Looking for sales on DNA test kits for Father’s Day? Or maybe you’re just hoping to score the best deal for yourself? Either way, you’ve come to the right place. We’ve rounded up all of the offers to help you take advantage of the low prices and give Dad the gift of his genetic past.
If you’re not sure which DNA test to choose after reading this list, you might like to read our guide to the best tests or see a visual comparison of the different ancestry reports available here.
Additional genealogy-related gift ideas for Father’s Day can be found here.
The deals below are no longer valid but current deals can be found by visiting the listed links.
DNA Sales for Father’s Day 2018
The prices below are for U.S. customers only and expire on or around June 17th, 2018. Deals may exist in other countries so visit the pages below for details. We have partnered with all of these companies to bring you offers and news about their services. If you take advantage of any of these deals after following a link on our page will earn a fee to support our work.
Deals are listed in order of best price.
MyHeritage DNA – $59
MyHeritage and FTDNA are leading the way this year on the best prices for Father’s Day. MyHeritage offers one of the most robust systems for comparing your DNA against matches and for combining genealogy and DNA research. We have a whole walk-through on their platform here. They also have a very solid track record of privacy and a database size of 1.4 million testers. Sale ends 6/17/18.
Family Tree DNA (FTDNA) – $59
Family Tree DNA is the oldest testing company on this list. They don’t offer the genealogy-focused matching of MyHeritage or Ancestry, but they have the best built-in tools for exploring your DNA chromosome by chromosome and a good sized database of testers (about 1 million). FTDNA offers both autosomal tests (ethnicity and cousin matching) as well as advanced tests for Y-DNA (fatherline, men only) and mtDNA (motherline, everyone). They are offering their Family Finder test for $59 and sales on all of their Y-DNA tests – including their 37 marker option for $129.
23andMe – $69
23andMe has the second largest testing database on this list at about 5 million. Their Ancestry test provides autosomal results as well as basic mtDNA and Y-DNA results for one price. They do not, however, offer the advanced analysis tools of FTDNA or genealogy-related matching system of MyHeritage or Ancestry. Their Ancestry test is $69 right now and their Health + Ancestry is $139. Ends 6/17/18.
AncestryDNA – $69
AncestryDNA offers the largest DNA database on this list, matching you against 10 million+ users. They also offer very solid tools for better understanding your matches through genealogical research. Since many people have a research subscription with Ancestry.com they choose this test for convenience. Their kit is currently priced at $69. Sale ends 6/18/18.
Living DNA – $99
Living DNA has not announced an official Father’s Day deal as of yet, but their test is currently discounted from $159 down to $99. LivingDNA offers basic mother and fatherline results as well as an ethnicity report, but does not offer cousin matching. They claim to offer the most detail for those with UK ancestry – breaking that region up into smaller segments. That may set them apart for some.
So, which kit you choose for Dad?
If he’s never tested before than any of the first four tests on this list are a good choice. He’ll get an ethnicity report and a database of people to match against.
If he has tested before, make sure you find out which company he chose before so you don’t end up buying a repeat.
If he likes to geek out on the science of DNA, FTDNA is probably your best bet since they have the most advanced tools. However, any one of these tests can be used with GEDmatch – which offers many similar tools for free.
If Dad’s a family historian you may want to choose a tester that specializes in combining genealogy research with genetic research – and for that we would suggest Ancestry or MyHeritage. Does he have a subscription with one or the other? If so, choose that test. If not, a combo gift of a subscription and DNA test might be a good idea. Find out more about subscription options in our gift guide.
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