Wikipedia:Purpose

Wikipedia has a lofty goal: "a world in which every single person on the planet is given free access to the sum of all human knowledge."[1]

Wikipedia's purpose is to benefit readers by acting as a widely accessible and free encyclopedia; a comprehensive written compendium that contains information on all branches of knowledge.

Encyclopedias are designed to introduce readers to a topic, not to be the final point of reference. Wikipedia, like other encyclopedias, is a tertiary source and provides overviews of a topic by indicating reliable sources of more extensive information.

The goal of a Wikipedia article is to present a neutrally written summary of existing mainstream knowledge in a fair and accurate manner with a straightforward, "just-the-facts style". Articles should have an encyclopedic style with a formal tone instead of essay-like, argumentative, promotional or opinionated writing.

  1. ^ "The Sum of All Human Knowledge". The On Being Project. 30 June 2020. Retrieved 9 June 2024.