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Thecriteria for speedy deletion(CSD) specify the only cases in whichadministratorshave broadconsensusto bypassdeletion discussion,at their discretion, and immediately delete Wikipedia pages or media. Because deletion is reversible only by administrators, other deletions occur only after discussion, unless they areproposed deletions.Speedy deletion is intended to reduce the time spent on deletion discussions for pages or media withno practical chanceof surviving discussion.[1]Anyone can request speedy deletion by adding one of thespeedy deletion templates,but only administrators may actually delete.

Before nominating a page for speedy deletion, consider whether it could be improved, reduced to astub,merged or redirected elsewhere, reverted to a better previous revision, or handled in some other way (seeWikipedia:Deletion policy § Alternatives to deletion). A page is eligible for speedy deletion only if all of itshistoryis also eligible. Users nominating a page for speedy deletion should specify which criterion/criteria the page meets, and should notify the page creator and any major contributors. If a page needs to be removed from Wikipedia for privacy reasons (e.g. non-public personal information, a child disclosing their age, possible libel),request oversightinstead.

For most speedy deletion criteria,the creator of a page may not remove the deletion tag from it;only an editor who is not the creator of a page may do so. A creator who disagrees with the speedy deletion should instead click on theContest this speedy deletionbutton that appears inside of the speedy deletion tag. This button links to thediscussion pagewith a pre-formatted area for the creator to explain why the page should not be deleted. If an editor other than the creator removes a speedy deletion tag ingood faith,it should be taken as a sign that the deletion is controversial and another deletion process should be used. The creator of a page may remove a speedy deletion tag only if the criterion in question isG6,G7,G8,G13,G14,C1,C4,orU1.[2]

Administrators should take care not to speedily delete pages or media except in the most obvious cases. If a page has survived its most recent deletion discussion, it should not be speedily deleted except for newly discovered copyright violations and pages that meet specific uncontroversial criteria; these criteria are noted below. Contributors sometimes create pages over several edits, so administrators should avoid deleting a page that appears incomplete too soon after its creation.

Besides speedy deletion, there are the following methods of deletion:

Nomenclature

Letter-number abbreviations (G12, A3...) are often used to refer to these criteria, and are given in each section. For example, "CSD G12" refers tocriterion 12undergeneral(copyright infringement) and "CSD U1" refers tocriterion 1underuser(user request). Some in-between numbers are skipped, as abbreviations denotingobsolete criteriaremain unused.These abbreviations can be confusingto new editors or anyone else unfamiliar with this page; in many situations aplain-English explanationof why a specific page was or should be deleted is preferable.

Requesting speedy deletion

Immediately following each criterion below is a list of templates used to mark pages or media files for speedy deletion under the criterion being used. To alert administrators to the nomination, place the relevant speedy deletion template at the top of the page or media file you are nominating (but see§ Pages that need to be tagged in a special mannerbelow). Please be sure to supply anedit summarythat mentions that the page is being nominated for speedy deletion. All of the speedy deletion templates are named asDb-XwithDbstanding for 'delete because'. A list of theDb-Xtemplates can be found atWikipedia:Criteria for speedy deletion/Deletion templates.

If a page falls under more than one of the criteria, instead of adding multiple tags it is possible to add a single{{Db-multiple}}tag to cover them all. For example, if an article seems both to be blatantly promotional (G11) and also to fail to indicate the significance of its subject (A7) then the tag{{Db-multiple|G11|A7}}can be used to indicate both of these concerns. The article can then be speedily deleted if an administrator assesses it and decides that either or both of the criteria apply.

There is a strong consensus that the creators and major contributors of pages and media files should be warned of a speedy deletion nomination (or of the deletion if not informed before). All speedy deletion templates (using criteria other than U1, G5, G6, G7, and G8) thus contain in their body a pre-formatted, suggested warning template to notify the relevant party or parties of the nomination for speedy deletion under the criterion used. You can copy and paste such warnings to the talk pages of the creators and major contributors, choose from others listed atCategory:CSD warning templates,or place the unified warning template,{{subst:CSD-warn|csd|Page name}},which allows you to tailor your warning under any particular criterion by replacingcsdwith the associated criterion abbreviation (e.g. g4, a7).

Use common sense when applying a speedy deletion request to a page: review the page history to make sure that all earlier revisions of the page meet the speedy deletion criterion, because a single editor can replace an article with material that appears to cause the page to meet one or more of the criteria.

Pages that need to be tagged in a special manner

Some pages either cannot or should not be tagged for speedy deletion in the normal manner:

  • Pages that you cannot edit (e.g., due to protection), orJSONpages: place the template on the corresponding Talk page instead, along with an explanation of which page to delete.
  • Template:pages: place the template within a noinclude tag, like this:<noinclude>{{Db-x}}</noinclude>
  • Module:pages (except for /doc pages): place the template withModule:Module wikitext,like this:require('Module:Module wikitext')._addText('{{Db-x}}')
  • CSS(includingsanitized CSS) orJavaScriptpages: place the template in a comment, like this:/*{{Db-x}}*/

Pages that have survived deletion discussions

As an exception to the norm that a page surviving its most recent deletion discussion means that it should not be speedily deleted, the following criteria apply also to those pages, with or without any specified limitations:

These criteria may only be used in such cases when no controversy exists; in the event of a dispute,start a new deletion discussion.However, newly discovered copyright violations should be tagged for G12 if the violation existed in all previous revisions of the article. G5 may be also used at discretion, subject to meeting the criterion outlined above.

General

These apply toevery type of pagewith exclusions listed for specific criteria, and so apply to articles, drafts, redirects, user pages, talk pages, files, etc. Read the specifics for each criterion to see where and how they apply.

