Genetic Genealogy DNA test sales: FTDNA; 23andMe; AncestryDNA; MyHeritage

The largest USA based DNA testing companies have Holiday sales going on at this time:

Family Tree DNA:
• Family Finder $59, usually $89
• Y-DNA $129, usually $169
• mt-DNA $169, usually $199
• Big Y $475 (includes Y-DNA test for 111 markers)

If you have already tested at FTDNA you will be receiving Discount Coupons that can further reduce these sale prices.

23andMe:
23andMe is charging $49.00 if you buy 2 Ancestry Service kits. The normal cost of the Ancestry Service is $99.00.

AncestryDNA:

AncestryDNA costs $79.00, a $20 discount from their regular price of $99.00. Rumor is that Ancestry will have a Black Friday price of $49.00.

MyHeritage:

This weekend, 24 Nov-27 Nov, MyHeritage is offering their normally priced $99.00 DNA test for $49.00 with free shipping for 3 or more kits.

Check all of the companies on Black Friday and Cyber Monday for possible lower costs.

DNA Day Sales at Family Tree DNA now through 27 April, 2017

These Family Tree DNA tests are on sale through Thursday night in honor of DNA Day this week.

Save on Family Finder, mtFull and Y-DNA tests April 20 - 27, 2017. The sale ends at 11:59pm CST Thursday April 27. And please share this with your relatives! If you have older relatives, please consider sponsoring their tests so that their DNA heritage can be discovered.

Questions? Please see Family Tree DNA or check your FTDNA homepage.

Thanks to Sandra Kidd.

FTDNA discounts through 31 December 2015

Here is a link to the Family Tree DNA  (FTDNA) discounts:

https://www.familytreedna.com/products.aspx

Enjoy!

DNA testing for genetic genealogy: some new prices

Family Tree DNA, FTDNA, has changed the price of the 12 marker Y chromosome test to $49.00 as of 1 April 2013. This is the first test a male might take in determining his male line genetic ancestry. 12 marker test should be upgraded to 37, 67, or 111 markers for greater accuracy in determining the correct male line. This test gives a haplotype and a haplogroup for your male ancestry.

FTDNA has announced they will have a lower priced mitochondrial, mtDNA, test later this year.

The cost of their autosomal DNA test, Family Finder, has not been reduced. The test can be taken by both males and females and can find genetic connections back around 6 generations. At the 6th cousin level you will share less than 1% of your DNA with a 6th cousin.

23andMe has reduced the cost of their autosomal DNA test, Relative Finder, to $99.00. People outside of the United States should look at the shipping cost before placing the order. The reduction from $299.00 has made this a more affordable test. The results of the Relative Finder test are similar to Family Finder.

AncestryDNA, a part of Ancestry.com, has reduced the cost of their autosomal DNA test to $99.00. It is not available to persons outside of the USA. Using the pedigrees uploaded to Ancestry.com and a phasing formula developed by them, they are able to match DNA segments to pedigrees in their database. However, unlike FTDNA and 23andme, they do not provide a chromosome browser so you can see where your matches are on each chromosome. This means you could find a pedigree match but that person may not be the one you share DNA with.

FTDNA conversion to of Family Finder nearly completed

FTDNA has been converting Family Finder results to Build 37 of the reference human genome. Some problems were found with some previously run results and these are being rerun. In my case my Family Finder matches went down from 486 to 429. According to a notice from Bennet Greenspan and Max Blankfoeld they expect to complete the conversion on or about 5 March.

An update on DNA matches

As of 3 Oct 2012:

440 matches in Family Finder at FTDNA.
1509 matches in Relative Finder at 23andm.com(sharing genomes with 450)
1750+ matches at AncestryDNA. I am slowly working through 38 pages of matches.

Most matches that have an identified Most Recent Common Ancestor (MRCA) are from the Boone, Creekmore, Ball, Moses and Barnes families. I descend from over 20 families of 17th century New Haven Colony.

My ancestry is 95% British Isles and then German, French, Norwegian/Finnish make up the rest. Immigrants settled in Connecticut, New Amsterdam, New Sweden, Pennsylvania, Maryland, Virginia and the Carolinas. Most were here in the 1600s. My most recent know ancestor was transported from Middlesex Gaol to Virginia in the 1760s for stealing cloth.

