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{{Support Page|title = Frequently asked questions|smalltoc = yes}}
 
This page lists '''frequently asked questions''' about the Wikimedia Foundation. Other questions are addressed at [[m:Answers|Answers]]. If you do not find your question answered here or there, please feel free to [[https://wikimediafoundation.org/about/contact/ contact us]].
 
== What is Wikipedia? ==
 
[https://www.wikipedia.org Wikipedia] is an online collection of knowledge. Volunteer editors from around the world write Wikipedia. It is a collaborative creation created in 2001: anyone can edit it, at any time. Editors collaborate to write about virtually any topic, from ancient history to science to the arts. Wikipedia is available in hundreds of languages and has over 4559 million articles. Wikipedia is completely non-profit, independent, and maintained by everyday people like you. You do not require approval or special qualifications to edit.
 
== How does Wikipedia stay reliable and neutral? ==
 
Wikipedia's volunteer editors make reference to reliable publications that support what Wikipedia contains, so readers can verify the facts at source. For content to remain on Wikipedia, it must be written from a neutral point of view and attributed to sources that are reliable. Editors also use mechanisms like bots and monitoring tools to regularly review edits made to Wikipedia. Through these efforts, Wikipedia stays reliable and neutral.
Wikipedia is based on an open model, so its content is constantly evolving, growing, and improving over time. You can also follow the discussions that go into changes. Unfortunately, [[w:Wikipedia:Vandalism|vandalism]] of Wikipedia articles does occasionally occur. However, the vast majority of editors contribute in good faith. Most vandalism on the site is removed quickly, often within seconds.
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== What is the Wikimedia Foundation? ==
 
The Wikimedia Foundation is the nonprofit organization that supports Wikipedia, the [[wmf:Our#What are the other Wikimedia free knowledge projects you support?|other Wikimedia free knowledge websites]], and its mission of free knowledge for all. We do this by keeping the Wikimedia sites fast, secure, and available to all, defending Wikipedia and our volunteer editors from legal threats, building new features and tools to make it easy to read, edit, and share knowledge from Wikimedia sites, and by supporting the communities of editors who contribute to Wikipedia and the Wikimedia sites. We also help bring new knowledge online, lower barriers to access, and make it easier for everyone to share what they know.
 
The Wikimedia Foundation is a 501(c)(3) tax-exempt nonprofit organization with offices in San Francisco, California, USA.
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* [[voy:|Wikivoyage]] – a travel information guide for locations around the world
* [[mw:|MediaWiki]] – the open source software behind all Wikimedia websites
 
== Is Wikipedia, or the Wikimedia Foundation, affiliated with WikiLeaks? ==
 
Wikipedia and the Wikimedia Foundation have no affiliation with [[w:WikiLeaks|WikiLeaks]]. Although both use the term "wiki" in their name, they have always been completely separate and unaffiliated projects.
 
== How is the Wikimedia Foundation funded? ==
 
The Wikimedia Foundation is funded primarily through single or monthly [[donatehttps:|//donate.wikimedia.org/?uselang=en&wmf_medium=donatewiki_page&wmf_campaign=donate_link&wmf_source=FAQ donations]] from millions of individuals around the world. The average single donation is about US$15 USD and the average monthly donation is about $4 USD, and we are grateful that so many people find value in Wikipedia and want to sustain its future. We also receive donations through institutional grants and gifts (please see our [[wmfhttps:Benefactors|//wikimediafoundation.org/support/benefactors/ benefactors page]] for more information). A small portion of revenue is also earned through the services operated by Wikimedia Enterprise ([[#What is Wikimedia Enterprise?|more information]]).
 
The Wikimedia Foundation has 501(c)(3) tax exempt status in the United States. Donations made from other nations may also be tax deductible (see [[wmf:Tax Deductibility|tax deductibility]] for more details). ClickSee [[wmf:Ways to Give|here]] for details on how to make a donation via credit or debit card, PayPal, Amazon and several other methods. If you have any questions, please contact us at [mailto:donate{{@}}wikimedia.org donate@wikimedia.org].<ref name="zd"/>
 
== Why should I donate and where does my money go? ==
 
Donations to the Wikimedia Foundation help sustain free knowledge through Wikipedia and our ecosystem of projects. Your contributions support technology to keep the sites fast, secure, and accessible; for Wikimedia programs and initiatives to expand access and support free knowledge globally; and for grants to volunteer contributors to improve and enrich the knowledge on Wikipedia and the Wikimedia sites. Your donations support this work, and so much more, to ensure Wikipedia remains accessible and valuable for many generations to come.
Over the past 20 years, Wikipedia has become a trusted source of information that millions of people rely on every day. With more than 6,700 pageviews every second and more than 345 edits a minute, Wikipedia is one of the top 10 websites in the world, and the only major website run by a nonprofit organization, the Wikimedia Foundation.
 
