Attribution Policy

We encourage the use of ACLED data, visualizations, analysis, and other information, but always with the proper attribution. This policy outlines how users should properly attribute data, analysis, visualizations, and other information produced by ACLED.

Last Updated: 8 July 2025

As defined in the Terms and conditions, all rights to use ACLED data or analysis are conditioned on the user’s adherence to the use restrictions and proper attribution.

How to cite ACLED

ACLED as the source of the data must be clearly and prominently acknowledged. This applies to uses of the original ACLED data as well as any manipulation of or additions to the data. Proper acknowledgment includes either:

A footnote with the full citation that includes a link to ACLED’s website
An in-line citation or acknowledgment, stating that ACLED is the source of these data.

All data visualizations or similar created using ACLED data should include a clear citation on the visualization itself.

Refer to us as ACLED or ACLED (Armed Conflict Location & Event Data). In the long version of the name, please always use the ampersand.

Elements of a proper citation

All attribution, whether as a footnote citation or in-text, should answer the following questions:

When did you access the data? The ACLED dataset is a “living dataset,” with updates made weekly, so including the accessed date will help clarify the specific “snapshot” of ACLED data you used.
What data did you use? You should indicate which filters were used to isolate the relevant events, whether it's countries, time periods, event types, actors, or other variables in the dataset. This is particularly important for describing data points and data visualizations.
Have you manipulated these data? If so, how? Indicate if you made any changes to the unit of analysis, categorization, groupings, etc., that result in the data structure looking different from the original ACLED data.
Have you added or amended these data? If so, how? Did you generate a new violence variable based on the original data? Did you add your own or another assessment of violence to the original data? Clarifying this in your attribution will help demonstrate whether and how the ACLED data used in your analysis has been slightly or considerably amended, and in which ways.

Citing information in published ACLED reports

Figures or statistics published in ACLED analysis, infographics, working papers, etc.

You can attribute a specific ACLED figure or statistic to the individual publication that mentions it, either as a footnote or in text:

In an in-text attribution, always mention ACLED immediately preceding or following the figure or statistic. When directly quoting a report or individual analyst, do not alter the language in the quote and always include their name and title. It is not necessary to include ACLED’s full name. Where appropriate, include the link to the relevant report.

E.g., Nearly 220 demonstrations have taken place across Turkey in the 10 days since Imamoglu's arrest, with dozens met by police intervention, said Nasser Khdour, Middle East assistant research manager at ACLED (Armed Conflict Location & Event Data).¹

E.g., Yet none have managed to stem the jihadist tide, with the violence killing at least 2,400 people in Niger since the army overthrew democratically elected President Mohamed Bazoum in July 2023, according to the conflict monitor ACLED.²

E.g., In a recent report titled “How the Sinaloa Cartel’s rift is redrawing Mexico’s criminal map,” ACLED (Armed Conflict Location & Event Data) examined cases of gang-on-gang violence and state-criminal clashes in the context of the ongoing war.³

In a footnote citation, please always include the author(s),* published date, title, and either a hyperlink or the URL at the end of the citation. Where possible, use the following format:

Pearl Pandya, “Q&A: What does India’s Naxal-Maoist insurgency look like in 2025?” ACLED, 25 June 2025

Kieran Doyle, “Mapping the ‘No Kings’ demonstrations in the United States,” ACLED, 25 June 2025.https://acleddata.com/2025/06/17/mapping-the-no-kings-demonstrations-in-the-united-states/

* Note: If ACLED content does not list an author (often the case for documents describing ACLED methodology), the citation should identify ACLED as the author. E.g., ACLED, “Press Release: New ACLED report highlights violence targeting local officials during 2024, 30 May 2025

At the end of every report, you can find an auto-generated citation that you can copy directly to your clipboard and use.

Data visualizations

ACLED-produced visualization, graphic, or map for non-commercial purposes

If you wish to reproduce or republish a visual, graphic, or map ACLED has already published (rather than creating an original image using raw data) for non-commercial purposes, please cite the individual publication, including the author(s). This includes reproducing the same data visualization using a different design or formatting. Use the following format:

For example, if you recreate this graph showing Houthi attacks on commercial ships, you should include this citation in the visual itself, with the report linked if possible:

Originally published by ACLED on 26 June 2025.

Using ACLED data in a visualization, graphic, or map of your own

If you make a data visualization, graphic, or map using ACLED data, attribute the source data clearly and prominently on the visual itself, either at the bottom or within the key/legend. Where possible, include a link to ACLED’s website.

Examples of proper attribution of ACLED data in data visualizations:

These citations should be included for both standalone infographics as well as for tables/figures within a larger report.

Data visualizations on social media

When sharing a visualization that uses ACLED data on social media, please

Be sure that the citation is clearly visible and not cut off.
Tag ACLED on Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, Bluesky, or YouTube.

Do not use the ACLED logo to denote use of ACLED data unless explicitly authorized. The ACLED logo is reserved for products created directly by ACLED or jointly with ACLED.

Citing the ACLED dataset

The ACLED Codebook

In a footnote citation, please include ACLED as the author, the name of the codebook, the latest updated date, and either a hyperlink or the URL at the end of the citation:

ACLED, “Armed Conflict Location & Event Data (ACLED) Codebook,” 3 October 2024. www.acleddata.com.

ACLED, “Armed Conflict Location & Event Data (ACLED) Codebook,” 3 October 2024

When citing it in-text, you can include the full name “the ACLED Codebook,” or simply “codebook” and hyperlink it where possible.

E.g., By studying the ACLED Codebook, we focused our research on the violent events…

ACLED data in an academic paper, report, or article

Always use a full citation to the following academic article on the ACLED dataset:

Clionadh Raleigh, Roudabeh Kishi, and Andrew Linke, “Political instability patterns are obscured by conflict dataset scope conditions, sources, and coding choices,” Humanities and Social Sciences Communications, 25 February 2023. https://doi.org/10.1057/s41599-023-01559-4

A data file for public or private use includes ACLED data

If generating a data file for public or private use, and presenting the data to another party, the ACLED data included must be directly acknowledged in a source column, including ACLED’s full name and a link (either hyperlinked or added at the end).

ACLED, accessed on 15 March 2025. www.acleddata.com.

ACLED, accessed on 15 March 2025

If you intend to use ACLED data or analysis in a manner not described in this Attribution policy, please contact us directly at [email protected] for instructions regarding the attribution requirements.