Flash Sale (72 Hours) on DNA tests at Family Tree DNA

From FTDNA:


It seems every time we run a flash sale a few people e-mail us days later,
they were traveling, sick or just had not looked at their e-mails in time,
so for all of you who want to entice a friend, neighbor or reluctant
relative to get involved in Genetic Genealogy here's one more opportunity,
but it will last for only 72 hours.

We are gearing this sale for newcomers and upgrades by promoting the Family
Finder and the Full Mitochondria Sequence (FMS).This sale starts Friday,
September 28, at 12:00am and ends Sunday, September 30, at 11:59PM.

New Kits                       Current Price SALE PRICE
Family Finder                  $289           $199
mtFullSequence                 $299           $199
Family Finder + mtFullSequence $559           $398

Upgrades                       Current Price SALE PRICE
Family Finder                  $289           $199
HVR1 to mtFullSequence         $269           $199
HVR2 to mtFullSequence         $239           $199
mtFullSequence                 $289           $199

As with all promotions, orders need to be placed by the end of the sale and
payment must be made by end of this sale. Learn More

Best Regards,
Bennett Greenspan
President
Family Tree DNA
www.familytreedna.com
"History Unearthed Daily"

© All Contents Copyright 2001-2012 Gene by Gene, Ltd.

FTDNA Super Summer Sale

Dear Family Tree DNA Project Administrator,

It seems that every time we run a super sale that a few people email us days later that they were traveling, sick or just hadn't looked at their emails in time, so for all of you who have wanted to entice a friend, neighbor or reluctant relative to get involved in Genetic Genealogy here's one more opportunity, but it will last for only 72 hours. These are the only two options on sale, and they are geared specifically for newcomers. This sale will end on Saturday, August 25, at 11:59PM.

New Customers Only Current Price SALE PRICE Family Finder + Y-DNA 12 $339 $249 Family Finder + mtDNA $339 $249

As with all promotions, orders need to be placed by the end of the sale and payment must be made by end of this sale. Learn More

Family Tree DNA's Sizzling summer Promotion

info@familytreedna.com ✆ noreply@familytreedna.com

Dear Project Administrator, Last summer, we offered special pricing to attract new members to your projects. This was the most successful offering of its type in our company’s history. Our project administrators that got behind the recruitment efforts saw their projects grow, and, thus, our database also grew. With this in mind, we’d like to offer a summer special again this year. Special Summer Prices NEW KITS Current Group Price SALE PRICE Y-DNA 12 $99 $59 Y-DNA 37 $149 $129 Y-DNA 67 $239 $199 Family Finder $289 $199 mtFullSequence (FMS) $299 $219 FF+ Y-DNA 37 $438 $328 FF + mtDNAPlus $438 $328 Comprehensive (FF + FMS + Y-DNA 67) $797 $617 SuperDNA $518 $428 UPGRADES     12 to 37 $109 $70 25 to 37 $59 $35 25 to 67 $159 $114 37 to 67 $109 $79 37 to 111 $220 $188 67 to 111 $129 $109 mtHVR1 to Mega $269 $209 mtHVR2 to Mega $239 $199 You are welcome to blog about this, or send an email to your distribution list, but when it’s over, it’s over. Orders must be in and paid for by 11:59PM on Sunday July 15th, to receive this offer. Order An Upgrade Order A New Kit

Best Regards, Bennett Greenspan President Family Tree DNA www.familytreedna.com "History Unearthed Daily"

Two discount codes for the FTDNA Family Finder test

The codes below will get a Family Finder autosomal DNA test at Family Tree DNA for $179 each.  That is a $110 discount from the regular price.  The Family Finder test can help you identify genetic cousins within the past five generations and beyond.

The codes must be used today, 10 June 2012 at http://www.familytreedna.com/landing/family-finder.aspx

Your coupon code is FF5CAD9E2684, we appreciate your past participation and invite you to share it with a friend or family member. 

Your coupon code is FF5C4470B2298, we appreciate your past participation and invite you to share it with a friend or family member. 

  Special Note: Coupon code has a firm expiration date of June 10th 2012 and is good for one use only. Offer only valid for credit card payments. Enter the coupon code during the checkout process to purchase at the promotional price.

