Custom Reports

This feature offers various reports models that can be fully customized according to your needs.

Click on the menu (Windows) Reports > Custom Reports; (Mac) Documents > Custom Reports and select the type of report you are interested in among the default models included in the application: Ancestors, Descendants, Persons, Events, Places, Sources. You can also use the shortcut in the toolbar.

The selected report opens up in a new Heredis window, which allows you to consult the data in your file while continuing to work on your genealogy.

Note: you can also open several custom reports at the same time if you wish to.

Ancestors Custom Report

The data thus displayed depends on the type of default report selected:

• Persons Reports allow you to display all the persons in your genealogy
• Ancestors Reports display the primary person and his/her ancestors, grouped by generation
• Descendants Reports display the primary person and his/her descendants, grouped by generation
• Events Reports allow you to display all the events saved in your genealogy
• Facts Reports, from Heredis 2025, allow you to display all facts saved in your genealogy
• Places Reports display all the places saved in your genealogy
• Sources Reports allow you to view each and every source in your genealogy.

Each report includes the following elements:

• a toolbar
• a data table
• a status bar

In each report, you can click on a person’s name and navigate onto this person in Heredis.

The Toolbar

Add Button

Select the information you want to add to your report by clicking on the different sections available (Personal Data, Media, …)
You can select one or more fields among those suggested. If you click the OK button, additional columns are automatically added to your report to let you view the data you deem relevant and important.

Note: You can also group multiple fields into a single column. Select the desired fields and check the “Group in a single column” box. Validate your selection and do the same thing again for each column in which you want to group several fields. For instance, “Birth Date” and “Place of Birth”.

 Options Button

Based on the type of report, you are given several options, grouping, and filters to refine the displayed report.

– Persons Report:
This report is built based on all the persons saved in your genealogy. If you wish to display or hide marked, secondary, confidential, contemporary persons or private data, check or uncheck the corresponding boxes.
Heredis is defaulted not to apply any grouping of persons in this report but you can set up your own display of data: classify by Name or Birth.
You can also choose to display Males or Women Only, and to list Direct-line Ancestors only.

– Ancestors Report:
This report is built based on the primary person displayed on the navigation screen.
If you wish to display or hide marked, secondary, confidential, contemporary persons or private data, check or uncheck the corresponding boxes.
Heredis is defaulted to supply a complete list of your ancestors over 10 generations in this report but you can modify these options to display a report by Male Ancestors (agnatic) or Female Ancestors (cognatic). You can also increase or decrease the Number of Generations to be displayed.

– Descendants Report:
This report is built based on the primary person displayed on the navigation screen.
If you wish to display or hide marked, secondary, confidential, contemporary persons or private data, check or uncheck the corresponding boxes.
Heredis is defaulted to supply a complete list of your descendants over 10 generations in this report but you can modify these options to display a report showing Name Holders Only. You can also increase or decrease the Number of Generations to be displayed and choose the type of Numbering Method to display in your custom report (d’Aboville or Lettered).

– Events Report:
This report is built based on all the events saved in your genealogy.
If you wish to display or hide marked, secondary, confidential, contemporary persons or private data, check or uncheck the corresponding boxes.
Heredis is defaulted not to apply any grouping of events in this report but you can create your own way of displaying data: classify by Dates, Persons, Type of events, or Places.

– Facts reports (from Heredis 2025):
This list takes into account all existing facts in the file or, if you’re using smart search, smart search results.

– Places Report:
This report is built based on all the places saved in your genealogy.
You can choose to limit to a city, a state…

– Sources Report:
This report is built based on all the sources saved in your genealogy.
You can change options to display private sources only, used only…

Design Button

You are given layout options for the following:

• Surnames, Given Names, Dates
• Font size displayed in the report
• Colors for males, females, direct-line ancestors, and implexes – since Heredis 2020. Since Heredis 2022, colors are exported to .xlsx and .csv formats.
• Major events

Save Button

Click the Save button and name your report so it is saved with your custom options and preferences.

Find it again later in the menu (Windows) Reports > Custom Reports; (Mac) Documents > Custom Reports, right underneath the default model supplied by Heredis.

You can manage your custom reports models. Please refer to the paragraph below for more details.

Delete Button

From the menu: (Windows) Reports > Custom Reports; (Mac) Documents > Custom Reports, open the model you do not wish to keep, click the Delete button, and confirm you want to delete the model. You can also delete from the model management tool. Please refer to the paragraph below for more details.

Refresh Button

Custom reports open in an independent Heredis window so you can continue working on your file while leaving a custom report open. If you make modifications or additions to your genealogy, all you need to do is click the Refresh button to update the content of the report displayed.

CSV / XLSX Buttons

You can export the data from your report to a CSV or Excel format so you can use them later outside of the Heredis environment. The file will become independent from Heredis and you will be able to work on the data from your usual spreadsheet software.

Note: Heredis is optimized for Microsoft Office (paid) or LibreOffice (free) word processing available for download. Heredis is compatible with Microsoft Office for Windows as from Office 2016 and for Mac as from Office 2019. As for LibreOffice, it is important that you have the latest version installed and not an older one.

Data Table

The various reports provide data presented in a multiple-column table ; content varies according to the type of model you choose.
You can sort data by clicking on a column header. An arrow displayed next to the header title indicates the type of sorting that has been applied: ascending, descending, or no sorting if no arrow is displayed.

Note: some columns cannot be sorted; this is the case, for instance, of columns in which several types of data have been aggregated. A message in red will inform you that the column cannot be sorted.

You can also

• Reorganize the way data is displayed by moving columns, for example: click the header of a column and hold the click down while moving the column to the desired location, then release the mouse click.
• Delete a column: click on the 3 dots displayed on the column header and select the Delete option.
• Modify the content of a column: click on the 3 dots displayed on the column header and select the Edit option. An Edit Column window opens up, it allows you to:
  – modify the column title
  – add/modify/delete fields in this column
  – add and customize column data separators to display between 2 column fields

Edit or Delete a Column

Organize data

Status Bar

In the status bar, Heredis shows the total number of pages for the report being displayed, as well as the range in which the current page is located (the indicator is displayed in the bottom right). Easily navigate through the different pages of a report by clicking on the First / Last Page, Previous Page / Next Page arrows. You can also move directly to a given page by entering its number.

Custom Reports and Smart Search

Custom reports are also accessible directly from Smart Search.

• From the Search tab > Smart Search, launch a search.
• In the Results area, select the Persons or Events tab you are interested in.
• In the Processing area, click the Edit button > (Mac) Custom Report / (Windows) Customizable Reports and select the report model you want to use to display the results from your search.

Smart Search and Custom Report

Manage your models

You can manage your custom reports models.

(Windows) Click on the Reports menu > Custom Reports > Manage my models… to open the model manager.

(Mac) Click on the Documents menu > Custom Reports > Manage my models… to open the model manager.

(Windows) Manage custom reports models

(Mac) Manage custom reports models

Select the report model you wish to modify and click the button to rename this report model or the button to delete the model.

You can print a Research journal with Custom report. See Research Journal for all details.