AncestryDNA vs. 23andMe: Which Test Is Best?

As part of our mission to achieve a new level of self-understanding, I had my DNA tested.  I sought to better understand my origins and the origins of my ancestors.

This exercise also proved to be a great opportunity for evaluating two of the most popular tests currently on the market:  AncestryDNA vs. 23andMe.

Check out the video on YouTube:

In an effort to be transparent, just thought that I’d share these initial results (drumroll):

Testing results for yours truly…

So, you see that I’m a relative melting pot of ethnicities…my ancestors were descended from Africa, Europe and Asia (in that order by genetic proportionality).

The AncestryDNA results show me being two percent “more African” than the 23andMe results (61% versus 59%, respectively).

My only regret is that I always thought that I was part “Cherokee.”  I thought that I had a larger “Native-American Indian” component based on stories passed down by my family (this is apparently a common theme among many people of color who take these tests).  Both sets of results show negligible “Native-American Indian” percentages.

Also, I grew up thinking that any caucasian component would be more “Irish than British,” but these results seem to prove the reverse:  I’m actually more “British than Irish.”  Guess that explains my preference for gin over Guinness beer.

However, AncestryDNA does show that I have a fractional percentage of Pacific Islander–Polynesian–AND I’ll take that 0.05%! That fact gives me a greater claim to being more Hawaiian than President Obama. I hereby claim the beaches of Oahu and Maui as my ancestral home!

There’s plenty more to say (and that will be said) about these results and the corresponding databases of DNA relatives that both provides.  There are many reasons why someone should take these ancestry tests…there are also reasons why you may wish to avoid these tests too.

So what’s my verdict: AncestryDNA vs. 23andMe?  The answer will be in the video. 

In the meantime, feel free to discuss:

• Have you taken the test?
• Do you have any concerns about taking the test?
• Do you have issues with not being purely descended from a single area of the world?
• Would you be angry to learn that you’re not 100% of Mother Africa?  Not 100% Wakandan?
• Which test offers the “best bang” for the bucks?

From time to time, we’ll expand on ideas raised here to create separate conversation threads and videos.  We may even reach out to you for an interview–Be ready!

AncestryDNA Standard Kit
https://amzn.to/2MEsnkc

23andMe Standard Kit
https://amzn.to/2tL1R1c

23andMe Plus Kit
(Includes Health Factors and 75+ Online Reports)
https://amzn.to/2tNTxOh