How to cite an X (Twitter) post in APA 7

Reference format

Name [@handle]. (Year, Month Day). First 20 words of the post [Post]. X. URL

Riverside Science Museum [@RiversideSciMus]. (2025, April 22). Happy #EarthDay! Our new solar exhibit opens this weekend 🌍 [Image attached] [Post]. X. https://x.com/RiversideSciMus/status/0000000000

• The author is the person’s or group’s real name, written like any author, followed by the @handle in square brackets.
• The date is the day it was posted.
• The title is the first 20 words of the post, in italics.
• A hashtag, a link or an emoji each counts as one word. Keep them if they fall within the first 20 words. Emojis aren’t italicized.
• If the post has an image, video or link preview, add [Image attached], [Video attached] or [Thumbnail with link attached] after the title.
• Then add [Post], the site name “X” and the post’s URL.

APA now uses “Post” and “X”. References that say [Tweet] or Twitter follow the older format.

In-text citations

Use the name only, not the handle:

• (Riverside Science Museum, 2025)
• Riverside Science Museum (2025)

Citing a profile

Name [@handle]. (n.d.). Posts [X profile]. X. Retrieved Month Day, Year, from URL

The same format works for Instagram and TikTok posts. Change the site name to match.