The Wikimedia REST API — originally known as **RESTBase** — is a high-performance, read-optimized web service that provides structured content from Wikimedia projects (like Wikipedia) via a modern RESTful interface.
Designed to support front-end performance and reduce server load, the API delivers pre-rendered content (such as page summaries, lead sections, and media metadata) in clean, easily consumable JSON. Unlike the older MediaWiki Action API, which requires knowledge of the MediaWiki data model, the REST API is tailored for developers building user interfaces or embedding Wikipedia content.
A key feature of the REST API is its **full support for CORS**, making it ideal for use in browser-based applications, embedded environments like iframes, and WebAssembly (WASM) contexts. The API endpoints are **cache-friendly and CDN-distributed**, meaning they offer low-latency responses globally, with predictable structure and schema.
The REST API is **read-only** and does not require authentication, making it perfect for anonymous public content consumption at scale. It also includes endpoints for accessing structured data like page summaries, references, mobile HTML, and media metadata.
While originally developed under the RESTBase project, the REST API is now integrated directly into Wikimedia’s infrastructure, and its newer endpoints are managed by individual services (like `summary`, `media`, or `mobile-sections`).
Developers are encouraged to migrate from older RESTBase-specific endpoints to the newer REST API paths when possible. The REST API continues to evolve with a focus on performance, simplicity, and broad compatibility across Wikimedia projects.
