Research

We find ways to make Wikimedia better.

Our goal is to make Wikimedia sites more useful for people seeking knowledge across the globe. Research helps us live up to our mission. We turn research questions into opportunities to empower new readers and contributors. We use research-backed insights to inform new technologies, products, and programs. We partner with researchers around the world to better understand knowledge making and sharing.

Building a positive community culture

Harassment is a pervasive issue on the internet—even on Wikipedia. We’re working to understand and combat harassment in Wikimedia projects and discussion spaces.

Improving sources and citations

Verifiable citations are critical to open knowledge projects like Wikipedia. We are building an open repository of sources to make it easier to manage citations.

Understanding reader behavior

Every second 6,000 people visit Wikipedia. We want to know why. Our research aims to understand their motivations and needs so we can identify opportunities to improve.

Increasing editor diversity

Wikimedia is a global movement but participation has been easier for some users than others. We are partnering with communities to understand why. With everyone’s help we can increase editor diversity across our projects.

Helping new editors

Learning how to contribute to Wikimedia projects can be complex. We worked with new editors in South Korea and the Czech Republic to understand why they edit and how we could make it easier.

Protecting the open internet

The law should allow internet platforms to stay out of editorial decisions so that people can share and speak freely. We research how policies affect the way information is shared online.

Partners help us tackle challenging research projects.

We work with researchers from institutions such as EPFL, Cornell University, Google Jigsaw, Stanford University, and the University of Minnesota.

Meet our collaborators

65+ million

articles across over 300 languages on Wikipedia

128+ million

pieces of media in Commons, and counting

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Wikimedia Foundation Welcomes Two New Board Trustees

Wikimedia Foundation

Today, the Wikimedia Foundation, the global nonprofit that hosts Wikipedia, announced that two new members have joined its Board of Trustees: Michał Buczyński and Bobby Shabangu. Both were elected through the 2025 community and affiliate selection process, during which contributors across the Wikimedia movement voted to fill two open seats. The Board of Trustees includes….