The Genealogist website

Peter suggested that I post about my experience with this site. I had wanted to look at the Lloyd George Valuation and other land records but was put off by the price. In the end I signed up for a year because it was offerred for less than eighty pounds which I thought reasonable. I would never get access more cheaply.
The land records have been brilliant and I expect I have only discovered the tip of the iceberg.
That said, there is good coverage for Greater London for the Valuation so it is best to see if the area you want is covered.
I have found that my great grand father's brother owned a number of properties locally plus descriptions of other houses inhabited by family. I have found land that was owned in Suffolk by ancestors relations. For me it has been worthwhile.
I am not sure how good the census info is; it may be good but I haven't used it enough to say as I had a lot of census info already.I have filled a few gaps but they may have been on Ancestry or findmypast.
The 1939 register is only a transcription, whereas it is good to see the proper page, I think, but better than nothing.
There are other records on there, baptisms, burials, etc but it depends on what you are looking for.
I would not suggest it for someone who was starting their tree as I think Findmypast or Ancestry would be better.
I put my tree on their treeview and looked at their hints out of curiousity; I did not think they were helpful, however if you find a person, there is often a symbol on the transcribed record which suggests their death or other event, which may be relevant.
Beneath the transcriptions of the census there is often a map showing the building, thoroughfare or parish in question. I can't say if they are always accurate because I would not know, they may be. I have found them helpful, though. There are good maps for free on the National Library of Scotland.
If you are thinking of signing up I would suggest researching what is on there and whether you want it first.
When I have had a good look at this, in a year or so, I shall be back to Ancestry. I think the more sites that can be explored, the better, finances permitting! (Don't forget Freecen and Freereg)

 

Sometimes you can find folk in the census at the Genealogist who remain elusive on other sites, and sometimes their census images are better too.

They also have the full range of pre-1837 non-conformist records from TNA, and while many of these are now on other sites, again I often find folk show up there when I can’t find them on other sites.

 

I have not tried the census records so far because I have already used FindMyPast and Ancestry and have found most of what I want. I might try searching for missing records later. I have searched for parish baptisms, marriages and burials, but have not so far found anything that is not on FindMyPast, which seems to have better coverage for the areas that interest me. Searching has proved to be easier on FindMyPast. I am now looking at tithe maps for farms in South Wales - but the National Library of Wales has these online, and again I find their search easier and more likely to give the right information. I would like to see the Lloyd George Valuation, but I suspect that it will be a long time before my area appears.
I haven't given up on the Genealogist, but it has been disappointing so far, and I am unlikely to renew my subscription, even at the reduced price.
As Kate said above, the more sites explored, the better. I have found a few records on Freereg that I have not found elsewhere (and I have also contributed!)

 

I have nearly always found the census records on TG clearer to read than FMP or Ancestry. I think they rescanned them. I have only touched the tip of the iceberg with the maps, hoping to get more time to investigate them further. I took up a similar offer a couple of years ago so am able to renew at the same price. I wouldn’t recommend it as anyone’s sole subscription website but it’s got a lot of very useful stuff.

 

I completely agree with you, Paul. I will not be renewing as I hope to find what I want by the time my sub expires. I found some land records which are interesting but otherwise, I don't find the site as useful as Ancestry or FMP.