Your DNA Guide

What Your DNA Guide does

Your DNA Guide is a US-based, founder-owned education company that teaches consumers how to interpret and act on autosomal DNA test results for family history research. Founded in 2018 by Diahan Southard — a 25-year genetic genealogy veteran who began her career at the Sorenson Molecular Genealogy Foundation, which built the database that became AncestryDNA — the company serves individual DNA test takers ranging from pre-test consumers through intermediate and advanced hobbyist genealogists, with secondary reach into professional genealogists and adoptees searching for birth relatives.

The product portfolio is structured as a tiered learning ladder. Free entry points (a 5-part email course, a DNA test selection guide, a Typeform-driven quiz, and the Circle community) feed paid self-paced Tours ($39 each, one per major testing company: AncestryDNA, 23andMe, MyHeritage, FamilyTreeDNA, Living DNA), an Academy course catalog covering advanced techniques (endogamy, WATO, SMoMs, YDNA, Finding Living Relatives), a published book and workbook, downloadable quick-reference guides, and human coaching at $149 for 30 minutes or $249 for 60 minutes. Delivery runs on Circle for the Academy and community (migrated from Ruzuku in early 2025), Shopify for e-commerce, and WordPress for the main site.

The company makes money through direct-to-consumer one-time course and product sales, unit-priced coaching services, and recurring affiliate commissions from the five major DNA testing companies plus Amazon Associates. Go-to-market is content-led (SEO, blog, YouTube, social) augmented by founder-driven earned media, conference speaking, and a free community funnel. The company reports 10,000+ paid courses taught lifetime and 300,000+ free learning experiences delivered across 40+ countries, and operates with 11-50 employees on a bootstrapped, no-institutional-capital basis.

Name

Your DNA Guide

Legal name

Your DNA Guide

Website

https://yourdnaguide.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2018

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Your DNA Guide is a US-based, founder-owned education company that teaches individual DNA test takers and hobbyist genealogists how to interpret and apply autosomal DNA results for family history research, via online courses, coaching, books, and free community content delivered on Circle and Shopify.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Genetic Genealogy Education

NAICS

All Other Schools and Instruction (61169)

SIC

Services-Educational Services (8200)

akta.pro primary industry

Study Skills & Learning Strategies Coaching (EDAMAIAA)

Keywords

• Genetic genealogy education
• DNA testing courses
• Online genealogy learning
• Family history coaching
• DNA education services

Headquarters

HQ city

Coral Springs

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Digital Commerce or Content

Cost components

Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Supply Chain, Operations

Revenue model

1. Online Courses and Tours: Self-paced online video courses (DNA Tours) teaching how to understand and use DNA test results from major testing companies. Tours are priced at $39 each and include video instruction, workbooks, and 6 months of access.
2. Coaching Services: One-on-one expert genetic genealogy coaching sessions. Two tiers: Classic (30-minute, $149) and Premium (60-minute, $249). Includes live video consultation, session recording, and email follow-up summary.
3. Books and Workbooks: Sale of 'Your DNA Guide—the Book' and companion workbook in print and digital formats. Also includes the Monday Minutes Journal for ongoing learning support.
4. Quick Reference Guides: Sale of downloadable quick reference guides for specific DNA testing companies (23andMe, AncestryDNA, MyHeritage, FTDNA, Living DNA) and DNA concepts (Autosomal DNA, mtDNA, YDNA).
5. Affiliate Revenue: Earns affiliate commissions when users purchase DNA test kits through affiliate links to AncestryDNA, MyHeritage, 23andMe, FamilyTreeDNA, and Living DNA. Also participates in the Amazon Associates program.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels9 records

Core offering

Your DNA Guide sells self-paced and instructor-led educational courses that teach individuals how to interpret and use DNA test results for family history research. The product suite includes DNA Testing Company Tours (per-platform guided video courses), Academy Courses (advanced topics via the SPIN process), a published Book and Workbook, downloadable Quick Reference Guides, and one-on-one coaching sessions with certified genetic genealogy coaches.

Product overview

Your DNA Guide offers an educational platform centered on genetic genealogy courses and resources. The core products include DNA Testing Company Tours (guided video courses for AncestryDNA, 23andMe, FamilyTreeDNA, and MyHeritage), Academy Courses (using the SPIN methodology: Study, Practice, Implement, Next Steps), and the published book/workbook 'Your DNA Guide'. Supporting offerings include DNA Coaching Services (30 or 60-minute expert sessions), Quick Reference Guides for specific platforms, and free educational resources including email courses and guides for beginners. The company transitioned to the Circle platform in 2025 for its Academy and community features.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• DNA Testing Company Tours Step-by-step guided video courses that teach users how to navigate and understand DNA test results from major testing companies (AncestryDNA, 23andMe, FamilyTreeDNA, MyHeritage), each priced at $39 and including a PDF workbook and 6 months of access.
• Academy Courses Online learning platform featuring advanced courses taught using the proprietary SPIN process (Study, Practice, Implement, Next Steps), covering topics such as DNA Skills Workshop, YDNA for Genealogy, Shared Matches of Matches, Endogamy & DNA, Finding Living Relatives, and WATO. Delivered on the Circle community platform.
• Your DNA Guide - the Book A comprehensive published book that teaches users to interpret their DNA results and apply the findings to family history research, available in print and digital formats.
• Your DNA Guide - the Workbook A companion spiral-bound workbook with exercises and activities that reinforce concepts from the main book.
• Monday Minutes Journal A journaling product for organizing DNA research and tracking discoveries over time.
• Quick Reference Guides A series of compact downloadable reference guides covering specific DNA testing platforms (23andMe, AncestryDNA, Family Finder at FTDNA, mtDNA, MyHeritage DNA, YDNA) and techniques such as Finding an Ancestor.
• DNA Coaching Services One-on-one expert consultations with certified genetic genealogy coaches offering live video sessions of 30 or 60 minutes to review specific DNA questions and provide personalized guidance, with a session recording and email follow-up summary.

