apa reference page 8th edition

APA, MLA, and Other Citation Styles

• MLA 8th Edition
• Chicago/Turabian
• Other Styles

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Books on MLA 8th

MLA (Modern Language Association) - common in the humanities, especially History, Philosophy, Literature, Art, Music, and more. There are two editions: 7th and 8th.

Consult your instructor which edition he or she prefers, although it is better to use the more recent 8th Edition.

MLA Core Elements

When creating a citation, you must use the Core Elements by number importance:

Note: Format (such as "Print" or "Web") is not included and is not necessary in the 8th edition.

Format & Examples

Citation Format for In-Text Citations

For quoting somebody else's work, you must use parenthetical citations , which is giving credit of the originator of the source in parentheses. Generally, you must include the author(s) last name(s) and page number(s).

• "According to Hernandez, in preparing to work with the students at risk, establishing an environment of open communication from the first day is critical (8)"
• "In preparing to work with the students at risk, establishing an environment of open communication from the first day is critical (Hernandez 8)."

Common examples of citation formats for Works Cited/Bibliographies

At the end of your paper in MLA format, you must have a Works Cited list or Bibliography, listing your citations in alphabetical order. Be sure to indent the 2nd line and beyond.

Helpful Links

• EasyBib - MLA Format: Everything You Need to Know Here Welcome to an overview of “What is MLA Format?” in relation to paper formatting. You’ll find in-depth guidelines, examples, and visual samples to help you easily format your paper.
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• Last Updated: Dec 23, 2022 1:46 PM
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Citation Styles: APA, MLA, Chicago, & Beyond!: MLA 8th Edition

• APA 7th Edition
• MLA 8th Edition
• Chicago 17th/Turabian 8th
• Citation Management Tools
• Citing ChatGPT & AI-generated content

Books on MLA Style

Formatting your MLA Paper

What is MLA Style?

MLA (Modern Language Association) style for documentation is widely used in the humanities, especially in writing on language and literature. MLA style features brief parenthetical citations in the text keyed to an alphabetical list of works cited that appears at the end of the work. (Source: Official MLA website)

Core Elements

Each entry in the list of works cited is composed of facts common to most works—the MLA core elements. They are assembled in a specific order.

The concept of containers is crucial to MLA style. When the source being documented forms part of a larger whole, the larger whole can be thought of as a container that holds the source. For example, a short story may be contained in an anthology. The short story is the source, and the anthology is the container.  (Source: MLA)

MLA Citation Style (8th edition) from Joshua Vossler on Vimeo .

Examples of MLA Style

In-text Citation

In-text citations provide relevant source information, usually in parentheses, whenever a sentence includes a direct quotation or paraphrase. The source information provided can depend on the type of source you are citing but MUST directly correspond to the source information in your Works Cited page. Typically you will provide Author and Location in your in-text citation.

Creating a Works Cited Page

With MLA style, you must include a Works Cited page at the end of your paper. A Works Cited page is an alphabetical listing of the resources cited in your paper. Below are some examples of MLA style citations.

These are examples of MLA style, there are many factors to consider for each citation and other types of sources that aren't covered on this site. Please consult the Handbook or a librarian for more authoritative assistance with citations

Online MLA Citation Resources

• Official MLA Style Center The official website for MLA style, hosted by the Modern Language Association. The MLA Style Center does not contain the full text of the handbook, although it walks users through the process of creating an entry in the works cited list. It also has a robust Q&A section for user-submitted questions.
• Excelsior Writing Lab Citation examples, videos, and formatting guides for MLA style.
• Purdue Online Writing Lab Online writing lab with formatting tips and sample papers. The "Cite your source automatically" feature on Purdue Owl pages is part of another website, and not recommended.
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• Last Updated: Sep 7, 2023 8:43 AM
• URL: https://libguides.washjeff.edu/citationstyles

Purdue Online Writing Lab Purdue OWL® College of Liberal Arts

General Format

Welcome to the Purdue OWL

This page is brought to you by the OWL at Purdue University. When printing this page, you must include the entire legal notice.

Copyright ©1995-2018 by The Writing Lab & The OWL at Purdue and Purdue University. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, reproduced, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed without permission. Use of this site constitutes acceptance of our terms and conditions of fair use.

Please use the example at the bottom of this page to cite the Purdue OWL in APA.

You can also watch our APA vidcast series on the Purdue OWL YouTube Channel .

General APA Guidelines

Your essay should be typed and double-spaced on standard-sized paper (8.5" x 11"), with 1" margins on all sides.   Include a page header (also known as the “ running head ”) at the top of every page. For a professional paper, this includes your paper title and the page number. For a student paper, this only includes the page number. To create a page header/running head , insert page numbers flush right. Then type "TITLE OF YOUR PAPER" in the header flush left using all capital letters. The running head is a shortened version of your paper's title and cannot exceed 50 characters including spacing and punctuation.

