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CitedFigures.

CitedFigures · How we work

Our source standard

Every number on a CitedFigures site traces to its origin. Here's what counts as a source, how we cite it, and how you can check it yourself.

Last reviewed: June 2026

“Cited” is in the name on purpose. A calculator is only as trustworthy as the numbers inside it, so we hold the sources behind those numbers to a published standard. The point is not to look rigorous — it’s to make the work checkable.

What counts as a source

We rank sources, and we cite the strongest one available:

Primary — preferredThe body that sets the rule. We cite these first and directly.Statutes and regulations (U.S. Code, the Code of Federal Regulations), agency publications (IRS, SSA, CFPB, FTC, EPA, ED.gov / Federal Student Aid, SBA), the Federal Register, and official rate tables (e.g., the Federal Reserve H.15).
Authoritative referenceStandards bodies and recognized references when no single statute governs.Industry standards organizations, regulator-published consumer guidance, and recognized actuarial or accounting references (e.g., NAIC, III).
Supporting — used sparinglyPeer-reviewed research or reputable data, only to contextualize, never to set a hard number.Academic studies and government statistical series. We don't set a calculation constant from a blog, a competitor's calculator, or an unsourced figure.

How we cite

  • In visible HTML, not just code. Citations appear on the page as links you can click — not buried in machine-readable metadata. The reader and the search engine see the same proof.
  • As close to the number as possible. A rate, bracket, or threshold links to the specific publication that sets it, so you can verify that exact figure rather than a general topic page.
  • With a date.Time-sensitive figures carry the year they apply to, and the page carries a “last updated” date.
  • Dual-encoded.Citations are also expressed as structured data (schema.org) so AI answer engines can attribute the figure to its source — but the visible link is the source of truth.

How to check our work

Every claim is meant to be falsifiable. To verify a figure: click the citation next to it and confirm the number against the primary source. To verify the math itself, read the formula in the open-source repository and run it against the worked example on the page. If a citation is dead, or a number doesn’t match its source, tell us — that’s exactly the kind of error the corrections policy exists for.

What we don't do

  • We don’t cite a competitor’s calculator as a source.
  • We don’t set a calculation constant from an unsourced or anonymous figure.
  • We don’t fabricate citations or link to a source that doesn’t actually support the claim.