It is frustrating when you are waiting for a critical update—like your DNA results or a password reset link—and your inbox remains empty.
If you are not receiving messages from Ancestry.com, the issue usually stems from one of three places: your notification settings on the Ancestry website, your email provider’s spam filters, or a “suppression list” error.
This guide will walk you through the steps to get your emails flowing again so you don’t miss out on tracking your DNA kit status or important billing updates.
Step 1: Check Ancestry Email Notification Settings (DNA Updates, Hints, Billing)
Before blaming your email provider, make sure you actually asked Ancestry to email you. If you accidentally unsubscribed from one type of alert, it might have turned off others.
- Log In: Go to Ancestry.com.
- Go to Preferences: Click your Profile (top right) > Account Settings > Email Settings.
- Review the List: You will see various categories like “DNA Updates,” “Subscription,” and “New Hints.”
- Enable All: Ensure the boxes are checked for the alerts you need.
- Click Save: Even if they looked correct, toggle them off and on again to refresh the system.
Step 2: Find Ancestry Emails in Gmail Promotions/Spam or Outlook Junk Folders
This is the most common culprit.
- Gmail Users: Ancestry emails often get sorted into the “Promotions” or “Social” tabs rather than the Primary inbox. Be sure to check those tabs.
- Outlook/Yahoo: Check the “Junk” folder.
The Fix: If you find an Ancestry email in spam, move it to your Inbox and mark it as “Not Spam.” This trains your provider to trust them in the future.
Step 3: Whitelist Ancestry.com ([email protected] + *@email.ancestry.com)
If your email provider is blocking Ancestry entirely, the emails won’t even make it to your spam folder. You must add Ancestry to your “Safe Senders” or “Contacts” list.
Add these domains to your contacts:
[email protected]*@ancestry.com*@email.ancestry.com
How to do it:
- Gmail: Open Contacts > Create Contact > Add the email addresses above.
- Outlook: Settings > Mail > Junk Email > Safe Senders and Domains > Add
ancestry.com.
Step 4: Ancestry Bounce List/Suppression Fix (Call 1-800-262-3787 Support)
This is a technical issue many users don’t know about. If your inbox was full or inactive when Ancestry tried to send you an email in the past, their system received a “Bounce” error. To protect their server reputation, Ancestry automatically stops sending emails to addresses that bounce multiple times.
The Fix: You cannot fix this yourself. You must contact Ancestry Support (1-800-262-3787) and ask them to “Check if my email is on the suppression list.” If it is, they can manually remove it.
Step 5: Change Ancestry Email Address (Last Resort for Blocked Providers)
If you have tried everything above and still cannot receive password resets or account recovery links, your email provider might be permanently blocking Ancestry’s IP address.
In this case, the fastest solution is to switch to a different email provider (like Gmail or Outlook).
- Go to Account Settings on Ancestry.
- Click Edit next to your Email.
- Enter a new email address.
- Verify: Ancestry will send a confirmation link to the new email. Once you click it, the change is permanent.
Conclusion
Most email issues are resolved simply by checking the “Promotions” tab or updating your notification preferences. However, if you suspect you are on a “Bounce List,” a quick call to support is often faster than trying to troubleshoot technical filters on your own. Once resolved, you should immediately receive any backlog of notifications, including confirmations if you recently decided to end your membership.
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