side, I like MyHeritage'south straightforward admission to a range of comprehensible privacy preferences. Still, overall, I institute MyHeritage's user interface far less intuitive and more than difficult to navigate than others. Though the company's offering is wide -- it's one of the few to offer a comprehensive inquiry database of historical documents, Deoxyribonucleic acid analysis and health screening -- I constitute the integration among them to be a scrap clumsy.
Living DNA
Living Dna describes itself equally a "consumer genealogy DNA service that does non sell or share customers' DNA or data with third parties," which gives y'all a sense of its priorities -- or, at least, its sense of customers' concerns. LivingDNA's headquarters in the UK may besides be a cistron in its distinctive mission statement, as it is field of study to the more stringent data and privacy regulations of the GDPR.
LivingDNA divides its offerings in a different way than others. The $69 autosomal Dna kit provides an overview of your ancestry in lxxx geographical regions and information about maternal and paternal haplogroups and access to the visitor's genetic matching tool. The $119 "wellbeing package" includes reports about your physiological compatibility with vitamins, foods and practise. And the $169 Deoxyribonucleic acid ancestry and well-being package gives you all of information technology.
Recent ancestry results are presented with a breakdown of pct by land every bit well as the percentage attributable to more than detailed regions, likewise as the origin and migration path of haplogroups. In Feb 2020, LivingDNA introduced an African Ancestry DNA test report that features data on 72 regions in Africa and, according to the company, "5 times the detail of any other test on the market." The report is bachelor for free to existing customers.
That noted, the company has a very limited family match database; a company representative declined to give me a specific number simply said that it contained less than 1 million profiles. My wife, who took the test, returned exactly naught matches. So, if y'all're looking to identify and make connections with relatives, there are improve choices in the market. That noted, LivingDNA has a very solid reputation for both the quality of its Dna assay and privacy terms amongst experienced genealogists.
For experts simply: Whole genome sequencing
In that location are a number of companies -- including Full Genomes, Veritas Genetics, Nebula Genomics and Dante Labs -- that can sequence all of your DNA, otherwise known as your genome. This level of analysis is appropriate for advanced users merely. Not simply is it expensive -- these tests can run into the thousands of dollars, in some cases -- it requires a sophisticated understanding of both genetics and a range of technical tools required to explore and translate your results.
The least expensive whole genome tests cost about $300. For instance, Full Genome's 30X test -- which scans every targeted location of your genome thirty times on average -- is considered the standard for a clinical analysis. It costs $299.
For most people, the main rationale for sequencing the whole genome is to swoop deep into your genetic wellness outlook. You can glean your personal risk factors for diseases, drug sensitivities and your status as a carrier; that is, what y'all might pass on to your kids. Merely at that place are also enough of applications for advanced genealogical projects.
All of these efforts can also be undertaken -- to a less intense caste -- with some of the more affordable options outlined above. But whole genome sequencing provides a significantly more comprehensive, authentic and loftier-resolution analysis.
If y'all want to dip your toe into this realm. y'all might want to kickoff with Nebula Genomics. Yous can besides upload an existing Dna sequence from Beginnings or 23andMe's Deoxyribonucleic acid database and go Nebula's reports at a reduced price.
Dna tests we'd avoid
HomeDNA
HomeDNA sells testing kits under a number of brands, including DNA Origins, and has a retail presence at Walmart, CVS, Rite Aid and Walgreens. The visitor'due south tests claim to combine genetic inquiry and "ancestral tracking" techniques that tin can identify the town or hamlet where your ancestors originated with a high degree of accuracy. Many experts dispute these claims.
The visitor offers a range of ancestry testing services starting at $69. That's the price for the maternal and paternal lineage kits and the "Starter Beginnings Test," which uses Deoxyribonucleic acid markers to develop an estimate of your origins in Europe, Indigenous America, East Asia and Sub-Saharan Africa -- and shows you lot the modern population groups that share your Dna. The $124 "Advanced Ancestry Examination" expands the assay to lxxx,000 autosomal genetic markets, one,000 reference populations and 41 gene pools.
