6 tasks, each one witnessed by the sources that watched the job — and behind every one, a prompt you can use tonight.
You usually start by reviewing open cases and updating research plans — a one-hour quick scan of each client file. Most of the day is spent in libraries, archives, or online on Ancestry.com and MyHeritage pulling birth, marriage, death, and census records.
Afternoons are for analyzing and transcribing documents (handwritten wills, parish registers) and checking connections against the Genealogical Proof Standard (GPS) — that means writing down sources and why a link between two people is proven or not.
Start with Ancestry.com and MyHeritage because they host the biggest online record collections you’ll use every day. Use their search, hints, and record images to locate original documents.
Learn Family Tree Maker next to build and maintain trees offline, sync to online accounts, and create reports. All three tools together let you collect records, organize evidence, and share findings with clients.
Use AI to draft search queries, summarize long documents, or transcribe poor handwriting — but never accept its statements about relationships as evidence. AI can hallucinate facts, so always go back to original documents on Ancestry.com, MyHeritage, or local archives to verify.
Record where each fact came from and apply the Genealogical Proof Standard: multiple independent sources, sound reasoning, and clear documentation. Treat AI outputs as starting notes, not proof.
Pay varies widely: hobbyists charge little or nothing; freelance or professional genealogists often charge by hour, commonly $25–$75 per hour in the U.S., depending on experience and complexity. Institutional jobs (archives, societies) can pay $40,000–$70,000 annually, but those numbers differ by region.
Look at job listings for local archives, probate courts, or genealogy firms and check professional association surveys (like the Association of Professional Genealogists) for up-to-date rates.
Make a short research plan: list the ancestor’s name, approximate years, and location. Search birth, marriage, death, and census records on Ancestry.com and MyHeritage for exact dates and relatives, then visit local archives or libraries for parish registers or land records if online records stop.
Transcribe each document and record full citations. Use Family Tree Maker to organize findings and follow the Genealogical Proof Standard to confirm connections before adding them to the family tree.
Genealogists focus on proving family relationships generation by generation — you gather birth, marriage, death records and verify links between specific people using the Genealogical Proof Standard. The product is a family tree with sources and analyses.
Historians write narratives about broader social events; archivists organize and preserve documents. Genealogists often use archives and may work with archivists, but their main task is reconstructing lineages and fixing errors in family trees.
Attention to detail: you must accurately transcribe names, dates, and places from messy original records and spot contradictions between sources. A small transcription error can create a false ancestor or break a proven connection.
Pair that with clear citation habits and the ability to build a research plan for each case. Those habits let you test hypotheses, find and fix errors in family trees, and meet the Genealogical Proof Standard.