The two words “according to” act as a single preposition.<\/p>\n
Although “according to” is always a preposition, it has more than one meaning.<\/p>\n
You have to determine which meaning it has in a sentence before you know whether or not to put a comma before it.<\/p>\n
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You usually need a comma before “according to” when it means “stated by.” If “according to” is part of a very short phrase preceded by “that” or at the end of a sentence, the comma may be optional. “According to” should not be preceded by a comma when it means “in proportion to” or “contingent on.”<\/strong><\/p>\n <\/p>\n “According to” usually tells you who or what is passing on a piece of information. When it has this meaning, it can come at the beginning, the middle or the end of a sentence.<\/p>\n When “according to” has this meaning, it is usually part of a nonessential phrase or clause. A nonessential phrase or clause is supposed to be set apart from the rest of the sentence with commas, so usually<\/a><\/strong> there will be a comma before “according to” in these types of sentences.<\/p>\n It can be helpful to look at how “according to” as part of a nonessential phrase can move around in the same sentence and still be preceded by a comma:<\/p>\n The man was caught after robbing four houses, according to the police.<\/p>\n The man, according to police, was caught after robbing four houses.<\/p>\n The man was caught, according to police, after robbing four houses.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n In each of the above sentences, the placement of “according to” helps to slightly emphasize a different part of the sentence.<\/p>\n In the first example, the emphasis is a little more on the fact that the man robbed four houses.<\/p>\n In the second, it is on the man himself, and in the third, it is on the fact that the man was caught.<\/p>\n However, in every sentence, it is part of a nonessential phrase, so it needs to be preceded by a comma.<\/p>\n “According to” as part of a nonessential phrase also often follows “that” in a sentence. Here’s an example:<\/p>\n That<\/a><\/strong> comma can be particularly important when “according to” is the beginning of a long dependent clause.<\/p>\n A sentence like the one below could be confusing without setting off the dependent clause with commas:<\/p>\n It’s easy to simply remember the rule that when “according to” is used to attribute information to another person or thing, it needs to be preceded by a comma.<\/p>\n This can keep you from making errors in your writing.<\/p>\n However, you may sometimes see sentences that leave out the comma when “according to” is part of a very short phrase at the end of a sentence.<\/p>\n It can be helpful to know that you may sometimes<\/a><\/strong> see writers make this stylistic choice.<\/p>\n This gives the impression of a sentence that is spoken slightly faster:<\/p>\n This is also the case when “according to” follows “that”:<\/p>\n If “according to” is part of a short phrase in the middle of a sentence and is not preceded by “that,” the comma is usually necessary for clarity:<\/p>\n Less commonly, “according to” indicates that one thing is proportionate to or contingent on another thing.<\/p>\n When this happens, you should never put a comma before “according to” because it always acts as part of an essential phrase.<\/p>\nWhen “according to” means “stated by”<\/h2>\n
\nThis means that it can be removed from the sentence without significantly changing its meaning or the structure.<\/p>\n“According to” as part of a short phrase<\/h3>\n
When “according to” means “in proportion to” or “contingent on”<\/h2>\n