Quantifiable outcome

• 10,000+ DNA courses taught to students
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers8 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration3 records

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Nine partnerships are on record, tiered core, major and minor.

• Circle (by Mighty Networks)coreTechnology or IntegrationCircle is the eLearning and community platform powering Your DNA Guide Academy. Customers access courses, participate in discussions, and engage with the learning community through Circle. The platform was adopted in early 2025, transitioning from the previous Ruzuku platform.
• ShopifycoreTechnology or IntegrationShopify powers the Your DNA Guide e-commerce store (shop.yourdnaguide.com), processing payments for books, workbooks, and quick guides. Shopify handles secure transaction processing and shopping cart functionality.
• WordPress/AutomatticcoreTechnology or IntegrationThe main website (yourdnaguide.com) is hosted on WordPress. Automattic's privacy policies govern certain data handling aspects of the WordPress platform.
• AncestryDNAmajorGTM or Marketing PartnerAffiliate partnership where Your DNA Guide earns commissions when users purchase AncestryDNA tests through affiliate links. Your DNA Guide provides educational content helping customers understand and use their AncestryDNA results through dedicated Tours and tutorials.
• MyHeritagemajorGTM or Marketing PartnerAffiliate partnership and educational content partnership. Your DNA Guide offers a dedicated MyHeritage DNA Tour and earns commissions on test kit sales. Company provides education on MyHeritage's genetic genealogy tools.
• 23andMeminorGTM or Marketing PartnerAffiliate partnership for DNA test referrals. Your DNA Guide offers educational content including a 23andMe Tour to help customers understand their results.
• FamilyTreeDNAminorGTM or Marketing PartnerAffiliate partnership and educational content partner. Your DNA Guide provides Tours and guides for FamilyTreeDNA's Family Finder, YDNA, and mtDNA tests.
• Living DNAminorGTM or Marketing PartnerAffiliate partnership and educational content partner for UK-based DNA testing company. Your DNA Guide provides transfer guidance and educational content for Living DNA customers.
• DiscoverFamily.netminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerNon-profit organization supporting people finding birth parents. Founder Troy Olson wrote guest blog post on Your DNA Guide about using DNA for birth family searches. DiscoverFamily.net offers free support through volunteer 'search angels' and refers members to Your DNA Guide for education.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Others

• RootsTech: Major annual genealogy conference and content platform hosted by FamilySearch. Diahan Southard speaks there, and it serves as both a customer acquisition channel and a content showcase for the genetic genealogy education category.
• DiscoverFamily.net: Non-profit supporting adoptees and people with unknown parentage, with volunteer search angels and DNA search education. Already a referral partner and serves overlapping use-case segments (adoptees, biological family searches).
• International Society of Genetic Genealogy (ISOGG): Non-profit industry association for genetic genealogists with educational resources, wiki, and community. Comparable as an educational and community resource targeting the same practitioner audience.

Direct peers

• Legacy Tree Genealogists: Operates Family Tree Webinars, one of the largest genealogy education libraries online. Direct competitor in paid and free genetic genealogy webinars and courses, sharing the same consumer audience and educational product format.
• The DNA Geek: Long-running blog and educational resource covering genetic genealogy concepts, tools, and case studies. Directly comparable as a DNA-focused educational content creator serving hobbyist and serious genealogists.

Broad incumbents

• MyHeritage: Major DNA testing company offering integrated family tree and educational resources. Overlaps in consumer DNA education and is also an affiliate partner, making it both peer and channel.
• FamilySearch: Free genealogy platform operated by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints offering extensive learning resources and the RootsTech conference. Competes in the free genealogy education layer where Your DNA Guide also operates.
• Ancestry (Ancestry.com): Largest consumer DNA testing company with a broad genealogy platform and first-party educational content (Ancestry Academy, help articles). Comparable as both a content competitor and an affiliate partner of Your DNA Guide.
• 23andMe: Major consumer DNA testing company with educational content around health and ancestry results. Competes for attention around DNA result interpretation and is also a paid affiliate partner.

Emerging players

• Kitty Cooper's Blog: Personal blog and education site focused on autosomal DNA tools and chromosome mapping. Overlapping niche educational content targeted at the same intermediate-to-advanced DNA learner segment.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xtwitter.com/dnadiahan
• YouTubeyoutube.com/yourdnaguide
• Facebookfacebook.com/YourDNAGuide
• Instagraminstagram.com/diahansouthard
• TikToktiktok.com/@yourdnaguide
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/your-dna-guide-llc

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles4 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Your DNA Guide