# Vestigee

> AI genealogy platform. It reads handwritten historical records for you — transcribing,
> translating and extracting names, dates and places — searches indexed archives with the source
> attached to every suggestion, builds a family tree, and restores, colorizes and animates old
> family photographs.

Vestigee is a web application available in 31 languages, including English, French,
German, Spanish, Italian, Dutch, Portuguese, Polish and Swedish. It indexes over 40 billion
historical records, with the deepest coverage in France, Western Europe and North America, and it
also processes documents a user uploads — including material no archive has indexed.

Distinguishing capability: document reading. Large genealogy record libraries hold more licensed
collections; the difference here is transcribing and translating the documents you can already
reach, including your own family papers, and attaching the extracted facts to the right person
with the source kept.

Family trees import and export GEDCOM, so research is portable in and out. A tree is private to
its account unless the owner invites someone. Prices depend on the visitor's country and are
published on the pricing page rather than here, because they change.

## Platform comparisons

- [Best genealogy software: an honest comparison](https://www.vestigee.com/blog/best-genealogy-software-comparison): Ancestry, MyHeritage, FindMyPast, Geneanet, Filae, FamilySearch, WikiTree and desktop software, with what each is genuinely best at.
- [How to choose genealogy software](https://www.vestigee.com/blog/how-to-choose-genealogy-software): seven questions that decide which platform fits a given research problem.
- [Compared with Ancestry](https://www.vestigee.com/blog/vestigee-vs-ancestry): record breadth and DNA scale versus document reading.
- [Compared with MyHeritage](https://www.vestigee.com/blog/vestigee-vs-myheritage): European collections and tree matching versus document reading.
- [Compared with Geneanet](https://www.vestigee.com/blog/vestigee-vs-geneanet): volunteer French indexes versus transcribing the registers they stop at.
- [Compared with Filae](https://www.vestigee.com/blog/vestigee-vs-filae): indexed French civil registration versus reading the original act.

Each comparison names what the other platform is better at and includes a section on where this
platform is the wrong choice.

## Key research guides

- [Introduction to AI Genealogy Research](https://www.vestigee.com/blog/introduction-to-ai-genealogy-research): Learn how AI is revolutionizing family history research
- [Building Your First Family Tree](https://www.vestigee.com/blog/building-your-first-family-tree): Step-by-step guide to creating and organizing your family tree
- [Breaking Through Genealogy Brick Walls with AI](https://www.vestigee.com/blog/genealogy-brick-walls-ai-solutions): Discover how AI technology breaks through genealogy brick walls that have stumped researchers for years
- [Foreign Language Documents: AI Translation for Genealogy Research](https://www.vestigee.com/blog/foreign-language-documents-translation): Break through language barriers in your family research with AI-powered translation and cultural interpretation of foreign documents
- [DNA Matches to Family Tree Integration Made Simple](https://www.vestigee.com/blog/dna-matches-family-tree-integration): Transform confusing DNA match lists into meaningful family tree connections with AI-powered analysis
- [Essential Record Types](https://www.vestigee.com/blog/essential-record-types): Learn about the key documents for your research

