The Internet is a great way to connect with family, and the perfect medium for collaborating on your shared family history. Putting your family tree on the Web allows other relatives to view your information and add their own. It is also a great way to exchange family photos, recipes and stories.
These sites include the tools you need to put your family tree online, along with photos and pedigree charts. Some offer additional features such as chat, message boards and password protection.
1. Ancestry Member Trees
Free, but no records access without subscriptionWhile access to most records at Ancestry.com requires a subscription, Ancestry Member Trees is a free service - and one of the largest and fastest growing collections of family trees on the Web. Trees can be made public or kept private from other Ancestry subscribers, and you can also give family members free access to your trees without the need for an Ancestry subscription. While you don't need a subscription to create a tree, upload photos, etc., you will need one if you want to search, use and attach records from Ancestry.com to your online trees.
2. FamilyLink.com & We're Related on Facebook
FreeFacebook users have a great family tree option from FamilyLink.com which offers one of Facebook's most popular free applications - We're Related - which helps individuals stay in touch with their families through photo sharing, a news feed, birthday reminders, and an online family tree function. For a more robust online family tree, FamilyLink.com also offers the free WebTree.com service.
3. MyFamily.com
Free (limited)The free basic level gives you a standard family history site with 100MB of space per member. Beyond that, a modest annual subscription fee gives you up to 1GB per member in monthly uploads. The extras at MyFamily.com make the fee more than reasonable. A standard site includes email acccounts for unlimited family members, space for sharing photos and family history files, and no popup ads. The sites are safe and password protected, and also feature a private message board and chatroom, a family calendar, address book, and even space for video and voice clips!
4. Geni.com
Free for basic versionThis social networking site's primary focus is connecting family, allowing you to easily create a family tree and invite other family members to join you. Each individual in the tree has a profile; family members can work together to build profiles for common ancestors. Other features include a Family Calender, an editable Family Timeline and a Family News feature which highlights new additions and upcoming events from sites within a user's Family Group. All of the basic functions are completely free, although they do offer a pro version with extra tools.
5. MyHeritage.com
Free (limited)A host of free genealogy tools enable you to lets you create your family's own meeting place on the Internet where you can share family photos, post your family tree online, trace the family's medical history and keep track of important family events. Plus, free genealogy software and a genealogy search engine to help you expand your family history research. The basic level (limited to 1000 people and 250MB of storage) is free, but you'll have to put up with advertisements. Three subscription levels offer great storage and no ads.
6. WeRelate
FreeThis free, public service genealogy Wiki (Wikipedia is type of Wiki) allows you to create a profile to tell others about your research interests, to receive and respond to emails from other users without publishing your email address, to create online family trees and personal research pages, and to collaborate with other users. The service is completely free, thanks to the Foundation for Online Genealogy, Inc. and the Allen County Public Library, and very easy to use. But if you're looking for a private family Web site option, WeRelate isn't the place for you.
7. GeneTree
FreeIf you and your family members have had your DNA tested, then GeneTree might be a good fit for you. This social networking site allows you to create and maintain an online family tree with their Flash-based Family Tree Builder, as well as upload and share photos and videos. The site's unique feature, however, is exclusive rights to the DNA database owned by the Sorenson Molecular Genealogy Foundation, which provides results on any . They offer DNA testing, or allow you to enter your DNA profile from another DNA testing lab (mtDNA only, they don't yet allow you to enter Y-DNA markers from another testing company).
8. FreePages at RootsWeb
FreeFree unlimited Web space for family history sites is the premise behind Freepages at RootsWeb. The site options are basic and not password protected, but they are entirely free. You can FTP your own HTML files (great for family trees created by your family history software) or use the online editor. Ancestry.com, which owns and operates RootsWeb, will display banner ads on your Web site.
9. Tribal Pages
FreeTribal Pages provides 10 MB of free Web space just for family history sites. Your genealogy data is stored securely, and you can set an optional password for viewing your site. Each free family history site allows you to upload a GEDCOM file and photos and comes with ancestor and descendant charts, ahnentafel reports, an events page, photo album and a relationship tool. You can include your family names in their database so your Web site can be found by other researchers, or keep it private.
10. Famiva
FreeThe collaborative family tree feature on the free Famiva social networking site makes it easy for you and your family members to build a family tree together, complete with profiles and photos. You can also upload, organize and share family photos; share family news, events, stories and recipes; and create family maps. The interface is simple, but the service is free with unlimited storage.