FTDNA does not test known medical DNA locations.

Have you tested Family Finder at Family Tree DNA? Check your email!

FTDNA has provided a discount certificate to everyone who has already had the Family Finder test at FTDNA. Check your FTDNA email now to see if you have a certificate. You MUST USE it by the 10th of June to get the Family Finder test at a discount of $110 from the regular $289 price. You should have as many certificates as tests you have paid for.

Remember that this is an autosomal DNA test and can be used by both males and females to find your relatives from the past 5 generations.

This is a great opportunity to test more family members.

Identified matches at FTDNA, Family Finder, and at 23andme, Relative Finder

I have 330 matches in Family Finder at FTDNA and have identified 13 relationships.

I have 1440 matches at 23andMe and am Sharing Genomes with 402. I have identified 15 relationships with those 402.

The success ratio at both services is comparable at about 4%.

I also have matches at GEDMATCH, but I have not been successful in identifying the relationship with any one there who is not already identified in Family Finder or Relative Finder.

If you are in the 23andMe database, a new feature of Ancestry Finder allows you to compare all of your matches and their matches to see if there are clusters at common locations. See this post for details on a method to download all your AF matches and their matches and use a spreadsheet for triangulation of the results:
https://www.23andme.com/you/community/thread/13225/

Comparison of 23andme Relative Finder, Ancestry Finder and FTDNA Family Finder results

I'll repeat a post I made at 23andme on comparing success rates at both:

======================================

Colonial American ancestry: Jamestown, Boston, Cambridge, Hartford, New Haven Colony, New Amsterdam, New Sweden, New Jersey, Pennsylvania. Then spread out to North Carolina, South Carolina, both pre-Rev War; then Tennessee and Kentucky, post-Rev War.

• at 23andme I have 1050 RF matches and have confirmed 7 of those.
• at FTDNA I have 175 FF matches and have confirmed 10 of those.
• Two of my confirmed matches have tested both 23andme RF and FTDNA FF.
• I have 20 separate X Chromosome matches in RF and AF. That counts repeated people only once.
• I have no immediate matches at FTDNA. I have 54 close matches and 121 speculative matches. My closest confirmed matches are two 4th cousins.
• I have two known 1st cousins at 23andme and two unresponsive 2nd cousins. My closest confirmed match at 23andme is with a 3rd cousin once removed and her daughter.

=======================

If you haven't done any tests I recommend starting at 23andme and then, when FTDNA opens the program, transferring your results to FTDNA. That way you get genealogical matches from both companies, you get mtDNA haplogroup and if a male, Y DNA haplogroup, and X chromosome matches at 23andme plus health info.

At FTDNA you get genealogy matches and when they get it ready, X chromosome matches. You have to pay separately for the Y DNA haplotype and haplogroup and the same for mtDNA. So from a cost perspective it is lower cost to start at 23andme and transfer to FTDNA UNLESS you also want detailed Y DNA /mtDNA readings.

FTDNA Summer DNA tests Sale

You must already be a customer of FTDNA to get these UPGRADE prices!

Family Tree DNA

Dear Project Administrator,

Since last summer's upgrade sale was such huge success, we thought we'd repeat history! Project Administrators like you played a very important role in last year's success by broadcasting the sale to project members. As your project members upgrade, the resolution of results and comparisons we provide greatly improves. So, please spread the word and we'll make this year's upgrade sale even bigger!

From June 15, 2011 through June 22, 2011, we will reduce the following prices.

         Summer Upgrade Sale
Family Finder  Was $289  Now $199
Y-DNA 12 to 25  Was $49  Now $35
Y-DNA 12 to 37  Was $99  Now $69
Y-DNA 12 to 67  Was $189  Now $148
Y-DNA 25 to 37  Was $49  Now $35
Y-DNA 25 to 67  Was $148  Now $114
Y-DNA 37 to 67  Was $99  Now $79
mt to FMS  Was $269  Now $229
mtPlus to FMS  Was $239  Now $199

To order an upgrade at these special prices your members can log into their personal pages with their kit number and password. Click on the "Special Offers" link found on the left-hand navigation bar. ALL ORDERS MUST BE PLACED AND PAID FOR BY MIDNIGHT, JUNE 22, 2011, TO RECEIVE THE SALE PRICE.

