Fix Family Tree Maker Ancestry Hints Not Showing Up

Family Tree Maker (FTM) makes it easier to research your family history by connecting your tree with Ancestry and displaying hints that may lead to new records, documents, and relatives. However, sometimes Ancestry hints may stop appearing in Family Tree Maker, even when you expect matching records to be available.

This issue can be caused by synchronization problems, an outdated version of Family Tree Maker, an incorrect Ancestry connection, internet or account issues, or problems with the tree itself.

If your Family Tree Maker Ancestry hints are not showing up, try the solutions below.

Why Are Ancestry Hints Not Showing in Family Tree Maker?

Before troubleshooting, it helps to understand some common reasons why hints may not appear.

• Family Tree Maker is not properly synced with Ancestry.

• Your Ancestry account connection has expired or needs to be renewed.

• Family Tree Maker is running an outdated version.

• The tree has not finished syncing with Ancestry.

• Your internet connection is unstable.

• Ancestry has not found any matching records for the person.

• The hint system is still processing recently added information.

• There may be a problem with the specific tree or individual profile.

• Family Tree Maker's local data may need to be refreshed.

Not every person in a family tree will receive hints. Ancestry's hint system looks for potential matches based on the information available in your tree, so incomplete or inaccurate information can also affect the number of hints you see.

1. Check Your Internet Connection

Family Tree Maker needs an active internet connection to communicate with Ancestry and retrieve online information.

First, open a web browser and visit another website. If other websites are also loading slowly or failing to open, troubleshoot your internet connection before working on Family Tree Maker.

You can also try:

1. Disconnecting and reconnecting to your Wi-Fi network.

2. Restarting your router.

3. Connecting your computer to another network.

4. Temporarily disabling a VPN, proxy, or restrictive firewall.

5. Restarting Family Tree Maker after the connection is restored.

Once you have a stable connection, open your tree again and check whether the Ancestry hints appear.

2. Make Sure Family Tree Maker Is Connected to Ancestry

A connection problem between Family Tree Maker and Ancestry can prevent hints from appearing.

Open Family Tree Maker and check the Ancestry connection. Make sure you are signed in to the correct Ancestry account and that the tree you are working on is connected to the appropriate online tree.

If the connection appears to be inactive, sign out and sign back in.

After reconnecting, allow some time for Family Tree Maker to communicate with Ancestry and update the tree.

3. Check Whether Your Tree Is Properly Synced

Ancestry hints depend on information being available in your online tree. If your Family Tree Maker tree has not synchronized correctly, new information may not reach Ancestry.

Look for the sync status of your tree in Family Tree Maker.

If a synchronization is available:

1. Save your work.

2. Start a sync.

3. Allow the synchronization to complete.

4. Avoid closing Family Tree Maker while the process is running.

5. Check the affected person again after synchronization finishes.

If you recently added names, dates, locations, or relationships, syncing may be particularly important.

4. Update Family Tree Maker

An outdated version of Family Tree Maker can cause compatibility and connectivity problems.

Check whether a newer version or update is available for your installation. If an update is available, install it and restart the application.

After updating:

• Open your family tree.

• Verify the Ancestry connection.

• Run a synchronization if necessary.

• Check the affected profiles for hints.

Keeping Family Tree Maker updated can also help prevent other syncing and online-record issues.

5. Check the Individual's Information

Sometimes the problem isn't Family Tree Maker at all. Ancestry may simply be unable to identify a likely record match.

Review the information entered for the person who is not receiving hints.

Pay particular attention to:

• Full name

• Birth date

• Birthplace

• Death date

• Death place

• Marriage information

• Parents

• Spouse

• Children

For example, a person listed only as “John Smith” may be difficult for a hint system to distinguish from thousands of other people with the same name.

Adding an approximate birth year, location, spouse, or parent can provide more useful information for potential record matching.

6. Look for Hints Directly on Ancestry

If hints are not appearing in Family Tree Maker, sign in to your Ancestry account through a web browser and check the corresponding online tree.

This can help determine whether the problem is with Family Tree Maker or with the tree and Ancestry itself.

If hints appear on Ancestry but not in Family Tree Maker, the issue may be related to synchronization or the Family Tree Maker connection.

If hints do not appear on Ancestry either, there may simply be no available matches yet.

7. Give Ancestry Time to Process New Information

Newly added individuals and records may not immediately produce hints.

