Wikipedia:Proposed article mergers

"WP:PM" redirects here. For the user right, see Wikipedia:Page mover. For other uses, see WP:PM (disambiguation).

Prior to being merged into AfD, the Proposed article mergers noticeboard was used to draw attention to active discussions to merge articles. To begin new merge discussion, editors followed the now-historical instructions at § Historical merge proposal procedure. If a merge is unlikely to be contested, you can still be bold and complete it without initiating a discussion. If your merge is later contested, another editor can revert and discuss it.

Historical merge proposal process

On 24 March 2026, there was consensus to merge the proposed article mergers (PAM) process into AfD. What follows is the historical process for initiating formal merge discussions, prior to the merge with AfD.

If the need for a merge is obvious, editors are encouraged to be bold and simply do it themselves. While bold merges may be reverted entirely, the process and the discussion after the revert results in better articles. Young or short articles and stubs that only differ in wording should be merged immediately. Longer articles that have been separate for a long time are usually discussed first, especially if they are about controversial topics. If the merge is difficult to perform or is potentially controversial, you may now open a discussion following the instructions at Wikipedia:Articles for deletion.

Step 1: Create a discussion

This is usually done on the proposed destination page's talk page. For example, if suggesting that Source page be merged into Destination page, create a proposal in a new section at Talk:Destination page. If the destination does not exist, do not create its talk page.

Create a new topic and include the list of the affected pages and a merge rationale. For example:

== Merge proposal ==
I propose merging [[SOURCEPAGES]] into [[DESTINATIONPAGE]]. I think the content in SOURCEPAGE can easily be explained in the context of this article, and merging them would not cause any article-size or [[WP:UNDUE|weighting]] problems. ~~~~

If a merge proposal has been incorrectly created on the source's talk page and the proposed destination is unambiguous and exists, any editor can move the discussion to the talk page of the destination page, to increase its visibility. Use the {{Moved to}} and {{Moved from}} templates.

Optionally, you can notify contributors to the pages involved. One way is to ping them in a comment on the merge proposal, such as {{ping|User1|User2|User3|...}} Notifying contributors to the articles. ~~~~. Alternatively, create a new topic on those users' talk pages with {{subst:Mergenote|PAGENAME|Talk:PAGENAME#Merge proposal}}. Respect neutrality when making invitations to participate in the discussion; selectively notifying editors is not allowed.

Step 2: Tag the relevant pages

To propose merging:

• two articles together: place {{Merge to|DESTINATIONPAGE|discuss=Talk:DESTINATIONPAGE#Merge proposal|date=June 2026}} at the top of the source page, and {{Merge from|SOURCEPAGE|discuss=Talk:DESTINATIONPAGE#Merge proposal|date=June 2026}} at the top of the proposed destination article or section.
  • If you don't already know which article should be merged and which should remain, place {{Merge|OTHERPAGE|discuss=Talk:PAGE#Merge proposal|date=June 2026}} on both pages.

• many articles into an existing article: place {{Merge|OTHERSOURCEPAGES|...|target=DESTINATIONPAGE|discuss=Talk:DESTINATIONPAGE#Merge proposal|date=June 2026}} on all source pages, and {{Merge from|SOURCEPAGE1|SOURCEPAGE2|...|discuss=Talk:DESTINATIONPAGE#Merge proposal|date=June 2026}} at the top of the proposed destination article or section.

• many articles into a page that doesn't exist yet: place {{Merge|target=DESTINATIONPAGE|SOURCEPAGE1|SOURCEPAGE2|...|discuss=Talk:SOURCEPAGE#Merge proposal|date=June 2026}} on each source page.

Always use the |discuss= parameter to link to the same discussion on all pages; otherwise, two separate discussions could take place.

Step 3: Discuss the merge

Make sure to follow standard talk page guidelines and be clear and concise. Usually, a hybrid discussion/straw poll is used, but remember that polling is not a substitute for discussion. Example:

* '''Merge''' – The scope of the articles is the same.  ~~~~
* '''Don't merge''' – The resulting article would be too long. ~~~~

During the course of the discussion, editors may suggest merging pages that were not part of the original proposal. When this happens, add the merge templates to those additional pages and ensure that adequate time is provided for editors to comment before the discussion is closed.

Step 4: Close the discussion

During discussion, a rough consensus may emerge to proceed with the merge. Any user, including the user who first proposed the merge, may close the discussion and move forward with the merge if enough time has elapsed (normally 7 days or more) and the consensus is clear or there has been no discussion. Closing of merge discussions differs from closing of requested move discussions in that closings of uncontroversial merge discussions by involved users are allowed.

In more unclear, controversial cases, the determination that a consensus to merge has or has not been achieved should be made by an editor who is neutral and not directly involved in the merge proposal or the discussion. The discussion can be listed at the Proposed article mergers noticeboard to attract the attention of more editors. If necessary, you can request that an uninvolved editor close the discussion at the Closure requests noticeboard. If a consensus is formed against the merge shortly after it was performed, it can easily be reversed.

To close a merge discussion, use the {{Discussion top}} and {{Discussion bottom}} templates. Then:

• If the discussion is closed with consensus to merge, change the {{Merge to}} tag to {{Being merged to}} in the source page, and change {{Merge from}} to {{Being merged from}} in the destination page. They should remain tagged until the merge is fully performed, so that they are listed on the relevant backlog.
• If the discussion is closed with consensus against merging or no consensus, remove all the {{Merge}} templates from the destination and source pages, linking to the discussion in your edit summary. Optionally, you can also place {{Old merge}} on the corresponding talk pages.

Step 5: Perform the merge

Following the merge of PAM into AfD, the detailed procedure for carrying out merges is now described at Wikipedia:Merging § Procedure.

Articles proposed for merging

Main page: Category:Articles proposed for merging

This list is updated automatically twice per day by Merge bot.

Articles with consensus to merge

Main pages: Category:Articles with consensus to merge and Category:Articles with consensus to merge following AfD discussion

If a merge discussion has been closed with consensus to merge, you can optionally list it at Wikipedia talk:Merging or at Wikipedia talk:WikiProject Merge to attract editors interested in carrying out the merge. Any editor can perform these merges by following the merging instructions! Template:Merge backlog

See also

• Wikipedia:Merging, a guide on when and how to merge
• Wikipedia:WikiProject Merge, a project initiated to clear the merger backlog
• Wikipedia:Copying within Wikipedia, policy on copying content within Wikipedia
• Wikipedia:Proposed article splits