How to print a family tree (paper sizes and tips)

By Amit Tiwari · Published July 23, 2026 · Updated August 1, 2026

There’s a particular kind of satisfaction in seeing your family tree on paper instead of a screen. A file you scroll through is useful; a chart on the wall is something relatives gather around at holidays. This guide gets you from the finished tree in the editor to a print you’ll be proud to hang - and it points out the little decisions that make the difference between “fine” and “framed”.

First, choose what to include

Here’s the single most important thing to know: a whole family tree is usually too big to fit one page and stay readable. Cram fifty people onto A4 and everyone becomes a speck. The fix isn’t a bigger sheet - it’s printing the part that matters.

Open the Export / Print dialog in the editor and, under What to include, pick a focused view centred on one person:

My close family - that person with their parents, siblings, partner, and children. A tidy one-page snapshot.
Where I come from - their direct ancestors: parents, grandparents, and back. The classic pedigree.
My descendants - everyone who came from them. The one grandparents love.
My direct line - ancestors and descendants of one person, with cousins and in-laws stripped out so it stays narrow. This is the keepsake most people actually want to frame.
Whole tree - the everything view, for when you genuinely want it all (and don’t mind a big sheet or a poster).

Type a name to pick the centre person, then use the Generations control (2, 3, 4, 5, or All) to decide how far to reach. Fewer generations, bigger and clearer names. The live preview updates as you go, so you can see it fit before you export anything.

Start with the right kind of file

Whichever view you choose exports three ways:

PDF - the one you want for printing. Names and lines stay razor-sharp at any size.
PNG - a high-resolution image, perfect for firing off in a message or dropping into a chat where relatives can see it on their phones.
SVG - an editable vector file for designers.

If you’re heading to a printer, choose PDF. PNG is for screens and sharing.

Let the paper size sort itself out

Pick a paper size if you like, but you usually don’t have to. Once you’ve chosen a focused view, RootsPrint checks whether it fits readably and automatically bumps the sheet up (A4 → A3 → A2 → A1) if it needs more room - and never shrinks it below the size you picked. You’ll see a small note like “Enlarged to A3 so the whole tree fits on one sheet.”

If even the largest sheet can’t hold your selection at a readable size, that’s the app’s way of telling you the selection is simply too big for one page - narrow the scope, drop a generation or two, or reach for the Book (below).

Portrait or landscape?

This one’s quick, and the preview settles most arguments:

Landscape flatters wide trees - lots of siblings and cousins sitting side by side in the same generation.
Portrait flatters tall, narrow trees that reach back through many generations.

Honestly, just flip between the two in the preview and trust your eye. Whichever one makes your tree look less squeezed is the right answer.

Want the whole family? Two ways to have it all

Focused views are the readable way to print. But when you truly want everything:

A family Book turns the entire tree into a multi-page PDF - one family per page, with a clickable contents list and links between related pages. It’s the practical way to keep a complete, readable record. See how to export a family Book.
A tiled poster prints the whole chart at full size split across several A4 or Letter pages. Turn on the tiling option, trim the margins, and tape them together into one wall-sized tree. It sounds fiddly; it really isn’t. Twenty minutes at the kitchen table and you’ve got a wall chart for the price of some paper and tape.

The small touches that make it look professional

A few finishing moves separate a printout from a keepsake:

Fill in birth and death years. Dates give the chart depth - suddenly it’s not just names, it’s a span of history.
Add photos where you have them. Even a handful of portraits transforms how personal the tree feels.
Pick a theme before you export. Match it to the room it’ll hang in - something warm for a hallway, something clean for an office.
Print on heavier paper. A slightly thicker stock feels substantial in the hand and behind glass, and it’s a cheap upgrade.

One last thing before you hit print

Do yourself a favour and export a quick JSON backup before a big print run. It takes seconds and it means your tree - and all the arranging you’ve done - is safe no matter what. The GEDCOM vs JSON guide explains the how and why.

Ready to see it on paper? Open the editor and head to Export / Print.