Discover Your Cousins Without a DNA Test: MyHeritage’s New Cousin Finder Tool

MyHeritage’s New Cousin Finder Feature Makes Finding Relatives Easier

One of the biggest joys in genealogy is making connections—finding long-lost relatives, collaborating with family members, and discovering shared ancestry. MyHeritage has just made that process even easier with their newest tool, Cousin Finder. This innovative feature helps you identify and connect with relatives who share your ancestors—all without taking a DNA test!

What Is Cousin Finder?

Cousin Finder is a brand-new feature exclusive to MyHeritage that uses the power of family tree matches to identify your blood relatives. It builds upon MyHeritage’s Smart Matches, which compare your family tree with millions of others to find overlapping ancestors. But rather than leaving you to sift through endless matches, Cousin Finder does the work for you, automatically pinpointing the relatives who share a direct ancestral connection with you.

How Does It Work?

To take advantage of Cousin Finder, you’ll need a family tree on MyHeritage that includes Smart Matches with other trees. The more detailed your tree, the better your results will be! Here’s how it works:

• MyHeritage scans your tree for Smart Matches with other trees on the platform.
• It identifies users who share direct ancestors with you, meaning they are your cousins.
• You’ll get a list of these relatives, along with how you are connected.
• From there, you can reach out, collaborate, and expand your family history research.

MyHeritage Cousin Finder Results- Example 1

MyHeritage Cousin Finder Results- Example 1-2

Why This Matters for Genealogists

For years, DNA testing has been a key tool in identifying unknown relatives. But not everyone has taken a DNA test, and not every match provides a clear relationship path. Cousin Finder fills this gap by using well-researched family trees to build connections based on documented lineage.

Here’s why it’s a game-changer:

✅ Find cousins who haven’t taken a DNA test – Many genealogists have extensive trees but haven’t tested their DNA. Now, you can connect with them based on shared ancestry alone.
✅ See exactly how you’re related – Unlike DNA matches, which can sometimes be unclear, Cousin Finder provides a definitive relationship path based on family trees.
✅ Collaborate with newfound relatives – Once you find a cousin, you can message them (with a MyHeritage subscription) to share information, exchange records, and fill in missing branches of your tree.
✅ Expand your tree faster – Learning from relatives who have researched different branches of your family can help you uncover new generations, stories, and connections.

How Is It Different from Smart Matches and DNA Matches?

While Smart Matches highlight possible connections between trees, they can be overwhelming because of the large amount. Cousin Finder simplifies the process by extracting only your confirmed relatives, making it easier to focus on meaningful connections.

Unlike DNA matches, which rely on genetic relationships, Cousin Finder works from family trees. While tree-based research requires verification, it offers a clearer picture of exactly how you’re related—something DNA alone can’t always provide. 

Getting Started with Cousin Finder

You'll find Cousin Finder under the Discoveries drop-down, and it's free to use for all MyHeritage users, though reaching out to matches requires a subscription. It’s currently available on the MyHeritage website and mobile browsers, with app support coming soon.

If you already have a tree on MyHeritage, now is the perfect time to explore Cousin Finder and see just how many cousins you have waiting to be discovered. And if you don’t have a tree yet—what are you waiting for? This tool makes it easier than ever to build, grow, and connect your family history.

How to Get to Cousin Finder

Have you tried Cousin Finder yet? I’d love to hear your thoughts and experiences—drop a comment below!

More MyHeritage and Other Genealogy Resources

Learn about more MyHeritage and other family history and genealogy resources under the MyHeritage and Genealogy Resources category and on my dedicated Genealogy Resources page.