G1. Patent nonsense

This applies to pages consisting entirely of incoherent text orgibberishwith no meaningful content or history. It doesnotcover poor writing, partisan screeds, obscene remarks, implausible theories,vandalism,hoaxes,fictional material, coherentnon-Englishmaterial, orpoorly translated material.In short, if it is understandable, G1 does not apply. It also does not apply to pages in theuser namespace.

G2. Test pages

This applies to pages created to test editing or other Wikipedia functions. It applies to subpages of theWikipedia Sandboxcreated as tests, but doesnotapply to the Sandbox itself, pages in theuser namespace,or valid but unused or duplicate templates.

G3. Pure vandalism and blatant hoaxes

This applies to pages that are blatant and obvious misinformation, blatanthoaxes(including files intended to misinform), and redirects created by cleanup from page-move vandalism.Articlesaboutnotable hoaxesare acceptable if it is clear that they are describing a hoax.

G4. Recreation of a page that was deleted per a deletion discussion

This applies to sufficiently identical copies, having any title, of a page deleted via its most recentdeletion discussion.[3]It excludes pages that arenotsubstantially identical to the deleted version, and pages to which the reason for the deletion no longer applies.[4]It excludes pages in userspace and draftspace where the content was converted[5]to adraftfor explicit improvement (but not simply to circumvent Wikipedia'sdeletion policy). This criterion also does not cover content undeleted via adeletion review,or that was only deleted viaproposed deletion(including deletion discussions closed as"soft delete") or speedy deletion.

G5. Creations by banned or blocked users, or in violation of general sanctions

This applies to pages created bybannedorblockedusersin violation of their ban or block,as well as pages created in violation ofgeneral sanctions,and that have no substantial edits by others not subject to the ban or sanctions.

G6. Technical deletions

This is foruncontroversialmaintenance, including:

  • Deleting redirects or other pages which preventpage moves.Administrators should be aware of theproper procedureswhere a redirect or page holding up a page move has a non-trivial page history. An administrator who deletes a page that is blocking a move should ensure that the move is completed after deleting it.
  • Deleting pages unambiguously created in error or in the incorrect namespace, or redirects created by moving away from a title that was obviously unintended.
  • Deleting templates orphaned as the result of a consensus atWikipedia:Templates for discussion.
  • {{Db-g6|rationale=reason}}– If none of the special tags below applies, this tag should be used with a reason specified in the|rationale=parameter.
  • {{Db-copypaste|page to be moved}}– forcut-and-paste page movesthat need to be temporarily deleted to make room for a clean page move.
  • {{Db-move|page to be moved|reason}}– for pages that are currently holding up a non-controversial or consensual page move.
  • {{Db-moved}}– for pages that were holding up a page move, until they were moved out of the way by apage mover.
  • {{Db-afc-move|Draft:page to be moved}}– for pages that are currently holding up a non-controversial or consensual page move as a result of anArticles for creation(AFC) review, typically for articles in draft space.
  • {{Db-xfd|fullvotepage=link to closeddeletion discussion}}– for pages where a consensus to delete has been previously reached via deletion discussion, but which were not deleted.
  • {{Db-error}}– for pages obviously created in error.
  • Category:Candidates for technical speedy deletion(1)

G7. Author requests deletion

If requested in good faith and provided that the only substantial content of the page was added by its author. For redirects created as a result of apage move,the mover must also have been the only substantive contributor to the pages before the move.[7]If the sole authorblanksa page other than a userspace page, a category page, or any type of talk page, this can be taken as a deletion request. If an author requests deletion of a page currently undergoing a deletion discussion, the closing admin may interpret that request as agreement with the deletion rationale.

G8. Pages dependent on a non-existent or deleted page

Examples include, but are not limited to:

This criterion excludes any page that is useful to Wikipedia, and in particular:

  • Deletion discussions that are not logged elsewhere
  • User talk pages
  • Talk page archives (except article talk page archives where the corresponding article and main talk page have been deleted and the page is not otherwise useful to Wikipedia – check for page-moves and merges before using G8 on article-talk-page-archives; the parent article might still exist under a different name)
  • Redirects that were broken as a result of a page move or retargeting (these should instead be retargeted to their target's new name), except whereR2speedy deletion would then immediately apply if they were fixed (e.g., redirects to articles that have beendraftified)
  • Plausible redirects that can be changed to valid targets
  • Usersubpages
  • Talk pages for files that exist onWikimedia Commons
  • Pages that should be moved to a different location[8]

Exceptions may be sign-posted with the template{{G8-exempt}}.

G9. Office actions

In exceptional circumstances, the Wikimedia Foundation office reserves the right to speedy-delete a page. Deletions of this type must not be reversed without permission from the Foundation.

G10. Pages that disparage, threaten, intimidate, or harass their subject or some other entity, and serve no other purpose

Examples of "attack pages"may include:libel,legal threats,material intended purely toharass or intimidatea person, orbiographical material about a living personthat is entirely negative in tone and unsourced. These pages should be speedily deleted when there is noneutralversion in the page history to revert to. Both the page title and page content may be taken into account in assessing an attack. Articles about living people deleted under this criterion shouldnotbe restored or recreated by any editor until thebiographical article standardsare met. Other pages violating the Biographies of living persons policy might be eligible for deletion under the conditions stipulated atWikipedia:Biographies of living persons § Summary deletion, creation prevention, and courtesy blanking,although in most cases a deletion discussion should be initiated instead.

Redirects from plausible search terms are not eligible under this criterion. For example, a term used on the target page to refer to its subject is often a plausible redirect – seeWikipedia:RNEUTRAL.

