Template:Citation needed/doc

A checked version of this page, approved on 16 October 2020, was based on this revision.

This content is in the Template Namespace. Used for page-templates that can be re-used across the wiki.

This template is used on approximately 495,000 pages, or roughly 15110% of all pages.
To avoid major disruption and server load, any changes should be tested in the template's /sandbox or /testcases subpages, or in your own user subpage. The tested changes can be added to this page in a single edit. Consider discussing changes on the talk page before implementing them.

{{Citation needed}} is a template used to identify claims in articles, particularly if questionable, that need a citation to a reliable source. This template produces the superscripted message ^{[citation needed]} and is installed with no spaces directly after punctuation.

Use

{{Citation needed|date=April 2026|reason=Your explanation here}}

Notes:

The |date= parameter consists of the full English name of the current month (with initial capital and rest lowercase), a space, and the year. For example, "January 2013" but not "jan13" or "January 23, 2013". Deviation from this rule will place the article in Category:Articles with invalid date parameter in template.

To automatically add the current date, you can use template substitution: {{subst:Citation needed}}.
If the |date= parameter is not given, a bot will soon add it (AnomieBOT's TagDater task) but it's better if you add it yourself to avoid an extra edit to the article's history.

The |reason= parameter is for an explanation why you think the material needs a source. It is optional but very helpful. It is displayed as a tooltip in some browsers (hover the mouse here ^{[citation needed]} to check behaviour of your browser). For example, the following usage might be appropriate to the claim that "Humphrey Bogart was an avid snooker player":

{{Citation needed|reason=This claim needs a reliable source; Bogart was a famous actor but his major biographies don't mention snooker.|date=April 2026}}

Use only plain text for the |reason= parameter. It does not support wiki markup like wikilinks, which can mess up the tooltip.
Double quotation marks used within the |reason= parameter will likewise mess up the tooltip; use single quotes or the HTML code " instead.
If omitted, the tooltip "This claim needs references to reliable sources." is used by default.

This template should usually be installed directly after punctuation, such as a full stop (period) or a comma.
Use of this template places the article into Category:All articles with unsourced statements and Category:Articles with unsourced statements from April 2026 (example; past months are listed in Category:Articles with unsourced statements).
Remove the template when you add a citation for a statement.

Examples

Example 1

This sentence shows the template used at the end.{{Citation needed|reason=Reliable source needed for the whole sentence|date=April 2026}}

This wikitext will be rendered as follows:

This sentence shows the template used at the end.^{[citation needed]}

Example 2

[[Humphrey Bogart]] was an avid snooker player.{{Citation needed|date=April 2026}}

The template indicates that it may be that Humphrey Bogart played snooker at some point and it may be that he was enthusiastic about the game but no reliable, published sources were given to verify it and the information is not considered common knowledge.

Humphrey Bogart was an avid snooker player.^{[citation needed]}

Example 3

If it is considered that he might have played snooker but was not an avid player, a reason for the need of a citation may be given, displayed as a tooltip when the mouse hovers on "citation needed":

[[Humphrey Bogart]] was an avid snooker player.{{Citation needed|date=April 2026|reason=Only aware he was photographed playing once. Not aware of any source that claims he played a lot.}}

Humphrey Bogart was an avid snooker player.^{[citation needed]}

In this example, it may be better to use the {{Citation needed span}}, which has slightly different syntax, template to highlight the word "avid".

More detail here: wikipedia:Template:Citation needed/doc

Template data

This is the TemplateData for this template used by TemplateWizard, VisualEditor and other tools. Click here to see a monthly parameter usage report for this template based on this TemplateData.

TemplateData for Citation needed/doc

The template is used to identify claims in articles, particularly if questionable, that need a citation to a reliable source.

Template parameters[Edit template data]
Parameter		Description	Type	Status
Month and year	`date`	Provides the month and year of the citation request; e.g., 'January 2013', but not 'jan13' Auto value `{{subst:CURRENTMONTHNAME}} {{subst:CURRENTYEAR}}`	String	suggested
Reason for citation	`reason`	A reason as to why, or for what content, the citation is needed; use single quotes, if any	String	optional