This article presents a cost-effective assessment model for wetland conservation, identifying global wetland conservation priorities and setting post-2025 targets. Wetlands are critical ecosystems for biodiversity, but their areas have declined significantly due to human activities and climate change. The study identifies 28% of the potential global wetland distribution as conservation priorities, with only 44% currently protected. Three target-setting scenarios for protected area expansion are proposed, offering additional contributions of 9.40%, 42.40%, and 55.97%, respectively. These targets can be downscaled to the national level to update national wetland biodiversity conservation strategies. The study integrates wetland conservation value and human impact-related indicators to identify global wetland conservation priorities. The results show that the largest distribution of WCPs is in Asia, followed by Africa, Europe, and South America. The conservation efficiency of the current PA network for WCPs is low, with only 44% of WCPs protected. The study proposes three conservation target scenarios for protected area expansion, which can help improve the effectiveness of wetland protection. The study also highlights the importance of wetland conservation at the global and national levels, emphasizing the need for policies that support wetland biodiversity conservation. The study provides a framework for identifying wetland conservation priorities and setting conservation targets, which can be used to update national wetland biodiversity conservation strategies. The study also discusses the limitations of the current research and suggests future research directions, including the need for more impacts of human activities and climate change on wetland biodiversity. The study concludes that the proposed assessment model advances a systematic framework for comprehensive evaluation of wetland conservation, considering multiple aspects such as wetland ecosystems, biodiversity, ecological zones, population density, land for construction, and human impacts. The identified global WCPs clarify the quantity and spatial location of wetlands that need priority for protection globally. If the Ambitious target can be achieved, the expanded PA system can fully protect global WCPs and substantially improve the wetland conservation efficiency of the PA system.This article presents a cost-effective assessment model for wetland conservation, identifying global wetland conservation priorities and setting post-2025 targets. Wetlands are critical ecosystems for biodiversity, but their areas have declined significantly due to human activities and climate change. The study identifies 28% of the potential global wetland distribution as conservation priorities, with only 44% currently protected. Three target-setting scenarios for protected area expansion are proposed, offering additional contributions of 9.40%, 42.40%, and 55.97%, respectively. These targets can be downscaled to the national level to update national wetland biodiversity conservation strategies. The study integrates wetland conservation value and human impact-related indicators to identify global wetland conservation priorities. The results show that the largest distribution of WCPs is in Asia, followed by Africa, Europe, and South America. The conservation efficiency of the current PA network for WCPs is low, with only 44% of WCPs protected. The study proposes three conservation target scenarios for protected area expansion, which can help improve the effectiveness of wetland protection. The study also highlights the importance of wetland conservation at the global and national levels, emphasizing the need for policies that support wetland biodiversity conservation. The study provides a framework for identifying wetland conservation priorities and setting conservation targets, which can be used to update national wetland biodiversity conservation strategies. The study also discusses the limitations of the current research and suggests future research directions, including the need for more impacts of human activities and climate change on wetland biodiversity. The study concludes that the proposed assessment model advances a systematic framework for comprehensive evaluation of wetland conservation, considering multiple aspects such as wetland ecosystems, biodiversity, ecological zones, population density, land for construction, and human impacts. The identified global WCPs clarify the quantity and spatial location of wetlands that need priority for protection globally. If the Ambitious target can be achieved, the expanded PA system can fully protect global WCPs and substantially improve the wetland conservation efficiency of the PA system.