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Open a GEDCOM file online: free and without uploading it

· 4 min read · The Memory Palace Team

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Your uncle spent thirty years on the family tree and has sent you the file: family.ged, four megabytes, more than two thousand names. Yours is among them, with your date of birth and where you live, and so are your children's. You want to look inside. You do not want to upload it somewhere without knowing what happens to it.

Last checked: 3 October 2026. We make The Memory Palace, a small app made by one person, Bram, in Leuven, Belgium. One of the viewers below is ours.

The short answer

Open the file in a viewer that reads it in your browser instead of uploading it. The web page loads a small program into your browser, and that program reads the file on your own device. Several such viewers are free and need no account. Whether one really uploads nothing, you can check yourself in a minute.

Viewers that read the file in your browser

ViewerWhat the maker saysAccountLargest file
The Memory PalaceRead in your browser, never uploadedNo100 MB
KinfolyRead and parsed entirely in your browser, never sent to a serverNo50 MB
AncestorIQParsed entirely in your browser, never sent to a serverNoNot stated
TreeAliveYour family file never leaves your browserNo30 MB
GEDCOM ExplorerProcessed locally with JavaScript, never sent to a serverNoNot stated
Topola Genealogy ViewerYour files do not leave your computerNone mentionedNot stated

For the other differences, such as which GEDCOM versions and languages each viewer handles, see our comparison of free GEDCOM viewers.

How to open the file, step by step

  1. Have the file ready. A GEDCOM file ends in .ged or .gedcom. If it came as a zip, unpack it first.
  2. Open a viewer. For example The Memory Palace's GEDCOM viewer, on a computer or a phone.
  3. Choose the file or drag it in. It is read within seconds.
  4. Read the result. Our viewer shows how many people, families, generations and surnames are in it, the years the tree spans, your longest line back to the oldest known ancestor, and where the gaps are.
  5. Close the page. Without an account, nothing is kept.

How to check for yourself that nothing is uploaded

The offline test, for everyone. Load the viewer's page. Then disconnect from the internet: switch off Wi-Fi, or turn on flight mode. Now choose the file. If the viewer still shows your tree, the file is read on your device. This test shows the viewer does not need a server. It does not prove that a page will not send the file later, once you are back online. That is what the second test is for.

The Network tab, a little more precise. On a computer, press F12 (on a Mac, Option, Command and I) and open the Network tab. Then choose the file. If no new request appears that is roughly the size of your file, it stays on your device. Small requests for statistics or fonts are normal; a request of several megabytes as you open the file would not be.

You can try both on our own viewer. The part that reads the file has no network connection: it only works with what is already in your browser. You will see one small request as the file is read: it records anonymous counts, such as how many people and generations the tree holds, unless you declined analytics. Names, dates and the file itself are not sent.

When uploading does make sense

Uploading is not always wrong, it should just be a choice. If you want to share your research, FamilySearch accepts GEDCOM files; they go into the Pedigree Resource File, where all FamilySearch users can search and view them. If you want to work on the tree together with relatives, you also need a server. In those cases, remove living people first, or check how the program treats them.

What a GEDCOM file gives away

A GEDCOM file is plain text. Each person is in it with a name, often with a date and place of birth, parents, spouses and children, sometimes with notes and addresses. Photos and documents are not inside, at most references to files. Whoever has the file has a fairly complete picture of the family, including the living. That is why the minute for the test is worth it.

Sources

Questions people ask

Can I open a GEDCOM file online without uploading it?

Yes. Several free viewers read the file with JavaScript inside your browser, without sending it to a server: among them The Memory Palace's viewer, Kinfoly, AncestorIQ, TreeAlive, GEDCOM Explorer and Topola. You do not need an account.

How can I tell whether a GEDCOM viewer uploads my file?

First read what the maker promises. Then check yourself: load the page, disconnect from the internet and choose the file. If the viewer still works, it reads locally. The Network tab of the developer tools (F12) is more precise: if no request carrying the file appears when you open it, the file stays on your device.

Why is uploading a family tree file a concern?

A GEDCOM file often contains living people with full names, dates of birth and places of residence. If you only want to look inside, there is no need to hand that over. At FamilySearch, for example, an uploaded GEDCOM goes into the Pedigree Resource File, where all users can view it.

Do I need an account to view a GEDCOM file?

No, not with any of the browser viewers in this guide. An account only comes into it when you want to keep or edit the tree.

How large can the GEDCOM file be?

It depends on the viewer. The Memory Palace's viewer reads up to 100 MB, Kinfoly up to 50 MB and TreeAlive up to 30 MB. Others do not state a limit. Very large files can be slow on an older device.

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