I'll notation that the HomeDNA test kit contained no warning about non eating or drinking for any period of time prior to taking the test -- unlike every other kit I used. And of the four swabs the company sent, one broke. The test kit just didn't seem as rigorously hygienic every bit the others.
For $199, HomeDNA claims that the Asian Edition of its GPS Origins Ancestry Test can analyze 17 Asia-specific cistron pools and hundreds of Asia-specific reference populations. In addition to a $164 paternity kit, the company as well sells a diverseness of specific kits to determine your sensitivities to particular animals and foods, 1 to assistance you achieve a healthy weight, and some other that promises to "unlock your skin'southward total potential."
For $39, the company will permit you to upload a raw data file from another DNA testing service and pinpoint your origin to a particular town or city. At that place are also kits to help yous screen your dog or cat for genetic diseases and traits.
Merely this company doesn't have a sterling reputation in the genetic genealogy world. When we recently spoke with Debbie Kennett, a genetic genealogist from Academy College London, she referenced the company'due south notoriety for delivering "bizarre results" and expressed incertitude about the efficacy of its specialized tests for particular ethnic groups. HomeDNA did not answer to CNET's inquiry about its testing process or results.
And the HomeDNA reports don't stack up peculiarly well against those returned by other companies. Results are summarized on a unmarried webpage, though y'all also get a PDF that certifies that you've "undergone DNA testing" and shows the continents and countries where your Dna originates. The company also throws in a boilerplate 20-page explainer about DNA scientific discipline and engineering science. HomeDNA does non offer access to any matching databases -- and so there'south no obvious next footstep or any actionable data that comes with your results. Given this, I'd recommend choosing a different DNA testing service.
African Ancestry
Claiming to have the most comprehensive database of African lineages, African Ancestry promises to trace its customers' ancestry back to a specific country and identify their "indigenous group origin." But a number of experienced genealogists have cited problems with this company'south marketing claims and science.
Different most other companies, African Ancestry doesn't offering an autosomal Deoxyribonucleic acid test. Instead, it offers an mtDNA exam or a Y-DNA test (for males merely). In contrast to your standard Deoxyribonucleic acid analysis, African Ancestry's report doesn't provide the percentage of DNA that's likely to have originated across a range of regions. Instead, African Ancestry claims to trace your DNA to a specific region of Africa.
According to experts, however, African Ancestry'due south Deoxyribonucleic acid tests come up brusk. As explained in a web log post by African American genetic genealogist Shannon Christmas, the company's methodology just doesn't analyze a sufficient number of Dna markers to deliver on its marketing promises.
Furthermore, he writes, "Ethnicity is a circuitous concept, a concept not as rooted in genetics as information technology is in sociopolitical and cultural constructs. There is no Dna test that can assign anyone to an African indigenous group or what some refer to as an 'African tribe.'" African Ancestry isn't the just company that claims to be able to determine your ethnicity or "ethnic group of origin." Merely its merits to narrow things downwardly to a single "tribe" of origin is overblown, equally whatever African tribe would ostensibly contain multiple haplogroups.
In an email to CNET, African Ancestry responded: "African Ancestry makes it clear that ethnic groups are social and cultural groupings, not genetic ones. However, based on extensive genetic research of African lineages performed past African Beginnings's co-founder and Scientific Director (who holds a Ph.D. in Biology and specializes in human genetics), we find that contrary to laymen's beliefs, there are ethnic groups that share genetic lineages. Our results pinpoint genetic lineages that share the aforementioned genetics as our exam takers. Given the vast number of lineages in our African Lineage Database, we are able to provide the ethnic groups of the people with that shared lineage."
The company's PatriClan Exam analyzes eight Y-chromosome STRs and the YAP, which information technology says is a critical identifier for African lineages; and the MatriClan Exam analyzes three regions of the mitochondrial Dna: HVS1, HVS2 and HVS3. But though these tests offer lower-resolution results than others, African Beginnings's services are considerably more expensive. The visitor'south Y-Dna test and mtDNA tests cost $299 each -- or you can have them both, and get an viii-pack of "certificates of ancestry" and a four-pack of t-shirts, for $729.
