Your public profile is where other Ancestry® members can learn about you. You can list your research interests, searchable family trees, and other details to help them find you in the Member Directory, and decide whether to connect. It also displays your "Joined" and "Last active" dates and can include a “Willing to Help” badge, showing you're open to helping others and how you're willing to collaborate. 

Viewing your profile

Go to your profile

Or,

In the top-right corner of any Ancestry page, click your profile icon and select Your Profile.

Seeing how your profile looks to other people

1. At the top of your profile page, click Personal Profile and select Public profile to see what other people see when they look at your profile.
2. To switch it back to your personal view, click Public Profile and select Personal profile.

Editing your profile

Some profile details, such as your "Joined" and "Last active" dates, are automatically added and cannot be edited. These dates show other members when you joined Ancestry and your most recent activity.

You can, however, update other parts of your profile, including:

Adding, changing, or deleting your profile photo

If you've taken an AncestryDNA test, updating your photo in your profile will also update the photo on your DNA test.

1. On your profile page, click the camera icon on the left side above your name. If you don't see a camera, click Public profile in the top-left corner of the page and select Personal Profile, then try again.
2. To delete your photo, click the trash can icon > Remove photo. If you're changing your photo, click Change photo > select the photo on your computer > Save or Open. To upload a new photo, click Add > select the photo on your computer > Save or Open.
3. If you need to rotate the photo, click the rotate icon .
4. Click Save.

Adding information about you

Only add information that you want other members of Ancestry to see.

1. On your profile page, click Edit. If you don't see the Edit button, click Public profile in the top-left corner and select Personal profile, then try again.
2. Add or change these details:
   • Display Name Preference: Display either your real name or your Ancestry username. 
   • Age Group: Select your own age group.
   • Location: Besides listing your location on your profile, entering a location will also update your pinned location on a map for your DNA matches, if you’ve taken an AncestryDNA test and chosen to be listed as a match.
   • Languages: Add languages you speak.
   • About You: Enter anything you want others on Ancestry to know about you (like your adoption status or interest in connecting with other researchers, for example).
3. Click Done.

Adding research interests

Sharing your research interests shows other Ancestry members what you’re working on and helps people with similar interests find you in the Member Directory.

1. On the left side of your profile page, next to Research Interests, click add.
2. Click Add a new interest.
3. Enter information and click Save.

Profile settings: choosing what people can see

To control what people can see on your public profile, from your Profile page, click Settings on the left side of the page.

Ancestral region information

If you’ve taken an AncestryDNA test, you control how much of your ancestral region information appears on your profile. See AncestryDNA® Privacy to learn about DNA privacy.

If you've chosen to see and be seen by your DNA matches, your DNA matches will be able to see their relationships to you from your profile page. Your new DNA matches are never displayed on your public profile.

Go to profile settings
 

1. Under DNA summary, click Ancestral regions.
2. Choose who can see your ancestral regions on your public profile: Everyone or Matches.
   • Everyone: If you share your ancestral regions with everyone, anyone who views your profile will be able see the regions in your results.
   • Matches: If you share your ancestral regions only with your matches, your matches are the only people who will see your regions when they view your profile. (If you don’t have Matches as an option, it's because you’ve chosen not to be listed as a match.)

Trees and photos in trees

If you've made any of your family trees public or searchable, you can choose whether people see those trees listed on your public profile or not. (To change whether your trees are public or private, see Family Tree Privacy.)

Even if your trees are public and you choose to let people see your photos, only photos attached to people who are deceased will be visible to others. Photos attached to living people will not be displayed.

Go to profile settings
 

1. Go to the Family History section.
2. Next to Family Trees or Photos, click Everyone or Only you and select the option you'd like.
   • Everyone allows anyone who views your profile to see your public and searchable trees. If you have a searchable tree, people will still need to ask your permission for full access to that tree.
   • Only you prevents your public and searchable trees from being listed on your profile.