G11. Unambiguous advertising or promotion

This applies to pages that areexclusivelypromotional and would need to befundamentallyrewritten to serve as encyclopedia articles,rather than advertisements.If a subject isnotableand the content could plausibly be replaced with text written from aneutral point of view,this is preferable to deletion.Note:Any article that describes its subject from a neutral point of view does not qualify for this criterion. However, "promotion" does not necessarily mean commercial promotion: anything can be promoted, including a person, a non-commercial organization, a point of view, etc.

This applies to text pages that contain copyrighted material with no credible assertion of public domain, fair use, or acompatible free license,where there is no non-infringing content on the page worth saving. Only if the history is unsalvageably corrupted should it be deleted in its entirety; earlier versions without infringement should be retained. For equivocal cases that do not meet speedy deletion criteria (such as where there is a dubious assertion of permission, where free-content edits overlie the infringement, or where there is only partial infringement or close paraphrasing), the article or the appropriate section should be blanked with {{subst:Copyvio|url=insert URL here}}, and the page should be listed atWikipedia:Copyright problems.Please consultWikipedia:Copyright violationsfor other instructions. Public-domain and other free content, such as aWikipedia mirror,do not fall under this criterion, nor is mere lack of attribution of such works a reason for speedy deletion. For images and media, see theequivalent criterionin the"Files" sectionhere, which has more specific instructions.

Note:If other criteria apply in addition to G12, the template{{Db-multiple}}should be used instead, so we do not waste time seekingcopyright permissionafter deleting the page.

G13. Abandoned drafts andArticles for creationsubmissions

This applies to any pages that have not been edited by a human in six months found in:

  1. Draft namespace,
  2. Userspacewith an{{AFC submission}}template
  3. Userspace with no content except thearticle wizardplaceholder text.

Redirects are exempt from G13 deletion.[9]Adding a CSD template to a page does not reset the six-month clock, but removing a CSD template does.[10]Pages deleted under G13 may be restored upon request by following the procedure atWikipedia:Requests for undeletion/G13.

G14. Unnecessary disambiguation pages

This applies to the followingdisambiguationpages and redirects:

  • Disambiguation pages that have titles ending in"(disambiguation)"but disambiguate only one extant Wikipedia page.
  • Regardless of title, disambiguation pages that disambiguate zero extant Wikipedia pages.
  • A redirect that ends in"(disambiguation)"but does not redirect to a disambiguation page or a page that performs a disambiguation-like function (such asset index articlesor lists).

If a disambiguation page links to only one article and does not end in(disambiguation),it should be changed to a redirect, unless it is more appropriate to move the linked page to the title currently used for the disambiguation page.

Articles

These criteria apply only to pages in the article (main) namespace. They do not apply to redirects. For any articles that are not speedy deletion candidates, useWikipedia:Articles for deletionorWikipedia:Proposed deletion.

A1. No context

This applies to articles lacking sufficient context to identify the subject of the article.[11]Example: "He is a funny man with a red car. He makes people laugh."It applies only to very short articles. Note thatcontextis different fromcontent,treated inA3.Thisexcludescoherentnon-Englishmaterial, andpoorly translated material.If any information in the title or on the page, including links, allows an editor, possibly with the aid of a web search, to find further information on the subject in an attempt to expand or edit it, A1 is not appropriate. Do not tag under this criterion in the first few minutes after a new article is created.[12]

A2. Foreign-language articles that exist on another Wikimedia project

This applies to articles not written in English that have essentially the same content as an article on another Wikimedia project. If the article is not the same as an article on another project, use the template{{Not English}}instead, and list the page atWikipedia:Pages needing translation into Englishfor review and possible translation.

A3. No content

This applies to articles consisting only of external links, category tags or "See also" sections, a rephrasing of the title, attempts to correspond with the person or group named by its title, questions that should have been asked at anoticeboard,chat-like comments, template tags, or images. This may also apply to articles consisting entirely of the framework of theArticle wizardwith no additional content, or no content at all. However, a very short article may be a validstubif it has context, in which case it is not eligible for deletion under this criterion. Similarly, this criterion does not cover a page having only an infobox, unless its contents also meet another speedy deletion criterion. This criterionexcludespoor writing, coherentnon-Englishmaterial, andpoorly translated material.Do not tag under this criterion in the first few minutes after a new article is created.[12]

A7. No indication of importance (people, animals, organizations, web content, events)

This applies to any article about areal person, individual animal, commercial or non-commercial organization,web content,or organized event[13]that does not indicate why its subject is important or significant,with the exception ofeducational institutions.[14]This is distinct fromverifiabilityandreliability of sources,and is a lower standard thannotability.This criterion appliesonlyto articles about the listed subjects; in particular, it doesnotapply to articles about albums (these may be covered byCSD A9), products, books, films, TV programs, software, or other creative works, nor to entirespeciesof animals. The criteriondoesapply if the claim of significance or importance given is not credible, and any article with a blatantly false claim may besubmitted for speedy deletion as a hoaxinstead. If the claim's credibility is unclear, you can improve the article yourself,propose deletion,or list the article atarticles for deletion.

The criterion doesnotapply to any article that makesanycredible claim of significanceor importanceeven if the claim is not supported by a reliable source or does not qualify on Wikipedia'snotability guidelines.

A9. No indication of importance (musical recordings)

This applies to any article about amusical recordingorlist of musical recordingswherenone of the contributing recording artists has an articleand thatdoes not indicate why its subject is important or significant(bothconditions must be met). This is distinct from questions ofverifiabilityandreliability of sources,and is a lower standard thannotability.This criterion doesnotapply to other forms of creative media, products, or any other types of articles.

The criterion doesnotapply to any article that makesanycredible claim of significanceor importanceeven if the claim is not supported by a reliable source or does not qualify on Wikipedia'snotability guidelines.

