{"id":284037,"date":"2026-01-13T10:53:19","date_gmt":"2026-01-13T15:53:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/?post_type=short-read&p=284037"},"modified":"2026-01-13T11:01:48","modified_gmt":"2026-01-13T16:01:48","slug":"wikipedia-at-25-what-the-data-tells-us","status":"publish","type":"short-read","link":"https:\/\/alpha.pewresearch.org\/pewresearch-org\/short-reads\/2026\/01\/13\/wikipedia-at-25-what-the-data-tells-us\/","title":{"rendered":"Wikipedia at 25: What the data tells us"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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(Photo illustration by Thomas Fuller\/SOPA Images\/LightRocket via Getty Images)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

On Jan. 15, 2001, the earliest edit found on Wikipedia\u2019s homepage<\/a> announced, \u201cThis is the new WikiPedia!\u201d 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.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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

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<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ahead of Wikipedia\u2019s 25th anniversary, here are answers to some common questions about the site, based on data from Wikipedia and Wikimedia Statistics:<\/p>\n\n\n\n