Deleted Wikipedia Page Recovery Service: Scope, Process, Cost

What does a deleted page recovery service actually do?

It turns a deletion log entry into a plan, then executes the plan on Wikipedia's own terms. Four jobs sit inside a competent engagement.

1. Deletion diagnosis. Reading the log and, for community deletions, the full discussion: did the subject fail notability, or did only the article fail on tone or sources?
2. Source audit. Checking each source against WP:NCORP for companies, or the general notability guideline for other subjects. Notability means that independent, reliable sources have given the subject significant coverage; press releases, sponsored posts and interviews do not count.
3. The correct request. A request at Requests for Undeletion (REFUND), an appeal at Deletion Review, or a new draft submitted through Articles for Creation (AfC, the volunteer review queue for new drafts).
4. Defence after restoration. A restored or newly accepted page can be nominated again. Someone has to watch for that and answer inside the discussion window.

What it does not do: dictate the outcome, edit undisclosed, or recreate the old text. The last one is the common DIY mistake, because a recreated page with the same problems is deleted again and the title can end up protected against creation. Only Wikipedia administrators set that protection.

Which route will your case take?

The route follows how the page was deleted, and each route has a different scope and price class. The table is our own summary of how the routes are used, not a statistic.

The pattern is that the further the deletion process went, the heavier and less certain the route. A community discussion is a group of editors who already looked at the sources.

How does the recovery process work, step by step?

The process has six stages, and a stage can end the engagement honestly.

1. Intake. You send the old URL, the deletion date and any copies of the text. We pull the log and the archived discussion.
2. Diagnosis and verdict. Go, redraft later, or stop. This is the stage where "the subject is not notable yet" is said plainly. That is why it is paid and written: a provider who skips it is selling the next stage.
3. Source work. If coverage is missing, the plan lists what kind is needed. Our media coverage programme exists for that gap; it is a separate scope.
4. Request or draft. The correct route from the table, drafted neutrally, with paid editing disclosed.
5. Review and response. Volunteer reviewers answer in their own time. We respond to objections with sources and policy, not pressure.
6. Defence window. For 90 days after publication we monitor the page and answer any new nomination. Our guarantees include an 80% refund if a published page cannot be defended after three attempts within that window.

How long a review takes is the volunteers' call. Our usual range is 2 to 6 weeks end to end, and a redraft through AfC sits at the long end. See how long a Wikipedia page takes for the review queue itself.

How much does deleted page recovery cost?

Recovery is quoted per case, because a single request and a full redraft are different jobs. Three reference points from our published price list as of November 2026:

• A written diagnosis: notability audit from €490 (€490 / €750 / €1,900 by scope), credited toward the project if you proceed within one month.
• A redraft through AfC: scoped like page creation, from €2,400 for English, 4 to 5 weeks.
• Fixes to an existing or restored page: editing, €700 to €1,900 depending on scope.

A legitimate quote names the route it is priced for. A flat "article recovery package" with no reference to your deletion log means the work was not scoped.

How do you choose a recovery provider?

Choose the one that diagnoses first, discloses its work and puts its refund terms in writing. Five checks:

• Written diagnosis before the project is priced. If the first message is a price for "restoration", the log was not read.
• Disclosure. Paid editing must be declared as the Wikimedia Terms of Use require. See paid editing and COI disclosure. Undisclosed edits are the fastest way to a second deletion.
• No promise of the outcome. Wikipedia is edited by volunteers. A promised restoration is a red flag, not a feature.
• A refund you can test. Ask for the exact event that triggers it and the time window. Ours: 80% if a published page cannot be defended after three attempts within 90 days.
• Willingness to say wait. A provider that never tells a client "build coverage first" is optimising for sales.

What can you do while the page is gone?

Keep the knowledge layer around the page alive. A Wikidata entity (from €680) can exist on its own and still feeds knowledge panels and some AI answers, provided it was not deleted with the article. Another language edition may already hold a page, since notability practice and available sources differ by language; see multilingual Wikipedia strategy. Neither replaces the English page, but both can anchor a future draft. To see what AI assistants say about you now, the AI visibility audit from €490 covers it.

How WikiBusines helps

We handle deletions where the subject qualifies and the cause is fixable, and we say so early when it does not.

• Notability audit, from €490: deletion-log diagnosis and a written go, wait or stop verdict, credited toward the page if you proceed within one month. For a self-check first, use the notability index and the media list.
• Deleted page recovery: quoted per case, usually 2 to 6 weeks, with disclosed work in WikiBusines' name. A new draft is scoped like page creation, from €2,400 for English.
• Annual support, from €720 per year, for a restored page: up to four updates, 12-month guarantee. Near real-time monitoring is Managed Protection at €1,500 per year.

Start with the free 10-minute assessment: contact us. If the case is unclear, we offer the paid notability audit from €490, credited toward the page if you order it within one month.