A10. Recently created article that duplicates an existing topic

This applies to anyrecently created[15]article with no relevant page history that duplicates an existing English Wikipedia article, and thatdoes not expand upon, detail or improve informationwithin any existing article(s) on the subject, and where the title isnot a plausibleredirect.This doesnotincludesplit pagesor any article that expands or reorganizes an existing one or that contains referenced,mergeablematerial. It also doesnotinclude disambiguation pages.

  • {{Db-a10|article=Existing article title}},{{Db-same|article=Existing article title}}

The title chosen for the vast majority of duplicate articles will be a plausible misspelling of, or alternative name for, the existing article, and aredirectshould be created instead of deletion. This criterion should, accordingly, only be used rarely, and only for pages whose titles are not plausible redirects.

A11. Obviously invented

This applies to any article that plainly indicates that the subject wasinvented/coined/discovered by the article's creator or someone the creator personally knows,and does not credibly indicate why its subject is important or significant. The criterion doesnotapply to any article that makesanycredibleclaim of significance or importanceeven if the claim is not supported by a reliable source or does not qualify under Wikipedia's notability guidelines.Note:This is not intended for hoaxes(seeCSD G3).[16]

Redirects

These criteria apply toredirects,includingsoft redirects,in any namespace, with exclusions listed for specific criteria. For any redirects that are not speedy deletion candidates, useWikipedia:Redirects for discussion.

R2. Cross-namespace redirects

This applies to redirects (apart fromshortcuts) from themain namespaceto any other namespaceexcepttheCategory:,Template:,Wikipedia:,Help:andPortal:namespaces.

See alsoWikipedia:Cross-namespace redirects,Category:Cross-namespace redirects,andMOS:LINKSTYLE.

R3. Recently created, implausible typos

This applies torecently created[15]redirects fromimplausibletyposormisnomers.However, redirects from common misspellings or misnomers are generally useful, as are some redirects inother languages.This criterion doesnotapply to redirects created as a result of apage move,[7]unless nothing was at the title until recently. It also does not apply to articles and stubs that have been converted into redirects, includingredirects created by merges,[17]or to redirects ending with"(disambiguation)"that point to a disambiguation page.

R4. File namespace redirects with names that match Wikimedia Commons pages

This applies to redirects in the "File:" namespace with the same name as a file or redirect atWikimedia Commons,provided the redirect on Wikipedia has nofile links(unless the links are obviously intended for the file or redirect at Wikimedia Commons).

Other issues with redirects

  • For redirects to deleted or non-existent pages, seeG8.
  • For redirects that end in"(disambiguation)",seeG14.
  • For redirects without a space before a parenthetical disambiguation, seeX3.
  • For redirects that are not speedy deletion candidates, useWikipedia:Redirects for discussion.

Redirect pages that have useful page history should never be speedily deleted. In some cases it may be possible to make a useful redirect by changing the target instead of deleting it. Redirects that do not work because of software limitations, such as redirects to special pages or to pages on other wikis, may be converted to soft redirects if they have a non-trivial history or other valid uses.

For reversal of redirects, use{{Db-move}},a special case of{{Db-g6}}.

Files

Note: These criteria formerly began withI(e.g. I1, I6, I9) but have since been replaced withF,without the actual criteria being changed. This was because thefile namespacewas formerly known as the image namespace.

For any images and other media that are not speedy deletion candidates, useWikipedia:Proposed deletionorWikipedia:Files for discussion.

F1. Redundant

This applies to unused duplicates or lower-quality/resolution copies of another Wikipedia file having the samefile format.This excludes images in the Wikimedia Commons; for these, see criterionF8.[18]

F2. Corrupt, missing, or empty file

This applies to files that are corrupt, missing, empty, or that contain superfluous and blatant non-metadata information.[19]This also applies to file description pages that lack a corresponding file or correspond to Commons files and do not include information that is specific to English Wikipedia (like{{FeaturedPicture}}).[20]

F3. Improper license

This criterion is used to flag media licensed as "for non-commercial use only"(including non-commercialCreative Commons licenses), "no derivative use", "for Wikipedia use only" or "used with permission". These may be deleted, unless they comply with the limited standards for the use ofnon-free content.Files uploaded after 1 August 2021 licensed under versions of the GFDL earlier than 1.3, without allowing for later versions or other licenses, may be deleted.

F4. Lack of licensing information

This applies to media files lacking the necessary licensing information to verify copyright status after beingidentifiedassuchforseven days.Administrators should check the upload summary, file information page, and the image itself for a source before deleting under this criterion.

F5. Orphaned non-free use files

This applies to images and other media that are not under afree licenseor in thepublic domainand that are not used in anyarticle.These may be deleted after beingidentifiedas such for more thanseven daysor immediately if the image'sonlyuse was on a deleted article and it isvery unlikelyto have any use on any other valid article. This includes previous revisions of the image or files overwritten by copyright violations. Reasonable exceptions may be made for images uploaded for an upcoming article.

F6. Missing non-free use rationale

This applies tonon-freefiles claiming fair use but without ause rationale.These may be deleted after beingidentifiedas such forseven days.The boilerplatecopyright tags setting out fair use criteriadoes not constitute a rationale. This criterion does not apply to situations where a use rationale is provided but is disputed.

F7. Invalid fair-use claim

  1. Non-freeimages or media from a press agency or photo agency (e.g.Associated Press,Getty Images), where the file itself isnotthesubject of sourced commentary,are considered an invalid claim of fair use and fail the strict requirements ofWikipedia:Non-free content criteria,and may be deletedimmediately.
  2. Non-freeimages or media that have beenidentifiedas being replaceable by a free image and tagged with{{Rnfu}}may be deleted afterTwo days,if no justification is given for the claim of irreplaceability. If the replaceability is disputed, the nominator should not be the one deleting the image.
  3. Invalid fair-use claims tagged with{{Dnfu}}may be deletedseven daysafter they are tagged, if a full and valid fair-use use rationale is not added.

