How to Edit a wikiHow Page

Last Updated: November 3, 2022

wikiHow is a wiki, so anyone can edit it, even people who don't have an account! When you have saved your very first edit, you have become a wikiHow editor! Here are some simple instructions:

Steps

Search on wikiHow to find the article or use the category listings to narrow down what you want to work on if you haven't yet. If you entered into an article through one of the tools on the Dashboard or one from a search engine on the Internet, you can click the article title to get right into the article's full page.

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Method 1

Method 1 of 2:

Using the Edit Link

1
Click on an Edit link. From a desktop or laptop computer, you'll find the Edit link right below the wikiHow logo, at the top left corner of the page, next to the Article link. As well, you'll find a separate Edit link to get to section editing above and to the right of the exact section you'll want to edit. On the wikiHow mobile webpage, you can click the Pencil icon above the section's title.
- On the mobile website you will essentially be working from the Advanced Editor which requires the use of wiki-markup. However, changing the website URL you entered in from, from m.wikihow to www.wikihow, will enable you to use a slightly more user-friendly interface in Guided Editor that handles some of the markup for you automatically.
- You don't need to have an account to make an edit from desktop. However, it's always advised that you create an account to make edits.
2
Edit to improve the quality of an article. Try to preserve any good previous content that you can, but feel free to make bold changes and improvements!
- Review the Writer's Guide and How to Format a wikiHow Article for proper format.
- Make sure you also copyedit for spelling, punctuation and grammatical errors.
3
Click on Preview, at the bottom of the article, to review your changes.
- You can cancel your edit if need be, and you can view the changes in the code between the previous version of the article and what you have written. You can also save a draft of your work if desired. Only publish the final draft of your work.
This helps patrollers understand why you made the change so they know whether to approve it or not.
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Method 2

Method 2 of 2:

Using URL

Sometimes, there just isn't an edit button. Luckily, here's how to do it then.

1

Select the URL of the page. The URL is the address of a website, or the text located right below tabs.
2
Add ?action=edit to the URL.
- Remember to add it to the end, not the front.
3

Continue from Step 2 in method 1.

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Community Q&A

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Question

My published changes show up right away when I am logged in, but the article reverts to an older version after logout, even after I clear my cookies and cache. When will "everyone" see the changes?

Joel

Community Answer

Edits to articles are not shown to the general public until after they've been marked as patrolled via Recent Changes Patrol by another editor. This usually does not take long at all, so edits go through to pages quickly.

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If wikiHow has helped you, please consider a small contribution to support us in helping more readers like you. We’re committed to providing the world with free how-to resources, and even $1 helps us in our mission. Support wikiHow
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Question

Can you edit the content as well as the grammar?

Alex

Top Answerer

Yes, you can, as long as it's relevant and the information is correct. However, if it's vandalism or a bad edit, it is possible that it will be reverted.

Thanks! We're glad this was helpful.
Thank you for your feedback.
If wikiHow has helped you, please consider a small contribution to support us in helping more readers like you. We’re committed to providing the world with free how-to resources, and even $1 helps us in our mission. Support wikiHow
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Not Helpful 1 Helpful 5
Question

Why did it say it would share my IP address? I'm scared.

Community Answer

When others RC patrol, they will see your IP address. This way the can leave a message regarding your edit. Also, when you comment on discussion pages they will show your IP address unless you are logged in. However, feel free to make an edit, usually when you edit only RC patrollers see your IP address.

Thanks! We're glad this was helpful.
Thank you for your feedback.
If wikiHow has helped you, please consider a small contribution to support us in helping more readers like you. We’re committed to providing the world with free how-to resources, and even $1 helps us in our mission. Support wikiHow
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Wiki formatting

Putting in:

section headings between two equals signs, e.g.: ==Hello there== ;
subheadings between three equals signs, e.g.: ===Hello there=== ;
italic text between two apostrophes (NOT double quotes) - e.g. '' Hello there'' makes: Hello there ;
bold text between three apostrophes - e.g. ''' Hello there''' makes: Hello there ;
bold "and" italic text between five apostrophes - e.g. ''''' Hello there''''' makes: Hello there ;
internal link in a Wikipedia title between doubled square brackets (check spelling and caps), e.g.:
- [[Hello there]] would link the Wikipedia article: "Hello there";
  - [[Say Hello in Different Languages|Say Hello]] would link in a wikiHow article to: Say Hello and
external web-link entire URL between single square brackets (check spelling & punctuation) - e.g. [http://www.hello-there.com] (with "http://") will link to the webpage at http://www.hello-there.com . Basically, external links are set up like internal links, only with one set of brackets, and a space instead of a | separator;
"block indent" of unnumbered line or paragraph, put a colon (:) beginning the line (2 colons = double indent) actually skips lines ;
bullet points , use a star (*) beginning each line;
- more bullet points within a bulleted list , use a double star (**) beginning each line
- (That was done here and the one above for example) .
  - Third level bullet points within a bulleted list , use a triple star (***) beginning each line
  - (That was done here and the one above for example) .
Note: an extra "Enter" among bulleted, "starred" lines does not disrupt that list.
- But, that would disrupt a numbered list... See the note at the end of the numbering section.

Automatic wiki numbering:

numbered list , put a hash (#) beginning each line.
insert a new numbered line , strike "Enter" where you want the line and put a hash (#) and write your text and it will automatically renumber all the lines below. That's the basics of numbering!
(That was done here and the one above for example) .
"extra touches," see below:
- bullet point list within the main numbered list , put a hash and a star (#*) beginning each line
- (That was done here and the one above for example) .
To add extra blank lines as above before the bulleted sub-list, and also below before the indented numbered list use <br><br> at the end of the line before where extra lines are desired.
To do a numbered list within the main numbered list:
1. put a double hash (##) beginning each line
2. (That was done here and the one above for example) .
  1. Third level numbering put a triple hash (###) beginning each line
  2. (That was done here and the one above for example) .
Note: If you put an extra "Enter" between two numbered lines, the list will start over numbering at number one, so that is why <br> is used instead of "Enter " to add blank lines.
- "br" means line break (to break the line and go to the next line) so several of them will make several blank lines...
- Use this extra formatting for a good reason not for fun.

Tips

Learn how to Contribute to wikiHow.

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Use the Randomizer if you want to be taken to a random article to edit.

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Others will improve upon your edits. You can even reach out to other editors directly to ask them to improve your edits. Try looking at wikiHow's Community Topic Areas to see what users may be able to help you.

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Warnings

If you vandalize wikiHow, you may be blocked from editing.

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Please comply with our Deletion Policy.

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Plagiarism is illegal.

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