If you recently created a person or made major changes to your tree, wait for Ancestry to process the updated information. Then check the tree again later.

Avoid repeatedly deleting and recreating the same person simply because a hint does not appear immediately. This can create duplicate individuals and make your family tree harder to manage.

8. Restart Family Tree Maker

A simple restart can sometimes resolve temporary application problems.

Save your tree, close Family Tree Maker completely, and then reopen it.

Once the program starts again:

1. Open your family tree.

2. Check the Ancestry connection.

3. Select the affected individual.

4. Check whether hints are now available.

You can also restart your computer if Family Tree Maker continues to behave unexpectedly.

9. Check for Problems With the Specific Family Tree

If hints are missing from only one tree, while other trees display hints normally, the problem may be associated with that particular tree.

Check whether:

• The tree is connected to the correct Ancestry account.

• The tree has completed its most recent sync.

• The affected person exists in the online version of the tree.

• The person's information is complete.

• There are duplicate profiles.

Testing another person in the same tree can also help. If some individuals have hints while another does not, the issue may be related to the information available for that particular person.

10. Disconnect and Reconnect the Ancestry Tree

If Family Tree Maker continues to show no hints even though the online tree appears to have them, reconnecting the tree may help refresh the connection.

Before making major changes, make sure you have a current backup of your Family Tree Maker file.

Then review the tree's connection and synchronization settings. If you choose to disconnect and reconnect, carefully follow Family Tree Maker's current instructions so you don't accidentally create a duplicate online tree or overwrite information.

11. Check Ancestry Account and Subscription Access

Some Ancestry records require an appropriate subscription or access through a library or other authorized account.

If you can see that a hint exists but cannot open the associated record, the problem may be related to record access rather than Family Tree Maker.

Make sure you are signed in to the intended Ancestry account and that your account has access to the record collection you are trying to view.

12. Try a Different Individual

A useful troubleshooting step is to select another person in your family tree.

For example, choose a parent, grandparent, or spouse who has:

• A full name

• A known birth year

• A location

• Family relationships

If hints appear for the other individual, Family Tree Maker is probably communicating with Ancestry correctly. The original person's profile may simply not have enough information to generate useful matches.

13. Back Up Your Family Tree Before Advanced Troubleshooting

Before making significant changes to your Family Tree Maker file, create a backup.

A backup gives you a way to restore your tree if something goes wrong during synchronization, troubleshooting, or database maintenance.

Do not skip this step before attempting major repairs.

What If Family Tree Maker Still Doesn't Show Ancestry Hints?

If you have tried the solutions above and hints are still missing, determine where the problem occurs:

Hints missing only in Family Tree Maker:
The issue may involve the application, synchronization, or the Ancestry connection.

Hints missing in both Family Tree Maker and Ancestry:
The person may not currently have matching records, or Ancestry may still be processing the tree.

Hints appear but records cannot be opened:
Check your Ancestry account and access to the relevant record collection.

Only one person has no hints:
Review that person's name, dates, locations, and family relationships.

An entire tree has no hints:
Check the Ancestry connection and synchronization status first.

Frequently Asked Questions

Why are my Ancestry hints not showing in Family Tree Maker?

The most common causes include synchronization problems, an inactive Ancestry connection, outdated software, incomplete individual information, or the absence of matching records.

Do I need to sync Family Tree Maker with Ancestry to receive hints?

Synchronization can be important because it allows information from your Family Tree Maker tree to be reflected in the connected Ancestry tree. Check that your tree is properly connected and synchronized.

Why does Ancestry show hints but Family Tree Maker does not?

If hints are visible on Ancestry but missing in Family Tree Maker, the problem may be related to the Family Tree Maker connection, synchronization, or local application data.

How long does it take for Ancestry hints to appear?

There is no guaranteed time for hints to appear. Newly added or changed information may need to be processed before potential matches are identified.

Can incomplete information prevent hints from appearing?

Yes. More complete information—such as approximate birth dates, locations, spouses, and parents—can make it easier for matching systems to identify potentially relevant records.

Final Thoughts

When Family Tree Maker Ancestry hints are not showing up, start with the simplest solutions: check your internet connection, verify the Ancestry account connection, synchronize your tree, and make sure Family Tree Maker is up to date.

If the problem affects only one individual, carefully review that person's information. If hints are available on Ancestry but not in Family Tree Maker, focus your troubleshooting on synchronization and the connection between the two services.

Finally, always keep a current backup of your fam