The long-awaited MyHeritage Ethnicity Estimate v2.5 update has nearly doubled their reported ethnicities. Learn more about the Ethnicity Estimate v2.5 update and what that means for your DNA results.

MyHeritage is kicking 2025 off to a great start for your DNA research with their new ethnicity estimate release! After more than two years of extensive research from the MyHeritage Science Team, they’ve released an update to their Ethnicity Estimate. This update, which they’re calling Ethnicity Estimate v2.5, nearly doubles the number of percentage-based ethnicities that are identified by MyHeritage from 42 to 79.

Some of you may have seen their Ethnicity Estimate v2, which was initially released in June 2024 to only a small group of users. MyHeritage received feedback that prompted them to revise the new model, and v2 was not released to all users. After further testing and improved feedback from users, MyHeritage is now releasing their new algorithm, v2.5 to all MyHeritage users!

Before we dive more into the the new update, you should know that MyHeritage DNA ethnicity reports contain two parts: an Ethnicity Estimate, which is a percentage-based breakdown of your ethnic makeup, and Genetic Groups, which pinpoints regions–and even sometimes cities–where your ancestors came from among more than 2,000 geographic regions.

This new update only applies to the Ethnicity Estimate. Genetic Groups currently remain unchanged and will be updated in the future.

Ethnicity Estimate v2.5

The Ethnicity Estimate v2.5 uses a more advanced algorithm and now can identify 79 ethnicities (the previous model v0.95 could only recognize 42 ethnicities).

European origins are especially strengthened in this update, with 24 of the percentage-based ethnicities being European. A number of these new percentage-based ethnicities, such as Armenian, are currently only reported at MyHeritage.

Other reported ethnicities which were previously more vague now have more specific breakdowns. The Ethnicity Estimate v2.5 update now can distinguish between 15 different Jewish ethnicities, which is five times more than most other testing companies. Those with previously reported Scandinavian ethnicity will now be able to see the percentage of Swedish, Norwegian, or Danish ethnicity. Similarly, those who previously had North and Western European ethnicity results will now have a more detailed breakdown between French, Germanic, or Dutch ethnicity.

Here’s a list of the 79 ethnicities now reported at MyHeritage with the Ethnicity Estimate v2.5:

MyHeritage also reports that some ethnicities were lost in the new v2.5 update, including Maasai and Sierra Leonean, due to lack of data. They report that this is due to the fact that the new ethnicity model needs more training samples, which were not available in large quantities for those particular ethnicities. But these “lost” ethnicities may come back in a future update.

How can I view my Ethnicity Estimate v2.5 results?

Going forward, all new MyHeritage DNA kits* will use the Ethnicity Estimate v2.5 model. If you’ve previously taken a MyHeritage DNA test, or you’ve transferred your DNA to MyHeritage and paid the one-time $29 unlock fee or have a MyHeritage subscription, you’ll have the option to opt-in to the Ethnicity Estimate v2.5 at any time, free of charge. Existing customers will also be able to switch back and forth between their Ethnicity Estimate v0.95 and v2.5 results at any time.

To view your Ethnicity Estimate v2.5 results, you’ll need to be logged into your MyHeritage account. Select the DNA option at the top of the page, then click Ethnicity Estimate from the dropdown menu. A pop-up message will appear that invites you to view the new Ethnicity Estimate update.

If you opt in to the update, MyHeritage says that it will take about a day to receive your new results. You’ll receive an email when the results are ready. You can then toggle between your v2.5 and v0.95 ethnicity results. If you select “Maybe later,” you can access the v2.5 update at any time.

Still trying to figure out what your ethnicity results mean? Get started with our free guide to understand your ethnicity results!