wikiHow

What wikiHow does

wikiHow is a privately held digital content platform founded in 2005 and headquartered in Palo Alto, California. It operates a wiki-based, expert-reviewed library of more than 100,000 how-to articles, supplemented by interactive quizzes, moderated community forums, expert-led bite-sized email courses, and gamified tools such as name generators and a dating simulator. The platform is built on MediaWiki infrastructure and combines a community editorial process with a network of 2,800+ credentialed expert co-authors and 600+ course instructors, producing content that spans health, relationships, technology, crafts, finance, and personal development across 17+ language editions. wikiHow describes itself as the "most trusted how-to site on the internet" and the "fastest-growing quiz destination online," claiming to have helped billions of users since inception.

wikiHow monetizes primarily through advertising on its free content, supplemented by a wikiHow Pro subscription tier (offering ad-free access, expert courses, expert videos, and Tech Help Pro technical support) and individual premium course purchases. The platform employs 11-50 staff and operates with a product-led growth motion in which the free content library functions as the primary acquisition engine, with email-based course delivery and Pro upsell as conversion mechanisms. Strategic partnerships with the UN Verified initiative, WWF, YMCA, Feeding America, Mental Health America, and positive psychology author Shawn Achor support co-developed educational content and credibility positioning. The company has executed one disclosed acquisition (Guidecentral, March 2016) and is led by CEO Elizabeth Douglas alongside founder Lav Kumar and COO Sonia Chang.

wikiHow's customer base is entirely consumer-facing and globally distributed across long-tail individual users, with no enterprise B2B contracts or anchor accounts. Distribution is direct-to-consumer through wikihow.com, mobile, and email, with no third-party resellers or channel partners. No funding rounds, revenue figures, or institutional investors are disclosed in the available data.

Name

wikiHow

Legal name

wikiHow, Inc.

Website

https://wikihow.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2005

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

wikiHow is a Palo Alto-based digital content platform providing expert-reviewed how-to articles, quizzes, forums, and email-delivered courses across 17+ languages to a global consumer audience, monetizing through advertising and a Pro subscription.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Online How-to Content

NAICS

Web Search Portals, Libraries, Archives, and Other Information Services (5192), Web Search Portals and All Other Information Services (519290)

SIC

Periodicals: Publishing Or Publishing & Printing (2721)

akta.pro primary industry

Knowledge Management & Wikis (BPAMAMAH)

akta.pro secondary industries

Microlearning Content Libraries (Bite-Sized Lessons) (EDAFACAI), Newsletter & Email Digest Aggregators (MPACAKAG)

Keywords

• How-to articles
• Online learning platform
• Expert courses
• Interactive quizzes
• Community forums

Headquarters

HQ city

Palo Alto

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Digital Commerce or Content

Cost components

Personnel, Technology or R&D, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Advertising: The primary revenue stream appears to be advertising, with the platform generating ad revenue from its massive traffic of billions of users accessing free how-to content, quizzes, and forums.
2. wikiHow Pro Subscription: Subscription-based Pro membership offering unlocks access to all expert courses, expert videos, ad-free reading experience, and supports the mission. Delivered via email with one lesson per day cadence.
3. Premium Courses: Individual course purchases and enrollments, with some courses offered free (e.g., 'How to Spot and Counter Disinformation Online' in partnership with UN Verified) while others are Pro-exclusive. Features expert-led video tutorials with practical exercises.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels8 records

Core offering

wikiHow operates a digital content platform that provides free, expert-co-authored how-to articles, interactive quizzes and personality tests, moderated community forums, and expert-led email courses. The wikiHow Pro subscription tier offers ad-free reading, expert videos, full course access, and the Tech Help Pro technical support service. The platform serves billions of users globally across 17+ language editions.

