Place your order
MyHeritage offers a variety of DNA tests, ranging from $ 99 to $ 529. Some are combined maternal and paternal line tests, while others are strictly paternal or maternal strictly. Before making your choice, it is important to pay attention to these details, because some tests are available for men (because it tests the Y chromosome). We chose the Family Finder test mtDNAPlus + because it is a test that is available to both men and women. MtDNAPlus the test claims to trace your direct maternal line, while the Family Finder test included helps you find potential parents in your maternal and paternal lines up to six generations back. As for the test AncestryDNA, it matches your results to others in its database, which also took the mtDNA test and those of the Family Finder database. This test costs $ 228, and you will be prompted to register with MyHeritage when ordering. There is no option to select the frequency of shipping (standard or accelerated), but we received an email immediately telling us that our test would be shipped the next business day, and we were pleased to see it arrived within three days.
Receiving your DNA test kit and take your sample
The DNA test with MyHeritage is what you would normally think of DNA testing; it was a test cheek swab. Inside the package were two swabs of cheek, two tubes, directions, a form of optional release (signing this MyHeritage gives permission to share your email and name with possible matches), a collection bag and an envelope US Postal Service Prepaid. Your kit identification number is printed on the label on the tube, the collection bag and the release form, so you'll want to make sure that you check that the number is the same everywhere. There is no need to register your online ID, as the initial email you receive after purchasing MyHeritage test lists that number and a password.
The directions say it is better to take the test in the morning before brushing teeth or eating or drinking anything. We received our test noon, to be safe, we chose to wait about an hour after eating before taking the test. To complete the test, you will remove the swab cheek packaging (there is one for each side of the mouth) and gently scrape the inside of the cheek for 30 to 60 seconds. After this, we pushed up the stem to release the tip in the tube (which contains a stabilizing fluid) and sealed closed (as shown). We repeated the same process for the other cheek. The instructions indicate that it is normal to have some blood on the cheek swab, which was a bit off-putting, but this has not been the case in our experience.
Once we have completed the samples for both parties, we put the tubes in the collection bag and placed the bag and form of release in the prepaid envelope. The envelope has a printed tracking number on it so you can keep track of where it is once you post.
Turn your test and waiting on your results
Since you are pre-assigned an identification number from the start, there is no need to register your test online . Also, you can check the status of your package with the tracking number on the prepaid mailing envelope, or by logging into your account with your ID number. We were a little surprised that sending our test laboratory took longer than expected. It took almost a full month to reach the laboratory, according to the tracking number provided by the US Postal Service. We have not received an e-mail when the laboratory received our test but we saw when this happened simply by entering our MyHeritage account online. Note that the date on which the postal service has provided us with our tracking number and date of the laboratory gave us were a few days apart.
If you're curious about DNA testing, or if you wish to order one for yourself or a family member, visit our MyHeritage review for more information. And do not forget to check in on our blog genealogy in a few weeks for the results of this test! We also have another blog comparing the accuracy of AncestryDNA against MyHeritage, so stay tuned!