Select text on any page to instantly preview the matching Wikipedia article with an image and snippet.
Users
13
+1 in 30 days
Rating
0.0 / 5
unchanged in 30 days
Ratings
0
0 in 30 days
Store rank
#183K
#153K among extensions
Version
1.9.0
updated 22 Jul 2026
Users
monthly, 4 months
Latest, 21 Oct 2026:13 usersMove the mouse over the chart for any month
Ratings count
monthly, 4 months
Latest, 21 Oct 2026:0 ratingsMove the mouse over the chart for any month
The Chrome Web Store rounds user counts down to the leading digit, so the user line moves in steps. The ratings count is exact and is the better signal of real adoption.
About WikiLens
WikiLens turns every page into an encyclopedia. Select any text, and if it is the exact title of a Wikipedia article, an elegant popup appears right where you are: the article's images shown whole (flip through them with an arrow or the mouse wheel), the full first paragraph with Wikipedia's own formatting, and a link to read the rest on Wikipedia.
EXACT BY DEFAULT Previews appear only when your selection is precisely an article title, so the popup never gets in your way. Ambiguous titles show a tidy "may refer to:" list, and clicking a meaning previews it in place. Prefer looser matching? One switch also resolves redirects like "USA" to "United States".
QUICK FACTS AND RABBIT HOLES The Large popup adds up to five facts from the article's infobox (born, died, occupation, founded, population, website), shown in your language when available. Every linkable value is clickable, and clicking a Wikipedia link opens that article's preview right in the popup, with a back button to find your way home. Articles with pronunciation audio get a speaker button next to the title.
23 LANGUAGES Point WikiLens at any major Wikipedia edition, with an automatic English fallback when a title only exists there.
YOURS TO SHAPE Three popup sizes. Light, dark, and auto themes. Pin the popup to keep reading while you scroll, drag it anywhere, or copy a citation with one click. Press Ctrl+Shift+L to preview the current selection on demand. An optional Alt+select trigger and a per-site disable list keep it quiet where you want. Esc dismisses the popup, and nothing triggers while you type in forms or editors. Plays nicely with Dark Reader and hover-zoom extensions.
ALWAYS AT HAND The toolbar popup keeps your recent lookups nearby (stored only on your device), lets you look up titles directly, and counts the articles you have previewed.
PRIVATE BY DESIGN Your selection travels to Wikimedia's APIs (Wikipedia and Wikidata) and nowhere else. No analytics, no tracking, no accounts. Free software under the GPL-3.0, source at github.com/Ville-Mattila/wikilens.