Choosing a DNA Test
Start with your family question.
Choosing a DNA Test
The right test. The right person. A new clue.
For tracing Guthrie father-to-son lines, Y-DNA is our first choice. Autosomal DNA helps explore cousin connections across your family tree. Begin with your question and a budget that works for you.
What would you like to discover?
Open the statement that fits your goal, then follow the link.
I want to connect our Guthrie male line to other Guthrie families.
Start with Y-DNA. It follows one line: father, his father, his father, and so on. You may be the right person to test, or you may need a male relative from that line.
Explore Y-DNA →I want to find Guthrie cousins across my family tree.
Explore autosomal DNA. Anyone can take this test. It is useful for researching Guthrie ancestry through either parent, including lines that pass through women.
Explore autosomal DNA →I already have DNA results. What comes next?
Begin with what you have. Your next step depends on which test you took and the family question you hope to answer.
Find my next step →Our priority for Guthrie surname research
Y-DNA: follow the father-to-son line.
Combined with family records, Y-DNA helps us investigate connections to Guthrie Family Groups and explore new paternal lines. For the project, choose a Y-DNA test at FamilyTreeDNA.
A practical starting point
Y-37
A lower-cost introduction to Y-DNA matching. A useful choice when you want to begin exploring your paternal line and keep the initial expense down.
More detail from the start
Y-111
Compares more points on the Y chromosome, helping refine paternal matches. Consider this starting option if your budget comfortably allows.
Where does Big Y fit?
Big Y-700 helps us explore branches within a paternal family. Its deeper detail is important to the project’s continuing research.
It is a much larger investment, so it is usually a later conversation for a first-time tester. You do not need Big Y to begin. Ann can help you consider whether it would add useful information for your line.
Y-37 and Y-111 can be upgraded later. You can move directly from Y-37 to Big Y; buying Y-111 first is optional. Upgrades have an additional cost.
Learn more about Big Y →Who should take the Y-DNA test?
Choose a man whose biological line runs from the Guthrie ancestor through fathers and sons in every generation. The line of descent matters more than his current surname.
My father’s father-to-son line is Guthrie.
If you inherited a Y chromosome from your father, you can represent this line. A woman researching this line could ask her father, a brother with the same biological father, or her father’s brother to test.
My Guthrie line passes through a woman.
Look for a male relative on her father’s father-to-son line. For example, a Guthrie grandmother’s brother, or a man descended from her father entirely through sons, could represent that line.
Your own autosomal test can also help you explore this ancestry.
Unsure which relative to ask? Send Ann the line of descent before ordering. We can look at who would best represent the family.
Ask Ann about a potential tester →Cousin connections from both sides
Autosomal DNA: explore your family branches.
This test looks at DNA inherited from both parents. Matches can help you investigate shared ancestors, especially in more recent generations. Your family tree and records help make sense of those clues.
AncestryDNA
A useful starting place for finding cousins and comparing family trees in a large matching network.
Some records and DNA tools require a separate subscription.
Explore AncestryDNA →Family Finder
FamilyTreeDNA’s autosomal test. A straightforward choice if you want to test directly there and participate in the Guthrie project at FTDNA.
Family Finder and Y-DNA are separate tests.
Explore Family Finder →Bring your discoveries. Gather relevant Guthrie matches and their family lines, including any known Guthrie Family Group or Ungrouped Family status. Ann is happy to help with questions as you work through your findings.
Shared matches and tree hints suggest paths to investigate. Check them against records before adding a relationship to your tree.
Already tested? Start here.
I have AncestryDNA, MyHeritage or 23andMe results.
Keep exploring those matches. Some results can also be transferred to FamilyTreeDNA, depending on the test version.
Check compatibility before planning a transfer. Newer AncestryDNA and MyHeritage test formats may not be accepted. Buying an AncestryDNA test does not automatically provide a route into FTDNA.
A transfer adds autosomal results; it does not replace a Y-DNA test.
Check FamilyTreeDNA’s current transfer guide →I have Family Finder or transferred autosomal results at FTDNA.
You can explore joining the Guthrie project with your existing kit. If you are also the right person to represent a Guthrie father-to-son line, you can add a Y-DNA test. FTDNA will let you know if a new sample is needed.
See how to join the project →I already have Y-DNA results.
Share your testing level, kit number and Guthrie lineage with Ann privately. Your existing results may already help our research. Together, we can consider whether more testing would address a particular question.
Discuss my next step →