Family Tree DNA
© 2011 Genealogy by Genetics.

Family Tree DNA 36 hour sale on DNA tests

From the FTDNA Facebook Page:
Coupon Code: DNADAY2011
Share · Public Event
http://www.familytreedna.com
Created By Family Tree DNA

DNA Day is April 15th! Starting at 12:00 PM on April 14th, join the celebration!

New customers:
Y-DNA12……. $59
Y-DNA37……. $129
...mtDNA………. $59
Family Finder… $199
Family Finder + Y-DNA12….. $258
Family Finder + mtDNA…….. $258
Family Finder + mtFullSequence + Y-DNA67 …. $657

Upgrades:
Y-DNA12 add-on ….. $59
Y-DNA12 to 37…….. $69
Y-DNA37 to 67…….. $79
Y-DNA12 to 67…….. $148
mtDNA add-on …….. $59
mtFull Sequence upgrade ….. $199

To take advantage of these promotional prices use the coupon code: DNADAY2011

The coupon code will expire on Friday at midnight (CST).

Please note, the Y-DNA67 to 111 upgrade will remain at the introductory rate of $101 (no coupon necessary) until the end of this promotion. The price will be $129 going forward.

Payment must be received at the time of the order. Valid only on products listed. No substitutions. This promotion was announced in advance, therefore no adjustments will be made on previous purchases. Offer valid from 12:00 PM CST on Thursday, April 14, until 11:59 PM CST on April 15, 2011.

This promotion is not valid in combination with any other promotions. Family Tree DNA reserves the right to cancel any order due to unauthorized or ineligible use of discounts and to modify or cancel these promotional discounts due to system error or unforeseen problems. Subject to change without notice.

Family Tree DNA's annual end-of-year promotion

From Family Tree DNA:

It's time once again for Family Tree DNA's annual end-of-year promotion.

Starting tonight, and until December 31st, we will 
reduce the price of our YDNA37, YDNA67, mtDNAPlus, and 
Family Finder tests.

Price for NEW KITS:  Regular Price  Promotional Price
         YDNA37  $149          $119
         YDNA67  $239          $199
      mtDNAPlus  $159          $129
  Family Finder  $289          $249

Price for UPGRADE:      
  Family Finder  $289          $229

Orders must be in and paid for by Dec. 31, 2010, to receive this offer.

IMPORTANT: since this promotion will run through the month of December, we encourage you to spread the word starting now, as the natural tendency is for people to order at the last minute, and we will not extend it beyond 12/31/2010.

© All Contents Copyright 2001-2010 Genealogy by Genetics, Ltd.

Results at 23andMe and at FTDNA

Today I have the following results:
23andMe:

• 497 matches
• 122 sharing genomes
• 18 Public profiles
• 338 contacts sent
• 128 accepted 22 declines

Closest relationship identified, 3rd cousin once removed, 4 matching segments
Closest waiting for reply, 2nd cousin with 12 matching segments
1 of 9 1st cousins is also on 23andMe, 41 matching segments (share 6 of 8 Great grandparents)

FTDNA:

• 64 matches
• 30 emails sent

Closest relationship identified, 4th cousin once removed.

My statistics at 23andMe and at FTDNA

I have tested my autosomal chromosomes at both 23andMe and FTDNA.

At 23andMe in Relative Finder I have 464 people with matching chromosome segments. My largest match is with my 1st cousin at 19.79% of our DNA. Most 1st cousins will be around 12.5% but we share 6 of 8 Great Grandparents so we have more matching DNA than most 1st cousins. The lowest amount of DNA I have with someone is .08% and that was the first person I was able to find a match with as 10th cousins once removed. 106 people are currently sharing genomes with me which allows us to see on which chromosome we have a match.

The majority of my matches are on one or another of chromosomes 1 through 22. However I have 9 people who have 10 shared segments with me on the X chromosome which, as a male, I inherited from my mother. By mapping the start and end locations of the shared segments I can see who may share a common X ancestry with me or with each other. In this case my 1st cousin shares 2 segments with me and 1 of those segments with me and two brothers. I partially share a segment with a mother and daughter and 3 other persons. And one of those persons shares half a segment with another person.

When males share an X segment it means they are related through their mothers' ancestry. When a male shares an X segment with a female they can be related on his mother's ancestry and on either her mother's or father's X ancestry.

