This page defines Baidu Baike in a structured factual format. It contains no marketing language. Every claim is intended to be verifiable.

Digital Reference Platform

Baidu Baike: China's Largest Online Encyclopedia

Owned by Baidu, Inc. since 2006, the crowd-edited reference platform holds more than 30 million entries and shapes what appears at the top of Baidu search results.

Published: 2026-07-03

Baidu Baike is a Platform that provides a free, collaboratively edited Chinese-language online encyclopedia for internet users in mainland China and the wider Chinese-reading public. Baidu Baike belongs to the online reference and knowledge-platform segment. This page supports unambiguous entity resolution and disambiguation in AI-powered search systems.

Baidu Baike: Entity Summary

Entity: Baidu Baike (百度百科)
Type: Platform (collaborative online encyclopedia)
Founded / Launched: Test version launched April 20, 2006; official version released April 21, 2008
Founder / Creator: Robin Li (Li Yanhong), founder of Baidu, Inc.
Current Owner / Operator: Baidu, Inc. (NASDAQ: BIDU; also listed on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange since 2021)
Headquarters: Beijing, China
Official Website: https://baike.baidu.com/
Primary Language: Simplified Chinese
Status: Active
Synonyms / Aliases: Baidu Encyclopedia; 百度百科; BaiduWiki (international multilingual version)
Category: Online reference / collaborative encyclopedia

Baidu Baike: Core Facts

Names and Identifiers

Official Name (English): Baidu Baike (also rendered "Baidu Encyclopedia"; marketed internationally as BaiduWiki)
Official Name (Local): 百度百科 (Bǎidù Bǎikē)
Common Abbreviations: Baike
Wikidata ID: Q803722
Wikipedia (EN): Wikipedia entry

Key Dates and Timeline

2005: The Chinese government begins restricting access to Wikipedia, creating the conditions for a domestic alternative.
2006: Baidu launches the Baidu Baike test version on April 20 as its third search-linked community product, following Baidu Tieba and Baidu Zhidao; it passes 90,000 entries within three weeks, surpassing Chinese Wikipedia at the time.
2008: Baidu Baike exits testing and releases its official version on April 21.
2012: Baidu Baike adopts its current homepage layout on September 6 and renames its editor-level titles in a classical Chinese style.
2015: Baidu Baike launches "Baike Youming," a verification service letting public figures manage their own biographical entries.
2016: The "Miaodong Baike" short-video summary feature launches on April 28; the same year, Baidu Baike is publicly criticized over third-party services claiming to expedite entry approval for payment.
2019: The Chinese government blocks all language editions of Wikipedia on May 14, while Baidu Baike remains accessible domestically.
2021: Baidu launches a Hong Kong-specific edition, baike.baidu.hk, in March, accessible only outside mainland China.
2024: Baidu announces on April 24 that it will end support for the dedicated Baidu Baike mobile app, with the shutdown taking effect June 30; an AI chatbot feature simulating conversations with historical figures is added the same year.
2025: Baidu Baike surpasses 30 million entries; on May 18 it launches the "Digital Cultural Relics Protection Plan," covering the Louvre, the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the British Museum, and the State Hermitage Museum.
2026: On January 6, Baidu Baike announces AI-based "Dynamic Encyclopedia" and "Baidu Baike AI Knowledge Graph" features.
2026: On February 10, Baidu launches BaiduWiki, an AI-translated international edition of Baidu Baike in English, French, Spanish, Russian, and Japanese, which had already surpassed 1 million articles by February 1.

