Wikipedia MCP Server
Free knowledge access for AI agents. Search, read, and explore 6.8M+ Wikipedia articles with zero API keys. Built for agents that need facts, summaries, and discovery.
Agent: "What's the capital of Bhutan?"
→ wiki_get_summary("Thimphu")
→ "Thimphu is the capital and largest city of Bhutan..."
Agent: "What are the categories of 'Quantum computing'?"
→ wiki_get_categories("Quantum computing")
→ ["Quantum information science", "Computational complexity theory", ...]
Architecture
┌──────────────┐ stdio/JSON-RPC ┌──────────────────┐
│ AI Agent │ ◄──────────────────────► │ Wikipedia MCP │
│ (Claude, etc)│ │ Server (Python) │
└──────────────┘ └───────┬────────────┘
│ HTTPS
▼
┌──────────────────┐
│ Wikipedia REST │
│ API (Free, No │
│ Auth Required) │
└──────────────────┘
Why Wikipedia? 6.8M+ English articles, CC BY-SA 4.0 licensed, comprehensive, constantly updated. No API key, generous rate limits (~200 req/s), and 300+ language editions.
Tools
| # | Tool | Description | Parameters |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | wiki_search |
Search Wikipedia by query | query (required), limit, language, response_format |
| 2 | wiki_get_article |
Get full article content | title (required), language, max_sections, response_format |
| 3 | wiki_get_summary |
Get short summary/extract | title (required), sentences, language, response_format |
| 4 | wiki_get_categories |
Get article categories | title (required), limit, language, response_format |
| 5 | wiki_get_languages |
Get available translations | title (required), limit, response_format |
| 6 | wiki_random |
Get a random article | language, response_format |
| 7 | wiki_page_info |
Get page metadata | title (required), language, response_format |
Tool Details
wiki_search — Find articles
Search by natural language query. Returns titles, snippets (with bold highlights), page IDs, word counts, and direct URLs. Supports 300+ language editions.
// Example: wiki_search("quantum entanglement", limit=5)
{
"query": "quantum entanglement",
"total_hits": 1234,
"results": [
{
"title": "Quantum entanglement",
"pageid": 24934,
"snippet": "**Quantum entanglement** is a physical phenomenon...",
"word_count": 15623,
"url": "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quantum_entanglement"
}
]
}
wiki_get_article — Read full articles
Returns the complete article text as markdown with section headings. Use max_sections to limit for very large articles (>50KB). All content is CC BY-SA 4.0 licensed.
// Example: wiki_get_article("Python (programming language)", max_sections=3)
{
"title": "Python (programming language)",
"length_chars": 42310,
"extract": "# Python (programming language)\n\n**Python** is a high-level...",
"categories": ["Programming languages", "Python (programming language)"],
"url": "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Python_(programming_language)"
}
wiki_get_summary — Quick facts
Returns the introductory extract (2-5 sentences by default) plus key metadata. Perfect for quick fact-checking, trivia, and agent decision-making.
wiki_get_categories — Navigate the knowledge graph
Returns all categories an article belongs to. Filters out Wikipedia infrastructure categories. Useful for topic exploration and building knowledge taxonomies.
wiki_get_languages — Cross-language access
Shows all available language versions of an article with language codes, native names, and full URLs. Supports 300+ languages from Afrikaans to Zulu.
wiki_random — Serendipitous discovery
Returns a random article with summary. Great for icebreakers, exploration, and "did you know?" moments.
wiki_page_info — Metadata at a glance
Returns page size, last modified date, content model, redirect status, and preview text.
Quality Standards
All tools implement Anthropic's MCP quality standards:
| Standard | Implementation |
|---|---|
| Tool Annotations | All 4 booleans: readOnlyHint, destructiveHint, idempotentHint, openWorldHint |
| Service Prefix | wiki_ prefix on all tools to avoid namespace collisions |
| Dual Response Format | markdown (human-readable) or json (programmatic) |
| Pagination | limit parameter on all list tools |
| CHARACTER_LIMIT | 25,000 char limit with automatic truncation + guidance |
| Error as Result | Errors returned as JSON with isError: true and next_steps |
Installation
Prerequisites
- Python 3.10+
- pip
Setup
git clone https://github.com/Rumblingb/wikipedia-mcp.git
cd wikipedia-mcp
pip install -r requirements.txt
Configure in Claude Desktop
Add to claude_desktop_config.json:
{
"mcpServers": {
"wikipedia": {
"command": "python3",
"args": ["server.py"],
"cwd": "/path/to/wikipedia-mcp"
}
}
}
Configure in VS Code / Cursor
{
"mcpServers": {
"wikipedia": {
"command": "python3",
"args": ["server.py"],
"cwd": "/path/to/wikipedia-mcp"
}
}
}
Deploy to Smithery
Visit smithery.ai → Import from GitHub → Select wikipedia-mcp.
Pricing
| Tier | Price | Queries/Month | Support |
|---|---|---|---|
| Free | $0 | 50 | Community |
| Pro | $19/mo | Unlimited | Priority Email |
| Enterprise | $99/mo | Unlimited + SLA | Dedicated |
FAQ
Q: Is this really free? No API key?Yes. Wikipedia's API is public and requires no authentication. The free tier gives you 50 queries/month through this server.
Q: What about content licensing?All Wikipedia content is licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Attribution is included in article responses.
Q: Which languages are supported?300+ language editions. Use the language parameter on any tool (e.g., language="es" for Spanish).
Q: How is this different from just hitting the Wikipedia API directly?This server adds: agent-friendly response formats (markdown + JSON), automatic truncation, category filtering, error recovery with actionable next steps, and MCP protocol compliance for direct agent integration.
Q: Can I contribute?Yes! PRs welcome. See CONTRIBUTING.md.
Developer Notes
- Rate Limiting: Wikipedia allows ~200 requests/second. Be respectful — add delays between requests if making many calls.
- Attribution: Always attribute Wikipedia content per CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Caching: Consider caching results for repeated queries — Wikipedia content rarely changes.
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