Building a family tree or genogram is a powerful way to visualise historical relationships and can help people to trace their roots and understand patterns within families. They can bring insights into family heritage, health, and social structures, and are often used in genealogy, social work, and counselling.

In this guide, we’ll explain what a genogram is, break down key symbols, show you how to make your own, and explore five common family tree examples. We’ll also show you how Adobe Express can help you bring your design to life, even if you’ve never made one before.

What is a genogram?

A genogram is a type of family diagram that maps things like relationships, heritage, and family dynamics across generations. A family tree is one type of genogram, but genograms can include further details like emotional, cultural, or medical information too.

They were developed in the 1980s for family therapy and social work and are still common in healthcare, therapy, social work, education, and genealogy today. Usually, a family tree or genogram will combine symbols and lines to represent the relationships and structure of families.

The main benefits of using a genogram are to:

• Track family history over generations
• Highlight any hereditary health conditions
• Identify emotional patterns and connections
• Carry out cultural or intergenerational studies
• Clarify caregiving roles, in social work
• Get a deeper understanding of identity and heritage
• Create structured family overviews for legal or estate planning

Key genogram symbols.

Genograms use standardised symbols to help readers make sense of family structures and relationships at a glance. Knowing what each symbol means will create clarity and consistency when you’re creating your own genogram.

Use these symbols to build a clear family tree diagram or a more complex genogram example:

• Gender
  • squares = male
  • circles = female
  • diamonds = unspecified/unknown
• Marriage: a straight horizontal line between partners
• Separation/Divorce: a double slash or broken line across marriage line
• Children: a vertical line descending from parents, in birth order (left to right)
• Death: X over the symbol
• Conflict: a jagged line between individuals
• Close relationship: a double line between individuals
• Adoption: a dashed line from adoptive parents
• Living arrangements: encircling multiple members in the same household.

How to make a genogram.

Creating a genogram is easier than it sounds, especially when it’s broken down into manageable steps. Here’s how to get started:

1. Gather your family history.

Speak to any family members to gather relevant names, dates, locations, and relationship histories.

For healthcare or social work, you should also collect behavioural or medical patterns.

2. Choose your symbols and colours. Etc.

Decide how you’ll show different relationships, genders, deaths, or emotional dynamics and remember to use consistent colours or icons for clarity. Adobe Express design tools make this easy.

3. Decide on your structure.

Use a linear, branching, or layered format to structure your genogram, depending on how many generations you’re showing. It’s easiest to start with yourself (or the subject of your genogram) and work outwards or upwards.

4. Start building your diagram.

Use software or templates like the Adobe Express infographic maker to create examples of a family tree and start placing individuals and connecting them. You can add extra layers like emotions, marriages, or adoption) as needed.

5. Edit, refine and share.

Double check names, dates, and details and use an image editor to make sure your genogram looks how you want it to. Then download, print or digitally present your genogram example using Adobe Express.

5 genogram and family tree examples.

Below are five types of genogram examples and family tree examples with a different focus and purpose. Use them as inspiration for building your own.

1. Family genograms.

The most common use of family trees is to visualise your immediate and extended family connections, including parents, siblings, grandparents and cousins. This is popular in genealogy and cultural heritage projects.

2. Business genograms.

You can use a genogram to map relationships within a family business. This can show ownership, reporting lines, and succession planning and is useful for family-run companies.

3. Medical genograms.

Track hereditary conditions, diagnoses, and patterns across generations using genograms. This is often used in healthcare and counselling settings to understand family histories.

4. Heritage genograms.

Show cultural backgrounds, languages spoken, country of origin and migration paths. This is ideal for anyone seeking to explore their identity.

5. Relationship genograms.

Genograms don’t have to be about direct family. They can also visualise emotional connections like closeness, conflict, or estrangement. This is especially useful in social work, therapy, and personal reflection exercises.

How can Adobe Express help you create useful genograms?

Adobe Express helps you build and personalise your family tree diagram or genogram quickly with templates, icons, and creative tools.

1. Browse free templates.

Get started with layouts and templates built for your family tree examples. Then customise them to include icons, lines, and text where needed.

2. Experiment with infographics.

Use infographic-style visuals to combine your symbols, colours and notes. You can also add extra data like health, location, or history into your diagram.

3. Add and edit photos.

Upload family photos or use icons to represent individuals in the family tree. You can edit the size, framing, and colours to suit your layout.

Present your family tree with the AI presentation maker.

If you want to share your genogram or family tree example, try the Adobe Express AI Presentation Maker. You can transform your design into a slideshow in minutes and add generation overviews, emotional patterns, and key highlights.

It’s perfect for school projects, family reunions, or professional case files and you don’t need any design experience. Just enter a prompt like “three-generation medical genogram” or “family business structure” and let the AI tool suggest a layout for you. Then, you can customise it with text, photos, or charts before exporting or sharing online.

Try Adobe Express for free now

Good to know.

What are the rules of genograms?

Keep symbols consistent, include at least three generations, and make sure relationships are clearly mapped. Label each person and clarify any significant emotional or health-related connections.

Do you include aunts and uncles in a family genogram?

Yes, extended relatives like aunts, uncles, and cousins can be included, especially in genograms that are focused on medical history, heritage, or large family networks.

Do genograms include names?

Yes, typically full names are used. You can also include birth years, roles like brother or maternal grandfather, or initials which is especially common in confidential or professional contexts.

Is Adobe Express free?

Yes, our free plan offers many core features including thousands of templates, photo editing and effects, animation, and 5 GB of storage. See our pricing page for details and to compare plans.