F8. Files available as identical copies onWikimedia Commons

Provided the following conditions are met:

  • The Commons version is in the samefile formatand is of the same or higher quality/resolution.
  • The file's license and source status is beyond reasonable doubt, and the license is undoubtedly accepted at Commons.To avoid deletion at Commons, please ensure the Commons page description has all of the following:
    • Name and date of death of the creator of the artistic work represented by the file, or else clear evidence that a free license was given. If anonymous, ensure the page description provides evidence that establishes the anonymous status.
    • Country where the artistic work represented by the file was situated, or where it was first published.
    • Date when the artistic work represented by the file was created or first published, depending on the copyright law of the origin country.
    • All file revisions that meet the first condition have been transferred to Commons as revisions of the Commons copy and properly marked as such.
  • The file is not marked as{{Do not move to Commons}}or as{{Keep local}}.
  • All information on the image description page is present on the Commons image description page, including the complete upload history with links to the uploader's local user pages (the upload history isnotnecessary if the file's license does not require it, although it is still recommended).
    • If there is any information not relevant to any other project on the file description page (like{{FeaturedPicture}}), the image description page must be undeleted after the file deletion.
  • If the file is available on Commons under a different name than locally, all local references to the image must be updated to point to the title used at Commons.
  • The file is not protected.Do not delete protected images,even if there is an identical copy on Commons, unless the image is no longer in use (checkwhat links here). They are usually locally uploaded and protected here since they are used in the interface or in some widely used high-risk templates. Deleting the local copy of an image used in the interfacedoes break things.More about high-risk images.
  • {{C-uploaded}}images and other files may be speedily deleted as soon as they are off theMain Page.
  • {{Db-f8}},{{Now Commons}},{{Now Commons|File:name of file on Commons.ext}}
  • Category:Wikipedia files with the same name on Wikimedia Commons,Category:Wikipedia files with a different name on Wikimedia Commons[22]

This applies to obviously non-free images (or other media files) that are not claimed by the uploader to be fair use. A URL or other indication of where the image originated should be mentioned. This does not include images with a credible claim that the owner has released them under a Wikipedia-compatible free license. Most images from stock photo libraries such as Getty Images will not be released under such a license. Blatant infringements should be tagged with the{{Db-filecopyvio}}template. Non-blatant copyright infringements should be discussed atWikipedia:Files for discussion.

F11. No evidence of permission

If anuploaderhas specified a license and has named a third party as the source/copyright holder without providing evidence that this third party has in fact agreed, the item may be deletedseven days after notificationof the uploader. Acceptable evidence of licensing normally consists of either a link to the source website where the license is stated, or a statement by the copyright holder e-mailed or forwarded to[email protected].Such a confirmation is also required if the source is an organization that the uploader claims to represent, or a web publication that the uploader claims to be their own. Instances ofobviouscopyright violations where the uploader would have no reasonable expectation of obtaining permission (e.g. major studio movie posters, television images, album covers, logos that arenotsimple enough to be public domain,etc.) should be speedily deleted perreason F9(unambiguous copyright infringement), unless fair-use can be claimed. Files tagged with{{Permission pending}}for more than 30 days may also be speedily deleted under this criterion. (Please note that the backlog for messages sent to the permissions-en queue is currently 0 days. You may wish to wait at least this amount of time before tagging VRT pending images for deletion.) Files tagged{{Permission received}}whose permissions have not been confirmed after 30 days may be deleted immediately under this criterion, without waiting an additional seven days, provided a check of the ticket is performed by a VRT agent to confirm that no further interaction is ongoing.

Categories

For anycategorypages that are not speedy deletion candidates, useWikipedia:Categories for discussion.

C1. Unpopulated categories

This criterion applies to categories that have been unpopulated for at least seven days. This does not apply todisambiguation categories,category redirects,categories under discussion atWikipedia:Categories for discussion(or other suchdiscussions), or project categories that by their nature may become empty on occasion (e.g.cleanup categories,orCategory:Wikipedians looking for help). Place{{Possibly empty category}}(or, for administrative categories,{{Wikipedia category}}) at the top of the page to prevent such categories from being deleted.

C2. Speedy renaming and merging

Assorted sub-criteria that are used only atWP:CFDS;please see that page for details and instructions.

C4. Unused maintenance categories

This criterion applies to unused maintenance categories, such as empty dated maintenance categories for dates in the past (e.g.Category:Articles lacking sources from July 2004), tracking categories no longer used by a template after a rewrite, or empty subcategories ofCategory:Wikipedia sockpuppetsorCategory:Suspected Wikipedia sockpuppets.Note that empty maintenance categories are not necessarily unused—this criterion is for categories that willalwaysbe empty, not justcurrentlyempty. If you are unsure whether a category is still being used by a template, consider asking the creator of the category or at the template's talk page before tagging.

Templates

For anytemplatesandLua modulesthat are not speedy deletion candidates, useWikipedia:Templates for discussion.

T5. Unused template subpages

This applies to unusedsubpagesof templates, such as:

  • Template documentationsubpages unused by the template itself
  • /core subpages which are not called by the template itself
  • Old subpages of{{POTD protected}}
  • Unnecessary subpages of{{Taxonomy}},e.g. because it is incorrectly set up, or relates to a taxon no longer used

It excludes /testcases and /sandbox subpages, subpages ofModule:Sandbox,as well as anything tagged with{{T5-exempt}}.Reasonable exceptions apply for subpages which will be used soon, and editors are free torequest undeletion.

