Dante Labs vs 23andMe
Dante Labs vs 23andMe: your whole genome, or a sample of it.
23andMe reads hundreds of thousands of chosen positions on a genotyping chip. Dante Labs sequences all 6.4 billion base pairs of your genome at 30X, and turns them into 810+ physician-ready reports. Here is what that difference means for your health, your data and your results over time.
How each test reads your DNA
Two ways to read DNA, two very different amounts of it.
23andMe · Genotyping chip
Hundreds of thousands of chosen positions
A custom Illumina Global Screening Array checks known positions, about 0.02% of the genome. A variant that is not on the chip is not seen. Exome sequencing, the protein-coding 1–2%, is only in its top US tier.
Dante Labs · Whole genome, 30X
All 6.4 billion base pairs
Every position read about 30 times on average, coding and non-coding, identifying 4.6–5 million variants. Kept as a permanent record that new reports are read from.
A chip answers the questions it was designed to ask.
A genome can answer the ones nobody has asked yet.
Side by side
23andMe and Dante Labs, point by point.
What each test reads, the health reports it gives you, what you get back and what it costs.
| 23andMeGenotyping chip | Dante LabsWhole genome, 30X | |
|---|---|---|
| Method | Genotyping chip; exome sequencing in Total Health only | Whole genome sequencing at 30X |
| How much of the genome | About 0.02% on the chip; 1–2% with the exome | All 6.4 billion base pairs |
| Rare and new variants | Only where the chip or exome looks | Read wherever they are |
| Health | ||
| BRCA1/BRCA2 | 44 selected variants | Both genes sequenced end to end |
| Health reports | 50+ screenings and carrier reports with Health | 810+ physician-ready reports with Premium |
| Drug response | 3 genes: CYP2C19, DPYD, SLCO1B1 | Read from your whole genome, no second test |
| Clinical use | 23andMe advises confirming results in a clinical setting before acting | Physician-ready, classified against ACMG guidelines |
| Reports over time | Limited to the positions on the chip | Updated as the science advances, no new sample |
| Ancestry | 5,000+ regions; relatives among 15M+ people | Included in every plan |
| Your data and the kit | ||
| Raw data | Genotype file, for informational use only | Full FASTQ, BAM and VCF, always free to download |
| Sample | Saliva | Dried blood spot, collected at home |
| ResultsAfter the lab receives the sample | About 3–4 weeks | Typically 6–8 weeks |
| Where it is sold | Health in the US, Canada, the UK and five EU countries; ancestry only elsewhere | 100+ countries, free shipping |
| Price | US, first year: $99 ancestry, $199 with health, $499 with Total Health | Kit with Core: $449. Premium, for all 810+ reports: $99 more the first year, then $99 a year |
| Order your kit |
23andMe details are from its US store and help centre, checked on 12 October 2026; its membership tiers renew annually. Products and prices change, so check 23andMe for its current offer.
Health findings
Why the method matters for a health result.
A genotyping chip can only report a variant it was built to look for. 23andMe is clear about this. Its BRCA1/BRCA2 report covers 44 selected variants that, in its own words, “do not represent the majority of the BRCA1/BRCA2 variants in people of most ethnicities”, and it advises that results be confirmed in a clinical setting before any medical action.
Whole genome sequencing does not start from a list. It reads both genes base by base, alongside the rest of your genome, so a rare or family-specific variant is still read. Variants are then classified against ACMG guidelines, the standard clinical geneticists use.
The difference grows over time. A chip result is limited to the positions on the chip. A sequenced genome can be read again as new variant–disease links are published, which is how Dante updates your reports without a new sample.
Choosing
If ancestry is all you want.
23andMe is built for ancestry: it matches you against more than 15 million people and costs less up front. If you want a complete, clinical-grade read of your DNA that a doctor can work from, and that keeps answering new questions as the science grows, that is what whole genome sequencing is for.
Already have 23andMe data? You can upload it to Dante for interpretation, then sequence your whole genome when you want the complete picture.
Questions
Dante Labs vs 23andMe: common questions
No. Its standard kits use genotyping, which reads hundreds of thousands of selected positions. Its Total Health tier, sold only in the US, adds exome sequencing of the protein-coding regions. No 23andMe product sequences the whole genome.
They measure different things. Genotyping is reliable at the positions it tests but cannot see variants outside them, and 23andMe says only a subset of the markers in its raw data have been individually validated. Whole genome sequencing at 30X reads every position about 30 times on average and identifies 4.6–5 million variants, including rare ones.
Yes. Data from 23andMe, AncestryDNA or similar providers can be uploaded for Dante's reports and interpretation. A chip file only holds the positions the chip read, so it cannot stand in for a sequenced genome.
23andMe filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in March 2025. In July 2025 its consumer and research business was bought by TTAM Research Institute, a nonprofit led by co-founder Anne Wojcicki, which now trades as 23andMe Research Institute. It still sells kits, and customers can delete their data from their account settings.
You control your data: download, delete or anonymise it at any time. Dante does not sell personal or genomic data, and nothing is shared without your explicit consent. Data handling follows GDPR and HIPAA.
23andMe suits ancestry and finding relatives. For health questions, such as hereditary risk, drug response and carrier status, whole genome sequencing reads everything a chip skips, and your reports grow as the science does without a new sample.
Method
How we compared.
This page is written by Dante Labs. 23andMe details come from its public website and help centre (US store), checked on 12 October 2026. Dante Labs details are from this site. Sources:
- 23andMe: the science behind the test
- 23andMe: compare DNA tests
- 23andMe: Total Health
- 23andMe help centre: downloading raw data
- 23andMe help centre: how long results take
- 23andMe help centre: where kits are sold
- 23andMe: TTAM Research Institute completes acquisition
Last reviewed 12 October 2026.
Read your whole genome, not a sample of it.
810+ physician-ready reports with Premium, from one sample collected at home.
Free shipping · Results in 6–8 weeks
