View source for Template:URL/doc

{{Documentation subpage}}
<!-- PLEASE ADD CATEGORIES AT THE BOTTOM OF THIS PAGE -->
{{for|encoding URLs|Help:Magic words#urlencode}}
{{Used in system|in [[MediaWiki:Titleblacklist-custom-URL]]}}
{{Lua|Module:URL}}

This template creates a formatted external link. It formats the appearance of '''''displayed''''' URLs, while making them ''machine-readable'' as part of emitted [[microformat]] meta-data, inside templates such as infoboxes.

{{Anchor|Parm2}}'''Note:''' If you wish to display text instead of the URL (e.g. [https://example.com website] instead of {{URL|example.com}}), please '''do not use this template'''. Instead, consider using normal [[Help:Link#External_links|wiki markup]] or [[Template:Official website]]. Displaying text instead of the url will render the microformat data invalid.

For web-based references, please see [[Wikipedia:Citation templates]].

== Usage ==
* <code><nowiki>{{URL|</nowiki>''example.com''<nowiki>}}</nowiki></code>
** The first parameter is parsed to decide whether it is a complete URL. If it doesn't start with a URI scheme (such as "http:", "https:", or "ftp:"), the prefix "http://" is prepended to the specified generated target URL of the link.
** Parameter 2 (<code><nowiki>{{URL|</nowiki>''url name''<nowiki>|</nowiki>'''''optional display text'''''<nowiki>}}</nowiki></code>) is '''deprecated'''. See [[#Parm2|note]] above for more information and alternative templates.

=== URL with {{=}} character should use numbered parameters ===
If the URL contains an equals sign, as is common in a query string, the parameter {{para|1}} should be used for the URL (<code><nowiki>{{URL|</nowiki>1=''example.com''<nowiki>}}</nowiki></code>). This applies when the value of the URL is unknown, for example, when this template is used in another template specifying the effective URL as a variable value
{{nowiki template demo|format=inline|output=nowiki+|code=<nowiki>{{URL | 1=https://example.com/?id=42 }}</nowiki>}}

The template attempts to handle simple cases where a URL containing an equals sign is specified without the necessary {{para|1}}, but it is still better practice to pass it in.

The '''deprecated''' second parameter for the displayed text, if present in legacy uses, '''must''' also be explicitly numbered if the first parameter is explicitly numbered (<code><nowiki>{{URL|</nowiki>1=''url name''<nowiki>|</nowiki>2=''optional display text''<nowiki>}}</nowiki></code>); otherwise it will override the value of the first parameter:
{{nowiki template demo|format=inline|output=nowiki+|code=<nowiki>{{URL | 1=https://example.com/?id=42 | 2=Title }}</nowiki>}}

=== Examples ===
The template displays an instructional message if there is no input:
{{nowiki template demo|format=inline|code=<nowiki>{{URL| }}</nowiki>}}

The template wraps the output in {{tag|span|attribs=class="url"}} (see {{Section link||Microformat}}) and adds [[HTML element#wbr|&lt;wbr/&gt;]] before displayed periods:
{{nowiki template demo|format=inline|output=nowiki+|code=<nowiki>{{URL | www.example.com }}</nowiki>}}

The use of [[HTTP|http://]], [[HTTPS|https://]], a [[URL#prurl|protocol-relative URL]], or a different protocol is preserved in the URL but is not shown in the [[link text]]:
{{nowiki template demo|format=inline|output=nowiki+|code=<nowiki>{{URL | http://www.example.com }}</nowiki>}}
{{nowiki template demo|format=inline|output=nowiki+|code=<nowiki>{{URL | https://www.example.com }}</nowiki>}}
{{nowiki template demo|format=inline|output=nowiki+|code=<nowiki>{{URL | //www.example.com }}</nowiki>}}
{{nowiki template demo|format=inline|output=nowiki+|code=<nowiki>{{URL | ftp://www.example.com }}</nowiki>}}
{{nowiki template demo|format=inline|output=nowiki+|code=<nowiki>{{URL | ftp://ftp.example.com }}</nowiki>}}
{{nowiki template demo|format=inline|output=nowiki+|code=<nowiki>{{URL | irc://irc.example.com/channel }}</nowiki>}}

