Your DNA test results did not come with a single report. They came with a file.
That file, usually called your raw DNA data, is the actual list of genetic markers a lab read from your saliva sample. Everything Ancestry or 23andMe ever shows you, your ethnicity estimate, your health predispositions, your list of DNA matches, all of it gets built from that one file sitting quietly in your account.
Most people never download it. They log in, read their results, and move on.
That is worth fixing, and not only because you paid for that data and it belongs to you. Companies change hands. Interfaces get redesigned. Features get removed. 23andMe filed for bankruptcy in 2025 and was later bought by a new nonprofit owner, which is a reminder that even a well known company is not a permanent home for something this personal.
This guide walks through exactly how to download your raw DNA data from both AncestryDNA and 23andMe, what you will actually find inside that file once you open it, and how to store it in a way that keeps it safe rather than sitting exposed in your downloads folder.
Why Downloading Your Raw DNA Data Matters
There are a few good reasons to have your own copy of this file, separate from whatever account it currently lives in.
The first is simple ownership. This is your genetic information, gathered from your own saliva sample, and having your own copy means access to it does not depend on a company's servers staying online, a subscription staying active, or a business decision made in a boardroom you have no part of.
The second is flexibility. Sites like GEDmatch, FamilyTreeDNA, and MyHeritage accept raw data uploads from other testing companies, which means one saliva sample can be used to search for relatives across several different databases instead of just one. Some health focused platforms will also run additional analysis on the same file for a more complete picture than what the original testing company provided.
The third reason is simply that events like the 23andMe bankruptcy happen. Nobody plans for the company holding their genetic data to end up in financial trouble, but it happened, and it is a useful reminder either way. Your raw DNA file is the only copy of your genetic story that no company can take away from you.
How to Download Your Raw DNA Data From AncestryDNA
AncestryDNA keeps the download option inside your account settings, and the whole process usually takes about ten minutes of your own time, plus some waiting on an email.
Step by Step Instructions
**Step 1.** Sign in to your account at ancestry.com and click the DNA tab near the top of the page, then select Your DNA Results Summary.
**Step 2.** On your DNA results page, click Settings, usually located near the top right corner of the page.
**Step 3.** Scroll down until you find the section labeled Download or Delete, and click the button that says Download DNA Data.
**Step 4.** Read through the acknowledgment that appears, check the box confirming you understand the terms, and enter your password again to confirm the request.
**Step 5.** Ancestry may ask you to verify your identity, either by confirming your password again or by entering a code sent to your email.
**Step 6.** Once your identity is confirmed, Ancestry will send an email to the address on your account. This can arrive within a few minutes, though it has occasionally taken up to a day depending on their systems at the time.
**Step 7.** Open the email and click Confirm Data Download. This takes you back to the Ancestry site, where you will click Download DNA Data one more time.
**Step 8.** Your file will download as a compressed folder, usually named something like dna-data followed by the date. Save it somewhere you will remember, since it will not stay easy to find in a crowded downloads folder for long.
What to Expect After You Click Download
A couple of details are easy to miss the first time through this process.
The download link inside that email only works once, and it expires after about a week, so do not put this off once you request it. If you need to start over, you can always click Download DNA Data again from your settings page to request a fresh link.
If more than one person's DNA results live on your Ancestry account, each raw data file downloads with the exact same file name, no matter whose data it actually is. Rename each file immediately after downloading it, ideally to include the person's name, so you do not end up with a folder full of identical, unlabeled files a few months from now.
How to Download Your Raw DNA Data From 23andMe
23andMe's process looks a little different from Ancestry's, though the general idea, request the file, confirm your identity, then download it from an email link, stays the same.
Step by Step Instructions
**Step 1.** Sign in to your account at 23andme.com.
**Step 2.** Click on your profile name or the account menu in the top navigation bar, then look for a section related to your data, sometimes labeled 23andMe Data or found under account settings.
**Step 3.** Select the option to download or request your raw data. You may be asked to verify your identity with your password or date of birth before the request goes through.
**Step 4.** Submit the request. 23andMe will send an email once your file is ready, which is often fairly quick, though it can take longer during busy periods.
**Step 5.** Open the email and click the download link or button, which will take you to a page where your raw data file downloads as a zip folder.
**Step 6.** Save the file to your computer and rename it right away with something specific, so it is easy to identify later even if you end up with several genetic files from different services over time.
A Note on 23andMe's Ownership Change
23andMe filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in March 2025. Its assets were later acquired by TTAM Research Institute, a nonprofit founded by 23andMe's former CEO Anne Wojcicki, in the months that followed.
Current customers can still log in and download their data, and the steps above reflect how the process has worked through this transition. That said, ownership changes like this one are exactly why downloading your file now is worth doing rather than waiting. If you have a 23andMe account and have not downloaded your raw data yet, treat it as one of those small tasks that is easy to keep putting off and genuinely worth doing today instead.
What Is Actually Inside the File You Download
Once you unzip the folder, you will find a plain text file, usually ending in .txt, filled with rows of letters and numbers that will not mean much at first glance.
Each row typically lists an identifier for a specific genetic marker, which chromosome it sits on, roughly where on that chromosome it is located, and the two letters representing your genotype at that spot, one inherited from each parent.
There are usually somewhere between 600,000 and 700,000 of these rows in a single file, though the exact number depends on which company tested you and which version of their testing chip was used at the time.
None of this is readable in any meaningful sense without software built to interpret it, which is exactly why people upload this file to other genealogy and health platforms rather than trying to make sense of the raw numbers themselves.
How to Store Your Raw DNA Data Safely
Downloading the file is only half the job. Where it lives afterward matters just as much.
Give It a Real Home, Not Just Your Downloads Folder
Most downloaded files end up sitting in a downloads folder that also holds receipts, random screenshots, and half finished documents from months ago.
Create a dedicated folder for this instead, something like a DNA Files folder inside your documents, and move the file there as soon as it finishes downloading. Rename it clearly, including your name, the testing company, and the year, so future you does not have to guess what dna-data-2026.zip actually contains.
Back It Up in More Than One Place
A single copy of any file is really no copy at all, since hard drives fail and laptops get lost or stolen more often than anyone expects.
Keep at least one backup separate from your main computer. An external hard drive works well for this, and so does a cloud storage service, ideally one that offers encryption for stored files. Storing a copy in two different places means a single lost laptop or a single failed drive will not cost you this file permanently.
Be Careful About Where You Upload It Later
Downloading your raw data often leads to the next step, uploading it somewhere else for a deeper look at your ancestry or health information.
Before you upload this file anywhere, take a few minutes to read the site's privacy policy, particularly anything related to how they handle requests from law enforcement or whether they share data with outside partners. Sites built specifically for genealogy research, like GEDmatch and FamilyTreeDNA, are generally transparent about these policies and let you choose your own privacy settings. Less established sites with vague or missing privacy information deserve more caution, since a genetic file is not something you want sitting on a server run by a company you cannot easily identify.
Turning a File Into a Fuller Family Story
A raw DNA file is a strange kind of family record. It can point you toward relatives you never knew existed and confirm ancestry going back centuries, yet it cannot tell you what your grandmother's laugh sounded like or why your father chose the career he did.
That part of your family's story still depends on people actually telling it, in their own words, before those words are gone for good.
Downloading and protecting your raw DNA data is a smart, practical step. Making sure the people in your life get asked about their own story, and get a place to answer, is the other half of that same effort.
That is the piece Memoracy was built for, a simple daily prompt that turns a life into something your family can actually hold onto, well beyond whatever a spreadsheet of genetic markers can tell them.
Sign up and start your first story on Memoracy today.
