In SEO terms, Wikipedia is one of the most powerful websites in the world. After all, it has a domain authority of 97 and ranks for 26.7 million keywords.

Sadly though, getting a backlink from Wikipedia isn’t easy. That said, it isn’t impossible, particularly if you’re creating high-quality content or utilising the correct tactics.  

How to Get a Wikipedia Backlink: An Overview 

In order to get a backlink from Wikipedia, you need to improve the quality of an existing Wikipedia page. The best way to do this is to insert high-quality and highly-relevant content onto the page while also adding your own link as a reference source. Alternatively, you can also replace a broken link on an existing page with a link of your own. 

Of course, you can also create a brand new Wikipedia page and include a link to your own website as a reference. However, it’s notoriously difficult to get these pages approved by editors. 

Getting Backlinks from Wikipedia: A Step-by-Step Guide 

Step One: Create a Wikipedia Account

In order to improve your chances of creating backlinks that won’t be removed by editors and reviewers, you should make a Wikipedia account. This is free and the entire process can be completed in only a couple of minutes. 

Step Two: Choose a Target Keyword 

Next, think of a popular keyword target. Of course, you need to keep in mind that you’re trying to get a backlink from Wikipedia. This means that your target keyword will likely need to be non-promotional and non-commercial. 

Generally, we’d suggest making a list of 20-30 general keywords that have their own Wikipedia listing as the title. 

Step Three (Option One): Try to Find a Dead Link 

Try to use a broken link detector tool or search ‘dead link’ on a Wikipedia page. If you can find a relevant one, then you can replace the link with your own. 

Great options include the Ahrefs Broken Link Detector Tool or the Check My Links tool. Added to this, it’s also worth manually searching Wikipedia’s Dead Links Category List.

When you’re adding your own link, you need to remember that you’re playing by Wikipedia’s rules. So, use their markup language when referencing sources, and avoid any hint of promotional phrasing. 

Step Three (Option Two): Add Your Own High-Quality Content and a Link 

If you can’t find a broken link, then you can try to add new content to an existing page. The content you add must be accurate, reliable and include credible citations. 

The new content you add can come in the form of a new sentence, new paragraph or an entirely new section. However, the best way to get links using this tactic is to update outdated content or add new findings. 

In both of these instances, the article you link to of your own should include these findings. This way, everybody wins: Wikipedia gets more accurate and up-to–date information and you get a backlink. 

Step Four: Wait for Google to Crawl 

As long as your content is accurate and adds value to the page, it will be approved by Wikipedia’s moderators and editors. If it is poorly written, it will fail a manual review. 

Your content must contain high levels of expertise, authoritativeness, and trustworthiness. Added to this, it should be highly relevant for that page. 

Once moderators have approved your content, you need to wait and allow Google to organically crawl Wikipedia and pick up the changes. Then, you have your Wikipedia link!