Getting the Most Value From Genealogy Subscriptions

Note: I do not receive any compensation (affiliate or otherwise) from any of these sites. This post is simply my observations on the value of various genealogy subscriptions and ways to save money accessing subscription resources.

Subscriptions come and subscriptions go. For several years, I maintained a lot of genealogy subscriptions. Truth be told, I still have more than I need. But I get really excited when one of the sites I subscribe to rolls in a new membership benefit providing access to another site I'd otherwise have to pay to access. Each site below offers many on-site features, but this post focuses on the additional website access provided with each subscription. Prices shown are regular price. Many sites have sales throughout the year to help make subscriptions more affordable. (All prices are shown in US dollars).

Let's start with the big sites:

Most everyone knows, Ancestry.com offers several membership levels. Personally, I stick with the All Access Family Plan ($269.00 every 6 months). Not only have I been able to share the subscription with 4 others (encouraging new family historians) but I also get full access to Fold3 military records and Newspapers.com including Publishers Extra. You can find out more about the All Access Family Plan here. The value of having Fold3 and Newspapers works out to about $30 every 6 months (based on the current pricing I've found). The biggest value in this plan is the ability to share it with 4 others (and they don't need to be related to you). You can ask the others to contribute to the cost if you need to bring your price down, but this is something you coordinate yourself. You cannot split the price between members directly on the Ancestry site. 

At MyHeritage, the Omni Plan comes with access to OldNews (newspaper archive). The cost is currently $399 per year. Additionally, you receive access to GeniPro and Legacy Family Tree Webinars. On the MyHeritage site, you'll also have access to some outstanding photo and AI features at your disposal. More information on all the benefits of the Omni Plan can be found here. If you subscribed separately to all the features it would cost over $600 per year!

FindMyPast offers an Everything subscription. This includes not only all their record collections, but all the newspapers you'd have access to with a British Newspaper Archive subscription (a value of $133 per year). They also offer a 15% discount on continued subscriptions (no playing games, cancelling and resubscribing necessary). The current price is $299 per year. The 15% discount works out to about $45 per year off the annual price (so $254 as of this post). For more information on their subscriptions please click here.

And now for a few of the lesser known sites offering a good value:

A few years ago, the National Genealogical Society (NGS) added access to Newspaperarchive.com and Storied. My $85 membership to NGS (already providing many nice benefits and access to their Family Papers Collection) was expanded to save me $95 on a separate NewspaperArchive and Storied membership (based on the current pricing shown on their website). It's worth noting, while Storied does have the option for a standalone membership at $99.99 per year (for Unlimited), all the features are included in a regular NewspaperArchive subscription. The subscription to NGS literally pays for itself! For the complete list of member benefits visit this page.

One super value is AmericanAncestors. A regular price Individual Membership is $99.95 per year. In addition to their databases, you also get access to an impressive list of partner databases. For a full price membership, you can also get discounts with partner sites, including a $10 discount on a GEDmatch Tier 1 membership. But let's circle back to the partner databases for a moment. While they don't disclose the full value of all the partner databases, NewspaperArchive is $95.00/year, a New York Times subscription can run in excess of $150 per year, Genealogical Publishing Company (GPC) eBook Collection (a subscription I used to maintain) is worth $135 per year. And there are many more partner databases. Even if you only use one, you've paid for your membership. You can find out more about a membership here. While the full membership is already a great value, I don't use any of the on-site benefits or discounts on services. Last year, I considered letting this membership lapse. I received a couple of discount emails (as most sites tend to offer) but was still on the fence —until I received an email for a truly amazing deal...digital access for just $49.95 per year! This still includes all the partner databases! While they don't seem to advertise this level on their site, here's a link to the digital membership page from the email I received. If it doesn't work for you, I'd suggest reaching out to them to inquire about this membership. 

And finally, there's the Conococheague Institute. This is a "hands on regional learning center" in Mercersburg, Pennsylvania. A membership is only $25 per year for an individual. The added value is in the History Commons (formerly Accessible Archives) access they provide as a membership perk, a $90 value per year. From the website, "History Commons presents a curated universe of landmark primary-source collections presented on Coherent Digital’s award-winning, next-generation platform." This is not a one-size fits all site. I needed it for some specific Pennsylvania newspapers, so it was useful to me. But if you're considering it, I'd suggest checking the site out first. For more information on joining the Conococheague Institute, visit this page.

One other resource worth noting is libraries! If you don't often access the brick and mortar building for your local library, you may be able to register for a digital card. Many libraries offer in-branch access to library editions of the big genealogy sites for free. They may also offer digital access to a wide variety of various databases and newspaper resources. And it's worth noting, if the resources at a given library outside your local area are valuable enough, you may even be able to obtain access even if you aren't a resident of the area. The cost and availability vary considerably, but depending on the materials you need, it could be an option. (If you can't find the information for out of state residents online, I'd suggest emailing or calling for more information.) Many libraries now offer some genealogy resources free on their websites. And several offer amazing on-site research areas with collections, manuscripts and other resources not available elsewhere. You can't go wrong checking out library websites for areas you're researching. Family Tree Magazine has a wonderful list of the best libraries for genealogy research. 

I've added all the links in this post to my Genealogy Toolbox (including a new section for both Books and Libraries, and expanding Articles, Tips/Tricks, Guides, to include Webinars and Videos). The cost of doing genealogy can vary greatly. If you're willing to put in the time, many records can be found for free. But sometimes we need a subscription. Finding the ones with the most bang for your buck is always a great feeling.  If you've discovered any other genealogy subscriptions with great bundled perks and membership benefits please share them!

Image by Foundry Co from Pixabay

Disclosure: I used ChatGPT to assist in titling this post, and for the search description. All content is my own.