For further information on citing social media material, see pages 348-350 of the Publication manual of the American Psychological Association, 7th ed., 2020 and Online Media: The APA Style Blog
Author, A. (Year, Day of Posting).Content of post up to first 20 words [Type of post]. Facebook. URL
Brand, R. (2020, February 20). Russell Brand's definition of God [Video]. Facebook. https://www.facebook.com/RussellBrand/videos/191757971919620/?eid=ARBSw-LmDlIwXLZHWWUvFxBRnw4BnMeWeBl9RQc0bgFH6A8tNP84Mn_DXo3mIg5Y2OHAm09MuELDs_ps
In Text
Parenthetical citation: (Brand, 2020)
Narrative citation: Brand (2020)
"This format can be used for posts to other social media services, including Tumblr, LinkedIn, and so forth...If a status update includes images, videos, thumbnail links to outside sources, or content from another Facebook post (such as when sharing a link), indicate that is square brackets." (Publication manual of the American Psychological Association, 7th ed., 2020, p. 349).
Author, A. [@username]. (Year, Day of Posting). Content of post up to first 20 words [Post]. X. URL
The New York Times [@nytimes]. (2020, March 5). If nurses aren't safe, then really our community isn't safe [Post]. X. https://twitter.com/nytimes/status/1235686554514776065
In Text
Parenthetical citation: (New York Times, 2020)
Narrative citation: New York Times (2020)
"If the tweet includes images (including animated gifs), videos, thumbnail links to outside sources, links to other tweets (as in a retweet with comment), or a poll, indicate that in square brackets. For tweet replies, do not include the "replying to" information; if that is important to note, do so within the in-text citation. .. Replicate emojis if possible." (Publication manual of the American Psychological Association, 7th ed., 2020, p. 349)
Last name, F. M. or Name of Group [@username]. (Year, Day of posting). Content of the post up to the first 20 words [Type of post]. Instagram. URL
BBC News [@bbcnews]. (2020, February 20). Laughing in the face of war [Video]. Instagram. https://www.instagram.com/tv/B8yVB5LJ0yD/
In Text
Parenthetical citation: (BBC News, 2020)
Narrative citation: BBC News (2020)
Nicole Schiller Palmisano. (n.d.). LinkedIn [LinkedIn profile]. Retrieved July 19, 2020, from http://www.linkedin.com/in/nicolepalmisano
Provide a retrieval date because the contents of the page can change over time.
Online forum post
Hansen, A. [allenahansen]. (2013, April 8). I was mauled by a bear, fought it off, and drove 4 miles down a mountain with my face hanging off. AMA [Online forum post]. Reddit. I was mauled by a bear, fought it off, and drove 4 miles down a mountain with my face hanging off. AMA : r/IAmA
In Text
Parenthetical citation: (Hansen, 2013)
Narrative citation: Hansen (2013)
If the real name of the author is not known, provide only the screen name without brackets.
Online forum comment
Serious_Ad9128. (2025, April 25). Clover lawn? Very impressive stuff [Comment on the online forum post End of April garden progress]. Reddit. https://www.reddit.com/r/gardening/comments/1k7y0sb/comment/mp1yuob/
In Text
Parenthetical citation: (Serious_Ad9128, 2025).
Narrative citation: Serious_Ad9128 (2025)
Provide up to the first 20 words of the comment, followed by "Comment on the online forum post" and the full title of the post. Provide the URL of the comment itself (not the whole post) by copying and pasting the URL found on the date stamp of the comment.
For more information and examples, check out the APA Style page: Online forum references
Many instructors will not allow the use of generative artificial intelligence (AI) tools (i.e. ChatGPT, Perplexity, others) in assignments. If you do use tools like this, it is important that you check with your instructors first and then that you include citations in your assignment and are clear about which tool(s) you used and how you used it/them.
Since most text generated by AI tools cannot be linked to or read by the reader of your assignment, it would normally be best to cite it as a "personal communication" but since there is no communication with an actual person, APA recommends creating an entry in the reference list that credits the author of the model/algorithm/software (see below for an example). You could also include the generated text in an appendix, along with a full citation.
To cite a tool like ChatGPT, use the example in the Software box above. Be sure to give credit to the company (OpenAI), not the tool itself (ChatGPT).
The APA Style website currently has recently addressed citing ChatGPT and provided the example below:
Author of large language model/algorithm/software. (Year). Name of the model (version) [additional description of tool/resource being cited]. URL used to access model/software.
OpenAI. (2023). ChatGPT (Mar 14 version) [Large language model]. https://chat.openai.com/chat
In Text
Parenthetical citation: (OpenAI, 2023)
Narrative citation: OpenAI (2023)
You can also consider including a written acknowledgement of how you have used AI in your work (in addition to a formal citation). You can see examples of this on this page: AI and Citation
Author. (Version publication year). Title (Version #.#). [Software type]. Publisher/App store name. Store URL
Tableau Software. (2022). Tableau desktop (Version 2022.3) [Computer software]. Salesforce. https://www.tableau.com/products/desktop
In Text
Parenthetical citation: (Tableau Software, 2022)
Narrative citation: Tableau Software (2022)
“Common software and mobile apps mentioned in text, but not paraphrased or quoted, do not need citations, nor do programming languages. ‘Common’ is relative to your field and audience—examples of software or apps that do not require citations include Microsoft Office... social media apps... survey software... Adobe products... Java, and statistical programs (e.g., R, SPSS, SAS). If you used common software or mobile apps during your research, simply give the proper name of the software or app along with the version number in the text, if relevant.” Apps with limited access or distribution must be cited. (Publication manual of the American Psychological Association, 7th ed., 2020, p.338)
Kahl, S. (2022). BirdNET (Version 1.0.7) [Mobile app]. Apple Store.https://apps.apple.com/us/app/birdnet/id1541842885
In Text
Parenthetical citation: (Kahl, 2022)
Narrative citation: Kahl (2022)
“Common software and mobile apps mentioned in text, but not paraphrased or quoted, do not need citations, nor do programming languages. ‘Common’ is relative to your field and audience—examples of software or apps that do not require citations include Microsoft Office... social media apps... survey software... Adobe products... Java, and statistical programs (e.g., R, SPSS, SAS). If you used common software or mobile apps during your research, simply give the proper name of the software or app along with the version number in the text, if relevant.” Apps with limited access or distribution must be cited. (Publication manual of the American Psychological Association, 7th ed., 2020, p.338)
Atmosphere Apps. (2022). Intramuscular injections sites. In Davis drug guide for nurses (Version 6.4.0.539). Google Play Store. https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.usbmis.reader.dadg&hl=en_CA&gl=US
In Text
Parenthetical citation: (Atmosphere Apps, 2022)
Narrative citation: Atmosphere Apps (2022)
Entries are treated like a chapter in a book where one author is responsible for all entries
For in-depth information on citing software and apps, see pages 338-340 of the Publication manual of the American Psychological Association, 7th ed., 2020 (Section 10.10).