📚 Online Encyclopedias — 50 Useful Reference Websites
| # | Encyclopedia | Short description |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Wikipedia | The world’s largest free collaborative encyclopedia, available in hundreds of languages. |
| 2 | Encyclopaedia Britannica | One of the world’s best-known general reference encyclopedias, with articles, biographies and educational resources. |
| 3 | Encyclopedia.com | Large collection of reference articles drawn from established encyclopedias, dictionaries and other published sources. |
| 4 | Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy | Scholarly, continuously updated encyclopedia covering philosophy and related disciplines. |
| 5 | Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy | Free, peer-reviewed reference resource covering philosophers, philosophical concepts and schools of thought. |
| 6 | World History Encyclopedia | Extensive free resource devoted to world history, civilizations, people, places and historical events. |
| 7 | Scholarpedia | Expert-written encyclopedia covering scientific and mathematical subjects. |
| 8 | Citizendium | Collaborative encyclopedia emphasizing editorial oversight and contributor expertise. |
| 9 | Encyclopedia of Life | Global biodiversity resource providing information about millions of species. |
| 10 | The Canadian Encyclopedia | Major reference source covering Canada’s history, geography, people, culture and institutions. |
| 11 | Encyclopedia of Mathematics | Comprehensive reference covering mathematical concepts, theories and mathematicians. |
| 12 | Internet Encyclopedia of Science | Science reference covering astronomy, physics, biology, chemistry and related subjects. |
| 13 | Encyclopedia of Earth | Reference resource concerning Earth sciences, environment and sustainability. |
| 14 | Encyclopedia of Life Sciences | Scholarly life-sciences reference material covering biology and related disciplines. |
| 15 | Britannica Kids | Child-friendly educational encyclopedia based on Britannica content. |
| 16 | Oxford Reference | Large collection of Oxford dictionaries, encyclopedias and reference works. |
| 17 | Cambridge Dictionary & Reference | Cambridge’s online language and reference resources. |
| 18 | Encyclopedia of Chicago | Detailed reference work about Chicago’s history, people, neighborhoods and institutions. |
| 19 | Encyclopedia Virginia | Scholarly encyclopedia dedicated to Virginia history and culture. |
| 20 | New Georgia Encyclopedia | Reference resource covering Georgia’s history, geography, culture and people. |
| 21 | Tennessee Encyclopedia | Encyclopedia covering the history and culture of Tennessee. |
| 22 | The Encyclopedia of Alabama | Comprehensive reference about Alabama’s history, people, places and culture. |
| 23 | Encyclopedia of Greater Philadelphia | Historical and cultural encyclopedia of the Philadelphia region. |
| 24 | Encyclopedia of Arkansas | Reference source covering Arkansas history, geography and culture. |
| 25 | Smithsonian Encyclopedia | Smithsonian’s extensive online collections and educational reference resources covering science, history, culture and nature. |
| 26 | Metropolitan Museum of Art Heilbrunn Timeline | Encyclopedic art-history resource covering cultures, periods, artists and artworks. |
| 27 | Encyclopedia of Art | Searchable reference directory for artists, museums and art resources. |
| 28 | Internet Broadway Database | Comprehensive reference database for Broadway productions, performers and theatre history. |
| 29 | IMDb | Extensive entertainment reference database covering films, television, actors and creators. |
| 30 | MusicBrainz | Open music encyclopedia and database containing information about artists, recordings and releases. |
| 31 | Discogs | Large collaborative music database and discography reference. |
| 32 | Encyclopedia of Mathematics – Springer | Scholarly mathematics encyclopedia with definitions, concepts and mathematical biographies. |
| 33 | Wiktionary | Free multilingual dictionary and lexical encyclopedia operated by the Wikimedia community. |
| 34 | Wikibooks | Free collection of textbooks, manuals and educational books created collaboratively. |
| 35 | Wikisource | Free digital library of public-domain and freely licensed texts. |
| 36 | Wikinews | Collaborative news resource from the Wikimedia movement. |
| 37 | Wikiversity | Free learning community with courses, lessons and educational resources. |
| 38 | Wikidata | Free structured knowledge base containing machine-readable information about millions of entities. |
| 39 | Wikivoyage | Collaborative travel guide covering destinations, transportation, attractions and travel information. |
| 40 | Wikimedia Commons | Vast free media repository containing photographs, illustrations, maps, videos and other educational material. |
| 41 | Encyclopedia of Religion | Reference material covering religions, religious traditions, beliefs and practices. |
| 42 | Bible Encyclopedia – Bible Hub | Online biblical encyclopedia with entries concerning people, places, concepts and biblical subjects. |
| 43 | Catholic Encyclopedia | Online Catholic reference covering Church history, theology, saints and Catholic subjects. |
| 44 | Jewish Encyclopedia | Digitized encyclopedia covering Jewish history, religion, culture and biographies. |
| 45 | New Advent – Catholic Encyclopedia | Free online edition of the classic Catholic Encyclopedia. |
| 46 | Encyclopedia of Science Fiction | Major scholarly reference work covering science-fiction literature, authors and themes. |
| 47 | Internet Speculative Fiction Database | Bibliographic database and reference source for science fiction, fantasy and related literature. |
| 48 | Encyclopedia of Popular Music | Extensive music reference covering artists, albums, genres and recordings. |
| 49 | Encyclopedia of Life – Species Search | Species-focused encyclopedia providing biodiversity information from global sources. |
| 50 | Google Arts & Culture | Vast digital cultural reference featuring museums, artworks, historical sites and cultural collections. |
⭐ Especially useful Ones
For a general knowledge / education page, I would put these at the top:
- Wikipedia — General knowledge
- Britannica — Authoritative general reference
- Encyclopedia.com — Multi-source reference
- Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy — Philosophy
- Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy — Philosophy
- World History Encyclopedia — History
- Encyclopedia of Life — Biology & biodiversity
- Scholarpedia — Science & mathematics
- Encyclopedia of Mathematics — Mathematics
- Oxford Reference — Academic reference
The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy is particularly valuable for academic users because its entries are maintained by scholars and undergo editorial/refereeing processes. The Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy likewise describes itself as a free, scholarly, peer-reviewed resource written by professional philosophers.
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