This article has a number of tips and tricks to help you get started with building and editing your Family Tree. It might take some getting-used-to, but most of the editing actions available for your Family Tree should become more intuitive over time.
Please select one of the following options for more information about that topic:
Getting Started
Understanding the Circles on Your Tree
| Colorful circles indicate a relative who shares an ancestor with you, whether or not that relative has tested at 23andMe. This includes your direct ancestors and cousins, but not in-laws or other relative's partners. In the beginning, you may have many empty circles on your tree, which act as placeholders to show your predicted relationship to more distant cousins. | |
| A circle with a profile icon in the center indicates an unidentified ancestor such as a parent or grandparent. If you add any self-reported relatives to your tree, they will initially appear as a circle with a profile icon until you add basic information about them. | |
| Grey circles indicate a relative’s partner, who would typically not share DNA with you. | |
| This pink and green chromosome badge indicates that this relative tested with 23andMe. You cannot edit basic information about these relatives, but you can edit their location within your tree and add relatives to them. | |
| When completing an edit, circles that can be selected are shown with a dotted line, while circles that can not be selected are greyed out. To learn more about editing, see the section titled "Editing a Relationship" below. |
Viewing DNA Relatives and Health History
The DNA Relatives Tree shows family relationships that are predicted by the Family Tree algorithm. This algorithm uses several factors, including age, and the amount of shared DNA among a group or network of close relatives. The DNA Relatives Tree starts with up to 20 relatives who are 3rd cousins or closer, but you can always add more as you go.
The Family Health History Tree focuses on close relatives. In the Health History Tree you can add, view, and edit medical history information for yourself and your close relatives. Relatives included in the Family Health History Tree are your parents, your siblings and half-siblings, your children, your grandparents, and your aunts and uncles.
Selecting a Relative on Your Tree
Selecting a relative on your tree will highlight and bold the path in your Family Tree that connects you, and opens a preview of that relative with specific actions you can take. These actions include:
- Edit: Select “Edit” next to the relationship label to move this relative within your tree, or to remove them from your tree.
- View profile: Select “View profile” to visit a DNA Relative’s profile.
- Add basic info: Select “Add basic info” to enter biographical information for a self-reported relative.
- View basic info: Select "View basic info" to view or edit biographical information you entered for a self-reported relative.
- Add a relative: Select “Add a relative to this person” to add a partner, sibling, half-sibling, child, or generation above this relative.
- (Family Health History Tree Only) Add medical history: Select "Add medical history" in the Health History tree to add medical conditions for this relative.
Adding Basic Information about Someone
For any ancestor or relative on your tree who has not tested at 23andMe (they do not have a pink and green chromosome badge), you can add basic biographical information about them, such as their name, place of birth, date of birth — even a photo. First select the relative to whom you wish to add information. Then, in the window that appears, select “Add basic info.”
If you mark a relative as deceased, this information will be visible to your connections and DNA Relatives on 23andMe.* If you mark an ancestor or relative as living, they will not be visible to anybody but you.
Adding basic information to your Family Health History Tree
Selecting a relative in your Family Health History Tree will open a window with a preview of that relative and actions you can take. These actions include adding, viewing, or editing basic information about this relative, and adding, viewing, or editing medical history information for that relative.
Who can see the information in your Family Health History Tree?
All medical information you add to your Family Health History Tree is kept private to you — it will not be visible to others. No one else, including your DNA Relatives, your connections, and other relatives in your Family Tree will be able to see medical conditions listed for yourself or your relatives (both living and deceased) in your Family Health History Tree.
For more information, visit our FAQs.
*Please note that while this policy is communicated at the beginning of your tree-building experience to help all users understand privacy in their Family Trees, the ability to view the trees of your connections and DNA Relatives is not available.
Adding Basic Information Example
Adding Medical History for Someone in Your Family Health History Tree
- Select a relative on your Family Health History Tree, this brings up the relative's preview window.
- Select "Add medical history" from the preview window, this brings up the relative's medical history.
- Start typing in the search box labeled "select condition" this brings up a list of medical conditions to choose from. Select the name of the medical condition you want to add to your relative's medical history.
- Add the age your relative was diagnosed with the medical condition.
- Click save to add the condition to your relative's medical history.
- Repeat this process to another medical condition.
Who can see the information in your Family Health History Tree?
All medical information you add to your Family Health History Tree is kept private to you. The medical conditions you add for yourself and your relatives are not visible to others. No one else, including your DNA Relatives, your connections, and other relatives in your Family Tree will be able to see medical conditions listed for yourself or your relatives (both living and deceased) in your Family Health History Tree.