If the path is only a slash (<code>/</code>) it is not displayed in the link text:
{{nowiki template demo|format=inline|output=nowiki+|code=<nowiki>{{URL | http://example.com/ }}</nowiki>}}

The template also adds [[HTML element#wbr|&lt;wbr/&gt;]] before any displayed slashes (<code>/</code>) in the path:
{{nowiki template demo|format=inline|output=nowiki+|code=<nowiki>{{URL | example.com/path }}</nowiki>}}
{{nowiki template demo|format=inline|output=nowiki+|code=<nowiki>{{URL | https://example.com/path }}</nowiki>}}
{{nowiki template demo|format=inline|output=nowiki+|code=<nowiki>{{URL | www.example.com/path/ }}</nowiki>}}
{{nowiki template demo|format=inline|output=nowiki+|code=<nowiki>{{URL | https://www.example.com/path/ }}</nowiki>}}

Upper case in the [[domain name]] is preserved in the URL, but not in the link text (upper case in the path is not changed):
{{nowiki template demo|format=inline|output=nowiki+|code=<nowiki>{{URL | EXAMPLE.com }}</nowiki>}}
{{nowiki template demo|format=inline|output=nowiki+|code=<nowiki>{{URL | Example.com }}</nowiki>}}
{{nowiki template demo|format=inline|output=nowiki+|code=<nowiki>{{URL | Example.com/PathPath }}</nowiki>}}

For a URL containing an equal sign (<code>=</code>), use {{para|1}}:
{{nowiki template demo|format=inline|output=nowiki+|code=<nowiki>{{URL |1= example.com/path?page=42 }}</nowiki>}}
{{nowiki template demo|format=inline|output=nowiki+|code=<nowiki>{{URL |1= https://example.com/path?page=42  }}</nowiki>}}

The template currently supports an optional second parameter which is used as the link text, though its use is discouraged (see [[#Parm2|note]]):
{{nowiki template demo|format=inline|output=nowiki+|code=<nowiki>{{URL | www.example.com | example.com }}</nowiki>}}
{{nowiki template demo|format=inline|output=nowiki+|code=<nowiki>{{URL | example.com | Example.com }}</nowiki>}}
{{nowiki template demo|format=inline|output=nowiki+|code=<nowiki>{{URL |1= example.com/path?page=42 |2= example.com }}</nowiki>}}

The URL may be obtained from [[Wikidata]] as shown in this example for {{Q|23317}}, where the property {{Prop|856}} contains {{Wikidata|property|Q23317|P856}}:
{{nowiki template demo|format=inline|output=nowiki+|code=<nowiki>{{URL | {{Wikidata|property|Q23317|P856}} }}</nowiki>}}

== Microformat ==
The template wraps the ''displayed'' URL with a <code>class="url"</code> so that it is included in any parent [[microformat]] which takes a URL parameter{{Snd}} see [[WP:UF|our microformats project]].

== TemplateData ==
{{TemplateData header}}
<templatedata>
{
	"description": "A template to display and format a URL, inside other tempates",
	"params": {
		"1": {
			"label": "URL",
			"description": "The URL to be linked",
			"type": "string",
			"required": true
		},
		"2": {
			"label": "Display text",
			"description": "The text to be displayed instead of the URL. Deprecated",
			"type": "string",
			"required": false,
			"deprecated": true
		}
	}
}
</templatedata>

== Maintenance categories ==
* {{clc|Pages using URL template with unknown parameters}}


<includeonly>{{Sandbox other||
<!-- Categories below this line, please; interwikis at Wikidata -->
[[Category:External link templates]]
[[Category:Templates that add a tracking category]]
}}</includeonly>