The 7th edition of the APA Publication Manual requires that the chosen font be accessible (i.e., legible) to all readers and that it be used consistently throughout the paper. It acknowledges that many font choices are legitimate, and it advises writers to check with their publishers, instructors, or institutions for guidance in cases of uncertainty.

While the APA Manual does not specify a single font or set of  fonts for professional writing, it does recommend a few fonts that are widely available. These include sans serif fonts such as 11-point Calibri, 11-point Arial, and 10-point Lucida Sans Unicode as well as serif fonts such as 12-point Times New Roman, 11-point Georgia, 10-point Computer Modern.

Major Paper Sections

Your essay should include four major sections: the Title Page , Abstract , Main Body , and References .

Note: APA 7 provides slightly different directions for formatting the title pages of professional papers (e.g., those intended for scholarly publication) and student papers (e.g., those turned in for credit in a high school or college course).

The title page should contain the title of the paper, the author's name , and the institutional affiliation . A professional paper should also include the author note . A student paper should also include the course number and name , instructor name , and assignment due date .

Type your title in upper and lowercase letters centered in the upper half of the page. The title should be centered and written in boldface. APA recommends that your title be focused and succinct and that it should not contain abbreviations or words that serve no purpose. Your title may take up one or two lines. All text on the title page, and throughout your paper, should be double-spaced.

Beneath the title, type the author's name : first name, middle initial(s), and last name. Do not use titles (Dr.) or degrees (PhD).

Beneath the author's name, type the institutional affiliation , which should indicate the location where the author(s) conducted the research.

A professional paper should include the author note beneath the institutional affiliation, in the bottom half of the title page. This should be divided up into several paragraphs, with any paragraphs that are not relevant omitted. The first paragraph should include the author’s name, the symbol for the ORCID iD, and the URL for the ORCID iD. Any authors who do not have an ORCID iD should be omitted. The second paragraph should show any change in affiliation or any deaths of the authors. The third paragraph should include any disclosures or acknowledgements, such as study registration, open practices and data sharing, disclosure of related reports and conflicts of interest, and acknowledgement of financial support and other assistance. The fourth paragraph should include contact information for the corresponding author.

A student paper should not include an author note.

Note again that page headers/page numbers (described above for professional and student papers) also appear at the top of the title page. In other words, a professional paper's title page will include the title of the paper flush left in all capitals and the page number flush right, while a student paper will only contain the page number flush right.

Student APA title page

Title page for a student paper in APA 7 style.

Professional paper APA title page

Title page for a professional paper in APA 7 style.

Begin a new page. Your abstract page should already include the page header (described above). On the first line of the abstract page, center and bold the word “Abstract” (no italics, underlining, or quotation marks).

Beginning with the next line, write a concise summary of the key points of your research. (Do not indent.) Your abstract should contain at least your research topic, research questions, participants, methods, results, data analysis, and conclusions. You may also include possible implications of your research and future work you see connected with your findings. Your abstract should be a single paragraph, double-spaced. Your abstract should typically be no more than 250 words.

You may also want to list keywords from your paper in your abstract. To do this, indent as you would if you were starting a new paragraph, type Keywords: (italicized), and then list your keywords. Listing your keywords will help researchers find your work in databases.

Abstracts are common in scholarly journal articles and are not typically required for student papers unless advised by an instructor. If you are unsure whether or not your work requires an abstract, consult your instructor for further guidance.

APA Abstract Page

Abstract page for a student paper in APA 7 style.

Please see our Sample APA Paper resource to see an example of an APA paper. You may also visit our Additional Resources page for more examples of APA papers.

How to Cite the Purdue OWL in APA

Individual resources.

The page template for the new OWL site does not include contributors' names or the page's last edited date. However, select pages  still include this information.

In the absence of contributor/edit date information, treat the page as a source with a group author and use the abbreviation "n.d." for "no date":

Purdue Online Writing Lab. (n.d.).  Title of resource.  Purdue Online Writing Lab. http://Web address for OWL resource

Purdue Online Writing Lab. (n.d.).  General Writing FAQs. Purdue Online Writing Lab. https://owl.purdue.edu/owl/general_writing/general_writing_faqs.html

The generic APA citation for OWL pages, which includes author/edit date information, is this:

Contributors' names. (Last edited date).  Title of resource . Site Name. http://Web address for OWL resource

Note:  This page reflects the latest version of the APA Publication Manual (i.e., APA 7), which released in October 2019. The equivalent resource for the older APA 6 style  can be found here .

• Citation Generator
• Style Guides
• Chicago/Turabian Format

8 APA Book Reference Examples

Do you want to know how to reference a book in an APA paper? Creating APA book reference citations for a print or e-book in your reference list is simple once you understand the format. APA 7 uses the author-date system, which means the author’s last name, first initial, the date of publication, title, and publisher are essential elements of the book citation. Learn how to create APA book reference citations for books with authors, books with editors, multiple chapter books, and volumes.

How to Cite a Book in APA

When it comes to creating an APA book reference citation , there are different ways you can do it depending on the number of authors in the source.

