(An updated version of this post was published in January 2012.)
Until Sunday 5th September 2010, the LostCousins site is completely free. You can contact any relatives you are matched with even if you only have free standard membership. Ask your fellow family historians to spread the word, because the more people who use the site, the more likely you are to find someone who is researching your family.
LostCousins is probably the only web site that identifies (with virtually 100% accuracy) people who share the same ancestors. You do not waste time corresponding with people who are not related to you.
To use LostCousins you need to find your relatives in the census for England & Wales 1841, 1881 or (a recent addition) 1911, Scotland 1881, United States 1880, Canada 1881 or Ireland 1911. Then you enter the source/page details at LostCousins. Read their instructions (see 'Information - Read this first') before gathering and entering data, as requirements for each census are different. If you prepare well, entering the data is a lot quicker. Be sure to include brothers and sisters of your direct ancestors, because it is their descendants who are the 'cousins' you want to contact.
After entering some relatives, click 'Search', and the system checks whether someone else has entered identical data. Remember to log in periodically, go to your 'My Ancestors' page and click 'Search' again.
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