How to cite a social media post in MLA 9

MLA uses its usual template. The account is the author, the text of the post is the title, and the platform is the container.

Works Cited format

Last, First [@handle]. "Text of the post." X, Day Month Year, URL.

Okafor, Tobi [@tobi_writes]. “Every draft gets better when someone else reads it first.” X, 12 Mar. 2025, x.com/tobi_writes/status/1234567890.

• Author. The name on the account. Add the handle in square brackets when it differs from the account name. MLA’s guidance is to leave it out when it closely matches the name and you give a URL.
• Title. The post’s text in quotation marks. A long post can be shortened with an ellipsis.
• Container. The platform’s name in italics. Since the 2023 change of name, MLA says to use X as the container for any post on the platform, past or present.
• Date. The date of the post.
• URL. MLA’s examples give it without “https://”.

A post that is only an image

Describe the image in plain words in place of the text, and don’t put the description in quotation marks.

Riverside Science Museum [@RiversideSciMus]. Photo of the new solar exhibit entrance. X, 22 Apr. 2025, x.com/RiversideSciMus/status/0000000000.

In-text citation

Use the author’s name: (Okafor). MLA’s guidance on the change to X suggests writing “post” in your own sentences, not “tweet.”

A thread, Instagram or TikTok

For a thread, use the first post as the basis for the title. MLA has separate pages for Instagram, TikTok and a profile.

Check before you submit

• Posts can be edited or deleted. Keep a record of what you cited. The MLA Style Center suggests adding an access date when a post may change.
• For APA, see citing an X post in APA.