which

[cakemorebloke]

which is the best site to join to view record and can you view parish records as well as the census stuff

[Northern Lass]

Ancestry is good
as is find my past
but you have to pay a yearly sum

[SRD]

None of the sites have all the info. Ancestry can usually be accessed for free at your local library.

[cakemorebloke]

do you just pay the sum and thats it

and can you access parish records online
and military records too

[Northern Lass]

As SRD says you can usually get Ancestry at your local library or archives for free
ask them.

Otherwise you pay a yearly subscription to Ancestry or Find my past.
As Srd says none have all the info.

What are you after doing?
Starting off research?

[SRD]

Just joining one of the sites doesn't necessarily give you full access, some have varying levels.

Not all Parish records are available. Ancestry has London ones (but not complete although they do reach into Surrey as well, often through Bishop's Transcripts), I think there are some Lancashire ones as well and there are probably others. Several local groups have transcribed Parish Records, most charge for access although some local councils do make records available for free (although there are fewer of those nowadays) and there is the Parish Clerks project.

Military records are variable, many of the pre WWII records were destroyed in WWII so no longer exist anywhere. There are more Officer than Other Ranks records available as they were kept by more organisations, especially the London Gazette (but their search engine ain't wonderful) and Schools (especially Private ones) and Colleges often have full career details of their Alumni, some charge some will give you info for free.

I'm afraid it isn't just that easy to join one site and have all the info at your fingertips, you have to hunt around.

[AndrewA]

Hampshire Libraries have free access to Find My Past and Genealogist as well as Ancestry, so worth checking what your county offers.