Many usage guides over the years have suggested that there is a clear distinction between these two words; people is used when referring to a collective group or indeterminate number, and persons serves better when referring to individuals or to a number of individuals.

Both persons and people can be used as plural forms of person. Persons is often used in formal, legal contexts to emphasize individuals as opposed to a group. People is the plural of person that’s most commonly used in everyday communication to simply refer to multiple humans.

Most of the time, people is the correct word to choose as a plural for person. Persons is archaic, and it is safe to avoid using it, except in legal writing, which has its own traditional language. Peoples is only necessary when you refer to distinct ethnic groups (for example, within the same region).

In most cases, people is the correct term to use as a plural for the word person. The word persons is considered archaic, so unless you’re doing some legal writing, it’s best to avoid it. Meanwhile, peoples is only used to refer to distinct ethnic groups, oftentimes within the same region.

"People" is the more commonly used plural form and refers to a group of individuals, regardless of their specific characteristics or identities. It is a more general term that can be used to describe any collection of individuals. On the other hand, "persons" is a less common plural form and is typically used in more formal or legal contexts.