The Insider Pick:
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Your DNA holds the story of your lineage as well as a wealth of information about your body in terms of fitness, aging, health, and more. The AncestryDNA Genetic Testing Kit is the best DNA testing kit you can buy because it compares your DNA to 165 worldwide regions, helping you create an amazingly accurate picture of your heritage.
Your DNA, short for deoxyribonucleic acid, carries the entire story of your natural past, present, and even your future. It is the very substance of every part of your body, and it is the result of thousands of generations of reproduction and countless instances of mutation. The expression of the genes in your DNA makes you who you are, determining everything from eye color and height to which diseases you might easily defeat and which you need to watch out for. The study of your DNA can also provide a remarkably accurate portrait of your heritage, linking you to pockets of humanity that existed many thousands of years ago in far-flung corners of the world.
Did your ancestors cross the Bering Strait Land Bridge? Do you have some Neanderthal DNA in your makeup? Did your great-great-something sail the Pacific atop an outrigger? These questions and many more can be answered through the use of a DNA kit, and all it takes is a bit of saliva.
Learning about your genetic ancestry can be both amusing and informative, but DNA test kits can also provide actionable information. With the right kit, you can analyze your results to better understand how your body responds to everything from sugars and alcohol to caffeine, or you can create a customized fitness and dietary regimen based off your own DNA. Studying your genes can also help you learn what illnesses you might be susceptible to developing, helping you live a lifestyle that minimizes the chances of their occurrence or at least helping you mitigate symptoms and effects should the condition arise.
We have included DNA test kits that are primarily aimed at studying ancestry alongside those geared toward health and wellness. We have a kit principally intended to determine paternity and we have one that’s perfect for the armchair ethnographer. But all the home DNA test kits on our list share a few things in common: They are easy to use, they’re reliable, and each will shed new light on that stuff that makes you … you.
Read on in the slides below to learn why the AncestryDNA Genetic Testing Kit is our top pick for the best DNA testing kit, and why you should also consider the Helix DNA DNAFit Test Kit, the 23andMe DNA Ancestry + Health Kit, the MyHeritage DNA Test Kit, and the Rapid DNA Testing Paternity DNA Test Kit.
The best DNA testing kit overall
AncestryDNA
Why you’ll love it: The AncestryDNA Genetic Testing Kit traces your ethnic mix from 165 global populations, creating a portrait of your lineage that is thorough and precise.
Forget about poring over pages of personal records or scanning the microfiche at the local library. When it comes to putting together your family tree, it’s what’s in your genes that really counts. While talking to relatives or studying marriage licenses and birth certificates can probably help you trace your personal history back a few generations and might give you a semi-accurate sense of your ethnic heritage, the AncestryDNA Genetic Testing Kit can link you to no fewer than 165 distinct world populations, creating a precise portrait of your makeup.
Learning about your ethnic heritage is fascinating and fun, and it can even help you understand certain issues that might impact your future, informing you of health conditions to which you might be susceptible. But when you use the AncestryDNA Genetic Testing Kit, the results actually extend beyond you and those chromosomes of yours.
At the time of writing, more than six million people have used this kit, and everyone who submits their results has the option of seeing which other users closely match their genetic makeup.
Thus using the AncestryDNA Genetic Testing Kit might reveal the existence of a long-lost aunt, cousin, or even a sibling. Your family is almost surely larger than you know, and a DNA testing kit might just be the perfect way to find someone out there with the same genetic history as you.
Thousands of people have used the AncestryDNA Genetic Testing Kit to find out all about relatives past and present. One lady reported a moving story that, having been adopted, the kit “helped [her] find her sister” after “25 years of dreaming about doing so.” Another user called this kit “the only test you need” due to its thorough results.
Business Insider tried the kit and we highly recommend it to anyone who is curious about their ancestry. A writer with PCMag called the kit “an easy-to-use tool for exploring your background” that helped you “find relatives.” A Smarter Hobby review said the AncestryDNA Genetic Testing Kit had the “most extensive database of DNA results” among comparable kits.
