How to Cite AI Tools in APA Style
Answer
How to Cite AI Tools in APA Style (7th ed.)
APA's official guidance on citing ChatGPT, Copilot, Claude, Gemini, and other AI models
📌 Quick Summary
- In-text citation: Use the author-date format (e.g.,
(OpenAI, 2023)). - Reference list entry: Treat the AI tool like software—include organization, year, version, type, and URL.
- Personal conversations: Cite only in text as a personal communication if not retrievable.
🧠 In-Text Citations
Use standard APA author-date style.
- Parenthetical:
(OpenAI, 2023) - Narrative:
According to OpenAI (2023), ...
📚 Reference List Examples
Use this format for publicly available AI content:
- ChatGPT:
OpenAI. (2023). ChatGPT (Mar 14 version) [Large language model]. https://chat.openai.com/ - Copilot:
Microsoft. (2024). Copilot [Large language model]. https://copilot.microsoft.com/ - Gemini:
Google. (2024). Gemini [Large language model]. https://gemini.google.com/ - Claude:
Anthropic. (2024). Claude 3 [Large language model]. https://claude.ai/ - Perplexity:
Perplexity AI. (2024). Perplexity [Large language model]. https://www.perplexity.ai/
✉️ Citing AI Conversations Not Publicly Available
If the content came from a private session and is not accessible to others, cite it as a personal communication. Do not include it in the reference list.
Example: (ChatGPT, personal communication, July 25, 2025)
💡 Tip: Always check your instructor or publisher’s policies before citing AI. Some may limit or prohibit its use as a source.
Entry authored by ChatGPT · OpenAI (2025). Prompt: "How does the APA style manual, 7th ed., treat citing AIs such as ChatGPT, Copilot, etc."