Basic points of using AP Style writing
Here are some of the most basic and commonly used AP style points. AP style is simply a
standardized way of writing everything from dates to street addresses to job titles. AP style was
developed and is maintained by The Associated Press, the world’s oldest news service.
AP style provides consistent guidelines for such publications in terms of grammar, spelling,
punctuation and language usage. AP style is the gold standard for print journalism. It’s used by
the vast majority of newspapers in the U.S.
Numbers
One through nine are generally spelled out, while 10 and above are generally written as numerals.
Example: He carried 12 books up three flights of stairs.
One exception to the above rules: always spell out a number that begins a sentence, except if it is
a year.
Example: Two hundred students attended the workshop.
Avoid unnecessary ciphers.
Example: $1, not $1.00. 15 million, not 15,000,000.
Percentages
Percentages are always expressed as numerals, followed by the word “percent.” Do not use the
symbol %.
Example: Food prices have increased 3 percent this year.
Ages
Ages are always expressed as numerals.
Example: He is 5 years old.
Dollar Amounts
Dollar amounts are always expressed as numerals, and the “$” sign is used.
Example: The price of the skirt is $15.
Street Addresses
Numerals are used for numbered addresses. Street, Avenue and Boulevard are abbreviated when
used with a numbered address, but otherwise are spelled out. Route and Road are never
abbreviated.
Example: He lives at 123 Main St. His house is on Main Street. Her house in on 234 Elm Road.
State abbreviations*
AP doesn’t follow standard ZIP code abbreviations – e.g., MA for Massachusetts. Each state has
its own abbreviation – e.g., Mass. for Massachusetts; N.Y. for New York; Calif. for California;
Fla. for Florida and so on.* However, eight states – Alaska, Hawaii, Idaho, Iowa, Maine, Ohio,
Texas and Utah – aren’t abbreviated. No state abbreviations are needed for well-known U.S.
cities such as Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, Dallas, Detroit, Los Angeles, Miami, New York, San
Francisco, etc.
Dates and Time
Dates are expressed as numerals. The months August through February are abbreviated when
used with numbered dates. March through July are never abbreviated. Months without dates are
not abbreviated. “Th” is not used.
Example: The meeting is on Oct. 15. She was born on July 12. I love the weather in November.
Avoid unnecessary ciphers:
Example: 1 p.m. not 1:00 p.m.
Do not capitalize a.m. and p.m. Always use figures with them. Do not use spaces in the
abbreviations. 9:35 a.m. 9 a.m. 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. 3 to 5 p.m.
Job Titles
Job titles are generally capitalized when they appear before a person’s name, but lowercase after
the name.
Example: Bishop Hope Morgan Ward. Hope Morgan Ward is the bishop.
Film, Book & Song Titles
Generally these are capitalized and placed in quotation marks. Do not use quote marks with
reference books or the names of newspapers or magazines.
Example: He rented “Star Wars” on DVD. She read “War and Peace.” The article appeared in
the Daily News-Record.
Miscellaneous Items:
AVOID flowery language. Do not overuse adverbs and adjectives. Concentrate instead on using
strong verbs and nouns.
Example of too flowery: “The game was spectacularly wonderful. Joe Brown was able to
dexterously pass the ball to the amazingly talented forward, Tom Smith who, after pirouetting
around the defender, skillfully placed the ball into the net.”
AVOID unnecessary words or phrases: Watch out for unintentional redundancy.
Example: 2 p.m. Wednesday afternoon
very beautiful
marvelously spectacular
* When a state is used alone in a sentence, spell it out, but if a state is used with a city, follow
these abbreviations (Note that some states are never abbreviated)
Alabama -- Ala.
Alaska -- Alaska
Arizona -- Ariz.
Arkansas -- Ark.
California -- Calif.
Colorado -- Colo.
Connecticut -- Conn.
Delaware -- Del.
D.C. -- District of
Columbia
Florida -- Fla.
Georgia -- Ga.
Hawaii -- Hawaii
Idaho -- Idaho
Illinois -- Ill.
Indiana -- Ind.
Iowa -- Iowa
Kansas -- Kan.
Kentucky -- Ky.
Louisiana -- La.
Maine -- Maine
Maryland -- Md.
Massachusetts -- Mass.
Michigan -- Mich.
Minnesota -- Minn.
Mississippi -- Miss.
Missouri -- Mo.
Montana -- Mont.
Nebraska -- Neb.
Nevada -- Nev.
New Hampshire -- N.H.
New Jersey -- N.J.
New Mexico -- N.M.
New York -- N.Y.
North Carolina -- N.C.
North Dakota -- N.D.
Ohio -- Ohio
Oklahoma -- Okla.
Oregon -- Ore.
Pennsylvania -- Pa.
Rhode Island -- R.I.
South Carolina -- S.C.
South Dakota -- S.D.
Tennessee -- Tenn.
Texas -- Texas
Utah -- Utah
Vermont -- Vt.
Virginia -- Va.
Washington -- Wash.
West Virginia -- W. Va.
Wisconsin -- Wis.
Wyoming -- Wyo.