Basic Book Reference Format – One Author

When it comes to formatting for one author, you use the last name of the author, initial first name, initial middle name (if available). (Year of publication in parentheses). Book title in italics. Publisher.

Author, A. A. (Date). Title of work . Publisher.

Example Citation One Author

Cunningham, J. B. (1997). The stress management sourcebook . Lowell House.

Multiple Author Book Citation

When you have more than one author, you need to write out up to 20 of them. This was a change that APA made in its 7th edition of its manual. Creating source citations for books with two or more authors is simple.

Example Book Citation for 2 to 19 Authors

Diamond, H., & Diamond, M. (1987). Fit for life.  Warner Book.

Example Book Citation 20 or More Authors

Beetle, F. H., Choi, M. J., Bard, L. L., Harland, A. A., Stanley, J.A., Tipman, S.T., Jones, G., Morse, K., Johnson, T. M., Smith P., Rubin, L., Williams, L., van Hern, N. J., Brown, N., Lopez, T. J., Taylor, L., Jackson. I. O., Moore, R. R., Wilson, A. T.,…Rubin, L.H. (2017). Technical documentation for software engineers. Neal-Schuman Publishers.

APA Book Reference for Whole Edited Books

Do you need to create an APA citation for an edited book without an author? Then you need to add (Ed.) in parentheses after their name like:

Editor, A. A. (Ed.). (Date). Title of book: Subtitle of book . Publisher.

Example Citation Edited Books with One Editor

Brown, J. A. (Ed.). (2010). How to buy a house: A real estate guide. Smith & Brown.

APA Book Reference for 2 or More Editors

With multiple editors, the format is similar to multiple authors, except you add (Eds.) after their names.

Editor, A. A., & Editor, B. B. (Eds.). (2002). Title of book: Subtitle of book . Publisher.

Example Citation Edited Books with 2 or More Editors

Steinberg, M., & Embruy, S. H. (Eds.). (1994). Sickle cell disease: Basic principles and clinical practice . Raven Press.

APA Reference for a Chapter in an Edited Book

In APA format, you find yourself citing all types of sources, even the chapter of an edited book. If you are only citing one chapter in an edited book, then you’ll include the page numbers.

Example Format for Chapter in Edited Book One Editor

Author, A. A. (2002). Title of chapter. In A. A. Editor (Ed.), Title of book (pp. chapter pages). Publisher.

Example Format for Chapter in Edited Book Two Editors

Author, A. A., & Author, B. B. (Year of publication). Title of chapter. In A. A. Editor & B. B. Editor (Eds.),  Title of book  (pp. chapter pages). Publisher.

Example Book Citation for Chapter in Edited Book

Haybron, D. M. (2008). Philosophy and the science of subjective well-being. In M. Eid & R.J. Larsen (Eds.), The science of subjective well-being (pp. 17-43). Guilford Press.

In-Text Citation for Chapter in Edited Book

(Haybron, 2008, p. 40)

Book References for Multi-Volume Works in APA

In cases where you are referencing work in multiple volumes, you should include the volume numbers in the citation.

Format for Multi-Volume Works One Editor

Editor, A. A. (Ed.). (2006). Title of volumes (Vols. x-x). Publisher.

Format for Multi-Volume Works Two Editors

Editor, A. A., & Editor, B. B. (Eds.).  Title of volumes. (Vols. x-x). Publisher.

Example Citation for Multi-Volume Works

Thomson, A. W., & Lotze, M. T. (Eds.). (2003). The cytokine handbook (Vols. 1-2). Academic Press.

APA Book References for Translations

In cases where you are referencing a work that’s translated, you should include who translated the book.

Author, A. A. (Publication Year).  Title of the work: Subtitle  (T. Translator, Trans.). Publisher. (Original work published Year)

Example Book Citation for Translated Work

Janson, R. (1989).  Symposium  (A. Woodruff, Trans.). New York Company. (Original work published ca. 480-500 BCE)

Book References For Editions Beyond First in APA

If you have a book beyond the first edition when you create an APA book reference citation, include the edition.

Author, A. A. (Publication Year).  Title of the work: Subtitle  (# edition). Publisher.

Example Book Citation Beyond First Edition

Bath, R. (2019).  Becoming a successful writer  (3rd ed.). University of Chicago Press.

APA Book Reference for E-Books

Everything is online, even books; therefore, you need to know how to create a citation for e-books. In the 7th edition of APA, they took out the need to include the retrieved from and the platform or device like [Kindle]. Now you include the publisher before the download site.

Author, A. A. (Date).  Work title . Publisher. Downloadsite.com

Example Citation Online Book

Keynes, R. (2017). Fossils, finches and fuegians: Charles Darwin’s adventures and discoveries on the Beagle. Oxford Press. https://www.amazon.com

Where to Find the Information for an APA Book Reference

It’s all fine and dandy to know what information to include, but it’s just as important to know where to find the information for your book citation. Thankfully, most of the information is easy to locate on the first few pages of the book. In these first few pages, you can quickly find your author, title, publisher, and year of publication, along with the editors and volumes.

