Wikipedia requires you to register an account, but creating a page is harder than signing up — the site has strict rules about what counts as notable enough to document

You can register a Wikipedia account in minutes, but Wikipedia will delete most new pages within days. The site does not let you straightforward write about yourself, your business, your local organization, or your hobby. Wikipedia's editors enforce a rule called notability: a topic must have been written about in independent, published sources — newspapers, magazines, academic journals, books — before Wikipedia will keep a page about it. If you are the subject of the page, you have an additional problem: Wikipedia bans people from writing their own biographies because of conflict of interest.

The process works backward from what most people expect. You do not create a page and then wait for it to be noticed. You gather published sources first, then propose the page, then experienced editors decide whether to accept it. If your topic does not meet notability standards, no amount of writing skill will save the page.

Key Takeaways

  • Wikipedia deletes pages about people, businesses, and organizations that have not been written about in independent newspapers, magazines, or journals.
  • You cannot write your own Wikipedia biography — the site's conflict-of-interest policy blocks it, and editors will delete it.
  • Before you start writing, collect at least three to five published sources from outlets independent of the subject, then check if similar pages exist.
  • New editors should propose pages in the "Articles for Creation" workspace rather than publishing directly, because new pages face when ready scrutiny.
  • Wikipedia's volunteer editors make the final decision about whether your page stays, and they enforce notability rules strictly.

What Wikipedia considers notable enough for a page

Wikipedia has published guidelines for notability in different categories. For a person, the standard is usually that they have received significant coverage in reliable, independent sources — meaning newspapers and magazines that fact-check their work, not blogs, social media, or press releases. A local news story about your business opening does not count; a feature in a major publication does. For a business or organization, Wikipedia looks for similar independent coverage showing the organization has had real impact beyond its own marketing.

The key word is independent. If you write the source material yourself, or if the source is controlled by you or your organization, Wikipedia will not count it. A Wikipedia editor will ask: "Would this topic be notable if the subject had never written about themselves?" If the answer is no, the page gets deleted.

Some topics have lower bars than others. A scientist with peer-reviewed publications, an athlete who competed professionally, a musician with commercial releases, or a public official elected to office may meet notability more easily than a business owner or local activist. But even then, the sources have to exist before the Wikipedia page does.

How to gather sources before you write

Start by searching Google News, newspaper archives, and magazine databases for articles about your topic. Look for pieces written by journalists at established outlets, not press releases republished as news. If you are writing about a person, search their name plus relevant keywords — their profession, their organization, their achievement. If you are writing about a business, search the business name and look for news coverage, not just their website or social media.

Write down the source information for each article: the publication name, the date, the author, and the URL or archive location. Wikipedia editors will check these sources, so they need to be real and findable. If a source is behind a paywall, that is fine — Wikipedia accepts paywalled sources — but the source has to actually exist.

Aim for at least three to five independent sources. One or two sources is usually not enough to convince Wikipedia editors that a topic is truly notable. The sources should be spread across different publications, not all from the same outlet. If all your sources come from local news and nowhere else has written about the topic, Wikipedia editors will likely conclude it is not notable enough.

Registering an account and using Articles for Creation

Go to Wikipedia.org and click "Create account" in the top right. You will need an email address and a username. Wikipedia does not require you to use your real name, and many editors use pseudonyms. Verify your email, and your account is ready.

Do not write your page directly on Wikipedia's main site if you are new. Instead, use the Articles for Creation workspace, which is designed for new editors and pages under review. Go to the Articles for Creation homepage and click "Start a new article." You will write in a sandbox — a draft space — where experienced editors can review your work before it goes live.

In the sandbox, write your page using Wikipedia's format. Start with a clear opening paragraph that explains what the topic is and why it matters. Include sections with headings, cite your sources using Wikipedia's citation format, and keep the tone neutral and factual. Wikipedia's Manual of Style has detailed rules about how to format pages, but the most important rule is: write as if you are explaining the topic to someone who knows nothing about it, and back up every claim with a source.

Citing sources correctly

Wikipedia requires you to cite every factual claim. You do this by adding a reference tag after the claim, like this: The company was founded in 2010.Source information goes here Wikipedia has a citation template system that formats sources automatically. For a newspaper article, you would include the publication name, author, date, and URL. For a book, you would include the author, title, publisher, and year.

Use Wikipedia's built-in citation tools rather than trying to format citations by hand. Click the "Cite" button in the editing toolbar, select the type of source, and fill in the fields. Wikipedia will format it correctly. If you cite sources loosely or leave claims unsourced, experienced editors will flag the page as unreliable and may delete it.

Every source you cite will be checked. If an editor clicks the link and the article does not say what you claim it says, the page loses credibility. If sources are missing or broken, the page will be tagged as needing repair.

Submitting your draft for review

When your draft is complete, submit it for review from the Articles for Creation workspace. Click "Submit your draft" and write a brief note explaining why this topic meets Wikipedia's notability standards. Mention your sources and explain what makes the topic notable. Be honest: if you are writing about yourself or your own organization, say so. Wikipedia editors already assume conflict of interest; transparency helps.

An experienced editor will review your draft within days or weeks, depending on how busy the queue is. They will check your sources, verify your claims, and decide whether the page meets Wikipedia's standards. If it does, they will move it to the main encyclopedia. If it does not, they will explain what is missing — usually either more sources, better sources, or a clearer explanation of why the topic is notable.

If your page is rejected, you can revise it and resubmit, or you can ask for feedback on what would make it acceptable. Some pages go through multiple rounds of review before they are accepted. Others are rejected permanently because the topic straightforward does not meet notability standards, and no amount of revision will change that.

What happens if your page gets deleted

If your page is published and then deleted by editors, you can request a review. Go to the deletion discussion page and ask why the page was removed. Sometimes deletions are mistakes, or sometimes an editor will explain what sources or information would make the page acceptable. You can also appeal to a higher level of Wikipedia's volunteer administration if you believe the deletion was unfair.

However, if your page was deleted because the topic does not meet notability standards, appealing will not help. Wikipedia's notability rules are enforced consistently. A page about a local business, a personal website, or a self-published author will be deleted unless independent, published sources establish that the topic is notable. This is not a judgment about quality or importance — it is a rule designed to keep Wikipedia focused on topics that have already been documented in reliable sources.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I write a Wikipedia page about myself?

No. Wikipedia bans people from writing their own biographies because of conflict of interest. If you write about yourself, the page will be deleted. If you are notable enough for a Wikipedia page, someone else should write it based on published sources about you.

What if I cannot find enough sources?

If you cannot find three or more independent published sources, your topic probably does not meet Wikipedia's notability standard. Rather than submit a page that will be deleted, accept that Wikipedia may not be the right place for this topic. You can always create a page on your own website or another platform that does not have notability requirements.

How long does it take to get a page approved?

Review times vary. Some drafts are reviewed within a few days; others wait weeks depending on how many submissions are in the queue. After approval, the page goes live when ready. If your page is rejected, you can revise and resubmit, which starts the review process over.

Do I need to be an experienced Wikipedia editor to create a page?

No. Anyone with an account can use Articles for Creation. However, experienced editors review all new pages, and they will check your sources and your adherence to Wikipedia's rules carefully. If you are new, your page will face more scrutiny than a page created by someone with a long editing history.

What if my sources are behind paywalls?

Wikipedia accepts paywalled sources as long as they are real and verifiable. Editors may not be able to read the full article, but they can verify that the source exists and that your citation is accurate. Make sure your citation information is complete and correct.