A family tree template gives you the hardest part of genealogy for free: a clear structure to pour your relatives into. Instead of staring at a blank page wondering where Grandma goes, you start from a chart that already knows a parent sits above a child and a couple sits side by side. All you add is the names.
Below are the template sizes most people actually use, what each is good for, and how to turn any of them into a print-quality chart you'd be happy to frame.
Which template size do you need?
The right size depends on how far back you can fill in — and on whether you're printing on a sheet of paper or a poster.
- 3 generations — you, your parents, and your four grandparents. Seven boxes that fit comfortably on a single portrait page. The best starting point for kids' school projects and first-time genealogists.
- 4 generations — adds your eight great-grandparents, for fifteen ancestor slots. This is the most-requested size for a framed family chart because it shows real depth while staying readable.
- 5 generations — reaches your sixteen great-great-grandparents (31 slots in total). As a traditional grid this gets wide and cramped; as a fan chart it stays elegant, which is why we recommend the radial layout once you pass four generations.
Not sure how far back you can go? Start with a 4-generation template and leave the boxes you can't fill blank. You can always extend it later — nothing locks you in.
Blank, printable, or fill-in-online?
There are three honest ways to use a template, and Kindred supports all of them:
- Print a blank chart and complete it by hand at the kitchen table — lovely for interviewing older relatives, who often remember more when there's paper in front of them.
- Fill it in on screen in the editor, typing names, dates and places, adding photos, and rearranging as you learn more.
- Import a GEDCOM you already have and let the template populate itself in seconds.
Whichever route you take, the data stays yours: Kindred saves your tree privately in your own browser as you work, and you can download a portable copy at any time.
From a template to a chart worth framing
A template is the skeleton; the chart is what goes on the wall. When your tree is ready, Kindred renders it two ways from the same information:
- A fan chart — your signature radial layout that fans ancestors out in colored generation bands. It's the most space-efficient way to show four, five or six generations on one page.
- A pedigree chart — the classic left-to-right ancestor chart genealogists have used for centuries, clean and formal.
Pick a theme, set how many generations to show, and the layout solves itself. Export a print-quality PNG or PDF — including large poster sizes (A2 and up) — whenever you're ready. Building and previewing are free; the one-time $29 export unlock removes the watermark and opens the premium themes and poster sizes.
A quick word on doing it well
Two small habits make a family tree template far more useful years later:
- Record places, not just names. "Born 1931, Cork, Ireland" is worth ten times "born 1931" when a cousin picks up the search later.
- Note your sources. Even a scribbled "from Grandad's army record" turns a guess into evidence and saves someone re-checking it.
Ready to start? Open any template above in the free editor, or import a GEDCOM and watch the boxes fill themselves in.