APA Book Reference Examples

APA book reference examples offer you a great peek into APA citation methods. And if you need an easy citation tool, you can use the citation generator .

Citing a Reference Book in APA

Listing Multiple Works by the Same Author in APA References

How do you reference a book in APA?

To create a reference citation for a book in APA, you need the author, date, title, and publisher. Some books will require additional elements like editions and volumes but these are the basic components. An example of a basic book citation includes: Gareven, J. R. (2015). Investigating the stars. New York Publishing.

How do you reference a book in APA 6th edition?

When citing a book in the 6th edition of APA format, you include the location of the publisher in the citation. An example of an APA 6 book citation looks like: Author, A. (Year). Title of the book. Location. Publisher.

What does APA format look like?

The look of APA format style is unique to the American Psychological Association and includes several guidelines. However, the basic guidelines for APA style include 1-inch margins all around, running headers, running date, paragraph indents, and double spacing throughout. The citations are unique to each different source but include author, date, title, and source location.

How do you cite a reference from a book?

A book citation on your references page in APA includes the author, date, title, and publisher. Author's Surname, First Initial. (Publication Year). Title of the work in sentence case. Publisher of the book.

How do you reference a textbook?

When it comes to creating a reference citation for a textbook, you're typically dealing with multi-volume books. Therefore, you would need to include the volumes of the book as well. This would follow the format: Editor Surname, A. A. (Ed.). (Year of Publication). Title of volumes (Vols. x-x). Publisher.

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Footnotes in APA With Format Tips and Examples

Apa 7th edition: key changes explained, using apa figures correctly, researching and writing an apa psychology paper.

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Citation Styles: APA, MLA: CSE 8th Edition

• Getting Started
• APA 7th Edition
• MLA 9th Edition
• CSE 8th Edition

CSE Citations

• In-text Citations
• End References
• Journal Articles
• Dissertations & Theses
• Part of Edited Book
• Technical Report
• Conference Proceedings

Basic Format:

CSE has three different in-text citation systems:

• Superscripted numbers that increase based on order citations are added to text.
• First reference will be numbered "1", new reference will be "2", etc.
• Uses parentheses that include author's last name followed by the year of publication (Smith 2021).
• 2 authors  (Smith and Johnson 2021), 3 or More Authors  (Smith et al. 2021).
• ​​​​​​​Least used of CSE in-text citation options.
• Alphabetize the end references list by author's last name and number sequentially.
• In-text citations indicated through superscripted numbers corresponding to alphabetized list.

Complete citations/references are provided in your End References, Cited References, or References page (depending on your professor's preference).

• Alphabetical by last name (name-year), numbered sequentially based on appearance in text  (citation-sequence), or  alphabetical by last name and then numbered sequentially (citation-name).
• Name-year reference page:

• Citation-sequence reference page:

Basic Elements of Name-Year:

• Author(s).  Provided in order which appear in publication. List  name and initials with no punctuation as Author AA, Author BB, Author CC, separated by a comma.
• Year.  Year which article was published.
• Article title.  Capitalize first word of title, all other words lower-case.
• Journal name.  Abbreviate significant words in title; omit articles, conjunctions, and prepositions; period placed at end of entire title, not after each abbreviation.
• Volume(Issue Number):  Separate multiple volume and issue numbers by hyphen (ex: 13-15(1A-2C))

Articles in PDF format, based on a print source, can be cited like a print journal.

From Washington State University

Basic Elements of Citation-Sequence and Citation-Name:

• Author(s).  Provided in order which appear in publication. List  name and initials with no punctuation as Author AA, Author BB, Author CC, separated by a comma.
• Article title.  Capitalize first word of title, all other words lower-case.
• Journal title.  Abbreviate significant words in title; omit articles, conjunctions, and prepositions; period placed at end of entire title, not after each abbreviation.
• Publication date;  For multiple years, put first year and last year separated by hyphen; include month and day if not issue number.
• Volume(Issue number):  Separate multiple volume and issue numbers by hyphen (ex: 13-15(1A-2C))

If found online or in a database add:

• [medium designator]  after the title of the journal (ex: [internet]).
• [date updated; date cited] after the date of publication.
• Available from: URL;doi  at the end of the citation.

From National Library of Medicine

• Author(s).  Last name and initials as Author AA, Author BB, Author CC with no punctuation, comma separating multiple authors. 
• Date.  Year of publication.
• Title of dissertation/thesis  First word capitalized, all other words lower-case.
• [content designator].
• Place of publication;
• Notes.  Can be used to provide grant information or indicate where to find document.
• [content designator].  Can be maser's thesis, PhD dissertation, etc.
• Place of publication:  City (State initials) where university located.
• publisher;  Usually the university the dissertation/thesis was conducted at.
• Extent.  Includes page length.

