Wikipedia at 25: What the data tells us

(Photo illustration by Thomas Fuller/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images)

By Skyler Seets, Anna Lieb and Aaron Smith

On Jan. 15, 2001, the earliest edit found on Wikipedia’s homepage announced, “This is the new WikiPedia!” Twenty-five years later, Wikipedia remains a key source of knowledge on the internet, attracting millions of visitors per day to articles across hundreds of languages.

Since its creation, the site has grown and stayed relevant in a rapidly changing digital environment. Wikipedia is one of the top sources mentioned in Google search results and is used to train large language models that power many artificial intelligence technologies.

Unlike most other high-traffic websites, Wikipedia does not run advertisements and is free to access. It relies on donations from the public and contributions from a community of largely volunteer editors and is hosted by the nonprofit Wikimedia Foundation.

Ahead of Wikipedia’s 25th anniversary, here are answers to some common questions about the site, based on data from Wikipedia and Wikimedia Statistics:

Read full article: https://www.pewresearch.org/short-reads/2026/01/13/wikipedia-at-25-what-the-data-tells-us/?utm_source=Pew+Research+Center&utm_campaign=4d01e3665c-weekly_1-17-25&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_-4d01e3665c-400522077

Courtesy: https://www.pewresearch.org/