Unlike other top websites, Wikipedia is not funded through advertising, nor does it rely on selling data about users for profit. Instead, Wikipedia is supported by its readers - people who find value in Wikipedia and want to continue to support its success, with the average single donation being about $15 USD and the average monthly donation about $4 USD. This financial model enables Wikipedia to remain neutral, trusted, and free from commercial interests.
 
Here are just some of the ways we use donations to sustain Wikipedia and free knowledge:
 
* '''Providing top-notch technical infrastructure for a global website''' - To meet the needs of Wikipedia readers around the world, we operate an international technology infrastructure comparable to the world’s largest commercial websites. This includes hosting costs like keeping our servers running, as well as significant, ongoing engineering work to make sure Wikipedia is reliable, secure, loads quickly, and protects your privacy.
* '''Ensuring you can access Wikipedia in every language on every device''' - Donations also allow us to dedicate engineering resources to ensure that you can access Wikipedia in your preferred language, on your preferred device, no matter where you are in the world — from a dial-up modem to a brand new smartphone. Most major websites support an average of 50-100 languages — Wikipedia supports roughly 300 languages, a number that grows every year. When you break it down, we have about one employee for every four million monthly readers of Wikipedia.
* '''Supporting community-led projects to increase access to trusted information''' - We collaborate with Wikipedia volunteers around the globe to support their ideas and help them bring more free knowledge to the world. Every year, about 10% of our budget is specifically dedicated to supporting community projects that enrich, grow, and improve knowledge on Wikipedia.
* '''Defending and protecting free knowledge around the world''' - The Wikimedia Foundation’s policy and legal efforts help ensure that everyone has the right to access, share, and create knowledge, while defending our volunteers from threat of reprisal, and upholding our commitment to free expression and open knowledge. We advocate for free licenses and open source software and work to make sure that copyright laws are built and reformed so that people can share and use knowledge more broadly. We also fight against censorship and protect the right of everyone to speak and learn freely. Support for this work is vital to giving users everywhere equal access to Wikimedia projects.
 
== Wikipedia’s fundraising requests seem urgent, despite the Wikimedia Foundation’s sizable reserve. Why do you need additional funding? ==
 
Sustaining healthy financial reserves and having a working capital policy is considered a [https://www.councilofnonprofits.org/tools-resources/operating-reserves-nonprofits best practice] for organizations of all types. The Wikimedia Foundation Board of Trustees recently defined our [https://foundation.wikimedia.org/wiki/Resolution:Setting_Working_Capital_Reserve_Target working capital policy] that is designed to sustain our work and provide support to affiliates and volunteers in the event of unplanned expenses, emergencies, or revenue shortfalls. It also enables us to have sufficient cash flow to cover our expenses throughout the year.
 
== Staff compensation is part of your operating costs. Can you explain how this is determined? ==
 
Altogether more than 400 people work on engineering and product at the Wikimedia Foundation, handling technology infrastructure for more than 16 billion monthly pageviews. Compared to most major websites, we do a lot with a little. Additionally, approximately 100 staff work on our community support and grantmaking; partnerships with global organizations to make knowledge more freely available; and legal and policy work that helps advocate for copyright reform, prevent censorship and uphold free expression, and ensure that privacy and security policies in countries everywhere protect our readers and editors.
 
We know that salaries vary across the world and we hire in very competitive markets. At the same time, we are a non-profit. As such, we make an effort to be fair, adjusting for inflation and income inequality, while providing equitable compensation to all.
 
