Ancestry.com vs Archives.com:
Which Genealogy Site Is Better?

Ancestry.com

Archives.com

If you are about to put together your family tree online but aren't sure if you should go with Ancestry.com or Archives.com, be reassured that we are here to help. While both services are at the top of their game when it comes to family tree builders, and are owned by the same company (Ancestry recently bought Archives), they have some significant differences in key areas of genealogy. Let's look at how they compare in these key areas:

Price: Archives has Ancestry beat hands down in this category. Archives is only $39.95 a year for their services, while Ancestry is much higher at $119.40 a year. The only plus that Ancestry has in this category is that they offer a 14-day free trial, while Archives only offers 7 days, but that's not enough to make up for the huge price difference.

Resource database: This is where Ancestry has a huge leg up on Archives. No other genealogy site can compare to the 7 billion genealogical documents and records that Ancestry carries, even Archives 2.1 billion documents. This, of course, makes it much better at finding ancestors that other sites cannot. And isn't that really the point of a genealogy site?

Interface: This category is a pretty close race. Both sites offer a fun and intuitive interface that makes building your family tree exciting. But the edge goes to Ancestry, which makes going from one ancestor to another so seamless that it becomes addictive. Every time you click on a signature Ancestry leaf (which indicates more documents and records that the site has found for your ancestor), it opens a floodgate of information about your family.

When it comes to being dedicated to creating a family tree, Ancestry is hands down the better choice. Yes, they are expensive, but that's mainly because they have such a deep, comprehensive collection of documents and records. Of course, if you want to create your family tree but don't want to shell out all of that cash, Archives is still a solid choice. Check out our full reviews of each service, as well as the rest of the genealogy services we review on our genealogy compare page.

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