Welcome to DU! The truly grassroots left-of-center political community where regular people, not algorithms, drive the discussions and set the standards. Join the community: Create a free account Support DU (and get rid of ads!): Become a Star Member Latest Breaking News Editorials & Other Articles General Discussion The DU Lounge All Forums Issue Forums Culture Forums Alliance Forums Region Forums Support Forums Help & Search

bif

(26,325 posts)
Sun Oct 12, 2025, 01:00 PM Yesterday

Has anyone done more than one DNA test?

How did they compare? I've done the 23 & Me test and am considering doing the Ancestry.com one to see if there's any difference.

Thoughts?

10 replies = new reply since forum marked as read
Highlight: NoneDon't highlight anything 5 newestHighlight 5 most recent replies
Has anyone done more than one DNA test? (Original Post) bif Yesterday OP
Never giving my dna to anyone. MiHale Yesterday #1
But if your relatives have, it won't make much difference. chia Yesterday #3
I did one some years back. PoindexterOglethorpe Yesterday #2
I have done quite a few. Irish_Dem Yesterday #4
I've done Ancestry, but it was quite a few years ago. ShazzieB Yesterday #6
You might want to go back and check your Ancestry DNA profile again. Irish_Dem 23 hrs ago #8
Thanks! ShazzieB 21 hrs ago #9
A paper trail is one thing. DNA is another thing altogether. Irish_Dem 20 hrs ago #10
Got one DNA courtesy of the Navy BOSSHOG Yesterday #5
We've done both WmChris Yesterday #7

MiHale

(12,223 posts)
1. Never giving my dna to anyone.
Sun Oct 12, 2025, 01:04 PM
Yesterday

But the again I know my genealogy…50% Lithuanian, 50% Polish.

chia

(2,672 posts)
3. But if your relatives have, it won't make much difference.
Sun Oct 12, 2025, 01:32 PM
Yesterday
https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/you-could-be-identified-through-genealogy-databaseeven-if-your-dna-hasnt-been-tested-180970532/

The article is from 2018, and it says:

By making connections between relatives, a good sleuth could construct a family tree and then conduct more targeted research that might lead to someone who had never submitted his or her DNA for testing, as was the case with the Golden State Killer.

“Think of your family like layers of an onion,” Erlich tells Paul Raeburn of Scientific American, with each layer from the center of the onion representing increasingly distant relatives. “When you go to very distant relatives, chances of a link are much higher.”

The researchers estimate that within two or three years, as more and more people submit their genetic data to genealogical databases, 90 percent of people who hail from European ancestry will be traceable in this way, reports the New York Times’ Heather Murphy.

PoindexterOglethorpe

(28,143 posts)
2. I did one some years back.
Sun Oct 12, 2025, 01:05 PM
Yesterday

Since all four of my grandparents came from Ireland, I doubt another test would show anything new or different.

Irish_Dem

(76,127 posts)
4. I have done quite a few.
Sun Oct 12, 2025, 01:37 PM
Yesterday

Ancestry, 23me, FTDNA.

Ancestry now has the largest DNA data base in the world so you
will get more matches and more exact percentages of ethnicities.

If you are looking for NA DNA, 23me used to be the best for picking that up.

They will be running Christmas sales soon so you can get a kit for a
good price.

Ancestry does autosomal DNA testing.
If you want YDNA you have to go to FTDNA.
I am not sure if 23me is still doing YDNA.
But FTDNA is the best for YDNA.
Ancestry for autosomal.

ShazzieB

(21,753 posts)
6. I've done Ancestry, but it was quite a few years ago.
Sun Oct 12, 2025, 02:43 PM
Yesterday

I found the results a little less specific than what I was hoping for. It said most of my ancestry is from the British Isles, which was pretty much what I expected, with some from "northern Europe," which seemed rather vague to me. It did not show any native American ancestry, which surprised me, because a cousin of mine who did some genealogical research told me there is native ancestry in our family tree. (He supposedly confirmed this, but he's deceased now, so I can't ask him about it. )

I've thought about getting my DNA done again somewhere else, but wasn't sure which, if any, company would be likely to tell me anything I don't already know. Any thoughts?

Irish_Dem

(76,127 posts)
8. You might want to go back and check your Ancestry DNA profile again.
Sun Oct 12, 2025, 03:23 PM
23 hrs ago

They have updated a great deal in the last 5 years.
They have the largest DNA data base and have upgraded their research
techniques significantly.

So you are most likely to get much more accurate results.
They might be able to delineate the Northern Europe much better than years ago.

23Me used to be the best for picking up NA DNA.
But they have really fallen in reputation due to management problems.
If you can get a good sale you might want to try it.

The problem with the NA DNA is that the NA population does not want to DNA test
so we cannot get any norm groups. The DNA will show up as Asian DNA.
Or indigenous population.

Also it appears that NA DNA washes out quickly from the DNA pool of
a family line for some reason. And also sometimes the family folklore does
not match reality.

I would look first at Ancestry to see how much they have updated your profile.

You can PM me with questions if you want.
I have been doing genealogy and DNA work for decades now.

ShazzieB

(21,753 posts)
9. Thanks!
Sun Oct 12, 2025, 06:10 PM
21 hrs ago

I'll check my DNA profile on Ancestry and see what I can find out.

I always suspected the native American ancestor story might be a myth until my cousin told me he'd confirmed it. He was not the type to make up something like that.

He also discovered a great (maybe 2 greats) grandfather who immigrated from Germany sometime in the 19th century, settled in Georgia, and ended up getting drafted into the Confederate Army. (He was a dentist, so not on the front lines, and he survived the war unscathed.) Because of him, my daughter and I could technically qualify for membership in the United Daughters of the Confederacy, a fact that we find both horrifying and hilariously ironic.

Irish_Dem

(76,127 posts)
10. A paper trail is one thing. DNA is another thing altogether.
Sun Oct 12, 2025, 06:30 PM
20 hrs ago

You can have a rock solid paper trail of birth certificates, baptisms, marriage, death certificates and all kinds of legal documents. So you have a confirmed family tree
and all professionals would agree.

However that means nothing once you take a look at the DNA.
The DNA tells you the truth. Not the paper trail.

The only legitimate way to confirm your family tree is YOUR DNA.
Not your cousin's DNA or even a sibling or parent.
Your DNA is the only confirmation of parentage and family tree.

I do adoption searches and it is amazing how many people's DNA does not
match the paper trail. There are always some surprises.

That is funny yes. You could be a daughter of the confederacy.
Amazing the things we find out in genealogy.

BOSSHOG

(43,815 posts)
5. Got one DNA courtesy of the Navy
Sun Oct 12, 2025, 02:38 PM
Yesterday

In case my remains had to be identified in Saudi Arabia back in the day.

WmChris

(420 posts)
7. We've done both
Sun Oct 12, 2025, 03:03 PM
Yesterday

Results are similar but small differences do show up. 23 and me offers some non specific health info. They correctly identified a a genetic identifier that concluded when I sneeze they come in groups of 3 and they actually do.

Latest Discussions»Culture Forums»Ancestry/Genealogy»Has anyone done more than...