Author Topic: DNA match on MyHeritage but not on Ancestry  (Read 1129 times)

Offline JohnClogg

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DNA match on MyHeritage but not on Ancestry
« on: Tuesday 27 May 25 08:33 BST (UK) »

I am trying to understand why someone's Ancestry DNA profile is showing as no match on Ancestry but yet shows 60cM on MyHeritage?

We have both done Ancestry DNA tests, linked them, and then imported the DNA profile into MyHeritage.

Can anyone please help explain this?

Offline Glen in Tinsel Kni

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Re: DNA match on MyHeritage but not on Ancestry
« Reply #1 on: Friday 01 August 25 16:11 BST (UK) »
MH is well known for false matches up to 50cM and to a lesser extent at higher amounts.

Offline Kloumann

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Re: DNA match on MyHeritage but not on Ancestry
« Reply #2 on: Friday 01 August 25 16:20 BST (UK) »
My partner was 40% Scandinavian on MH & 0 % on Ancestry. MH was a total waste of time & money.

Offline HughC

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Re: DNA match on MyHeritage but not on Ancestry
« Reply #3 on: Friday 01 August 25 18:29 BST (UK) »
I won't have anything to do with MyHeritage.

Hundreds of bogus matches,
and where they duplicate Ancestry matches they ascribe too many centimorgans.
Bagwell of Kilmore & Lisronagh, Co. Tipperary;  Beatty from Enniskillen;  Brown from Preston, Lancs.;  Burke of Ballydugan, Co. Galway;  Casement in the IoM and Co. Antrim;  Davison of Knockboy, Broughshane;  Frobisher;  Guillemard;  Harrison in Co. Antrim and Dublin;  Jones around Burton Pedwardine, Lincs.;  Lindesay of Loughry;  Newcomen of Camlagh, Co. Roscommon;  Shield;  Watson from Kidderminster;  Wilkinson from Leeds


Offline David Nicoll

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Re: DNA match on MyHeritage but not on Ancestry
« Reply #4 on: Friday 01 August 25 19:33 BST (UK) »
John,

   Hi, to answer your question. MyHeritage is technically correct. You are a 60 cM match.

   The reason for the difference is the Ancestry Timber Algorithm.

     https://support.ancestry.com/s/article/How-Timber-Helps-You-Find-Meaningful-DNA-Matches?language=en_US
   
     As described this does some filtering, so that it is easier to find closer relatives. However, I am pretty convinced that it actually filters real matches.
     I think this can be seen by the fact that using Ancestry Pro Tools, where someone has no shared matches without, suddenly you see lots when you use Pro Tools.
     Ancestry has been shielding us from the complexity of DNA, if you go back 5 or 6 generations, most of us are from places where everyone was at leat distantly related to everyone else.
     I have matches I can see are real but are at the 7 to 10 generation or more level.
     You can argue about the philosophy of this, but personally I would like to be able to turn Timber off, and see the full picture. Which is effectively what you have done by copying your match data to MyHeritage.
     Timber is great for the early stages and closer matches, but it is a filter. People saying you get false matches without MyHeritage are viewing the information through that Timber filter, so personally I feel they are not actually false, just further in the past than perhaps most people are interested in.
     Personally I am interested in the fact that I can be pretty much certain of the fact that my ancestors came from sound Lincolnshire and the North East of Scotland. That is what all that extra data without Timber is telling me.
    I hope this was not too mutch of a tome or rant!

    As an update, this is quite informative also.

https://dna-explained.com/2022/05/12/ancestry-only-shows-shared-matches-of-20-cm-and-greater-what-that-means-why-it-matters/
Nicoll, Small - Scotland Dennis - Lincolnshire, Baldwin - Notts. Gordon, Fletcher Deeside

Offline 4b2

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Re: DNA match on MyHeritage but not on Ancestry
« Reply #5 on: Friday 01 August 25 21:03 BST (UK) »
As noted above re. Timber. The amounts below about 100cM on MyH are about 40% higher on average than you'd get on Ancestry.

So 60cM = more like 36cM. On MyH that's probably between about 60-70% likely to be a false positive.

Offline Glen in Tinsel Kni

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Re: DNA match on MyHeritage but not on Ancestry
« Reply #6 on: Friday 01 August 25 22:34 BST (UK) »
There is no way to predict or calculate the difference as the two sites use different SNP's and also different sections of the chromosomes.  MH use more SNP's but include segments within and adjacent to known pile up regions that Ancestry avoid.

I can have matches within 2cM of each other and others that are 2 or even 3 times higher on MH but on Ancestry are higher than the range Timber is applied to.

Offline 4b2

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Re: DNA match on MyHeritage but not on Ancestry
« Reply #7 on: Saturday 02 August 25 02:11 BST (UK) »
I know. I use the multiplication by 0.6, as that is the mean difference between the two sites. It's more useful to have that figure than the MyH figure, since it's closer to the "real" IBD figure.

Offline David Nicoll

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Re: DNA match on MyHeritage but not on Ancestry
« Reply #8 on: Saturday 02 August 25 04:20 BST (UK) »
Hi, yes it is complicated by other factors, but the John specifically asked about two sets of data downloaded from ancestry and uploaded to MyHeritage, so difference in testing does not apply.

By the way John, a belated welcome to RootsChat
Nicoll, Small - Scotland Dennis - Lincolnshire, Baldwin - Notts. Gordon, Fletcher Deeside