Website
Website example
American Psychological Association. (2024, March 15). APA style guidelines. APA Style. https://apastyle.apa.org/
Social Sciences citation style
Free APA 7th edition Citation Generator
APA 7th edition style is the current citation format used by the American Psychological Association, commonly used in psychology, education, and social sciences.
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Sources you can cite in APA 7
- Journal articles with DOIs
- Books and edited book chapters
- Websites and webpages
- Reports and government documents
- Dissertations and theses
- Conference papers and proceedings
- Audiovisual works (podcasts, videos)
- Social media posts
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APA 7Journal article
Smith, J. A., & Doe, M. B. (2024). The effects of climate change on coastal ecosystems. Journal of Environmental Science, 45(3), 234–251. https://doi.org/10.1234/jes.2024.045
Book
Smith, J. A. (2023). Coastal ecosystems in a changing climate (2nd ed.). Cambridge University Press.
Website
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. (2024). Climate change indicators: Sea surface temperature. NOAA Climate.gov. https://www.climate.gov/news-features/sea-surface-temperature
In-text
(Smith & Doe, 2024)
Sample formatted to the official APA 7th edition rules. Your real citation fills in from any URL, DOI, or ISBN.
What sources can you cite in APA 7th edition format?
- Journal articles with DOIs
- Books and edited book chapters
- Websites and webpages
- Reports and government documents
- Dissertations and theses
- Conference papers and proceedings
- Audiovisual works (podcasts, videos)
- Social media posts
How to create APA 7th edition citations
Reference list citations
APA 7 reference list entries use author-date format. Order: Author(s), (Year). Title (sentence case). Source. DOI or URL. For journal articles: Last, F. M., & Other, A. N. (Year). Article title. Journal Title in Italics, volume(issue), pages. https://doi.org/10.xxxx. For books: Last, F. M. (Year). Book title in italics (edition). Publisher. Omit publisher location. Arrange references alphabetically by first author's surname. Use hanging indent of 0.5 inches. Include DOIs for journal articles when available; use https://doi.org/ format.
In-text citations
APA 7 uses author-date in-text citations. Parenthetical: (Author, Year) or (Author, Year, p. 23) for direct quotes. Narrative: Author (Year) argues... For two authors, use & in parenthetical and 'and' in narrative: (Smith & Jones, 2023) vs Smith and Jones (2023). For 3+ authors, use first author + et al. from the first citation: (Smith et al., 2023). Include page numbers only for direct quotes, not paraphrases. Multiple works by same author same year: 2023a, 2023b.
APA 7th edition Citation Examples
See how to format different source types in APA 7th edition.
Journal article
Journal article example
Smith, J. A., & Doe, M. B. (2024). The psychology of learning. Journal of Educational Psychology, 116(3), 245-260. https://doi.org/10.1037/edu0000123
Book
Book example
Brown, C. D. (2023). Introduction to social psychology (5th ed.). Academic Press.
Quick APA 7th edition Rules
Author Format
Last name, First initial. Middle initial. Use & before last author. List up to 20 authors.
Title Format
Sentence case for article titles. Italicize journal titles and volume numbers.
Date Format
Year in parentheses after author. Include month and day for web sources.
Journal/Source
Italicize journal name, volume number (italicized), and issue number in parentheses.
In-text Citations
Use author-date format: (Author, Year) or Author (Year). Include page numbers for quotes: (Author, Year, p. 123).
About this APA 7th edition citation generator
This citation generator follows the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association, 7th edition (published October 2019). APA 7 is the standard citation format for psychology, education, nursing, business, and many social sciences. Key changes from APA 6 include: DOIs now formatted as URLs, up to 20 authors listed before 'et al.', removal of publisher location for books, and singular 'they' as a generic pronoun. The tool handles the most common source types but you should verify field-specific requirements (e.g., APA Style for Dissertations) against the official manual or apastyle.apa.org.
Common APA 7th edition citation mistakes
- Using Title Case instead of sentence case for article titles
- Omitting DOIs for journal articles when they exist
- Using 'pp.' for single pages (should be 'p.') or missing them entirely for direct quotes
- Switching between 'and' and '&' incorrectly (use & in parenthetical, 'and' in narrative)
- Listing publisher location with the publisher (APA 7 removed location for books)
- Using 'et al.' too early (use only for 3+ authors, and always from the first citation)
- Formatting DOIs with 'doi:' or bare numbers instead of the full https://doi.org/ URL
- Italicizing the issue number (only journal title and volume number are italicized)
APA 7th edition Frequently Asked Questions
What is APA 7th edition citation style?
APA 7th edition style is the current citation format used by the American Psychological Association, primarily in psychology, education, and social sciences. It uses author-date in-text citations.
How do I cite a website in APA 7th edition?
