Free tool

Open a GEDCOM file and see the tree inside it

Drop in a .ged file exported from Ancestry, MyHeritage, FamilySearch, Gramps or Family Tree Studio, and browse everyone in it by generation. It's read entirely on this page: your file is never uploaded anywhere.

Drop a .ged file here, or tap to choose one
Works right in this tab. Nothing is uploaded or saved.

See how Family Tree Studio handles data when you do choose to sign in and sync a tree.

Want a blank chart to fill in by hand instead? Try the free family tree template.

What a GEDCOM file actually contains

GEDCOM (GEnealogical Data COMmunication) is a plain text format for moving a family tree between different programs and websites. It was introduced by FamilySearch, and it's the closest thing genealogy software has to a common language: Ancestry, MyHeritage, FamilySearch and Gramps can all export to it, and most other family tree tools, this one included, can read it back in.

What's inside

  • Individuals (the file's INDI records): names, and usually birth and death dates.
  • Families (FAM records): which two people are parents, and which people are their children.
  • Everything else the standard also supports, like sources, notes, places and photo references, which this quick viewer doesn't display.

Why it's a browser tool and not an upload

A family tree is personal information about people who never chose to be searchable. This page reads your file with your browser's own file APIs and never sends it anywhere, so there's nothing to store, lose or leak on our end. If you'd rather look up exactly what to call someone once you can see how they connect, the cousin calculator and the relationship chart cover that.

Once you've had a look, Family Tree Studio can import this same file for free (Settings, Import tree) and turn the people and relationships in it into an arranged, print-ready poster.

Questions

Good to know.

Does this upload my GEDCOM file anywhere?
No. The file is read entirely in your browser with standard JavaScript, and this page makes no network request with it. Close the tab and nothing you opened is kept anywhere, there's no server, no account and no tracking involved.
What is a GEDCOM file?
GEDCOM (GEnealogical Data COMmunication) is a plain text format for moving a family tree between different genealogy programs and websites. It was introduced by FamilySearch, and it's supported widely enough that most family history software, including Ancestry, MyHeritage and Gramps, can export to it and read it back in.
Which programs can export a .ged file for me to try here?
Ancestry, MyHeritage, FamilySearch and Gramps all have a GEDCOM export option, usually under account, tree or file settings. Family Tree Studio can export one too, from Settings inside the app.
Why don't I see photos, notes or sources?
This viewer is built to show the shape of a tree quickly: who's who, their birth and death dates, and how everyone connects across generations. Photos, notes, sources and the format's other fields aren't displayed here.
It says no people were found. What went wrong?
Double-check the file is a plain-text .ged file, not a .zip some sites bundle it in (unzip it first) or a PDF or photo export, which isn't GEDCOM at all. If you're not sure, open the file in a text editor first: a real GEDCOM file starts with a line reading "0 HEAD".
Does it handle a really large tree?
It's built for the trees most people actually have on hand, up to a few thousand people. Very large files may take a moment to lay out, or this quick viewer may not be the smoothest way to browse them.

You've seen what's in the file. Now make something of it.

Family Tree Studio imports the same GEDCOM file for free and turns it into a family tree you can arrange, add photos to, and print as a poster you'll be proud to hang.

DOWNLOAD ON THEApp Store