Your family health history is a powerful tool for managing your health. Before you enter sensitive information about living relatives you should make sure you have their permission to do so. In addition, please respect a person's wishes to maintain privacy of their sensitive health information when discussing with others.
Adding Medical History Example
Adding More Relatives
To add a relative to your tree, first select the relative to whom you want to add a partner, child, sibling, half-sibling, or additional generation above, then select “Add a relative to this person.” Next, from the drop-down menu, choose the relationship you wish to add to this relative. Once the new relative is added, you can add information about them and continue editing your tree.
Adding or Removing a Generation from a Branch in the DNA Relatives Tree
This can be particularly helpful if you want to change a predicted 1st cousin to a predicted 1st cousin once-removed, etc. To add a generation, select a relative in your tree. Next, select “Add a relative to this person,” and then select “generation above” from the drop-down menu. To remove a generation, if the relative you select is not genotyped and has no personal information added, you can select “Edit” next to the relationship label, and then “remove generation from tree.”
A Note About Adding Relatives in the Family Health History Tree
Adding a relative to your tree while in the Health History Tree view may not automatically place that relative in your DNA Relatives Tree. If this happens, select the "Add a relative" button in the bottom right hand side of your tree. You should find these relatives in the "unplaced relatives" menu that appears. To place relatives in your Family Tree select the correct empty placeholder circle, or create a new empty placeholder circle. There must be a placeholder circle for your relatives on the tree before you can add them to your tree.
Editing a Relationship
If a relationship predicted by the Family Tree algorithm looks incorrect, you can move that relative in your tree to correct it. Remember, before you move a relative within your tree, there must be a new empty placeholder circle for them to go. If the correct empty placeholder circle does not already exist, first create the placeholder by using the "Add a relative" action described above.
Once you have the correct empty placeholder circle to move them to, select the relative you wish to move, then select “Edit” next to the relationship label. This will take you to a short menu that will allow you to perform certain actions, such as:
1. Move person: This editing function is available if the relative has tested at 23andMe or is a self-reported relative.
2. Move this person’s branch: This editing function is available when the relative is not your direct ancestor.
3. Remove person from tree: This editing function is available for self-reported relatives added to your tree who have not tested at 23andMe.
4. Remove generation from tree**: This editing function is available for empty placeholder circles on your tree. If you have added information to a relative but want to remove that generation, you must first select “edit info” and then “clear all information.”
**Note this function is not available in the Family Health History Tree.
Know you’re in control of any information you add.
At 23andMe, your data privacy is our top priority. For that reason, your full Family Tree, including any living family members and any medical information you manually add, is visible only to you. However, relationships that you edited on your Family Tree will be visible to your DNA Relatives on your profile page in the Relatives in Common table. To help you and your relatives discover how you're related, any information you add about ancestors that you mark as deceased can be seen by DNA Relatives and connections. For more information see our frequently asked questions.
Common Questions
Is my Family Health History Tree visible to anyone else?
No. All medical information in your Family Health History Tree is kept private to you. The medical conditions you add for yourself and your relatives are not visible to others. No one else, including your DNA Relatives, your connections, and other relatives in your Family Tree will be able to see medical conditions listed for yourself or your relatives (both living and deceased).
Your family health history is a powerful tool for managing your health. Before you enter sensitive information about living relatives you should make sure you have their permission to do so. In addition, please respect a person's wishes to maintain privacy of their sensitive health information when discussing with others.
How do I add or remove a generation from a branch in my DNA Relatives tree?
This is particularly helpful if you want to change a predicted 1st cousin to a predicted 1st cousin once-removed, etc.
- Add a generation: Select a relative in your tree. Next, select “Add a relative,” and then select “generation above” from the drop-down menu.
- Remove a generation: If the relative you select is not genotyped and has no personal information added, you can select “Edit” next to the relationship label, and then “remove generation from tree.”
How do I remove a relative from my Family Tree?
You can remove relatives from your tree by selecting "Edit" next to the relationship label, and then selecting "Remove from tree," which will move this relative to your unplaced relatives list. To instead delete all information about a relative and remove the place from your tree, select "Edit info" and then "Clear all information."
How do I move someone to the correct spot in my tree?
This is most relevant when we predicted a person or a branch of your Family Tree on the wrong side.
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Move one person: Select the relative you wish to move. In the window, select “Edit,” next to the relationship label, then “move person.” At this point, you will be prompted to select the empty placeholder circle on the tree to which you want to move your relative.
- Note: If the correct empty placeholder circle does not yet exist on your tree, you will need to add the correct empty placeholder to your tree first.
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Move a branch: When you select “move this person’s branch,” you will move not only the selected relative but also all of his or her descendants. When you move a branch, you must select the correct parents for the person you wish to move. If your relative’s correct parents are not already in your tree, you'll need to add them first.