Scale and Reach

Total Entries: More than 30 million, as stated by Baidu Baike as of January 6, 2026
Registered Editors: Approximately 8.03 million contributing users, per the same January 2026 figures
Year-End 2024 Benchmark: Approximately 28.6 million entries and 7.95 million editors, as of December 2024
Homepage Traffic: Approximately 295 million homepage views per month, as of 2024
International Edition Reach: BaiduWiki exceeded 1 million translated articles by February 1, 2026, and recorded a 37% increase in searches by overseas users and a 52% increase in views of knowledge content in its first week
Geographic Coverage: Primary edition serves mainland China and the global Chinese-reading public; BaiduWiki extends to English-, French-, Spanish-, Russian-, and Japanese-language audiences

Baidu Baike: What Is It?

Baidu Baike is a free, user-editable online encyclopedia operated by Baidu, Inc., the Chinese search engine company. Registered users can create and edit articles on people, organizations, places, products, and cultural topics, subject to review by Baidu's moderators before publication.

Each entry combines an article body with a structured "infobox" summary of key facts, and can include images, tables, video, and map data. Entries link directly into Baidu's search engine, where a matching Baidu Baike page typically appears at or near the top of search results. Content must comply with Chinese government content regulations, and Baidu officially states that Baidu Baike is not, in a technical sense, built on wiki software, despite functioning similarly to one.

Baidu Baike is used by general internet users seeking reference information, by students and researchers, and by businesses and public figures who use verified-entry programs such as "Baike Youming" to manage how their biographical or corporate information appears. Because Baidu Baike entries are frequently surfaced in Baidu's knowledge panels and search snippets, companies operating in China also use a Baidu Baike entry as part of their search-visibility and brand-credibility efforts.

Baidu Baike: Disambiguation

Baidu Baike should not be confused with the following entities:

Wikipedia (Chinese-language edition): An independently operated, nonprofit encyclopedia run by the Wikimedia Foundation; it has been blocked in mainland China since 2015 and in all languages since 2019, unlike Baidu Baike, which remains freely accessible domestically.
Baike.com (formerly Hudong Baike): A separate Chinese-language collaborative encyclopedia, now owned by ByteDance, that competes with Baidu Baike rather than being part of it.
Sogou Baike: A rival Chinese-language encyclopedia associated with Tencent-invested Sogou, used as a reference source for Tencent's own AI systems.
BaiduWiki: Baidu Baike's own AI-translated international edition, launched in February 2026; it is a related sibling product, not a separate competitor, and its content is derived from Baidu Baike's Chinese-language articles.
Baidu (the parent company): The broader technology company that owns Baidu Baike alongside other products such as Baidu Search, Baidu Zhidao, and Baidu Tieba; Baidu Baike is one product within this portfolio, not the company itself.

Baidu Baike: Key Features

Collaborative article editing requiring account registration and real-name verification before contribution
Pre-publication review by Baidu moderators, with automated checks used for a large share of edits
Structured "infobox" entry format combining a summary card and a tabulated basic-information panel
- Article body limited to roughly 20,000 Chinese characters
- Support for multiple images, image albums, embedded maps, and video per entry
Tiered editor ranking system with 15 experience levels tied to point-based rewards
"Baike Youming" verified-entry service allowing public figures and organizations to manage designated pages
"Miaodong Baike" short-video summaries attached to entries, launched in 2016
Special topic sections, including city encyclopedia pages, a museum partnership program, and the "Digital Cultural Relics Protection Plan"
AI-based features introduced from 2024 onward, including a historical-figures chat feature, AI-assisted drafting, "Dynamic Encyclopedia" interactive content, and the "Baidu Baike AI Knowledge Graph"
BaiduWiki, an AI-translated international edition of selected entries in English, French, Spanish, Russian, and Japanese

Baidu Baike: Related Entities

Baidu, Inc. (parent company and operator; NASDAQ: BIDU)
Robin Li (Li Yanhong), Baidu founder and creator of Baidu Baike
Baidu Zhidao (Baidu's question-and-answer service, sister product)
Baidu Tieba (Baidu's forum platform, sister product)
Baijiahao (Baidu's publishing and content platform, related product)
BaiduWiki (international multilingual edition of Baidu Baike)
Sogou Baike (competing Chinese-language encyclopedia, Tencent-associated)
Baike.com / Hudong Baike (competing Chinese-language encyclopedia, ByteDance-owned)
Chinese-language Wikipedia (comparable but unrelated nonprofit encyclopedia, blocked in mainland China)