User pages

These criteria apply only to pages in the User: and User talk: namespaces. For anyuser pagesthat are not speedy deletion candidates, useWikipedia:Miscellany for deletion.

U1. User request

Personaluser pagesandsubpages(butnotuser talk pages) upon request by their user. This also includeseditnoticesforuser pages.In some rare cases, there may be administrative need to retain the page. User talk pages are not eligible for speedy deletion under this criterion. Pages that have previously been moved are only eligible if all previous titles were in the user's userspace.Note:The template does not display on certain pages (such as.cssand.jspages), but its categorization will work.

U2. Nonexistent user

This applies to user pages, user subpages, and user talk pages of users that do not exist on the English Wikipedia (checkSpecial:ListUsers), except user pages for IP users who have edited, redirects from misspellings of an established user's user page, and redirects created due to auser being renamed.Pages of users who exist on other WMF wikis but do not have local accounts are eligible for deletion.[24]

Before placing one of the following templates or deleting a page under this criterion, consider whether moving the page to another location, such as a sub-page of the user page of the primary contributor, is preferable to deletion.

U5. A non-contributor's misuse of Wikipedia as a web host

Pages in userspace consisting ofwritings, information, discussions, or activities not closely related to Wikipedia's goals,where the owner has made few or no edits outside ofuser pages,except for plausible drafts and pages adhering toWikipedia:User pages § What may I have in my user pages?It applies regardless of the age of the page in question.

Before placing this template or deleting a page under this criterion:

Exceptional circumstances

These temporary criteria apply to large-scale cleanups of problematic pages that would overwhelm the normal deletion processes. Criteria should be deprecated when no longer needed.

X3. Redirects with no space before a parenthetical disambiguation

Examples: "Foo(bar)", "Joe Smith(disambiguation)". This doesnotapply to terms that will correctly or plausibly be searched for without spaces, nor does it apply if the redirect contains substantive page history (e.g. from a merge).Beforenominating a redirect under this criterion:

Non-criteria

Commonly denied CSD reasons

The following proposals for new speedy deletion criteria are frequently raised, but have repeatedly failed to gain consensus:

  • How-to articles
  • Essay articles
  • Expansion of A7, A9 and A11 to include books, software, schools and/or other subjects
  • Neologisms
  • Unsourced articles

A7, A9 and A11 scope

A7, A9 and A11 do not apply to any other subject that does not indicate importance. Expanding the scope of A7, A9 and A11 to different subjects (such as products, software, books, schools, etc.) have been proposed several times in the past and failed to gain consensus. Amongst the reasons for those rejections were that such subjects are not created often enough to require speedy deletion (such articles can be handled byproposed deletionor by listing the article atarticles for deletion), that such subjects cannot be objectively covered in A7, A9 and A11's wording and that admins are not able to assess claims of importance for certain subjects. Before proposing a change to A7, A9 and A11 to expand their scope, please check whether your proposal has not already been discussed on thetalk page(archives).

The following are notby themselvessufficient to justify speedy deletion:

  1. Reasons based onWikipedia:What Wikipedia is notor essays.Wikipedia is not: "a dictionary", "an indiscriminate collection of information", "a crystal ball", "a how-to list"; or essays likeWikipedia:Listcruft,Wikipedia:Obscure topics,Wikipedia:Deny recognition,...; are not valid reasons for speedy deletion.
  2. Less-obvious hoaxes.If even remotely plausible, a suspected hoax article should be subjected to further scrutiny in a wider forum. Truth is often stranger than fiction. Note that "blatant and obvious hoaxes and misinformation" are subject to speedy deletion asvandalism.
  3. Original research.It is not always easy to tell whether an article consists of material that violatesthe policy against novel theories or interpretationsor is simply unsourced.
  4. Notability.Articles that seem to have obviously non-notable subjects are eligible for speedy deletion only if the article does not givea credible indication of why the subject might be important or significant.
  5. Failure to assert importance but not anA7,A9orA11category.There is no consensus to speedily delete articles of types not specifically listed in A7, A9 or A11 under those criteria. Nor does it apply forneologismsthat do not meetA11because new specialized terms should have a wider hearing.
  6. Author deletion requests made in bad faith.Author deletion requests made in bad faith, out of frustration, after others have contributed substantially (because the work of others is involved) or in an attempt torevoke their freely-licensed contributionsare not granted. However, anyone may request deletion of pages in their userspace.
  7. Very short articles.Short articles with sufficient content and context to qualify asstubsmay not be speedily deleted under criteriaA1andA3;other criteria may still apply.
  8. Copies that are not copyright violations.If content appears both here and somewhere else (possibly in modified form), consider the possibility that Wikipedia's is the original version and the other site copied from Wikipedia's version. Alternatively, the same author may have written both versions, or the original may be free content.
  9. PNG / GIF files replaced by JPEG images.JPEG encoding discards information that may be important later. Do not delete the original PNG / GIF files.
  10. Questionable material that is not vandalism.Earnest efforts are never vandalism, so toassume good faith,do not delete as vandalism unless reasonably certain.
  11. User and user talk pages of IP addresses.Although users are encouraged to create Wikipedia accounts, unregistered users are still allowed to edit Wikipedia, and are identified by their IP addresses. If an unregistered user has a static IP address, it may have a user page and/or user talk page associated with it, and even for non-static IP addresses, the history can contain important discussions or information that may be of interest.
  12. An article written in a foreign language or script.An article should not be speedily deleted just because it is not written in English. Instead it should be tagged with{{Not English}}and listed atWikipedia:Pages needing translation into English.It may be reconsidered after translation whether the article merits deletion, retention or improvement by means of a suitable tag. However, if it already exists on another Wikimedia project, itmightbe speedily deletable under criterionA2.
  13. Subject request.Sometimes somebody claiming to be the subject of a biographical article requests deletion of the article, or even blanks the article. Article subjects do not have an automatic right to have their articles deleted. Nor does such a criterion apply to namespaces other than article space: for example, pages in the Wikipedia namespace devoted to a discussion about a particular editor. See also:Wikipedia:Deletion policy § Deletion of biographies and BLPs
  14. Orphaned pages or redirects.A page cannot be deleted just because no other pages link to it. This includes redirects – even if 'What links here' returns nothing, a redirect may be a likely search phrase, or have links to it from outside Wikipedia.
  15. Redirects that are poorly targeted.A redirect should not be deleted just because its target is incorrect or confusing. Instead, change the redirect to a better target. If you're not sure where it should be targeted, open a discussion atRedirects for discussion.
  16. Drafts covering the same topic as an existing mainspace article.These are not valid deletions underA10(due to not being articles) norG6.They can bereplaced with a redirect to the mainspace articleif necessary.
  17. Conflict of interest.Merely having an author connected to its subject, or even one paid to write about it, is not by itself sufficient to speedy delete a page. While userswith promotional usernamesare frequently blocked,G5does not apply unless they were already evading a block or ban when they wrote it.G11can be used to delete exclusively-promotionalwriting,but doesn't apply to neutrally-written material even if the intent is obviously promotional.U5can also be used in some cases, but excludes anything plausibly intended as a draft article.