Product overview

wikiHow operates as a unified digital content platform combining multiple interactive learning and entertainment products. The core offering consists of a vast library of how-to articles (100,000+) featuring expert co-authorship, supported by rapidly growing quiz and personality test content, expert-led educational courses delivered via email, moderated community forums, and gamified generators. The wikiHow Pro subscription tier provides premium access bundling ad-free content, expert courses, expert videos, and Tech Help Pro technical support services. The product portfolio spans self-improvement, relationships, entertainment, and practical life skills content across 19+ language editions.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• wikiHow Pro: Premium subscription service offering ad-free access, expert courses, and expert videos.
• wikiHow Courses
• Tech Help Pro

Products and services

• wikiHow Articles The flagship how-to content platform featuring over 100,000 academically researched articles across diverse categories, co-authored with 2,800+ expert contributors and accessible free of charge.
• wikiHow Quizzes Interactive personality tests, relationship quizzes, and trivia games forming the fastest-growing quiz destination online, featuring hundreds of titles spanning personality, dating, pop culture, and lifestyle topics.
• wikiHow Courses
• wikiHow Forums
• Fun Games and Generators
• wikiHow Pro
• Tech Help Pro
• Expert Videos

Quantifiable outcome

• Billions of people helped since 2005
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers1 record

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Seven partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• United Nations Verified InitiativecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerwikiHow partnered with the United Nations Verified initiative to create the 'How to Spot and Counter Disinformation Online' course. This free educational resource teaches critical media literacy skills and combating misinformation, delivered through wikiHow's bite-sized email course format with 15-20 minute lessons.
• World Wildlife Fund (WWF)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership featured on wikiHow's Partners page, indicating collaboration on environmental or educational content related to wildlife conservation.
• YMCAminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership featured on wikiHow's Partners page, indicating collaboration on health, wellness, or community-focused educational content.
• Feeding AmericaminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership featured on wikiHow's Partners page, indicating collaboration on food security, nutrition, or community support content.
• Mental Health AmericaminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership featured on wikiHow's Partners page, indicating collaboration on mental health awareness, resources, and educational content. Also reflected in courses like 'One Week to a Happier, Healthier Mind' featuring Mental Health America.
• Shawn Achor (Happiness Hub)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerwikiHow partnered with positive psychology expert and bestselling author Shawn Achor to create the 'Happiness Hub' - a dedicated section featuring expert-backed content on happiness, positivity, and personal well-being.
• 600+ Course ExpertscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerwikiHow's course platform features over 600 credentialed experts who contribute knowledge across diverse fields including technology, wellness, career development, and personal growth. Experts include licensed clinical psychologists, certified nutritionists, professional coaches, and industry specialists who provide professional insights, knowledge, and advice through the bite-sized email course format.

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• Skillshare: Skillshare is a subscription-based online learning platform with expert-led video courses — directly comparable to wikiHow Pro's course subscription model, though with longer-form video content rather than bite-sized daily lessons.
• Udemy: Udemy is a large online course marketplace with expert instructors across professional and personal development topics — overlapping with wikiHow's expert-led course offerings while operating at a much larger scale and longer course format.
• Britannica: Britannica is an established reference and informational content publisher with expert-authored articles — comparable to wikiHow's expert-verified editorial mission and subscription monetization, though Britannica skews toward encyclopedic reference rather than step-by-step how-to.
• MasterClass: MasterClass offers premium expert-led video courses from celebrity instructors — comparable to wikiHow's expert course subscription positioning but at a significantly higher price point and production quality tier.
• Quora: Quora is a broader Q&A knowledge platform where users ask and answer questions — comparable to wikiHow's forum and community-answering components, with a larger scope but less structured how-to content.
• Stack Exchange: Stack Exchange operates a network of Q&A communities focused on expert knowledge across technical and professional topics — comparable to wikiHow's expert co-author model but skewed toward professional/technical expertise rather than consumer how-to.

Direct peers

• Instructables: Instructables is a how-to/DIY community platform where users share step-by-step project guides — directly competing with wikiHow in the user-generated how-to content category across crafts, technology, and lifestyle topics.
• eHow: eHow is one of the original how-to article sites and a direct competitor to wikiHow, publishing expert-written instructional articles across home, lifestyle, and DIY categories monetized primarily through advertising.
• HowStuffWorks: HowStuffWorks publishes explanatory articles and multimedia content explaining how things work — directly comparable to wikiHow's instructional mission, with similar ad-supported discovery-based content.
• Lifehacker: Lifehacker publishes tips, tricks, and downloads for productivity, technology, and lifestyle — overlapping directly with wikiHow's how-to and self-improvement content categories and serving a similar general-consumer audience.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/wikiHow
• Facebookfacebook.com/wikiHow
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/wikihow

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles3 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A1 record

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about wikiHow