== How can I donate? ==
 
There are several ways you can donate to the Wikimedia Foundation to support Wikipedia and free knowledge. The most common are using any major credit or debit card (VISA, MasterCard, Discover or American Express), using PayPal, via bank transfer, and via Amazon.
There are several ways you can donate to the Wikimedia Foundation to support Wikipedia and free knowledge. The most common are using any major credit or debit card (Visa, Mastercard, Discover or American Express), using PayPal, via bank transfer, Apple Pay, Google Pay, and Venmo. For other ways to contribute, including via an automatic monthly gift, check or money order and payroll deduction, please visit our [[wmf:Ways to Give|Ways to Give]] page. Many currencies are accepted.
 
== What is your donor privacy policy? ==
 
We are committed to protecting the privacy rights of our supporters and will not share, sell, or trade your email address with anyone. Please see our [[wmf:Donor policy|Donor Privacy Policy]] for full details.
We are committed to protecting the privacy rights of our supporters and will never sell, trade, or rent your nonpublic personal information. Please see our [[wmf:Donor privacy policy|Donor privacy policy]] for full details.
 
== Are my donations tax deductible? ==
 
Some donations to the Wikimedia Foundation may benefit from tax deductible status. Please visit our [[wmf:Tax Deductibility|tax deductibility]] page to learn more.
Some donations to the Wikimedia Foundation may benefit from tax deductible status. Please visit our [[tax deductibility]] page to learn more.
 
== What is your refund policy? ==
 
If for any reason you wish to have your donation refunded, please contact us via email at [mailto:donate{{@}}wikimedia.org donate@wikimedia.org]<ref name="zd"/> and include the following information:
* Full name of donor
* Date of donation — All refund requests must be made within 90 days of donation
* Amount donated
* Payment method used — '''Do not include credit card numbers in your email'''
* Country of origin
* Reason for the refund
 
All refunds will be processed as quickly as possible, but processing times may vary depending on the payment method. Please note: Some payment methods may not support refunds or require refunds to be made through the payment method (card) utilized, prompting additional information to process your refund.
*Full name of donor
*Date of donation — All refund requests must be made within 90 days of donation
*Amount donated
*Payment method used — Do not include credit card numbers in your email
*Country of origin
*Reason for the refund
 
== Why am I seeing fundraising banners on Wikipedia even though I have already donated recently? ==
All refunds will be processed as quickly as possible, but processing times may vary depending on the payment method. Please note: Some payment methods may not support refunds or require refunds to be made through the payment method (card) utilized, prompting additional information to process your refund.
 
The website doesn't have access to your prior donation history, so unfortunately it won't recognize that you have already shared your support. Donation banners are designed to show to donors that have enabled cookies on their browser, and to hide after the banner is shown a few times or after a donation. Hiding, however, depends upon a cookie that we insert in the browser. Banner hiding won't work if you clear your browser's cache, delete cookies, or change browsers or computers.
== Is Wikipedia, or the Wikimedia Foundation, affiliated with WikiLeaks? ==
 
Wikipedia and the Wikimedia Foundation have no affiliation with [[w:WikiLeaks|WikiLeaks]]. Although both use the term "wiki" in their name, they have always been completely separate and unaffiliated projects.
There are several options available to you to hide the fundraising banners in the future:
 
* If you click the "Already donated", "X" or "Close" button on a banner, it will hide for one week. Please note this behavior does not apply to the first banner you see, but every banner thereafter.
* If you return to the [https://thankyou.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thank_You/en "Thank You" page] it will give the cookie a chance to reinsert. If you read Wikipedia on multiple devices, please visit this page on each of them to suppress the banners.
* You can also create an account on Wikipedia - banners are not typically shown to users who log in to Wikipedia accounts. More information on creating an account can be found [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Why_create_an_account%3F here].
 
== Why have I received a fundraising email even though I have already donated recently? ==
 
If you have received a fundraising email even though you donated recently, this generally is for one of several reasons:
 
* We have more than one email address for you in our records;
* You donated within a day before our emails were sent: the scan we use to filter out recent donors is unable to catch donations made the day before the email send;
* You donated by either a method that is slower to reach our system, like a check or a bank transfer, or a method that we receive in aggregate (without your email address), like PayPal Giving Fund, Amazon Smile, or Humble Bundle.
 
