Best MediaWiki Extensions in 2023

There are thousands of extensions available for MediaWiki, so it can be tough to know which ones are the most useful. To help you out, we've compiled a list of the 15 most useful MediaWiki extensions.

The list of the best MediaWiki extensions of course depends on your use case. We thus focused on popular and often useful extensions.

What is a MediaWiki Extension?

Extensions add functionality to MediaWiki, or enhance existing features. They are written in PHP, and need to be added to the wiki by someone who has server access before they can be enabled. Other terms for MediaWiki extensions are MediaWiki plugins and MediaWiki addons, though the latter two are rarely used. They are comparable to WordPress plugins.

#15: Cite

Add references, citations, and notes via the Cite extension. The footnotes are created automatically at the bottom of pages. Increase the credibility of your content or provide context via this feature-rich MediaWiki extension.

#14: Data Transfer

The Data Transfer extension is a practical tool to import data from CSV or spreadsheet files into your wiki. The import works by mapping the file content to templates and their parameters. Wiki pages are created automatically, and you can choose to do a full or partial import.

Data Transfer is an excellent tool for creating and updating structured data, so it works well together with Semantic MediaWiki.

#13: Maps

Maps is the MediaWiki extension to visualize and work with geographical information. You can embed beautiful dynamic maps using either Leaflet or Google Maps.

The maps are highly customizable. Specify markers, lines, and polygons to show. Or choose the map layers, clustering options or the map's dimensions. Dozens of options give you an immense amount of control over the look and feel of the map, and it's behavior.

Maps comes with a visual map editor and GeoJSON support. It also provides parser functions for geocoding, coordinate formatting, and geospatial operations. Last but not least, it integrates with Semantic MediaWiki, enabling you to build maps from queried data.

#12: CodeMirror

The CodeMirror extension is a practical tool. It provides syntax highlighting when editing the wikitext source of pages. It integrates both into the Visual Editor (via the so-called "2017 wikitext editor") and the WikiEditor.

Have you ever looked for a tool highlighting the wikitext syntax used for internal links, templates, or tags? When this one is for you. If you forgot to add a closing bracket or tag: It will show you.

#11: Replace Text

The Replace Text extension provides a powerful tool for find-and-replace editing of strings within pages. Additionally, you can move pages via text replacements within their titles. Replace Text provides a concise interface with many options for wiki administrators.

Replace Text is a valuable tool for e. g. correcting common typographical errors or changing content on a larger scale, e. g. renaming categories or templates.

#10: CategoryTree

The CategoryTree extension allows you to view and navigate the category structure of a wiki easily. It provides a dynamic, interactive tree view of the category namespace, with support for expanding and collapsing categories.

CategoryTree is a helpful tool for exploring the category structure of a wiki and finding out what categories exist. It can also be useful for finding out which articles are in a particular category.

#9: PDF Handler

If you're like most people, you probably use PDFs all the time. But what if you want to use them in MediaWiki? Then PDF Handler is just what you need! It allows you to view PDFs inline in MediaWiki pages.

#8: InputBox

InputBox is handy little tool that allows you to add a form with a text box to a wiki page. You can create search forms, page creation forms, page moving forms and commenting forms.

#7: Gadgets

The Gadgets extension provides a way for users to define JavaScript or CSS based "gadgets" that other wiki users can then use.

#6: ParserFunctions

The ParserFunctions extension adds a set of parser functions. These are great for power users who wish to do wikitext scripting. The added parser functions provide conditional logic, improved handling of time, tools for working with page titles and various string functions.

#5: WikiEditor

The WikiEditor extension provides a toolbar for editing wikitext to the source editor. It helps those not familiar with wikitext to create links, lists, headers and more, and to format text.

#4: Visual Editor

The Visual Editor extension provides a user interface for editing wiki pages that is similar to a word processor. It includes features such as a toolbar with formatting options, a drag-and-drop interface for adding and rearranging content, and a preview function that shows how the page will look after the changes are saved.

#3: Page Forms

Page Forms allows you to add, edit, and query data using forms. It's perfect for creating data-rich pages without having to write any code.

#2: Semantic MediaWiki

Semantic MediaWiki provides a way to store and query data within a MediaWiki installation. This data can be used to generate reports and visualizations, or to integrate MediaWiki with other systems.

#1: ConfirmEdit

While preventing spam is not sexy, it is essential for wikis where anyone can register, and for wikis with open editing. ConfirmEdit provides several captcha to fight spam. We recommend the QuestyCaptcha module, as it is very effective and easy to set up.

Your Favourites

Did we miss your favourites? What MediaWiki extensions do you think are indispensable?

Let us know via a tweet to @ProWikis!

Further Resources

ProWiki comes with many MediaWiki extensions. Some of those are enabled by default, while others can be enabled via one click in the ProWiki admin panel.

If you are installing new extensions yourself, check out our LocalSettings.php and Installing MediaWiki Extensions with Composer guides.

The extensions bundled with MediaWiki are useful for many wikis. They are also easy to enable, in case you manage your wiki yourself.

See also: MediaWiki Extensions help and How to Install MediaWiki

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