This is a high-level summary of an original article published on TechBlog in June 2025.
Wikipedia is coming up on its 25th birthday, and that would not have been possible without the Wikimedia technical volunteer community. These contributors build tools, automate tasks, and expand what’s possible across Wikimedia projects.
Working with Wikimedia’s technical systems hasn’t always been easy. Many of these tools depend on Wikimedia’s web APIs — the building blocks or digital connectors that allow software to communicate. While these APIs are powerful, they were built at a time when today’s web standards were just emerging. Over the years, they grew in different directions, which sometimes made them confusing or hard to use, especially for newcomers. On a recent API Listening Tour, developers often summed it up this way: “Wikimedia APIs are great, once you know what you are doing.” We want to make it easier for developers to get to that point of comfort, so they can use the APIs effectively, sooner.
Why We’re Focusing on APIs
APIs are essential for technical volunteers and Wikimedia Foundation staff who build tools, bots, and features that serve millions of people worldwide. If our APIs are too complex or inconsistent, it makes it harder for new contributors to join in and it slows down innovation. We believe developers should be able to spend their time building instead of wrestling with technical hurdles.
To help make that happen, the Wikimedia Foundation wants to invest in a better, more sustainable API experience as part of the Responsible Use of Infrastructure objective in the FY25–26 Annual Plan (see: the WE5.2 key result). The goal of this investment is to support both new and experienced developers, so they can contribute more easily and keep Wikimedia projects thriving for years to come. To achieve this, we see three main areas for improving the sustainability of our API offering: simplification, documentation, and communication.
Simplifying the Experience
Over time, Wikimedia’s APIs have grown in many directions, creating a patchwork of systems that can be tricky to maintain and understand. To reduce maintenance costs and ensure a seamless developer experience, we plan to bring more consistency to how our APIs work and move towards a modern, unified approach. That will make it easier to learn, easier to maintain, and faster to build new tools. Just like cleaning up and organizing a well-used workshop so everyone can find what they need more easily and get to work more quickly.
Improving Documentation
Clear, consistent, and helpful documentation is indispensable to an open and welcoming developer experience. Right now, information about our APIs is scattered across projects, generated sites, and communication channels, which can make it difficult for developers to find the information they need when they need it. We’re working on creating simpler, more modern documentation, with interactive tools to help developers explore and learn in a hands-on way. We also want to make sure this information is available in more languages so that everyone, regardless of where they live, can participate.
Communicating Changes
As our APIs evolve, developers need a reliable way to stay informed. We’ll create a centralized changelog to track updates, new features, and planned changes, so no one is left guessing. We’ll also invite developers to test and share feedback on new features early on and often, helping us build together solutions that meet their needs. Beyond communication, we’ll proactively engage with developers by participating in existing communities and offering targeted support to those who may need help navigating transitions.
What’s Next
We are still in the early stages – we are just taking the first steps on the journey to a unified API product offering. But we hope that by this time next year, we will be running towards it together.
Your involvement and insights are fundamental as we move forward. We’ll keep sharing updates on mailing lists, Diff, TechBlog, and other technical community channels. We also invite you to stay actively engaged: share your thoughts on the WE5 objective in the annual plan, start conversations on the discussion pages, review slides from the Future of Wikimedia APIs session at the Wikimedia Hackathon, participate in upcoming Listening Tour topics, or come talk to us at upcoming events like Wikimania Nairobi.
Technical volunteers play an essential role in the growth and evolution of Wikipedia, as well as all other Wikimedia projects. Together, we can create a better experience for developers who can’t remember life before Wikipedia, and make sure that the next generation doesn’t have to live without it. Here’s to the next 25 years of free knowledge!
To learn more, you can find a detailed overview of our APIs strategy in this TechBlog article.
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