Wilson, appearing in his second World Snooker Championship final, came out flying as he stretched to a 7-0 lead early on Sunday. But then came the first fightback from Jones, who had clawed things back to a five-frame deficit when play was paused overnight at 11-6.
Jones was only 13-10 behind at one stage on Monday, but Wilson then won four of the next five frames to put himself within one frame of victory at 17-11. However, Jones was not to be shaken, and went on to win the next three frames in his bid to become the first qualifier to win the trophy since Shaun Murphy achieved the feat in 2005.
But that was to be as far as he could push Wilson, who won the 32nd frame to a roar of relief at the Crucible.
"I'd like to say sorry to Jak for that outburst but it does just mean so much to all of us," Wilson told BBC Sport after the match.
"My mum and dad have remortgaged and sacrificed their whole lives to get me here. My brother and wife too. The list goes on and on, it's a massive team effort.
"On YouTube one of my worst things to see is me crying with Jason Mohammed at the Masters and this is going to be even worse! I said I'd never do it again but I just couldn't help it.
"I'm trying so hard to inspire a younger generation and hopefully I'm inspiring my kids.
"They did an interview this week where they were asked their sporting idol and they said Ronaldo, so hopefully I've overtaken him now!"
Wilson was full of praise for his opponent as well as the fans.
"He was so tough and I don't know if there's many people left in Wales the amount that were cheering for him! They made it a fantastic atmosphere," the 32-year-old said.
"Me and Jak have come through the junior ranks together. This is Jak's first final, let alone a World final, and he's conducted himself in an amazing fashion and I'm sure he'll be back."
Despite the loss in the final, Jones said he was happy with his performances at the Crucible.
"It's been an unbelievable tournament for me," he told BBC Sport. "About a month ago I was twitching in my first qualifying match. It's been a long month but I'm happy with it."
The Welshman said of being 7-0 down: "I wouldn't say I had a lot of hope. I thought I'd just try my best. When you are playing someone as solid as Kyren who has such a good all-round game, it's going to be hard to come back from a deficit like that."
"I congratulate Kyren and his family," he added. "They deserve it so much. If anyone deserves it, he does."
