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Own it, don’t rent it

Your family history shouldn’t live on someone else’s subscription

Subscription genealogy services rent you access to your own memories — and keep them on their cloud. Private Family Archive is the opposite: a private archive you deploy on your own server, pay for once, and own outright.

Most people storing their family history online don’t actually own it. Your photos, stories, and family tree sit on a company’s servers, behind a monthly fee. Stop paying and you lose access. Change of terms, a price hike, or a shutdown, and your family’s memories go with it.

Private Family Archive takes a different path. We deploy the complete software on a small server you control, hand you the keys, and step away. The entire archive is a single portable file you can back up, move, or export at any time. One price, paid once — then it’s yours for good.

How it compares

Buy it once vs. subscribe forever

Price
Private Family Archive$5,000 once + ~$10/mo VPS
Subscription services~$120–$500+/year, forever
Who owns it
Private Family ArchiveYou — your server, your data
Subscription servicesCompany-hosted; on their cloud
Family members
Private Family ArchiveUnlimited, no per-seat fee
Subscription servicesVaries by plan; often limited
Privacy
Private Family ArchivePrivate, login-required, 2FA, self-hosted
Subscription servicesOn their servers; used for matching/marketing
Photos / voices / documents
Private Family ArchiveOn your server, unlimited & exportable anytime
Subscription servicesResearch-first; media limits vary
Export everything
Private Family ArchiveCSV + original files, anytime
Subscription servicesGEDCOM tree usually; full media limited
Recipes, voices, memorials, stories
Private Family ArchiveBuilt in (incl. cookbook PDF)
Subscription servicesNot the focus
Historical records & DNA
Private Family ArchiveNot what this is for
Subscription servicesTheir core strength

Different jobs: services like Ancestry and MyHeritage help you research ancestors (records, DNA); Private Family Archive helps you preserve and own what your family already has — privately, forever. Many families use both.

What owning it means

Three things you get that a subscription can’t give you

You hold the keys

The software runs on your VPS under a perpetual license. No phone-home, no dependency on us — it keeps working even if we disappear.

Genuinely private

Login-required on every page, optional two-factor, self-hosted. Your family’s memories aren’t mined for matching or ads.

The whole family, free

Unlimited member accounts with roles — no per-seat fees. Invite parents, cousins, and grandkids without paying more.

Own your family’s history — for good.

$5,000, once. Self-hosted, private, yours forever.