Unless one or both of your parents also takes the 23andme test, it can be difficult to "phase" your results, in other words, to be able to assign a segment to your mother's or father's ancestry. Until this can be done, you can't know if two people who match you at the same location match your segment strand from either your mother or your father. This means that you can't say that it means they have the same ancestry to each other as they have to you. If your parent's are deceased, you may be able to phase your results by testing siblings of you or your parents.

I have definitely identified 6 relationships at 23andMe. Over 50,000 people have tested at 23andme in the past two years.

At FTDNA in Family Finder I have 53 matches. Because FTDNA didn't start Family Finder until recently, the number of matches is much smaller than at 23andMe. However, since Family Finder only tests for ancestry, it is believed that the people testing will be more knowledgeable about genealogy than those at 23andMe. So far I have also identified 6 connections at FTDNA, the same as at 23andMe but twice as many per number of sharing matches. At this time FTDNA does not show matches on the X chromosome but it has said it will do so in the future.

I have also had autosomal testing done with Sorenson Molecular Genealogy Foundation but they have not yet released their results. They have tested over 100,000 people and have pedigrees attached to most of those.

What DNA tests to take?

Recently a friend asked me, "What DNA tests should he or his brother take?"

Here is my reply.

• 1) Has he taken any DNA tests already?
• 2) Is he interested in health trends?
• 3) Is he only interested in finding ancestors on his Y DNA (father's) or mtDNA (mother's) lines?
• 4) Is he interested in finding ancestors on all of his lines? Can he or you fill out most of this form?:

http://www.misbach.org/pdfcharts/pedigree_chart.pdf

If he/you can fill that out he/you should take one or both of the autosomal tests (chromosomes 1-22 and the X chromosome), Relative Finder or Family Finder.

If I were starting out now and had a budget of $1000.00

• 1) I'd take the 37 marker Y DNA test at http://www.familytreedna.com/group-join.aspx?Group=gould for $149.00 and shipping.
• 2) Then I would get the Complete Edition autosomal test at https://www.23andme.com/store/ for $499.00. Doing this means he will get the Ancestry and Health Editions, will be compared in the Relative Finder autosomal database, his X chromosome matches will be found and he gets to download his test data. His Y DNA haplogroup will be confirmed and his mtDNA haplogroup will be determined.
• 3) That data can then be transferred to http://www.ftdna.com for comparison to their Family Finder autosomal database for $40.00.
• 4) If he then wants to get full access to Family Finder the upgrade cost will be $249.00. At this time Family Finder tests chromosomes 1-22 and give matches, and it tests the X chromosme but does not match it to others in their database. You do get to download all your test data and can have it analyzed by other programs. FTDNA removes the data from about 3000 disease informative SNPs.

Total cost, $949.00 plus shipping. The tests can be taken in stages if cost is a problem.

This why I recommended the 23andme test for $99.00. It was a fantastic deal and cut $400.00 off the total cost.

Because you are not twins, if you and your brother took the tests you would probably not match all the same people since each conception shuffles the chromosomes.

That chart above is important. The more people he knows there the greater is the chance to confirm relationships with the DNA testing.

He needs the Y DNA 37 marker test so he gets his Y DNA haplotype to match against others in the surname project and the FTDNA database so you can confirm the line you belong to.

I no longer recommend taking the mtDNA tests at FTDNA unless you are trying to determine if certain females are mother and daughter or maternal sisters or that a male and a female had the same mother.

I have taken all of these tests. They are best for confirming relationships from 1st through 5th cousins, although I have confirmed a 10th cousin once removed through 23andme.

DNA Day Special at 23andMe: $99.00

TODAY ONLY!

In honor of DNA day, 23andMe is selling the Complete Edition test for $99.00. This will give you their Ancestry and Health Editions with your genomic data files. Usually this costs $499.00.

If you are at all interested in either your genetic ancestry or your health data, I urge you to take advantage of this deal.

As a genetic genealogist I have tested with 23andMe to get access to the Relative Finder database of people who match my autosomal markers. With the downloaded files you will be able to transfer those to Family Tree DNA to get a preliminary reading from their Family Finder autosomal service. I have added a number of people to my genealogical data through these services.