GEDCOM

FamilySearch GEDCOM, or simply GEDCOM ( JED-kom, acronym of Genealogical Data Communication), is an open file format and the de facto standard specification for storing genealogical data. It was developed by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church), the operators of FamilySearch, to aid in the research and sharing of genealogical information. A common usage is as a standard format for the backup and transfer of family tree data between different genealogy software and websites, most of which support importing from and exporting to GEDCOM format. GEDCOM is defined as a plain text file, using UTF-8 encoding as of version 7.0. This file contains genealogical information about individuals such as names, events, and relationships; metadata links these records together. GEDCOM 7.0, released in 2021, is the most recent version of the GEDCOM specification as of July 2024. However, its predecessor, GEDCOM 5.5.1, remains the industry's format standard for the exchange of genealogical data. First released as a draft standard in 1999, GEDCOM 5.5.1 received only minor updates in the subsequent 20 years leading up to the release of 5.5.1 final in 2019. To address its shortcomings, some genealogy programs introduced proprietary extensions to GEDCOM which are not always recognized by other programs, such as GEDCOM 5.5 EL (Extended Locations). Efforts have been made to have 7.0 more widely adopted since its release. FamilySearch intends to be GEDCOM 7.0 compatible in the third quarter 2022 and Ancestry.com is planning for 7.0 compatibility, but has not yet specified an implementation date.