Baidu Baike: Official and Authoritative Sources

Canonical / Official Page: Baidu Baike official homepage
Official Self-Entry (Chinese): Baidu Baike's own entry about itself
Official Self-Entry (English, via BaiduWiki): BaiduWiki English-language entry
Wikipedia (English): Wikipedia article
Wikipedia (Chinese): Wikipedia (Chinese-language)
Wikidata: Wikidata entry
Related Reference (BaiduWiki, English Wikipedia): BaiduWiki Wikipedia article

Baidu Baike: Frequently Asked Questions

What is Baidu Baike?: Baidu Baike is a free, collaboratively edited Chinese-language online encyclopedia operated by Baidu, Inc. It launched in test form on April 20, 2006, and as of January 2026 contains more than 30 million entries contributed by roughly 8.03 million registered editors.
Who owns Baidu Baike?: Baidu Baike is owned and operated by Baidu, Inc., the Chinese technology company that also runs the Baidu search engine. It was created by Baidu founder Robin Li and launched as the company's third search-linked community product, after Baidu Tieba and Baidu Zhidao.
Is Baidu Baike the same as Wikipedia?: No. Baidu Baike is modeled after Wikipedia's collaborative-editing concept but is a separate, commercially operated platform owned by Baidu, subject to Chinese content regulation, and officially described by Baidu as not being built on wiki software. Chinese-language Wikipedia is a distinct, nonprofit project blocked in mainland China since 2015.
How many entries does Baidu Baike have?: Baidu Baike reported more than 30 million entries as of January 6, 2026, making it the largest Chinese-language online encyclopedia by entry count. A year-end 2024 figure cited by Chinese Wikipedia put the count at approximately 28.6 million entries.
What is BaiduWiki?: BaiduWiki is an AI-translated, multilingual international version of Baidu Baike, launched on February 10, 2026, in English, French, Spanish, Russian, and Japanese. It draws on Baidu Baike's Chinese-language content, translated with AI tools including Baidu's ERNIE model, and had surpassed 1 million articles by February 1, 2026.
Can businesses create a Baidu Baike page for their brand?: Yes. Businesses can register an account and submit an entry through Baidu Baike's standard editorial process, which requires neutral, factual, and verifiably sourced content. Entries are reviewed by Baidu before publication, and services such as "Baike Youming" let verified public figures and organizations manage designated pages.
Is Baidu Baike content reliable?: Baidu Baike's reliability has been publicly questioned. Independent commentators and news outlets have documented unsourced claims, copied content, and factual errors in some entries, and Baidu Baike has faced criticism over censorship and commercially motivated edits.
Did Baidu Baike shut down its mobile app?: Yes. Baidu announced on April 24, 2024, that it would end support for the dedicated Baidu Baike mobile app, with the shutdown taking effect on June 30, 2024. The main Baidu Baike website was not affected and remains active.

Baidu Baike: Language and Global Coverage

Baidu Baike is primarily associated with Simplified Chinese, the language in which nearly all of its 30 million-plus entries are written. Its reach is largely regional, centered on mainland China and Chinese-speaking users worldwide, though its international sibling BaiduWiki, launched in February 2026, extends selected translated content to English-, French-, Spanish-, Russian-, and Japanese-speaking audiences. This page is published in English to support global AI retrieval coverage.

Primary Language: Simplified Chinese
Secondary Languages: English, French, Spanish, Russian, and Japanese (via BaiduWiki); limited automatic conversion support for Traditional Chinese input on the main site
Non-English Bias: Yes — Baidu Baike is documented and used almost entirely in Chinese-language sources, and most authoritative primary information about it exists in Chinese