The fastest way to make a good family tree is to start from one that already looks right. A blank page invites second-guessing — where does Grandma go, do couples sit side by side, how far back is "enough"? An example answers all of that before you type a single name. Below are the family tree examples people reach for most, what each one is good for, and how to turn any of them into a chart worth printing.
The examples most people copy
Every chart below is drawn from the same underlying tree, so you can switch a finished example between a fan and a pedigree layout without re-entering anyone.
- 3-generation example — you, your two parents and your four grandparents. Seven boxes that sit comfortably on a single portrait sheet. This is the example to copy for a kid's school assignment or your very first chart.
- 4-generation example — adds your eight great-grandparents, fifteen ancestor slots in all. It's the most-requested size for a framed wall chart: deep enough to feel like real history, shallow enough that every name stays readable.
- 5-generation example — reaches your sixteen great-great-grandparents, 31 slots total. As a traditional grid this gets wide and cramped, so the example here is drawn as a fan chart, which wraps those ancestors neatly around a circle.
If you're not sure how far back you can go, copy the 4-generation example and leave the boxes you can't fill empty. Nothing locks you in — you can extend it the moment a cousin or an old certificate fills in another name.
A family tree with photos
The single change that makes the biggest difference is photos. A name like "Mary Ellen Doyle" is data; her face is a memory. In Kindred every person in the tree can carry a portrait, so you can build a family tree picture where each box shows a face rather than just text.
A photo tree is the version people frame, gift, and bring to reunions, because anyone in the room can find themselves and their grandparents at a glance. A few small habits make it look its best:
- Crop portraits roughly square so they sit consistently in their boxes.
- Use the clearest photo you have of each person, even if it's a scan of an old print.
- Keep faces large in the frame — at chart scale, a tiny face in a big landscape gets lost.
Fan vs. pedigree, side by side
The two examples that confuse people most are the fan chart and the pedigree chart, because they show the very same ancestors in different shapes:
- A pedigree chart lists your direct ancestors in rows that read left to right. It's the familiar, formal document — clean and easy to hand to a relative.
- A fan chart arranges those same ancestors in a semicircle of colored generation bands radiating out from you. It fits far more generations onto one readable page and looks like genuine wall art, which is why it's our signature example.
The honest rule of thumb: choose a pedigree for three or four generations and a formal feel; choose a fan for five or more, or whenever you want something worth hanging up.
From an example to a chart on your wall
An example is the skeleton — your family is what brings it to life. Once you've swapped in your relatives, Kindred lays the chart out automatically: pick a theme, set how many generations to show, and the spacing solves itself. When you're happy, export a print-quality PNG or PDF, including large poster sizes for wall charts.
Everything up to that point is free and needs no account, and your data stays private in your own browser as you work. The only cost is a one-time $29 export unlock, which removes the watermark and opens premium themes, poster sizes, and GEDCOM export — no subscription, ever.
Pick an example above, replace the sample family with your own, and watch a finished chart take shape in minutes.