If you’re using the wiki in Microsoft Teams, changes are coming.
Any users that want to preserve their info must make a change by January 2024.
However, if you’re looking for a replacement, there are several options to consider, including Tettra.
Below, you’ll find everything you need to know to get ready.
What is happening to Microsoft Teams Wiki?
Microsoft announced that they would be retiring the wiki feature in Microsoft Teams by January 2024, but with limited functionality beginning July 2023.
The wiki feature was first introduced in 2016, and it allowed users to create and collaborate on wiki-style documents within Teams channels. OneNote is replacing the wiki app in Microsoft Teams, but there are alternatives.
Things to remember about exporting Microsoft Teams wikis:
- Wikis in Microsoft Teams Standard Channels can be exported to OneNote
- All wikis will have to be exported one-by-one
- Anyone who can add or remove tabs in a channel will be able to export a wiki to OneNote, or copy and paste that information
- No wiki information in private channels can be exported to OneNote. This information will have to be manually copy & pasted
Here is the timeline of events to end wikis in Microsoft Teams, according to Microsoft:
July 2023: No New Wikis in MS Teams Can Be Created
“Users won’t be able to create new wikis, but they will be able to access—that is, read and write for—their existing wikis. Users can also export their content to OneNote. Once a user has done so, the Wiki version will be read-only.
After exporting, each wiki in a channel will appear as a separate section in OneNote, and each wiki page will be a separate OneNote page.”
Mid-2023: MS Teams Wiki Tabs Will Be Read & Write Only
“In this stage, channels’ Wiki tabs will no longer be supported. Users will still be able to access—that is, read and write—content in the Wiki app. It will be easy to navigate from the deprecated channel Wiki tabs to the Wiki app. Users will also be able to export their content to OneNote. As in Stage 1, it will no longer be possible to create new wikis.”
January 2024: No More Access to Wiki Tabs or Apps
“From this point onward, neither Wiki tabs nor the Wiki app will be accessible through Teams. Users will no longer have the ability to export their wikis. However, users will still be able to download their wiki files from SharePoint.”
If a wiki is exported to OneNote, it will no longer be accessible.
Why are they ending the Microsoft Teams wiki feature?
- Lack of adoption: The wiki feature was reportedly not widely adopted by Teams users.
- Limited functionality: The wiki feature was limited in terms of its functionality. It did not offer features such as version control, permission management, or integration with other tools.
- The rise of OneNote: OneNote is a more powerful and versatile note-taking app that can be used to create and collaborate on wiki-style documents. As a result, many Teams users have switched to using OneNote instead of the wiki feature.
Microsoft has stated that they will be replacing the wiki feature with a new note-taking experience that will be integrated with OneNote.
When current wiki pages are exported each page will appear as a page in the OneNote Notebook section. This new experience will offer a number of improvements over the wiki feature, including:
- Enhanced collaboration: The new note-taking experience will make it easier for users to collaborate on documents.
- Improved search: The new note-taking experience will make it easier to find documents.
- More powerful formatting: The new note-taking experience will offer more powerful formatting options.
How To Export Your Wiki Content from Teams
The best course of action is to use OneNote as an archive or storage space for your wiki information and then find a tool that actually is a knowledge base and wiki for your company information.
How to Export Content from MS Teams Wiki into OneNote:
The following process only works for standard channels, not private channels. To export content from a private channel, you’ll have to directly copy and paste content into OneNote or another knowledge base of your choice, like Tettra.
- In Teams, go to the channel that has the wiki you want to export.
- In the Wiki tab, select Get details > Export to Notes > Finish.
- Go to the Notes tab to access your content.
- Each tab of the former wiki is now a OneNote notebook section.
- Each page of the former wiki is now a page in a OneNote notebook section.
After exporting, you can go to the Notes tab to collaborate using OneNote in your Teams channel. A read-only version of your wiki will continue to be available in the Wiki tab for now.
How To Export Your Wiki Content from OneNote:
Follow these steps to export content from OneNote. You can then use these pages in a different knowledge base like Tettra.
- Go to OneNote for the web.
- Log into your Microsoft account with the OneNote files you want to download.
- Under My Notebooks, right-click (PC) or Control-click (Mac) the name of the notebook that you want to export, and then click Export notebook.
- On the screen that opens, click Export.
- Follow your browser’s prompts to save the file
Switch to Tettra for a Reliable Wiki & Knowledge Base
Once you’ve exported your pages, consider switching over to Tettra for a more comprehensive wiki and knowledge base solution.
Tettra is an AI-powered knowledge management system that helps you curate important company information into a knowledge base, use it to answer repetitive questions and keep it up-to-date, organized, and complete with automation.
You can use Tettra to search, share, and manage internal knowledge from all your channels, ensuring that your team actually uses your documentation.
Tettra is one of the most highly-rated knowledge management bases on G2, with close to a 100 positive reviews and a popular alternative to Confluence.
Tetta is rolling out more and more AI functionalities and product features to make capturing knowledge as easily as possible.
With Tettra, you’ll be able to:
- Answer questions that your team asks most
- Have a central place for your most important documents and processes
- Ask for verification from subject matter experts and
What are other options to replace the Teams Wiki?
If Tettra doesn’t quite meet your needs, consider these other options:
- One Note
You could stay with OneNote. OneNote is a powerful note-taking app that can be used to create and collaborate on wiki-style documents. It offers a wide range of features, including the ability to insert images, tables, and other media. Use its rich editing and collaboration features to create documents. OneNote is not a dedicated wiki platform, so it lacks some of the features that are typically found in wikis, such as version control, permission management, and integration with other outside tools.
- Sharepoint
If you’re already familiar with Teams and are a heavy Microsoft user, you may want to consider Sharepoint as your wiki. SharePoint is a popular choice for enterprise wikis because it offers a central location for storing all of your company’s wiki content, multiple user collaboration, automatic saved changes, and powerful search capabilities.
However, Sharepoint is notoriously hard to use and navigate. If you’re not familiar with SharePoint, it can be difficult to get started especially for your whole organization. SharePoint can be expensive to implement and maintain. If you have a small company, the cost of SharePoint may not be justified.
Review these top Sharepoint alternatives.
3. Confluence
Confluence is a wiki-based collaboration platform that is used by businesses of all sizes. It offers a wide range of features, including version control, permission management, and integration with other tools.
However, there are negatives to using Confluence. Confluence is a complex platform with a lot of features. This can make it difficult to learn and use, especially for users who are not familiar with wikis. It’s also difficult to navigate. Confluence’s interface can be a bit cluttered, especially for users who are not familiar with it.
Compare more Confluence alternatives.
4. PerfectWiki
PerfectWiki is a cloud-based wiki that is designed to be easy to use and manage. It offers a range of features, including collaboration, version control, and search. It has a good integration with Microsoft Teams, designed specifically for that purpose.
PerfectWiki is not as customizable as some other wiki platforms. For example, it is not possible to change the look and feel of PerfectWiki, and the permissions system is not as flexible as some other platforms.
If you need something that your whole team can use, consider using Tettra for your knowledge base. It’s easy to use, has thousands of users, and will help your team find the information they need.
