Finding out your ancestry and genealogical background can be a very intimate and fun process. With the advances in modern science, just spitting into a tube and sending it in the mail can get people information on themselves they may have never known before. It also makes for a great gift to give friends and family this holiday season. Of all the DNA testing kits on the market, Ancestry DNA and 23andMe are by far the most popular. There have been many revelations from DNA test users, depending on which test they used. So, what are the differences between the two?
Price Point
The nature of DNA testing does cause at-home testing kits to be a little bit pricey. Ancestry DNA’s testing kit retails for 99$ on their website. 23andMe’s at home testing kit also retails for $99. However, 23andMe offers 2 types of DNA testing kits. Their first one is the basic “Ancestry Service” DNA test that is often what people will purchase. Their most recent product is a “Health & Ancestry Service” that retails for $199.
Results
The biggest deciding factor of which test is right for you probably comes down to the information each test gives you. Let’s start with 23andMe.
23andMe’s “Ancestry Service” testing kid is by far the most popularly used of the two products the company sells. This service provides users with regional background information from the 31 regions in its database, their percentage of neanderthal DNA, and haplogroups (alleles inherited from a common ancestor in a geographical region). This is what some results of 23andMe test look like:
23andMe’s “Health & Ancestry Service” provides the same services as their generic “Ancestry Service” with an added feature of health. This feature relays information about one’s traits, carrier status, wellness, and what genes could be passed on to future offspring. These results look something like this:
Ancestry DNA’s testing is a little bit different than 23andMe’s. Ancestry’s goal from DNA testing is to give users more genealogical than geographical results. Their regional information is less specific than 23andMe but they have a higher ability to track family lineage and finding long lost relatives. Ancestry gives you “matches” of people with your DNA and gives you “DNA Circles” which gives matches of the most DNA similar people to you who are also registered on Ancestry DNA. A person’s results from an Ancestry DNA test would look something like this:
Which is for you?
The at home DNA testing kit options on today’s market are all great choices, but the one you choose should depend on the information you are looking for. Looking for specific regional or geographic locations of your ancestry?– Great! Pick up the 23andMe Ancestry test! Looking to dig into your family’s genealogy and lineage?– Ancestry DNA’s test is great for that. Want to know health information about yourself?– 23andMe’s “Health & Ancestry” kit will do the trick.
No matter which kit you choose from, there is no doubt you will learn something new and interesting about yourself and family.
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