On the plus side, African Ancestry says that it does non maintain a database of customer data and that it will not share or sell your Deoxyribonucleic acid sequence or markers with whatever third party -- including law enforcement agencies. The company's terms and conditions run to just over ii,200 words, making them considerably more concise than the disclosure statements of about other companies we included in this roundup. And African Ancestry promises to destroy your DNA sample after your test results are delivered.
That said, even if you have the company's take on tribal and ethnic genetic markers, African Ancestry remains besides expensive to recommend at its current price.
What does a Dna test tell you?
If you're using a home DNA testing service, you're likely looking for ane of three things:
Beginnings and family history: The first big draw of a total DNA test is that you'll get a detailed breakup on ancestry and ethnicity, and the migration patterns of your common ancestors. Spoiler alert: Your ethnic background may be radically different than yous think it is. You'll also notice out what a haplogroup is.
Relative identification: With your permission, some Deoxyribonucleic acid services will permit y'all connect with relatives you never knew you had -- other folks with matching DNA who have used the service and likewise given their permission to connect to possible relations.
Wellness and disease info: DNA testing can too indicate which conditions for which yous may accept a preponderance. It's a controversial feature, to be certain. Knowing that you have a genetic predisposition to a certain class of cancer may make you more than vigilant for testing, but information technology may also pb to increased stress -- worrying virtually a potential health condition that may never develop, fifty-fifty if you lot're "genetically susceptible" to it. The possibility of false positives and fake negatives abound -- any such data should exist discussed with your doctor earlier you act upon it.
How DNA tests work
Afraid of needles and cartoon claret? Good news: That's non an issue with these tests. All you demand to practice is spit into a vial or rub a swab in your rima oris -- all the genetic data needed for these tests is present in your saliva -- and transport the DNA sample to the company for analysis.
The reason that a saliva sample works as well as claret (or pilus follicles or skin samples) is that your DNA -- which is short for deoxyribonucleic acid -- is present in all of them. It'due south the bones genetic code present in all of your cells that makes upwardly your primal attributes, from the color of your eyes to the shape of your ears to how susceptible yous are to cholesterol.
The key terms y'all demand to know when comparison DNA testing services are:
SNP (single nucleotide polymorphism): Genotyping is done by measuring genetic variation. One of the more common is SNP genotyping, which measures the variations of a unmarried nucleotide polymorphism. The more of these a company measures, the more granular the analysis.
Autosomal DNA testing: An autosomal exam that'southward effective for men and women, and which traces lineage back through both maternal and paternal bloodlines.
Y-DNA: The Y-DNA test can only be administered to men, and traces DNA back through the patrilineal ancestry -- basically from father to grandpa to great gramps and so on.
mtDNA: The mtDNA is matrilineal and lets you trace your beginnings back through your mother, grandmother, great grandmother and so on.
Deoxyribonucleic acid testing FAQs
Can I use a DNA test to determine paternity?
Aye, Deoxyribonucleic acid tests are the most accurate way to determine paternity of a child. Samples need to exist collected from both the child and suspected parent to make a conclusion. For the best accuracy, yous need a test that specifically checks for paternity not just beginnings.
Can I get a DNA test for my dog?
Yeah. Several companies sell dog Dna tests with the goal of helping you make up one's mind the breed of your beast and screen for possible genetic health problems.
Iii pop brands are Wisdom Panel (for both dogs and cats), Commence (for dogs just), and Basepaws (for cats just).
More DNA advice
- What AncestryDNA Taught Me About Deoxyribonucleic acid, Privacy and the Circuitous Earth of Genetic Testing
- Scientists Are Discovering the Secrets Backside Whole-Trunk DNA Regeneration
- In the Future, Non Even Your Dna Will Be Sacred
- How Sharing Your Dna Solves Horrible Crimes... and Stirs a Privacy Debate
- This DNA Test for Cats Could Unlock Mr. Whiskers' Genetic Secrets
David Gewirtz contributed to this story. The current version is a major update of past revisions and includes hands-on impressions of almost of the services listed.
The information contained in this article is for educational and informational purposes only and is not intended every bit health or medical communication. Always consult a doc or other qualified health provider regarding whatsoever questions y'all may have about a medical condition or wellness objectives.
Source: https://www.cnet.com/health/medical/best-dna-test/
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