Basic Elements of Name-Year:

• Year.  Year of publication.
• Book title.  First word capitalized, all other words lower-case.
• Edition.  Use numerical edition, do not spell out number (ex. 2nd ed.).
• Place of Publication: City(State Initials) ;if place of publication is universally known like New York City, London, etc., no need to put state initials; put [place unknown] if no place of publication.

Optional Elements at the very end of the citation:

• Extent.  Usually includes page number (ex. 550 p.).
• Notes.  Can include ISB or other identifying numbers.

Basic Elements of Citation-Sequence and Citation-Name:

• Title.  First word capitalized, all other words lower-case.
• Place of Publication:  City(State Initials) ;if place of publication is universally known like New York City, London, etc., no need to put state initials; put [place unknown] if no place of publication.
• Notes.  Can include ISBN or other identifying numbers.

From Washington State Library

• Contributing author(s).  Last name and initials as Author AA, Author BB, etc. of authors who wrote contributing work.
• Chapter title.  Title of chapter contributed to edited work; only first word capitalized.
• In: Book editor(s), editors.  Last name and initials as Author AA, Author BB. etc of authors who edited work with the word editors after the names.
• Date.  Year when book published.
• Book title.  Title of complete work chapter is included in; only first word capitalized.
• Edition . Numerical edition (ex. 2nd ed.), do not spell out the edition number.
• Place of publication: City(State Initials); if place of publication is well know, no need to add the state initials after.
• Publisher. 
• Page Range.  Pages spanning chapter length.

From Northwest Missouri State University

• Contributing author(s).  Last name and initials as Author AA, Author BB, etc. of authors who wrote contributing work.
• Book Title.  Title of complete work chapter is included in; only first word capitalized.
• Edition.  Numerical edition (ex. 2nd ed.), do not spell out the edition number.
• Place of Publication:  City(State Initials); if place of publication is well know, no need to add the state initials after.
• Author(s).   Last name and initials as Author AA, Author BB, Author CC with no punctuation, comma separating multiple authors. If organization appears as author, list organization as author.
• Date of Publication.  Year of publication.
• Title of webpage.    First word capitalized, all other words lower-case.
• Place of Publication:  City and state which website was created or organization resides.
• Title of website;  First word capitalized, all other words lower-case.
• [Most recent revision date;
• Access date].
• URL or DOI.

If no authors are available, continue on with the citation starting with the next element.

From Helena College, University of Montana

• Author(s).  Last name and initials as Author AA, Author BB, Author CC with no punctuation, comma separating multiple authors. If organization appears as author, list organization as author.
• Title of webpage.  First word capitalized, all other words lower-case.
• Place of Publication:    City and state which website was created or organization resides.
• Date of publication  Year of publication.
• [date updated;
• date accessed].
• Title of report.  First word capitalized, all other words lower-case.
• Place of publication:
• Report number:
• date.  Year of publication.
• Editor(s).  Last name and initials as Editor AA, Editor BB with no punctuation, comma separating multiple authors, word "Editors" after last name.
• Title of Proceedings.  First word capitalized, all other words lower-case.
• Number and name of conference;
• date of conference; 
• place of conference.

Basic Elements of Citation-Sequence and Citation-Year:

• Title of proceedings.  First word capitalized, all other words lower-case.
• date of conference;

Helpful Resources

• CSE 8th Edition Handout Madonna Writing Center handout on formatting CSE papers.
• CSE Name-Year Reference Examples Madonna Writing Center handout with examples for citing references in CSE 8th edition Name-Year format.
• Scientific Style and Format Quick Citation Guide CSE guide to formatting different types of references.
• << Previous: MLA 9th Edition
• Next: Need Help? >>
• Last Updated: Sep 12, 2023 10:51 AM
• URL: https://library.madonna.edu/citationguide

Home / Guides / Citation Guides / APA Format / APA Reference Page

How to Format an APA Reference Page

In APA, the “Works Cited” page is referred to as a “Reference List” or “Reference Page.” “Bibliography” also may be used interchangeably, even though there are some differences between the two.

If you are at the point in your article or research paper where you are looking up APA bibliography format, then congratulations! That means you’re almost done.

In this guide, you will learn how to successfully finish a paper by creating a properly formatted APA bibliography. More specifically, you will learn how to create a reference page . The guidelines presented here come from the 7 th edition of the APA’s Publication Manual .

A note on APA reference page style: In this guide, “bibliography” and “references” may be used interchangeably, even though there are some differences between the two. The most important thing is to use the label “References” when writing your paper since APA style recommends including a reference page.

Here’s a run-through of everything this page includes:

Difference between an APA bibliography and a reference page

What about annotated bibliographies, understanding apa reference page format, apa reference page formatting: alphabetizing by surname, q: what should not be on an apa reference page.

The difference between a bibliography and a reference page is a matter of scope. A bibliography usually includes all materials and sources that were used to write the paper. A reference page, on the other hand, only includes entries for works that were specifically cited in the text of the paper.