If you would like to unsubscribe an email address, you can click the unsubscribe link at the bottom of the fundraising email, or send an unsubscribe request to [mailto:donate@wikimedia.org donate@wikimedia.org].<ref name="zd"/> We generally send fundraising emails around a year after your most recent donation. We send a very low number of emails to donors, relative to other nonprofit organizations. If you donate in response to a fundraising email, we will not send you donation request emails again until around the same time the next year.
 
== Why are there no ads on Wikipedia? ==
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== Where can I find more financial information? ==
 
The Wikimedia Foundation's 2016 - 2017 '''[https://annual.wikimedia.org annualAnnual reportReport]''' covers the previous fiscal year from 1 July 2016 to 30 June 2017. The Foundation's annual report shares some of the voices of the hundreds of thousands of people who make the Wikimedia movement possible.
 
The Wikimedia Foundation '''[[metawikim:Wikimedia_Foundation_Annual_Plan/2017-2018/Final|2017-2018Wikimedia Foundation Annual Plan|Annual Plan]]''' describes our budget for the current fiscal year. It contains a summary of our strategic goals as an organization, financial details on spending and revenue, and detailed explanations and risk analysis.
 
== What is the Wikimedia Endowment? ==
 
The Wikimedia Endowment was created in 2016 to serve as a permanent safekeeping fund to generate income to support the operations and activities of the Wikimedia projects in perpetuity. Donations to the Wikimedia Endowment are held in a separate fund and invested to grow over time. The Endowment fund is managed by Tides Foundation and overseen by an independent Advisory Board. Once fully funded, the Endowment income will be distributed to provide critical funding to Wikipedia and its sister projects, providing security, confidence and trust in Wikipedia’s offerings and mission for years to come. You can learn more about the Wikimedia Endowment '''[https://wikimediaendowment.org/ here]'''.
The Wikimedia Endowment is a permanent safekeeping fund to generate income to support the operations and activities of the Wikimedia projects in perpetuity. It is a 501(c)(3) charity headquartered in the United States. During times of prosperity, the Wikimedia Endowment will serve as a springboard for growth and innovation. During tough economic times, the Endowment will help fund the most critical operations that keep the Wikimedia projects functioning. Based on conversations with donors, grants from the Endowment currently fund technical innovation, so that the Wikimedia Projects stay relevant in a time of rapid technological change. You can learn more about the Wikimedia Endowment at '''[https://wikimediaendowment.org/ wikimediaendowment.org]'''.
 
== What is Wikimedia Enterprise? ==
 
Wikimedia Enterprise is a wholly-owned LLC that provides services for third party content reuse, delivered via [[w:API|APIs]] (application programming interfaces). It provides high volume, high reliability access to Wikimedia content, designed for the needs of commercial organizations, such as search engines, voice assistants, and technology startups. Having services that are optimized for commercial users and paid for by those users ensures that any money which is donated to the Wikimedia Foundation goes directly towards supporting services for our volunteer community and readers. You can learn more about Wikimedia Enterprise at [https://enterprise.wikimedia.com/ enterprise.wikimedia.com].
 
== What is the difference between the Wikimedia Foundation and Wikimedia chapters? ==
 
[https://wikimediafoundation.org/ The Wikimedia Foundation] is the nonprofit that supports Wikipedia, Wikimedia projects, and the Wikimedia free knowledge mission on a global scale. The organization hosts Wikipedia and the Wikimedia projects, builds software experiences for reading, contributing, and sharing Wikimedia content, supports the volunteer communities and partners who make Wikimedia possible, and advocates for policies that enable Wikimedia and free knowledge to thrive. As such, the Foundation runs international fundraising campaigns to serve knowledge needs globally.
 
[https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Wikimedia_chapters Wikimedia chapters] are independent, nonprofit organizations that support and promote Wikipedia and other Wikimedia projects in a specific geographic location. While the Wikimedia Foundation and Wikimedia chapters collaborate in our shared free knowledge mission, they are not a legal representation of the Wikimedia Foundation and each chapter operates independently with its own staff, board of directors, and organization plan. Some chapters also run their own fundraising campaigns, and these are often tax deductible in their country.
 
== What are the plans for Wikimedia's future? Where are you going? ==
 
At the beginning of 2017, the Wikimedia Foundation launched a global discussion to define the future of Wikipedia and the Wikimedia movement by the year 2030. We call it '''[[metawikim:Strategy/Wikimedia_movement/2017Wikimedia 2030|Wikimedia 2030]]'''. Throughout the process, we asked ourselves questions like, where might we want Wikipedia, and the Wikimedia movement, to go next? What opportunities and challenges lie ahead of us? What trends in technology, education, information, and access will shape our future?
 
