Genotyping vs. Whole Genome Sequencing
Understand exactly what each test reads from your DNA — and why the choice matters for ancestry, health, and everything in between.
Genotyping
Microarray / SNP Array
Entry-level genetic testing
Consumer microarray tests check a fixed set of pre-selected genetic positions. Ancestry resolution depends entirely on which SNP array was used. GSA arrays cover ~170k positions on the expanded ~2.1M AADR panel while services like Ancestry.com cover ~350k. Not suitable for clinical use.
- Low cost option
- Fast turnaround
- Established consumer platforms
- Misses 99.95%+ of the genome
- Ancestry accuracy limited by array choice
1x WGS
Whole Genome Sequencing
Better than any microarray test
1x WGS sequences the entire genome at 1x coverage. It captures roughly 600,000–800,000 SNPs with qpAdm coverage on the expanded ~2.1M AADR reference — substantially more than any microarray test. Great for ancestry and basic health insights.
- More data than any microarray / genotyping test
- ~600–800k markers (qpAdm) on ~2.1M AADR ancestry panel
- Deep subclades for both mitochondrial and Y-haplogroups (vs. genotyping)
- Covers entire genome (low depth)
- Low depth — some variants may be missed
- Not suitable for clinical diagnosis
5x WGS
Whole Genome Sequencing
Most popular choice
5x WGS provides 5 times more data than 1x, recovering on the order of ~1.45–1.6 million markers on the expanded ~2.1M AADR panel for very high ancestry resolution. Detects rare variants, enables richer health insights, and is the most popular tier among GenoConnect users.
- Near-complete ~2.1M AADR — max practical ancestry resolution
- 5x more variants than 1x WGS
- Deeper subclades for both maternal and paternal haplogroups
- 5x BAM accepted by Y-Full
- Not clinical/hospital grade
- Structural variant detection partial
5x WGS + 100x WES
Hybrid Clinical-Grade
Best value for health concerns
The hybrid combines 5x whole genome sequencing with 100x whole exome sequencing — the protein-coding regions most relevant to disease. Mitochondrial DNA is sequenced at 3000×, providing highly accurate results for mitochondrial markers and better mt haplogroup detection. This is our suggested test if you have health concerns, family disease history, or want clinical-grade insights without full 30x costs.
- Same ~2.1M AADR ancestry tier as 5x WGS (~1.45–1.6M markers)
- mt DNA at 3000× — mitochondrial markers & mt haplogroups better detected
- 100x deep exome — clinical coding variant detection
- Best value for health & disease risk analysis
- Structural variant detection limited (WGS component only)
- Not full 30x genome-wide depth
15x WGS
Whole Genome Sequencing
Premium — best value clinical grade
15x WGS delivers clinical-grade depth across your entire genome at the best value premium price point. Every base is read ~15 times, capturing the full ~2.1M AADR reference panel for maximum ancestry resolution while providing high-confidence variant calls for SNPs, indels, and structural variants — meeting clinical and research standards used by institutions worldwide.
- Full ~2.1M AADR — entire reference panel; more novel/private SNPs than 5x for Y-Full subclades
- Clinical-grade — meets hospital and research standards
- High-confidence variant calling across entire genome
- Detects structural variants and copy number variants
- Premium pricing
Why does this matter?
Unlike SNP arrays that only check a fixed set of pre-selected positions, Whole Genome Sequencing reads your entire genome. Even our entry-level 1x WGS captures on the order of 600,000–800,000 SNPs (qpAdm coverage) on the expanded ~2.1M AADR reference — more than Ancestry.com-style files (~350k) or GSA (~170k).5x WGS recovers on the order of 1.45–1.6 million markers on that panel; 15x WGS reaches the full ~2.1 million-marker AADR set — our highest ancestry resolution.
Ready to get started?
All GenoConnect kits include at least 1x WGS — already better than any microarray test. Upgrade to 5x, Hybrid, or 30x during checkout or after kit activation.