Why You Should Avoid Uploading GEDCOM Files Directly to FamilySearch Family Tree

FamilySearch is an invaluable free resource for genealogists, offering a collaborative platform where millions contribute to a single, shared family tree. However, when it comes to uploading your family tree (using GEDCOM files, a tool once revolutionary for sharing genealogical data), the landscape has changed.

The Evolution and Limitations of GEDCOM Files

If you have your family tree on your computer, it’s probably in a genealogy program. If you want to share your family tree with someone else and not give them your computer, you typically create a GEDCOM file, much like you would create a .doc or .xls file for sharing text documents or spreadsheets.

GEDCOM (Genealogical Data Communication) files were developed in the 1980s as a standard format to transfer genealogical data between different software programs. While GEDCOMs made it possible to share family history research across platforms, they were never designed to be a permanent storage solution. Modern genealogy software, like RootsMagic, Family Tree Maker, and others, uses its own data structures and only relies on GEDCOM as a bridge to transfer family trees between you and your relatives.

However, GEDCOM files have significant limitations:

• Data Loss: Not all information, especially sources, notes, and multimedia, is transferred cleanly between programs. Especially when one platform tracks facts and details that another doesn’t.

• Interpretation Differences: Each program may read and write GEDCOM files differently, leading to discrepancies.

• Static Snapshots: GEDCOMs are not dynamic. Any updates in your research require a new export and upload.

FamilySearch Family Tree: A Shared, Not Private, Tree

FamilySearch Family Tree is a collaborative, wiki-style tree. Instead of building individual, isolated trees, users contribute to a single, global tree. This approach helps reduce duplication and encourages collaboration, but it also means that adding your family tree via a  GEDCOM file upload can have far-reaching consequences.

Don’t Upload a GEDCOM file to FamilySearch Family Tree

Uploading a GEDCOM directly to the FamilySearch Family Tree was, and still should be, strongly discouraged. However there is a way to upload your GEDCOM file and compare your data with what is in the FamilySearch Family tree and then add new details when necessary. 

Here’s why you should avoid this process:

• Redundancy: Chances are, your ancestors are already represented in the Family Tree. Uploading your GEDCOM may simply repeat information that is already there, adding little value and causing much confusion. Even though FamilySearch may indicate that a tree already exists and identifies who might be new, the comparison tool has limitations that a genealogy software program does not have.

• Data Integrity: The GEDCOM format can strip out sources, and notes, leading to incomplete or inaccurate profiles in the shared tree. If you use a genealogy software program that writes to FamilySearch Family Tree, you can retain and share many of these details.. 

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A Better Way: Use Genealogy Software Like RootsMagic

Instead of uploading a GEDCOM, use FamilySearch-certified genealogy software such as RootsMagic or Legacy Family Tree. These programs allow you to:

• Advanced Find Match Tool: Using genealogy software, you can refine your match search to determine if an ancestor is already in the FamilySearch family tree before you add a new profile that eventually becomes a duplicate. Thus, ensuring the tree stays pruned and does not become a tangled mess. 

• Compare: Match your data with FamilySearch Family Tree, review differences, and selectively update or add information. You’ll be asked to explain why you’re changing the tree (which is part of the FamilySearch ecosystem), so be sure to explain why you are making updates.

• Work Efficiently: Utilize advanced tools for merging, source management, and reporting that are not available in GEDCOM uploads.

• Ease of Future Updates: By using a genealogy program to update FamilySearch, you don’t have to create a GEDCOM file each time you want to align your program with FamilySearch. Instead, you open the tree share feature and select the updates to make.

Final Thoughts

Uploading GEDCOM files directly to the FamilySearch Family Tree is an option, but it’s not recommended. Even with comparison tools in place, it creates duplicates and risks data loss, which undermines the collaborative spirit of the platform. Instead:

• Use certified genealogy software like RootsMagic to manage, compare, and sync your data with FamilySearch Family Tree in a controlled way.

• If you wish to preserve your GEDCOM for posterity or share it without affecting the tree, upload it to the "Genealogies" section (Pedigree Resource File) instead.

By working together and connecting to existing profiles, we can all help make the FamilySearch Family Tree a richer, more accurate resource for generations to come.

From the earliest days, we've discouraged you from uploading GEDCOM files to FamilySearch

Keep Learning Tips Related to FamilySearch:

• 5 Step Method for Using FamilySearch to Do Genealogy Research 

• Why You Shouldn't Add "Unknown" Profiles to FamilySearch  

• How to Remove a Child From the Wrong Set of Parents on the FamilySearch Family Tree 

• Are You Adding Fun Details to FamilySearch's Shared Family Tree?

• How to Transfer Your Family Tree Between Ancestry and FamilySearch

• 5 Reasons I Love RootsMagic Genealogy Software