Ensuring free knowledge for future generations

Access to knowledge is a fundamental human right. The Wikimedia Endowment is our enduring commitment to a world of freely shared knowledge, now and in perpetuity.

We believe that knowledge is a foundation. It is a foundation for human potential, a foundation for freedom, a foundation for opportunity. Wikipedia is the world’s largest free knowledge ecosystem — a public trust for the common good — built by people, for people.

Giving

Giving Today

Your gift today will help ensure that Wikipedia is there when you need us. We ask you, humbly, to help Wikipedia keep thriving not just for 25 years or 50 years, but forever. Click the button below to make a donation, or view other ways you can give.

Give today

Giving Tomorrow

The Wikipedia Legacy Society is ensuring that Wikipedia provides free knowledge to the world, forever. Each member has committed to making a legacy gift to the Wikimedia Endowment through estate planning.

Learn more about legacy giving

To request more information about your estate planning options, and receive a copy of our Planned Giving Guide, provide your contact information and we will reach out to you.

Join the Wikipedia Legacy Society

Have you included Wikipedia in your estate planning? Let us know by completing our online form to become a member of our Wikipedia Legacy Society.

Join the society

Get assistance in developing a will

Would you like assistance in developing a will? Our partner, FreeWill, can help you write one free of charge. The process takes about 20 minutes.

Create a will

Why an Endowment?

When it was founded in 2001, Wikipedia seemed like an impossible dream. Today, Wikipedia and its sister sites are a core part of the 21st century cultural infrastructure. They are a testament to human ingenuity, one that the Wikimedia Endowment is committed to protecting so that this knowledge can be passed down to future generations.

The purpose of the Wikimedia Endowment is to support Wikimedia projects in perpetuity. It represents a collective belief in what the Wikimedia projects have accomplished and what they have yet to achieve. As a fund that is invested for growth, it creates a solid financial foundation for the future and ensures long-term security.

A robust Endowment also provides Wikimedia’s community of volunteers and donors with the confidence that the mission and vision in which they’ve invested will be supported for future generations. New gifts are added to those of past donors, allowing the Endowment to keep pace with the growing needs of Wikimedia projects.

"Wikipedia stands alone in the online world, providing information and knowledge to anyone, anywhere, without cost."
— Annette Campbell-White, Wikimedia Endowment Advisory Board Member

Our projects

Wikipedia was launched in 2001 with an ambitious vision: “Imagine a world in which every single human being can freely share in the sum of all knowledge.” Now, in its 20th birthday year, Wikipedia is the largest collection of open knowledge in history. With over 55 million articles in 300 languages, it is accessed by 1.5 billion unique devices every month, making it the only non-profit site in the top ten most visited on the web. 

Wikimedia also supports a range of additional projects that further enrich the landscape of free knowledge. Every month, more than 300,000 volunteer editors contribute to these projects, helping millions of people around the world discover information and share it with others. 

When you make a gift to the Wikimedia Endowment, you become part of this global movement. Your contribution helps ensure that Wikimedia’s free knowledge resources remain accessible and valuable for generations to come. 

Select projects supported by the endowment:

Free and open storage for the structured data of Wikimedia projects including Wikipedia, Wikivoyage, Wikisource, and others

The world’s largest multilingual free-to-use library of illustrations, photos, drawings, videos, music, and other media

The open source package that powers Wikipedia and many other wikis on the web

The world’s largest freely available and openly editable online encyclopedia

A free multilingual dictionary currently available in over 170 languages

"The Wikimedia Endowment is a springboard for growth and innovation in how we curate and deliver knowledge to the world for generations to come."
— Jimmy Wales, Wikipedia Founder and Wikimedia Endowment Advisory Board Member

Advisory Board

The Wikimedia Endowment Advisory Board – comprised of leaders from finance, education, technology, and business – is guiding the endowment as it grows and supports the Wikimedia projects in perpetuity.

Michael Kim

Founder, Cendana Capital

Jimmy Wales

Founder, Wikipedia Project

Niels Christian Nielsen

Managing Director, World Refugee School

Annette Campbell-White

Founder, Kia Ora Foundation

Peter Baldwin

Co-Founder, Arcadia Fund

Our benefactors

Thank you to our benefactors for their generous donations to the Wikimedia Endowment and for providing free access to knowledge to the world.

* denotes deceased donor

$5 million+

$2 million+

$1 million+

$100,000+

$5,000+

$1,000+

Wikipedia Legacy Society

Thank you to Wikipedia Legacy Society members for pledging a legacy gift to the Wikimedia Endowment — ensuring Wikipedia’s future, in perpetuity.

* denotes deceased donor

Contact us

For more information about the Wikimedia Endowment or how you can support it with a planned or outright gift, please contact us at endowment@wikimedia.org, or call us at +1 415-758-8574.