How to Report Statistics in APA Format

APA 7 has specific formatting rules for statistical results — italics on the right symbols, specific rounding conventions, and a consistent structure that examiners and reviewers expect to see. Here's the format for the most common tests.

General rules

• Italicize statistical symbols: t, F, p, r, M, SD, n.
• Report exact p-values to two or three decimal places (e.g., p = .032), except when p < .001, which is reported as-is rather than as an exact value.
• Report test statistics and most other values to two decimal places.
• Don't include a leading zero before a decimal for values that can't exceed 1 (e.g., p = .032, not p = 0.032).

Worked examples

Independent samples t-test:
There was a significant difference in scores between Group A (M = 24.50, SD = 3.20) and Group B (M = 21.10, SD = 2.95), t(58) = 4.12, p < .001.

One-way ANOVA:
There was a significant effect of condition on outcome scores, F(2, 87) = 5.67, p = .005, η² = .12.

Correlation:
There was a moderate positive correlation between the two variables, r(48) = .42, p = .002.

Chi-square:
There was a significant association between the two categorical variables, χ²(1, N = 150) = 8.34, p = .004.

Regression:
The overall model was significant, F(3, 96) = 12.45, p < .001, R² = .28. [Predictor] was a significant predictor, b = 0.45, SE = 0.11, β = .38, p < .001.

Common mistakes

• Reporting p = .000 instead of p < .001 (software often displays .000 due to rounding, but APA requires the < .001 format).
• Missing degrees of freedom in parentheses after the test statistic.
• Reporting a result as "significant" or "not significant" without also reporting the actual statistic and p-value.
• Inconsistent decimal places within the same results section.