Pros: Surveys extensive population, helps link users with relatives, easy to use
Cons: Full results require subscription
The best fitness-oriented DNA test kit
Helix DNA
Why you’ll love it: The Helix DNA DNAFit Test Kit lends insight into how your body processes vitamins and nutrients to help improve your fitness, weight, and health.
If you are committed to living a healthy life in which exercise and proper diet play leading roles, then you owe it to yourself to invest in the Helix DNA DNAFit Test Kit.
First, to be clear, I don’t use the word “invest” flippantly: This kit costs $ 300, which is more than three times the price of the next most expensive kit on our list (and four times the cost of the least pricey). But it is also a unique DNA testing system that gives you a host of results pinpointing all sorts of fitness and dietary metrics that will allow you to take full control of your exercise regimen, weight management, nutrition needs, and general lifestyle writ large.
Using the Helix DNA DNAFit Test Kit will help you learn if your body is predisposed to get great results from high-intensity cardio workouts or if lower intensity, prolonged aerobic exercise suits you best. It will reveal if you might be predisposed to muscular injury and thus should take extra precautions during training. It can inform you about ideal post-exercise recovery practices for your body. If you are already an exercise enthusiast, then why not bring science into your workout routine and make the most of every pushup, sprint, cycling trip, or circuit training session?
On the dietary front, the Helix DNA DNAFit Test Kit may well change the way you eat, in the process helping you maintain an ideal weight, enjoy more energy, avoid intestinal issues, and live an overall healthier life. The testing can reveal carbohydrate sensitivities, an increased need for omega-3 acids or anti-oxidants, or show a predisposition for storing saturated fats, to name just a few of the many factors it reports.
A customer named Matcha called this kit ideal for “anyone serious about fitness and nutrition,” saying provides “in-depth information about how your body is wired to metabolize nutrients.” Another user was more succinct, saying the Helix DNA DNAFit Test Kit “helps you achieve your goals.”
An article from Wired said that the Helix DNA DNAFit Test Kit might be able to help you “live an optimally healthy life” so long as the results are used in conjunction with a good diet and plenty of exercise.
Pros: Gives detailed information on diet and fitness predispositions, helps you avoid foods and practices that may cause harm
Cons: Very expensive option
The best health risk predictor DNA kit
Amazon
Why you’ll love it: The 23andMe DNA Ancestry + Health Kit tells you which illnesses you’re predisposed to get and give you a full look at your ancestry.
First, just to make sure you understand the full costs, if you want to get a comprehensive genetic health report using the 23andMe DNA Ancestry + Health Kit, you will need to buy the $ 159 kit.
Knowing what diseases you are predisposed to develop can help you live a lifestyle that will help lessen the chances of their appearance and/or help prepare your body fight back. The kit can also tell you which genes you are carrying that might pass on diseases or other genetic traits that could cause issues, helping you in your family planning.
Even the basic $ 79 23andMe DNA Ancestry Kit still gives you lots of interesting and amusing ancestry data. You can also upgrade it if you do decide that you want the health analysis, too.
Spit one gob of saliva into its tube, and you can learn how much Neanderthal DNA you inherited and you can compare your genetic makeup to a few dozen world populations alive today. And when you and a family member each use a 23andMe DNA Ancestry Kit, you can see how much DNA you have in common or how much you differ based on genetics inherited from shared ancestors.
With nearly a thousand reviews posted on Amazon, the 23andMe DNA Ancestry Kit has a decent 3.9-star average. One gene tester called it an easy-to-use kit that shared great insights into her genetic ancestry, though several others had complaints about customer service issues.
A reporter for Business Insider tried the test and found it very interesting and helpful. An Insider Picks writer gave it to a friend to test and came away impressed by all the information that was gleaned from the test.
A TopTenReviews.com write-up noted that the kit was unique in providing information on “Neanderthal ancestry and traits.” A Wirecutter review said that the basic 23andMe kit was lower priced than many, but also mentioned that a disproportionate amount of the company’s “reference population database” was Euro-centric.
Pros: Great access to information on medical issues, includes data on Neanderthal ancestry
Cons: Additional costs for health info, customer service complaints
