The Hidden Wiki is a directory of .onion websites — pages that can only be opened with the Tor Browser. It works like a phone book for the part of the web that ordinary search engines cannot list: instead of searching, you browse categories of links and open the ones you need. The original Hidden Wiki was a community-edited wiki on the Tor network. It no longer exists, and there is no official version today. Independent directories, including this site, have taken its place: they collect .onion addresses, check that the addresses still work, and warn readers about copies run by scammers.
A short history
The original Hidden Wiki began as a community-edited wiki hosted on the Tor network, written in the same style as Wikipedia but listing .onion addresses instead of ordinary websites. In 2014 it was hacked, and its old address was shut down later that year. No official replacement was ever named. Since then, the name has been used by many independent sites. Tor also changed underneath them: in October 2021 the network stopped supporting the old 16-character (v2) .onion addresses, so every link from that era stopped working at once. Current addresses are 56 characters long. That history is why old copies of the Hidden Wiki are mostly dead links — and why a directory is only useful if someone keeps checking it.
Is there an official Hidden Wiki?
No. Anyone can use the name, and many do — including copycat sites that imitate the look of a directory to push scam links. There is no owner, no headquarters and no single “real” address to bookmark. Treat every directory, this one included, as untrusted until you have checked an address yourself: compare the full 56 characters with the address published on the service’s own ordinary (clearnet) website, and check names against our Dark Web Scam List before sending money anywhere.
What you will find in a Hidden Wiki directory
Working directories group .onion links by subject: email and messaging services, forums, news sites and whistleblowing drop boxes, hosting, privacy tools and libraries. Ours is arranged the same way, and every section shows when its links were last checked. A link being listed is not a promise that a service is honest — it only means the address answered when it was checked. Services also move or close without warning, which is why the checked dates matter.
Is the Hidden Wiki legal?
In most countries, yes: using Tor and reading a link directory is legal. What can be illegal is what happens on some of the linked sites. A directory will list services that are banned in some places, and buying or selling there can be a crime even if reading about it is not. Rules differ by country, so check your own. Nothing on this page is legal advice.
How to open Hidden Wiki links
You need the Tor Browser, free from torproject.org — download it only from there, because copies offered on other sites have shipped with harmful software. Install it, open it, and paste the .onion address in. Ordinary browsers cannot open .onion addresses at all. Before your first visit, read our guide to accessing the Hidden Wiki safely: it covers checking addresses, keeping your device clean, and the mistakes that get people scammed.
Questions and answers
What is the Hidden Wiki in simple words?
A list of addresses for websites on the Tor network. Those addresses end in .onion and only open in the Tor Browser, so a directory like this one is how people find them.
Is thehidden2.wiki the official Hidden Wiki?
No, and no site is. The original closed in 2014 and no official version exists. This site is an independent directory that uses the name because that is what readers search for; it checks its links every month and flags the scams it finds.
Why do so many Hidden Wiki links not work?
Two reasons. Tor retired the old 16-character addresses in October 2021, so every older list broke at once. And .onion services move or close often, so a list that nobody checks goes stale within months.
Can I open the Hidden Wiki on my phone?
Yes. Tor Browser is available for Android. On iPhone, the Tor Project points users to Onion Browser. The addresses work the same way.
How do I know a link is not a scam copy?
Compare the whole 56-character address with the one on the service’s ordinary website, character by character — scam copies change only one or two letters. Then check the name on our Dark Web Scam List.