Based on this discussion and our research, we are uniting around a direction that will help us build '''a more sustainable, resilient, and engaged movement''' that anyone who shares our vision can join. We will adapt to the shifting trends in technology, to ensure we meet the needs of our users and continue to provide reliable, transparent, and neutral information. We will invite new voices to join us and ensure that anyone who wants to share knowledge on Wikipedia and the Wikimedia sites can do so. And we will advocate for the policies and values that have allowed Wikipedia and its sister sites to thrive. This direction asks us to be bold and experiment in the future, as we did in the past, and it remains rooted in our mission of free knowledge for all.
 
To read more about Wikimedia 2030 and the direction for our future, please visit '''[https://2030.wikimedia.org 2030.wikimedia.org]'''.
 
== How can I participate in Wikimedia? ==
 
We encourage everyone who finds value in Wikipedia and free knowledge to join our movement. There are many ways you can participate, including:
Firstly, thank you for your interest in supporting Wikipedia! We understand that not everyone will be able to donate, and that’s okay. Wikipedia will always be free for everyone, and there are several ways that you can contribute to Wikipedia beyond making a donation.
 
*Make an edit! See a Wikipedia article that could use improving? You can make it better. To learn more about how to start editing, check out the [[w:Teahouse| Teahouse]] for help from more experienced editors and the [[w:Getting_started|Getting started guide]].
* You can read and use Wikipedia as your source of trustworthy information across more than 300 languages.
*Connect with us on [https://www.facebook.com/wikipedia Facebook], [https://twitter.com/wikipedia Twitter], and [[wmf:social media|other places on social media]].
* You can make an edit on Wikipedia - if you want to fix a mistake on an article or add a citation to a trusted source, please do so! [[w:Help:Introduction|This guide]] is helpful for getting started on your first edit.
*Are you a developer? You can contribute code to Wikipedia and the Wikimedia sites. Find the [[mw:New Developers|guide for new developers]] on MediaWiki.org.
* Are you a photographer? Consider sharing your photos for anyone to reuse on Wikimedia Commons, which powers many of the images you see on Wikipedia articles. Learn more about how to upload photos [[c:Commons:First_steps/Uploading_files|here]].
* You can follow Wikipedia and Wikimedia on social media and share stories that are meaningful to you. Check out @Wikimedia on [https://twitter.com/wikimedia Twitter], [https://www.facebook.com/wikimediafoundation Facebook], and [https://www.instagram.com/wikimediafoundation Instagram] and @Wikipedia on [https://twitter.com/wikipedia Twitter], [https://www.facebook.com/wikipedia Facebook], and [https://www.instagram.com/wikipedia Instagram].
* Are you a developer? You can contribute code to Wikipedia and the Wikimedia sites. This [[mw:New Developers|guide for new developers]] is a helpful place to get started.
 
== How can I contact the Wikimedia Foundation? ==
If you have any questions or concerns please feel free to [[contact us]]. For donation questions, please email donate{{@}}wikimedia.org.
 
If you have any questions or concerns please feel free to [https://wikimediafoundation.org/about/contact/ contact us]. For donation questions, please email [mailto:donate@wikimedia.org donate@wikimedia.org].<ref name="zd"/>
Due to the volume of inquiries we receive, we use [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zendesk Zendesk] as a donor response platform. By emailing donate@wikimedia.org, you understand that your information will be processed by the Zendesk Group in accordance with Zendesk’s [https://www.zendesk.com/company/customers-partners/master-subscription-agreement/ terms]. Users from the following countries should consult Section 13 of Zendesk’s [https://www.zendesk.com/company/customers-partners/privacy-policy/ privacy policy] for more information about Zendesk’s country-specific practices: Australia, Brazil, Canada, Japan, New Zealand, and Singapore.
 
<references>
<ref name="zd">{{Zendesk disclaimer/en}}</ref>
</references>
 
{{Support Page end}}
 
[[Category:FAQ]]
Retrieved from "https://donate.wikimedia.org/wiki/FAQ"