GEDCOM Import & Export, Move Your Family Tree Freely

Family Tree Simple · Updated 25 September 2026 · 8 minute read

Bring supported people and relationships into your tree, or export a GEDCOM 5.5.1 file for a carefully checked transfer.

Your family history is too important to be locked in any one platform. Family Tree Simple offers GEDCOM import and export. Keep your original files and verify a sample before relying on a transfer.

Import My GEDCOM

Understand what a GEDCOM transfer can and cannot promise

GEDCOM is a format for exchanging genealogical information between applications. The file describes people, families and related data using a structured text representation. Its purpose is portability, but a shared format does not mean every program supports every detail in exactly the same way.

The official GEDCOM specifications document different versions, including 5.5.1 and 7. A receiving application may support a subset of the format, interpret an extension differently or omit information it does not represent. Treat compatibility as something to verify with your own data rather than a guarantee based solely on the file extension.

Family Tree Simple provides a GEDCOM import workflow and exports GEDCOM 5.5.1. For an important transfer, preserve the original project and files, test a representative sample and compare the result. That small rehearsal is more useful than discovering missing details after the source copy has been discarded.

Decide whether you need a transfer, a backup or a chart

These are different goals. A GEDCOM file can help move supported genealogical data between tools. A native JSON export represents application data in another format. A PDF is a visual output for reading or printing. One format should not be assumed to replace the others.

If your goal is a readable family chart, a PDF may be the relevant output. If you want to continue editing relationships in another genealogy application, investigate its supported import formats. If your goal is preservation, keep source documents and photographs alongside the exported tree rather than relying on a single file to contain everything.

Write down the information you cannot afford to lose. That may include uncertain dates, source citations, notes, multiple relationships or photographs. Use this list as the acceptance checklist for the transfer, not just the total number of people displayed afterward.

Prepare the source tree before exporting

Review obvious duplicates and incorrect relationships in the source application. A transfer generally carries existing mistakes into the next tool; it is not a substitute for research or data cleaning. Make a separate copy before making substantial corrections so you can recover the earlier state if necessary.

Check whether the source application lets you export the whole tree or a selected branch. Choose the scope deliberately, especially when living people or private notes are involved. A small test branch should contain the kinds of relationships and dates that matter in the full tree.

Give the export a clear filename with the tree name, date and scope. Keep a short note about the source application and the export settings used. These details are useful if two files look similar or if a later import behaves differently from the first test.

Use a representative test file

A test containing only two people with simple dates may not reveal the issues that matter in a large family. Include a small set with several generations, siblings, partnerships and any uncertain date forms you use. If photographs or notes are important, include examples so you can see how they are handled.

Import the test into a separate working tree where your workflow allows it. Avoid using the only copy of a carefully maintained tree as an experiment. Review any messages from the import process and keep them with the test notes if they explain skipped or unsupported information.

Compare the result person by person. Check names, dates, relationships and the starting person's position in the chart. A successful file read means the application accepted some data; it does not establish that every detail was preserved correctly.

Check dates and names carefully

Date formats can carry more meaning than a single calendar value. A source tree may contain approximate dates, ranges, partial dates or text explanations. Review how those appear after import instead of assuming they remain identical. Keep the original wording in your research records if the destination cannot represent it fully.

Names may include prefixes, suffixes, alternate spellings and characters outside basic English text. Check examples that exercise those details. A tree can look broadly correct while silently losing a distinction that matters for searching historical records later.

Do not repair an imported date by guessing. Compare it with the source and determine whether the difference came from parsing, unsupported notation or an existing error. Record the decision so the same discrepancy does not have to be investigated again during the next transfer.

Review relationships beyond the first generation

Start with a person you know well, then inspect their parents, siblings, partners and children. Continue through several generations and include any family arrangement that is not represented by a single simple parent pair. The visual chart should agree with the source relationships you intended to transfer.

If a relationship is missing or represented differently, keep the source file and investigate before importing more data. Repeatedly importing the same file without understanding the result can create duplicates or make the working tree harder to review, depending on the import workflow.

Where a destination cannot express a distinction important to your family record, preserve that context separately. Do not let the limitations of an exchange format or interface silently redefine the relationship. A clear note is better than a misleading visual connection.

Preserve media independently

A GEDCOM file may refer to multimedia without carrying every image file in a form another tool can immediately use. Media handling depends on the format and application. The GEDCOM specification describes multimedia references and a packaging format, but those capabilities should not be assumed to exist in every importer.

Keep your original photographs, scans and captions in an organised folder outside the application. After a transfer, check whether portraits actually load and whether they refer to the intended people. A broken image placeholder may indicate a missing file or an inaccessible reference rather than a lost person record.

Native exports may include references to images rather than independent copies of the image bytes. Verify the actual result and preserve the files separately. A robust backup should remain understandable even if a particular hosted image link stops working.

Keep notes and citations connected to the people

Source citations and research notes are often the most valuable part of a family history project. They explain why a relationship or date belongs in the tree. Before transferring, identify how the source application exports them and whether the destination displays them in a usable form.

If a detail does not transfer, keep it in a separate research log with stable person identifiers. Do not discard the original note because the destination's chart looks complete. A name and date without the supporting evidence can be difficult to verify later.

Use a small comparison checklist for each test person. Record what arrived correctly, what changed and what needs a separate preservation method. This makes the decision to continue the transfer explicit rather than relying on a general impression that the chart looks familiar.

Example: a visually correct but incomplete import

Imagine a test import displays the expected grandparents, parents and children. The names and basic relationships look right, but an approximate birth date has become less expressive and several research notes are not visible. Calling the transfer complete at this point would hide important differences.

The researcher keeps the original export, records the date issue and preserves the notes in the research log. They decide which details can be represented in the destination and which need an accompanying record. Only after that review do they import the larger tree.

The example shows why person count is an incomplete test. A useful transfer preserves the meaning of the research as far as the tools allow, and documents the limitations where it cannot.

Finish with a transfer checklist

• Keep the original tree and an untouched export.
• Record the source application, format version and export scope.
• Test representative names, dates and relationships.
• Check portraits, notes and citations separately.
• Compare several branches, not only the opening view.
• Record unsupported details and how they will be preserved.
• Open the final saved files to confirm they are usable.

After completing the transfer, retain the test notes and original source material. They provide a reference if a discrepancy appears later. Portability works best as a verified process, not as a promise that every application will interpret every family detail identically.