Include author (or organization), publication date, page title, website name, and URL. If no date is available, use (n.d.).
Does APA 7th edition require a DOI?
Yes, APA style requires DOIs for journal articles when available. Use the format: https://doi.org/10.xxxx/xxxxx
How do I format multiple authors in APA 7th edition?
For 2 authors, use & between names. For 3-20 authors, list all with commas and & before the last. For 21+ authors, list first 19, then ... and last author.
APA 7th edition Citation Guides
How to Quote a Website in APA 7: Locators and Block Quotes
Webpages have no page numbers, so APA 7 quotes them with para., a heading, or both. Worked examples from a WHO page, block quotes, and allowed edits.
How to Cite an Article From a Website in APA 7
The APA 7 formats for online newspaper, magazine, and blog articles and stories on news sites like CNN or Vox, with examples, in-text forms, and paywall rules.
APA Citation Links: How to Format DOIs and URLs in APA 7
When an APA citation link should be a DOI, a URL, or nothing, with the https://doi.org format, shortDOIs, database rules, retrieval dates, and 9 worked examples.
How to Cite a Tweet in APA 7 (X Posts, Threads, Profiles)
The APA 7 format for X posts and old tweets, with worked examples for replies, threads, images, deleted posts, profiles, and the 20-word title rule.
How to Cite Wikipedia in APA 7th Edition
The APA 7 format for a Wikipedia article, how to find the permanent link, quoting without page numbers, and how to fix the Cite This Page output.
How to Cite an Interview in APA 7
APA 7 splits interviews three ways, and only one kind gets a reference entry. Worked examples for podcasts, archives, personal interviews, and participants.
How to Cite the Bible in APA 7th Edition
APA 7 gives the Bible a reference list entry for the first time. Covers the version rule, chapter and verse in text, study Bibles, and the Qur'an.
How to Cite a Group Author in APA 7: Organizations
When to abbreviate an organization, when to spell it out in every citation, and how a group author changes both your in-text citation and your reference.
How to Use an APA 7th Edition Citation Generator
The eight checks that catch what an APA 7th edition citation generator gets wrong: sentence case, DOIs, issue numbers, author counts, and in-text forms.
How to Cite a Movie in APA 7th Edition
The APA 7 film format with worked examples: streaming originals, foreign films, TV episodes, timestamps for quotes, and the mistakes that cost marks.
How to Cite a Lecture in APA 7: Slides, Notes, Recordings
Worked examples for Canvas slides, Zoom recordings, and transcripts, plus the retrievability rule that decides how you cite a lecture in APA 7.
How to Cite the CDC in APA 7: Webpages, Reports, and Data
Worked examples showing how to cite the CDC in APA 7 across webpages, MMWR articles, reports, and data sets, plus the in-text and date rules.
How to Format a Dissertation in APA 7th Edition
Margins, fonts, heading levels, and front matter for a dissertation in APA 7, plus where your graduate school's template overrides the manual.
How to Cite a Conference Paper in APA 7
Worked examples for citing a conference paper in APA 7: presentations, posters, abstracts, and proceedings published as chapters or articles.
How to Cite a Book Chapter in APA 7th Edition
Worked examples for every APA book chapter case: edited books, authored books, missing chapter authors, reprinted essays, and entries with no pages.
How to Cite Multiple Authors in APA 7
Worked examples showing how to cite multiple authors in APA 7: et al. from the first citation, the 20-author rule, and fixes for ambiguous citations.
How to Cite a Source With No Date in APA 7
Covers what n.d. replaces, when a retrieval date is required, and how to cite a source with no date that is missing an author too.
How to Cite a Source With No Author in APA 7
What replaces the author, when Anonymous is correct, and how to cite a source with no author in text, with worked examples for websites and books.
How to Cite a Dissertation or Thesis in APA 7th Edition
APA 7 dissertation and thesis format with examples for ProQuest, institutional repositories, unpublished theses, and embargoed work under Section 10.6.
How to Cite ChatGPT in APA 7th Edition
APA 7 ChatGPT format: Company. (Year). Tool Name [Large language model]. URL. Includes worked examples for ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini, and citing specific chats.
How to Cite a Government Document in APA 7th Edition
The APA 7 format for government documents, with examples for federal reports, congressional publications, executive orders, and state documents.
How to Cite a Book in APA 7th Edition
Learn the exact format for citing books in APA 7th edition, with examples for single authors, multiple authors, edited books, chapters, and ebooks.
How to Cite a Journal Article in APA 7th Edition
Learn the exact format for citing journal articles in APA 7th edition, with examples for single authors, multiple authors, DOIs, online-only journals, and more.
How to Cite a PDF in APA 7th Edition
Learn how to cite PDFs in APA 7th edition. APA citations are based on source type, not file format - find the right template for reports, articles, and more.