There are some cases in which a professor or journal might request an annotated bibliography . An annotated bibliography is basically a reference page that includes your comments and insights on each source.

An annotated bibliography can be a document all on its own, or part of a bigger document. That means creating an annotated bibliography by itself could be an assignment, or you may have to include one as part of your research paper, journal submission, or other project.

If you do need to add an APA annotated bibliography , it goes after the reference page on its own page, inside the appendices.

A properly formatted APA reference page begins on a new page, after the end of the text. It comes before any figures, tables, maps, or appendices. It’s double-spaced and features what’s called a hanging indent , where the first line of each reference is not indented, and the second line of each reference is indented 0.5 inches. The reference page is also labeled with a bold, center-justified, and capitalized “References.”

To summarize, the reference page should be:

• Placed on its own page, after the text but before any tables, figures, or appendices.
• In the same font as the rest of the paper.
• Double-spaced the whole way through (including individual references).
• Formatted with hanging indents (each line after the first line of every entry indented 0.5 inches).
• Labeled with a bold, center-justified, and capitalized “References.”

Note: You can use the paragraph function of your word processing program to apply the hanging indent.

Q: What font am I supposed to use for the reference page or bibliography?

The APA reference page/bibliography should be in the same font as the rest of your paper. However, APA Style does not actually call for one specific font. According to Section 2.19 of the Publication Manual , the main requirement is to choose a font that is readable and accessible to all users. Some of the recommended font options for APA style include:

• Sans serif fonts: Calibri (11pt), Arial (11pt), or Lucida (10pt).
• Serif fonts: Times New Roman (12pt), Georgia (11pt), or Normal/Computer Modern (10pt).

Q: What are the margins supposed to be for the reference page or bibliography?

Aside from the 0.5 inch hanging indent on the second line of each reference entry, you do not need to modify the margins of the reference page or bibliography. These should be the same as the rest of your paper, which according to APA is 1-inch margins on all sides of the page. This is the default margin setting for most computer word processors, so you probably won’t have to change anything.

Q: What information goes into an APA style reference page or bibliography?

An APA style reference page should include full citations for all the sources that were cited in your paper. This includes sources that were summarized, paraphrased, and directly quoted. Essentially, if you included an in-text citation in your paper, that source should also appear in your reference list. The reference list is organized in alphabetical order by author.

The formatting for reference list citations varies depending on the kind of source and the available information. But for most sources, your reference list entry will include the following:

• The last name(s) and initials of the author(s).
• The date the source was published (shown in parentheses).
• The title of the source in sentence case. The title should be in italics if the source stands on its own (like a book, webpage, or movie).
• The name of the periodical, database, or website if the source is an article from a magazine, journal, newspaper, etc. Names of periodicals are usually italicized; names of databases and websites usually are not.
• The publisher of the source and/or the URL where the source can be found.

Here are a few templates and examples for how common sources should be formatted in an APA style reference list. If your source is not found here, there is also a guide highlighting different APA citation examples .

Citing a Book

Author’s last name, Author’s first initial. Author’s middle initial. (Year of publication). Title of work . Publisher.

James, Henry. (2009). The ambassadors . Serenity Publishers.

Citing a Journal

Author’s last name, Author’s first initial. Author’s middle initial. (Year, Month Date published). Article title. Journal Name , Volume(Issue), page number(s). https://doi.org/ or URL (if available)

Jacoby, W. G. (1994). Public attitudes toward government spending. American Journal of Political Science , 38(2), 336-361. https://doi.org/10.2307/2111407

Citing a Website

Author’s last name, Author’s first initial. Author’s middle initial. (Year, Month Date published). Article title or page title . Site Name. URL

Limer, E. (2013, October 1). Heck yes! The first free wireless plan is finally here . Gizmodo. https://gizmodo.com/heck-yes-the-first-free-wireless-plan-is-finally-here

Next, let’s take a look at a real example of a properly formatted APA reference page to see how these pieces come together.

APA reference page example

Creating an APA reference page is actually a lot easier than creating a bibliography with other style guides. In fact, as long as you are aware of the formatting rules, the reference page practically writes itself as you go.

Below is an example reference page that follows the guidelines detailed above. EasyBib also has a guide featuring a complete APA style sample paper , including the reference page.

All APA citations included in the reference page should be ordered alphabetically, using the first word of the reference entry. In most cases, this is the author’s surname (or the surname of the author listed first, when dealing with citations for sources with multiple authors ). However, there are times when a reference entry might begin with a different element.

Creating an alphabetized reference page or bibliography might seem like a simple task. But when you start dealing with multiple authors and similar last names, it can actually get a little tricky. Fortunately, there are a few basic rules that can keep you on track.

The “nothing precedes something” rule

When the surnames of two or more authors begin with the same letters, the “nothing precedes something” rule is how to figure it out. Here is an example of how it works.