Procedure for administrators

Make sure to specify the reason for deletion in the deletion summary. Also, in general, the article's creator and major contributors should have been notified.

Before deleting a page, check thepage historyto assess whether it would instead be possible torevertand salvage a previous version, or there was actually acut-and-paste moveinvolved. Also:

  • The initialedit summarymay have information about the source of or reason for the page.
  • Thetalk pagemay refer to previous deletion discussions or have ongoing discussion relevant to including the page.
  • Thepage logmay have information about previous deletions that could warrantSALTingthe page or keeping it on good reason.
  • What links heremay show that the page is an oft-referred part of the encyclopedia, or may show other similar pages that warrant deletion. For pages that should not be re-created, incoming links in other pages (except in discussions, archives and tracking pages) should be removed.

If speedy deletion is inappropriatefor a page:

  1. Please remove the speedy deletion tag from the page. Doing so will automatically remove the page fromCategory:Candidates for speedy deletion.
  2. Consider notifying the nominator, using{{speedy-decline}}or{{uw-csd}}.(If you're usingCSD Helper,it will usually notify the nominator for you; it will normally useits own notification template.)

When deletinga page through the speedy deletion process, please specify the reason for deletion in the deletion summary, so that it will be recorded into thedeletion log.Quoting page content in the deletion summary may be helpful, butmust notbe done forattack contentorcopyrighted text.In some cases, it would be appropriate to notify the page's creator of the deletion.

TwinkleorCSDHelpercan be used to process nominations more quickly and smoothly. When processing a nomination:

  • Twinkle can delete the page.
    • Twinkle can notify the page creator if the page is deleted.
  • CSDH can delete the page, convert the nomination into a PROD nomination, or decline the nomination.
    • CSDH can notify the nominator if the nomination is converted or declined.

Obsolete

In the past, criteria beginning with the following letter were used:

  • "P"for portals

All criteria in this group have been obsoleted; as such, this group is not currently in use. Some criteria in the active groups were also used in the past but are no longer valid. They are kept here for historical reference and to preserve numbering. Two of the repealed criteria did not have consensus before being enacted, and two were meant to be temporary. The remainder were merged into broader criteria or deprecated entirely.

A4. Attempts to correspond with the person or group named by its title
Merged with and later superseded by"No content"(A3) in November 2005[25]as part of abold rewritethat was made to simplify the CSD criterion (archived discussion 1,discussion 2,discussion 3).
A5. Transwikied articles
Was repealed in December 2022 due to lack of use (unopposed proposal). Instead, useWikipedia:Articles for deletion.Deleted articles that are temporarily restored to allow for a transwiki may be re-deleted under"technical deletion"(G6).
A6. Attack articles
Superseded by"Attack pages"(G10) in March 2006(discussion).
A8. Blatant copyright infringement articles
Superseded by"Unambiguous copyright infringement"(G12) in October 2006(unopposed proposal).
R1. Redirects to non-existent pages
Merged into"Pages dependent on a non-existent or deleted page"(G8) in September 2008 (discussion).
F7a.Non-freeimages or media with a clearly invalid fair-use tag
Repealed in March 2021 due to the problem being easily surmountable (discussion). Instead, the invalid tag should be corrected. Once the tag is corrected, other speedy deletion criteria may apply.
F10. Useless non-media files
Deprecated in favor ofproposed deletionin February 2023 following rare usage and added technical restrictions on what file types can be uploaded (discussion).
C3. Categories solely populated from a template
Merged into"Pages dependent on a non-existent or deleted page"(G8) in October 2008 (discussion), and then later split out toC4. Unused maintenance categoriesin 2024.
T1. Divisive and inflammatory templates
Enacted byJimbo Waleswithout formally assessing consensus during theuserbox wars.Was repealed in February 2009 (discussion). Instead,"attack pages"(G10) may be applicable in some cases; otherwise, useWikipedia:Miscellany for deletionfor userboxes andWikipedia:Templates for discussionfor all other templates.
T2. Misrepresentation of policy
Was repealed in July 2020 following rare, often incorrect, use (discussion). Instead,"pure vandalism"(G3) may be applicable in some cases; otherwise, useWikipedia:Templates for discussion.
T3. Duplication and hardcoded instances
Was repealed in December 2020 due to misuse and the seven day hold (discussion). Instead, use an existing applicable criterion or submit the template toWikipedia:Templates for discussion.
T4. Subpages of non-existent pages
Merged into"Pages dependent on a non-existent or deleted page"(G8) in September 2008 (discussion).
U3. Non-free galleries
Was repealed in July 2021 since a bot automatically removes non-free images from user pages (discussion).
U4. Old IP address talk pages that meet specific criteria
Never enacted as policy anywhere, but deletions occurred nonetheless. Was repealed in March 2009 (discussion).
P1. Any portal that would be subject to speedy deletion as an article
Repealed in February 2023 following rare usage (discussion).
P2. Underpopulated portal
Repealed in February 2023 following rare usage (discussion).
X1. Redirects created by Neelix
Createdas a G6 extension in December 2015 shortly after thediscoveryandarbitration caseregarding 50,000+ questionable redirects created by the userNeelix,and latersplit into its own criterion.Was repealed in April 2018 after cleanup was completed (discussion). Instead, useWikipedia:Redirects for discussion.
X2. Pages created by the content translation tool
Createdto delete pages created by thecontent translation toolprior to 27 July 2016. Was deprecated in July 2017 when consensus agreed to move most of the remaining pages to the draft namespace (discussion).

