Before You Trust That Family Tree Hint, Read This

Before You Trust That Family Tree Hint, Read This

If you use sites like Ancestry, MyHeritage, or Findmypast, you’ve probably seen those little leaves, records, or bubbles pop up next to names in your tree. These are called family tree hints, automatic suggestions based on similar names, dates, and places across millions of user trees and historical records.

They’re tempting. They make it easy to click, attach, and move on. But here’s the truth:

Most family tree hints are wrong.

These hints are not verified. They’re not reviewed by genealogists. They’re generated by algorithms that don’t understand context, relationships, or unique family circumstances. And if you’re not careful, one bad hint can throw your entire tree off course.

The Problem with Family Tree Hints

These systems are designed to be helpful, but they’re also designed to keep you clicking. That often means matching a name to the most likely candidate, even if the record actually belongs to someone else entirely.

Common issues include:

• Matching your ancestor to someone with the same name but in a different region

• Suggesting a birth record that doesn’t match other known facts

• Linking to a user tree that has already copied a mistake

Once you accept a wrong hint, you risk building your tree around a false line, and worse, that error gets replicated into other public trees.

How to Use Hints Without Making a Mess

Family tree hints aren’t useless, but they should never be treated as fact. Use them as leads to investigate, not shortcuts to the truth.

Before accepting a hint:

• Verify all details against known records (censuses, wills, church books, etc.)

• Ask: Does this fit my ancestor’s timeline, location, and relationships?

• If you’re not sure, don’t add it yet. Save it to your research list instead.

Real genealogy isn’t about how many names you collect, it’s about how well you document the ones you already have.

Need Help Untangling Your Tree?

If your tree’s been built with hints, or if you’re not sure what’s real and what’s not, I can help. I specialize in cleaning up trees, verifying lines, and identifying true ancestral connections through evidence-based research.

Don’t let a false hint shape your family’s story. Let’s find out what’s real together. Send me a note by clicking here to start your genealogical journey!