Imagine your reference page includes the authors Berg, M.S. and Bergman, H.D. The first four letters of each author are the same. The fifth letters are M and H respectively. Since H comes before M in the alphabet, you might assume that Bergman, H.D. should be listed first.

APA Style requires that “nothing precede something,” which means that Berg will appear before Bergman. Similarly, a James would automatically appear before a Jameson, and a Michaels before a Michaelson.

Disregard spaces and punctuation marks

If a surname has a hyphen, apostrophe, or other punctuation mark, it can be ignored for alphabetization purposes. Similarly, anything that appears inside of parentheses or brackets should be disregarded.

Ordering multiple works by the same author

It is not uncommon for a research paper to reference multiple books by the same author. If you have more than one reference entry by the same person, then the entries should be listed chronologically by year of publication.

If a reference entry has no year of publication available, then it should precede any entries that do have a date. Here’s an example of a properly alphabetized order for multiple entries from the same author:

Guzman, M.B. (n.d.).

Guzman, M.B. (2016).

Guzman, M.B. (2017).

Guzman, M.B. (2019).

Guzman, M.B. (in press).

“In press” papers do not yet have a year of publication associated with them. All “in press” sources are listed last, like the one shown above.

Ordering works with the same author and same date

If the same author has multiple entries with the same year of publication, you need to differentiate them with lowercase letters. Otherwise, the in-text citations in your paper will correspond to more than one reference page entry.

Same author and same year of publication

Here’s a look at how to use lowercase letters to differentiate between entries with the same author and same year of publication:

Guzman, M.B. (2020a).

Guzman, M.B. (2020b).

Guzman, M.B. (2020c).

These lowercase letters are assigned to make the in-text citations more specific. However, it does not change the fact that their year of publication is the same. If no month or day is available for any of the sources, then they should be ordered alphabetically using the title of the work.

When alphabetizing by title, ignore the words “A,” “An,”,and “The” if they’re the first word of the title.

Same author and same year of publication, with more specific dates

If more specific dates are provided, such as a month or day, then it becomes possible to order these entries chronologically.

Guzman, M.B. (2020b, April 2).

Guzman, M.B. (2020c, October 15).

Ordering authors with the same surname but different initials

Authors who share the same surname but have different first or middle names can be alphabetized by their first initial or second initial.

Guzman, R.L. (2015).

Ordering works with no listed author, or an anonymous author

If you have reference entries with no listed author, the first thing to double-check is whether or not there was a group author instead. Group authors can be businesses, task forces, nonprofit organizations, government agencies, etc.

If there is no individual author listed, then have another look at the source. If it is published on a government agency website, for instance, there is a good chance that the agency was the author of the work, and should be listed as such in the reference entry. You can read more about how to handle group authors in Section 9.11 of the Publication Manual .

What if the work is actually authored by “Anonymous”?

If the work you’re referencing actually has the word “Anonymous” listed as the author, then you can list it as the author and alphabetize it as if it were a real name. But this is only if the work is actually signed “Anonymous.”

What if there is no listed author and it’s definitely not a group author?

If you have confirmed that there is no individual or group author for the work, then you can use the work’s title as the author element in the reference entry. In any case where you’re using the work’s title to alphabetize, you should skip the words “A,” “An,” and “The.”

An APA reference page should not contain any of the following:

• The content of your paper (the reference page should start on its own page after the end of your paper).
• Entries for works for further reading or background information or entries for an epigraph from a famous person (the reference page should only include works that are referenced or quoted in your paper as part of your argument).
• Entries for personal communications such as emails, phone calls, text messages, etc. (since the reader would not be able to access them).
• Entries for whole websites, periodicals, etc. (If needed, the names of these can be mentioned within the body of your paper instead.)
• Entries for quotations from research participants (since they are part of your original research, they do not need to be included).

Published October 28, 2020.

APA Formatting Guide

APA Formatting

• Annotated Bibliography
• Block Quotes
• et al Usage
• In-text Citations
• Multiple Authors
• Paraphrasing
• Page Numbers
• Parenthetical Citations
• Reference Page
• Sample Paper
• APA 7 Updates
• View APA Guide

Citation Examples

• Book Chapter
• Journal Article
• Magazine Article
• Newspaper Article
• Website (no author)
• View all APA Examples

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The following rules will help you identify when to use DOIs and when to use URLs in references:

• Use a DOI wherever available, be it a print version or online version.
• For a print publication that does not have a DOI, do not add a DOI or URL (even if a URL is available).
• For an online publication, if both a DOI and URL are given, include only the DOI.
• For online publications that only have a URL (and no DOI), follow the below recommendations:
• Add a URL in the reference list entry for publications from websites (other than databases). Double check that the URL will work for readers.
• For publications from most academic research databases, which are easily accessible, do not include a URL or database information in the reference. In this case, the reference will be the same as the print version.
• For publications from databases that publish limited/proprietary work that would only be available in that database, include the database name and the URL. If the URL would require a login, include the URL for the database home page or login page instead of the URL for the work.
• If a URL will not work for the reader or is no longer accessible, follow the guidance for citing works with no source.

