Need to download your DNA match list? Here’s how to export your DNA matches from AncestryDNA, 23andMe, MyHeritage, Family Tree DNA and Living DNA.
Sometimes you need to download your DNA match list from your testing company website. I recommend this strategy for people who have endogamy on their family trees. Some people also export their DNA matches when they are organizing their DNA matches and want to make a master list of their matches from across multiple testing companies.
You can download your matches directly from 23andMe, MyHeritage and Family Tree DNA, and below we share workaround strategies for exporting your DNA matches from AncestryDNA and Living DNA.
Download your DNA matches from AncestryDNA
The following hack for exporting your AncestryDNA matches was shared by Greg Clarke of Ontario, Canada when he was a student in our DNA Skills Workshop. We’ve created this video tutorial with his permission
All the DNA match list formats should be the same now, but if you’ve got a different version, Greg says you can email him and he’ll try to help you out. (Thanks, Greg! That’s super nice!)
Download your DNA matches from 23andMe
Here’s how to export your 23andMe DNA match list:
Download your DNA matches from MyHeritage
And here’s how you can export your MyHeritage DNA match list:
Download your DNA matches from Family Tree DNA
Here’s how to export your FTDNA match list:
Download your DNA matches from Living DNA
The Living DNA website doesn’t offer an option for downloading your matches, either. Greg to the rescue again! Using the same idea as shown in the Ancestry video tutorial above, you can go to Greg’s Living DNA spreadsheet.
What to Do with All Your Matches?
Not sure how to take that next step of reaching out to your matches? We’ve got you covered! Get our free guide to Contacting your DNA Matches.
Love the idea of Greg Clarke’s spreadsheet for Ancestry match download.
OK so using Chrome, I downloaded a copy (no option to copy was offered).
Then tried to open the file. Nothing. Went into Properties and found a block (placed by Windows10?) so removed that by checking a tickbox.
Still nothing. The file will not open.
Summary – download appears OK, but does not open.
Any suggestions, please? (I have computer basics but am no whizz.)
Hi there Chris,
To take full advantage of the formulas inside the Ancestry match spreadsheet, you still have to be working inside the Google Spreadsheet app in your browser.
If you open up the Spreadsheet – click on the FILE menu, and then choose the MAKE A COPY option. That will make a copy just for you, that no one else can mess with. From there, you should be able to follow the rest of the directions. If you don’t already have a free Google account, you will be asked to create one.
Downloading the sheet and opening it up in another program won’t work in this case because the formulas in it that do the "magic" are specifically Google Spreadsheet formulas.
Hope this helps!
– Greg
🙂
Hi! I watched the video on YouTube, trying to follow the spreadsheet for Ancestry. When I pasted at A6, nothing went into columns G through R. My paste started at column S.
Aha! Yes – you are very correct, for now at least. As the spreadsheet evolves (through each iteration of the DNA Matches page), I have had to adjust the formulas to sort out the information properly.
With the more recent changes, that has involved adding extra columns for additional intermediate calculations – hence the shift from originally column G for the information you want to now column S! (Crazy, I know!). The good news, for you, is that with each revision, as Ancestry adds more info to their DNA Matches page, we can capture more in the table. So, for example, some of those new formula columns captured the “Which side?” data (maternal/paternal) if that info is filled out for a DNA match.
Hope that clears up the confusion.
– Greg
🙂
I’m having two issues using a Mac with the Chrome Browser:
After I create my personal file when I hit command A to select my Ancestry match list it is not copying the second column with all of the data. It’s only copying the other three columns.
When I try to paste that data into box A6 it is just copying the information straight down column A rather populating the other columns.
Hi there Mac with the Chrome Browser,
I’m not sure what you mean by “personal file”, but you might just be using different terminology for the same thing we’re talking about. The description of what you’re doing, and the results don’t seem to match, so I can understand your frustration here.
I would suggest we start fresh – and maybe a new window will help things work out properly.
(1) Start with a new window and make a copy of the most recent Ancestry DNA Match Table Maker – Google spreadsheet – just to be sure we’re starting fresh.
(2) In a new window, open up your Ancestry DNA Match list, and then do COMMAND + A. This should highlight all of the TEXT that’s on this page (it will NOT highlight or capture any of the images, so people’s profile pix and the grouping coloured dots – sadly – will not be copied). When I do this, I see that the Names / Relationships / Amt of cMs / %s / Tree info / Notes are all highlighted
-> THEN … while everything is still highlighted, do a COMMAND + C (to copy it all to your clipboard)
(3) go back to that newly created Google Spreadsheet, switch to the Raw Data tab, and single-click on the yellow cell A6, then do a COMMAND + V to paste all the info from your clipboard
(4) What you SHOULD see is the information formatted into a nice table, in columns T and beyond (the video might suggest a different column … I’ve updated it since I first created the spreadsheet, and added more columns – don’t let that distract you!)
If you DO NOT see that … then, it’s possible that there’s something else funky happening with your laptop / browser specifically – or – that Ancestry has changed its formatting (which I know it will…. eventually)
Let me know how you make out
– Greg
🙂
Which Browser is best to use with the data extraction? Foxfire does not work. And MS Edge gave me only the adjusted amount.
You may want to try Chrome.