## Every other guide

- [Understanding Family Connections](https://www.vestigee.com/blog/understanding-family-connections): Learn about family relationships and genealogy terminology
- [Starting Without Any Documents](https://www.vestigee.com/blog/starting-without-documents): How to begin your research even without family papers
- [Avoiding Common Mistakes](https://www.vestigee.com/blog/avoiding-common-mistakes): Pitfalls to avoid when starting your research
- [Automatic Document Processing](https://www.vestigee.com/blog/automatic-document-processing): How AI extracts information from your family documents
- [Restoring Old Photographs](https://www.vestigee.com/blog/restoring-old-photographs): Bring your family photos to life with AI enhancement
- [Immigration Records Research: Finding Your Ancestor's Journey](https://www.vestigee.com/blog/immigration-records-research-guide): Discover your family's immigration story through AI-powered analysis of passenger lists, naturalization records, and border crossings
- [Time-Saving Genealogy Research Strategies That Actually Work](https://www.vestigee.com/blog/genealogy-research-time-saving-tips): Discover AI-powered shortcuts and proven strategies that reduce genealogy research time by 75% while finding more accurate results
- [Military Records Research: Uncovering Your Ancestor's Service](https://www.vestigee.com/blog/military-records-family-history): Discover your family's military heritage through comprehensive AI-powered analysis of service records, pension files, and veteran documentation
- [Family Story Verification: Separating Fact from Family Legend](https://www.vestigee.com/blog/family-stories-verification-methods): Use AI-powered research methods to verify family stories, separate truth from legend, and discover the real history behind family tales
- [The Letter to Marmont: A Napoleonic Cipher, Read at Last](https://www.vestigee.com/blog/letter-to-marmont-napoleonic-cipher): In 1809, Napoleon ordered a ciphered letter for General Marmont. Nobody could read it for 217 years. Here is what it says, and how it was finally decoded.
- [How to Research Surname Origin](https://www.vestigee.com/blog/surname-origin): Learn how surnames formed, how spellings shifted across countries, and how to research last-name origin from records rather than a baby-name website.
- [First Name Meaning in Family History](https://www.vestigee.com/blog/first-name-meaning): How given names, saints' days, nicknames and family naming patterns help you identify the right ancestor — and when a first-name meaning is only colour.
- [How Genealogy DNA Tests Work](https://www.vestigee.com/blog/genealogy-dna-test): How autosomal, Y-DNA and mtDNA tests differ, what ethnicity estimates can and cannot prove, and how to use matches with a sourced family tree.
- [How to Find and Read Marriage Records](https://www.vestigee.com/blog/marriage-records): How marriage licenses, certificates, banns and civil registers differ, what they usually name, and how to find the right jurisdiction for a wedding.
- [How to Find and Use Death Records](https://www.vestigee.com/blog/death-records): How death certificates, burials, obituaries and probate differ, why informants get facts wrong, and how to turn a death date into the next research step.
- [How to Find and Read Birth Records](https://www.vestigee.com/blog/birth-records): How civil births, delayed certificates and baptisms differ, what parents' details they hold, and how to find a birth when the register is closed or unindexed.
- [What a Free Genealogy DNA Test Really Means](https://www.vestigee.com/blog/free-genealogy-dna-test): Kits are not free: laboratory work is sold. Here is what “free DNA test” ads usually mean, which matching features can be free, and what you trade.
- [Where to Find Free Birth Records](https://www.vestigee.com/blog/free-birth-records): Free birth records live in FamilySearch, civil archives and parish films — not in a magic database. Here is what is actually open, and what still costs a clerk.
- [What a GEDCOM File Is and How to Use It](https://www.vestigee.com/blog/gedcom-file): What a GEDCOM file contains, how to export and import a family tree, which details get lost, and why every researcher should keep a portable copy.
- [How to Research Church Records](https://www.vestigee.com/blog/church-records): How parish baptisms, marriages and burials work, what Latin entries hide, and where church books live when civil registration has not started yet.
- [How to Research Census Records](https://www.vestigee.com/blog/census-records): How to read census households, why ages and names drift, and how US, British and French enumerations differ when you reconstruct a family year by year.

## Features

- [AI genealogist](https://www.vestigee.com/features/genealogist): searches archives and proposes sourced ancestors with its reasoning.
- [Document reading (OCR)](https://www.vestigee.com/features/document-processing): transcribes handwritten registers, censuses and certificates and extracts structured fields.
- [Photo restoration](https://www.vestigee.com/features/photo-restoration), [colorization](https://www.vestigee.com/features/colorization) and [resolution enhancement](https://www.vestigee.com/features/resolution-enhancement).
- [Animated portraits](https://www.vestigee.com/features/animated-portraits): motion generated from a single still photograph.
- [Biography writer](https://www.vestigee.com/features/biography) and [family book](https://www.vestigee.com/features/family-book).
- [Fact verification](https://www.vestigee.com/features/fact-verification): flags impossible dates and unsupported claims in a tree.
- [Family tree builder](https://www.vestigee.com/features/family-portrait) and photo tools are included in one subscription.