To format your APA references list, follow these recommendations:

• Begin the references on a new page. This page should be placed at the end of the paper.
• All sides of the paper should have a 1-inch margin.
• Set the heading as “References” in bold text and center it.
• Arrange the reference entries alphabetically according to the first item within the entries (usually the author surname or title).
•  Add a hanging indent of 0.5 inches (i.e., indent any line after the first line of a reference list entry).

See above for a visual example of a reference page and additional examples.

Special Cases

Multiple entries with the same author(s) are arranged by publication year. Entries with no dates first, then in chronological order. If the year published is also the same, a letter is added to the year and the entries are arranged alphabetically (after arrangement by year).

• Robin, M. T. (n.d.)
• Robin, M. T. (1987)
• Robin, M. T. (1989a)
• Robin, M. T. (1989b)

Single-author source and multi-author source that share one author. One-author entries are listed first even if the multi-author entries were published earlier.

• Dave, S. P., Jr. (2006)
• Dave, S. P., Jr., & Glyn, T. L. (2005)

For references with multiple authors that have the same first author but different subsequent authors, alphabetize the entries by the last name of the second author (or third if the first two authors are the same).

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• Setting Up the APA Reference Page | Formatting & References (Examples)

Setting Up the APA Reference Page | Formatting & References (Examples)

Published on November 4, 2020 by Raimo Streefkerk . Revised on August 23, 2022.

On the APA reference page, you list all the sources that you’ve cited in your paper. The list starts on a new page right after the body text.

Follow these instructions to set up your APA reference page:

• Place the section label “References” in bold at the top of the page (centered).
• Order the references alphabetically .
• Double-space all text.
• Apply a hanging indent of 0.5 inches.

Generate accurate APA citations with Scribbr

Table of contents, setting up the apa reference page, apa alphabetization guidelines, which sources to include on the reference page, annotated bibliography, creating apa references.

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References are ordered alphabetically by the first author’s last name. If the author is unknown, order the reference entry by the first meaningful word of the title (ignoring articles: “the”, “a”, or “an”).

Word processors like Word or Google Docs and citation generators can usually order the reference list automatically. However, ordering becomes challenging when citing multiple works by the same author or works by authors with the same last name.

Our in-depth article on ordering references in APA Style explains what to do in these situations.

Only include references for sources cited in the body text (with an APA in-text citation ). Don’t include references for:

• Sources that you only consulted;
• Personal communications (e.g., emails or phone calls);
• General mentions of websites or periodicals ;
• Common knowledge .

For some student papers, it’s common to describe or evaluate the source in an annotation . These annotations are placed on a new line below the corresponding reference entry. The entire annotation is indented 0.5 inches.

If an annotation consists of multiple paragraphs, the first line of the second and any subsequent paragraphs is indented an additional 0.5 inches.

The format of an APA reference differs depending on the source type. Play around with the options in the Scribbr Example Generator to get familiar with APA Style.

Scribbr Citation Generator

With Scribbr’s free APA citation generator you can easily cite your sources according to the new 7th edition guidelines. It’s accurate, fast, and easy to use. Give it a try!

APA Citation Generator

APA citation examples

Check out Scribbr’s citation examples to learn more about citing each type of source, ranging from books and journals to podcasts and tweets !

Periodicals

• Journal article
• Newspaper article

Reports and gray literature

• Press release
• Dissertation or thesis
• Conference paper

Books and reference works

• Dictionary entry
• Encyclopedia entry

Audiovisual works

• Movie or documentary
• YouTube video

Online media

• Personal communication
• Tables and figures

Cite this Scribbr article

If you want to cite this source, you can copy and paste the citation or click the “Cite this Scribbr article” button to automatically add the citation to our free Citation Generator.

Streefkerk, R. (2022, August 23). Setting Up the APA Reference Page | Formatting & References (Examples). Scribbr. Retrieved December 8, 2023, from https://www.scribbr.com/apa-style/apa-reference-page/

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Citing Information: Sample References Page

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Sample Reference Page

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APA: Sample References Page

APA style dictates that the references page should be double-spaced, and that entries should be formatted with a hanging indent. A hanging indent is formatted so that the first line of each entry is at the left margin and subsequent lines in the same entry should be indented.

For titles starting with articles ("a" and "the"; and equivalents in other languages), the article is not considered when alphabetizing. Numerals and numbers are alphabetized as though they are spelled out.

What to include

In APA style, every reference cited in your text must be reflected in an entry on your references page. The only exceptions to this rule are personal communications with the author such as e-mails, conversations, and letters which need only be cited in text. Likewise, every item on the references page must correspond to an in-text citation somewhere in your work. Do not include works that you do not cite in the body of your paper.

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• Next: In-Text Citations >>
• Last Updated: Aug 7, 2023 4:34 PM
• URL: https://guides.lib.unc.edu/citing-information

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