See also

Footnotes

  1. ^In this context,speedyrefers to the simple decision-making process, not the length of time since the article was created.
  2. ^The current wording of this paragraph dates toan April 2020 discussion.G14 was added inOctober 2020.C1 was added inAugust 2022.C4 was added inSeptember 2024.
  3. ^The result of the most recent deletion discussion controls. This means that if the most recent discussion was "keep" or a default to keep through no consensus, G4 does not apply. Likewise, an article that was deleted through its most recent discussion, but was kept in earlier discussions, is subject to the criterion and may be deleted (discussion).
  4. ^For the avoidance of doubt, if a page is deleted at AfD and subsequently recreated as a redirect, G4 does not apply, even if that option was discussed and rejected in the AfD (discussion).
  5. ^A conversion to draft is when a page from a different namespace is moved, or its content copied, as a draft.
  6. ^The arbitration committee and the community have included the following when deciding a topic area should be covered by theextended confirmed restriction:"Non-extended-confirmed editors may not create new articles, but administrators may exercise discretion when deciding how to enforce this remedy on article creations. Deletion of new articles created by non-extended-confirmed editors is permitted but not required."
  7. ^abPage moves are excluded because of a history of improper deletions of these redirects. A move creates a redirect to ensure that any external links that point to Wikipedia remain valid; should such links exist, deleting these redirects will break them. Such redirects must be discussed atWikipedia:Redirects for discussionbefore deletion. However, redirects that were obviously made in error can be deleted as G6, technical deletions.
  8. ^Note that new editors sometimes mistakenly start article drafts on talk pages that have no article. If you see this, move the draft tothe draft spaceor to the user'suserspace,making sure the new user is listed as author and not you.
  9. ^It was determined that the community consensus inthis RfCregarding draft namespace redirects amounted to "there is a clear consensus against deletion of draft namespace redirects. There is a rough consensus against the alternative proposal to delete draft namespace redirects after six months."
  10. ^Perthis RFC.
  11. ^An Rfc containing relevant discussions on the A1 criterion
  12. ^abConsensus has developed that in most cases articles should not be tagged for deletion under this criterion moments after creation as the creator may be actively working on the content; though there is no set time requirement, a ten-minute delay before tagging under this criterion is suggested as good practice. Pleasedo notmark the page aspatrolledbefore that delay passes, to ensure the article is reviewed at a later time.
  13. ^Routine coverage of unorganised events– for example, shooting incidents – may not necessarily qualify under A7;deletion discussionsshould be preferred in such cases.
  14. ^Past discussions leading to schools being exempt from A7.
  15. ^abThe definition of recent is intentionally flexible since some pages may receive more notice than others. Pages older than about 3–6 weeks are unlikely to be considered recently created; pages older than about 3–4 months almost never are. Higher-profile pages are considered recently created for shorter periods than those with a lower profile.
  16. ^Unlike a hoax, subject to deletion as vandalism underCSD G3as a bad faith attempt to deceive, CSD A11 is for topics that were or may have been actually created and are real, but have no notice or significance except among a small group of people, e.g. a newly invented drinking game or new word.
  17. ^SeeWikipedia:Merge and deletefor an explanation as to why redirects created by merges cannot be deleted in most cases.
  18. ^This does not apply to images duplicated on Wikimedia Commons, because oflicense issues;instead see"Images available as identical copies on the Wikimedia Commons".
  19. ^Before deleting this latter type of file/page, check whether theMediaWikiengine can read it by previewing a resized thumbnail of it. Even if it renders, if it contains significant superfluous information that cannot be accounted for asmetadatadirectly relating to the media data, it may be deleted. It is always preferred to correct the problem by uploading a file that contains only good data plus acceptable metadata.
  20. ^Content from file description pages that is relevant to the Commons should be copied over before deleting the local page. If necessary, copy the attribution history as well.
  21. ^See also:Category:All Wikipedia files with unknown source(107) andCategory:All Wikipedia files with unknown copyright status(37)
  22. ^See also:Category:All Wikipedia files with the same name on Wikimedia Commons(6) andCategory:All Wikipedia files with a different name on Wikimedia Commons(0)
  23. ^See also:Category:All Wikipedia files missing evidence of permission(45)
  24. ^Wikipedia talk:Criteria for speedy deletion/Archive 85 § U2 and global accounts
  25. ^Diff of change