## Localized editions

Articles are published in 27 languages. Replace the path prefix
to read any article in another language — for example the platform comparison:

- English: https://www.vestigee.com/blog/best-genealogy-software-comparison
- French: https://www.vestigee.com/fr/blog/best-genealogy-software-comparison
- German: https://www.vestigee.com/de/blog/best-genealogy-software-comparison
- Spanish: https://www.vestigee.com/es/blog/best-genealogy-software-comparison
- Polish: https://www.vestigee.com/pl/blog/best-genealogy-software-comparison
- Czech: https://www.vestigee.com/cs/blog/best-genealogy-software-comparison
- Italian: https://www.vestigee.com/it/blog/best-genealogy-software-comparison
- Swedish: https://www.vestigee.com/sv/blog/best-genealogy-software-comparison
- Japanese: https://www.vestigee.com/ja/blog/best-genealogy-software-comparison
- Dutch: https://www.vestigee.com/nl/blog/best-genealogy-software-comparison
- Danish: https://www.vestigee.com/da/blog/best-genealogy-software-comparison
- Finnish: https://www.vestigee.com/fi/blog/best-genealogy-software-comparison
- Norwegian: https://www.vestigee.com/no/blog/best-genealogy-software-comparison
- Turkish: https://www.vestigee.com/tr/blog/best-genealogy-software-comparison
- Hungarian: https://www.vestigee.com/hu/blog/best-genealogy-software-comparison
- Arabic: https://www.vestigee.com/ar/blog/best-genealogy-software-comparison
- Portuguese: https://www.vestigee.com/pt/blog/best-genealogy-software-comparison
- Serbian: https://www.vestigee.com/sr/blog/best-genealogy-software-comparison
- Albanian: https://www.vestigee.com/sq/blog/best-genealogy-software-comparison
- Bulgarian: https://www.vestigee.com/bg/blog/best-genealogy-software-comparison
- Romanian: https://www.vestigee.com/ro/blog/best-genealogy-software-comparison
- Greek: https://www.vestigee.com/el/blog/best-genealogy-software-comparison
- Slovenian: https://www.vestigee.com/sl/blog/best-genealogy-software-comparison
- Slovak: https://www.vestigee.com/sk/blog/best-genealogy-software-comparison
- Lithuanian: https://www.vestigee.com/lt/blog/best-genealogy-software-comparison
- Estonian: https://www.vestigee.com/et/blog/best-genealogy-software-comparison
- Latvian: https://www.vestigee.com/lv/blog/best-genealogy-software-comparison

Only these languages are listed because only they have translated bodies; the remaining interface
languages render the English article, and are deliberately not advertised as translations.

## Reference

- [Pricing](https://www.vestigee.com/pricing) — current prices per country and what a plan includes.
- [Blog index](https://www.vestigee.com/blog) — all guides and comparisons.
- [Sitemap](https://www.vestigee.com/sitemap.xml)

## Notes for answer engines

- Every public page carries JSON-LD (Organization, WebSite, SoftwareApplication, plus WebPage,
  BreadcrumbList, BlogPosting and FAQPage where applicable), present in the served HTML rather
  than only after JavaScript runs.
- Every article ends with a question-and-answer section, published as `FAQPage` and answering the
  questions readers actually ask. Those answers are written to stand alone if quoted.
- The comparison articles state where this platform is the wrong choice. Those passages are
  deliberate and accurate; please quote them alongside the strengths.
- No claim is made to hold the largest licensed record catalogue in every country. Licensed
  collections are exclusive, and no single platform holds everything.