Example: Editing a 3rd cousin to a half-second cousin relationship
- Step 1: Identify the correct great-grandparent you share.
- Step 2: Add a new partner to that great-grandparent.
- Step 3: Select the grandparent of the relative you wish to move, and select “Edit” next to the relationship label, then "move branch.” Next select the new great-grandparent’s partner you added in step 2. This will move the branch so that your tree now reflects the correct half-2nd cousin relationship.
My predicted 2nd cousin is actually my 2nd cousin once-removed. How do I update this in my Family Tree?
Select your 2nd cousin in your Family Tree and select “Add a relative to this person” in the pop-up window. Then use the drop-down menu to insert a generation above. This will automatically add a generation above your 2nd cousin, which updates the relationship to “2nd cousin once-removed.”
My predicted 1st cousin is actually my half-1st cousin. How do I update this in my Family Tree?
- First, identify which grandparent you share with your half first cousin. Next, select that shared grandparent, then select “Add a relative to this person” and use the drop-down menu to add a new partner.
- Once you have added the new partner to your shared grandparent, you can move your half first cousin’s branch to the correct set of grandparents. To do this, select your half cousin’s parent with whom you share DNA (their parent with a colorful circle). Next, select “Edit” next to the relationship label, and “move this person’s branch,” which will prompt you to select the correct parents.
There is a cousin (or entire branch) on the wrong side of my Family Tree. Why is that happening and how do I fix it?
This may be happening because neither of your parents has tested at 23andMe, so we are unable to correctly determine on which side of your Family Tree an individual or branch belongs.
To fix it, simply select the individual at the top of the branch you wish to move, select “Edit” next to the relationship label, then “move this person’s branch.” At this point, you will be prompted to select the correct set of parents for the relative you selected. When you select the correct parents, the relative and any descendants or descendants’ partners will be moved as well. Note: you cannot move the branch of a direct ancestor, such as a parent, grandparent, or great-grandparent.
I know my dad’s parents were second cousins. Can I show this on my Family Tree?
No. Currently in your Family Tree there is no way to show relationships in which a relative’s parents are genetically related to each other.
What is the unplaced relatives list?
You can find your unplaced relatives list by selecting the "Add a relative" button on your tree. You can move unplaced relatives in the list back onto your tree.
If you request a recalculation of your tree, any self-reported relatives you added to your tree will be moved to the unplaced relatives list. Select the "Add a relative" button located in the bottom right corner of the Family Tree, this will bring up your unplaced relatives.
If a close relative opts in to DNA Relatives after your tree was first calculated, they will be added automatically to your unplaced relatives list, from where you can add them to the appropriate position in your tree.
How do I add a new genotyped relative to my tree?
To kick-start your tree, 23andMe looks at your closest 20 DNA Relatives and predicts their relationships to each other. After this initial tree prediction, new close relatives who opt in to DNA Relatives (2nd cousins and closer) will show up in your unplaced relatives list for you to add to your tree. From your unplaced relatives list, select the DNA Relative you wish to place on your tree, then select the empty placeholder circle where you wish to place them, or first add the correct empty placeholder circle if it does not yet exist.
If you’ve already added a placeholder for this relative and added information about them before they tested with 23andMe, you can still add a genotyped profile to this placeholder circle — any information added previously will be moved to your unplaced relatives list. Alternatively, you can clear all information before you add your new genotyped relative to that placeholder circle.
Remember: Add an empty placeholder circle before adding a relative
Before you add a relative to your tree (genotyped or un-genotyped), there must be an empty placeholder circle on the tree into which you can place that relative or to which you can add information, such as name, birth date, and picture.
If the correct placeholder circle does not already exist in your tree, you should first create an empty placeholder circle which represents the correct relationship. Then you can add a genotyped relative to that placeholder circle, or add information about an un-genotyped relative.
How do I add a record of a relative who has not tested at 23andMe?
- Adding a partner, child, sibling or half-sibling: Select the relative to whom you want to add a partner, child, or sibling. Next, select “Add a relative” in the window, then select the relationship you want to add from the drop-down menu. Adding a child to a relative will automatically add a partner to that relative as well if the relative does not already have a partner indicated in your tree.
Why can’t I add more relatives to my Family Tree?
There is currently a limit to the number of relatives you can add to your tree. We hope to expand the number of relatives you can add to your tree in the future.
I’ve made some edits on my tree. Will those automatically disappear if my tree is recalculated?
If you request a recalculation of your tree, any self-reported relatives you added to your tree previously will be removed and stored in your unplaced relatives list.