APA 7 Citation Guide: In-Text Citations and References With Examples
APA 7 uses author-date citations. In the text, give the author surname and year, such as (Okafor, 2019); use "&" for two authors and "et al." from three. At the end, list every source alphabetically in a reference list with a hanging indent. This guide gives the in-text rules, twelve reference templates, title page and reference page formatting, and a common-mistakes table.
The short answer
APA 7 is the seventh edition of the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association (2020). It is an author-date system. Every source you use appears twice: briefly in the text as the author's surname and the year, and in full in an alphabetical reference list at the end. One author is cited as (Okafor, 2019), two as (Okafor & Reyes, 2019), and three or more as (Okafor et al., 2019). Everything else in this guide is detail about how to apply that pattern to different kinds of source.
APA is widely used in psychology, education, nursing, social sciences and business. Your department may change some details, so treat your course guide as the final word when it differs from what you read here. The examples below use invented authors and titles to show the pattern, so do not copy their names into your own work.
In-text citations
An in-text citation points the reader to the reference list. It has two forms.
- Parenthetical: the author and year are in brackets at the end of the idea. "Short breaks improve recall (Okafor, 2019)."
- Narrative: the author is part of your sentence and only the year is in brackets. "Okafor (2019) found that short breaks improve recall."
Author-date rules at a glance
| Situation | Parenthetical | Narrative |
|---|---|---|
| One author | (Okafor, 2019) | Okafor (2019) |
| Two authors | (Okafor & Reyes, 2019) | Okafor and Reyes (2019) |
| Three or more authors | (Okafor et al., 2019) | Okafor et al. (2019) |
| Group author with abbreviation | First use: (National Sleep Council [NSC], 2023). Later: (NSC, 2023) | First use: National Sleep Council (NSC, 2023). Later: NSC (2023) |
| No date | (Okafor, n.d.) | Okafor (n.d.) |
| Direct quotation | (Okafor, 2019, p. 14) | Okafor (2019) wrote that "…" (p. 14) |
| Page range | (Okafor, 2019, pp. 14–15) | Okafor (2019, pp. 14–15) |
| Secondary source | (Okafor, 2010, as cited in Reyes, 2019) | Okafor (2010, as cited in Reyes, 2019) |
| Several works | (Okafor, 2019; Reyes, 2021) | Okafor (2019) and Reyes (2021) |
Notes on the rules:
- Use "et al." from the first citation when a source has three or more authors. APA 7 dropped the older rule of listing up to five authors the first time. In the reference list, however, list the authors in full (up to 20).
- "&" inside brackets, "and" in the sentence. Parenthetical citations use the ampersand. Narrative citations use the word "and".
- Quotations need a page number. For short quotations (under 40 words) put the quotation marks in your sentence. For 40 words or more, use a block quotation: start it on a new line, indent the whole block 0.5 inch, omit the quotation marks, and put the citation after the final punctuation.
- Paraphrases do not strictly need a page number, but a page or section can help the reader find the idea. Ask your instructor if they expect it.
- No page numbers (a web page, for example): give a heading or paragraph number, such as (Reyes, 2021, Conclusion section) or (Reyes, 2021, para. 4).
- Two sources with the same author and year: add letters in the reference list (2019a, 2019b), ordered by title, and use the same letters in the text.
- Several works in one bracket are listed in alphabetical order of the first author, separated by semicolons.
- Secondary sources: cite the work you actually read. Name the original in the sentence and give "as cited in" with the work you read. Only the work you read goes in the reference list.
Look at in-text citations for a source-independent explanation, and at et al. and ibid. meaning for the abbreviations. APA does not use footnotes for citations; see footnotes vs endnotes for what they are for.
The reference list
The reference list starts on a new page after the body of the paper. The heading is References, in bold and centred. Entries follow these rules.
- Alphabetical order by the first author's surname, or by the title if there is no author. Ignore "A" and "The" at the start of a title when you alphabetise.
- Hanging indent: the first line is at the margin and later lines are indented 0.5 inch.
- Double-spaced throughout, with no extra space between entries.
- Author names: surname, then initials. For up to 20 authors, list them all, with an ampersand before the last. For 21 or more, list the first 19, then an ellipsis (…) and the final author.
- Titles: sentence case. Capitalise only the first word, the first word after a colon, and proper nouns. Italicise the title of a standalone work (book, report, webpage, video) and the journal name and volume number for articles.
- DOIs and URLs: give a DOI as a link in the form https://doi.org/…, with no "DOI:" label. Use a plain URL if there is no DOI. Do not write "Retrieved from" unless the page is designed to change over time and has no archived version; then add "Retrieved Month Day, Year, from URL".
- Publisher location is not given in APA 7.
For the difference between a reference list and a bibliography, see bibliography vs reference list. Every in-text citation needs a matching entry, and every entry must be cited somewhere in the text (personal communications, such as emails, are cited in the text only).
Twelve reference templates
The examples below use invented authors, titles, addresses and DOIs, and the DOI shown is a pattern, not a real article. Replace every detail with your own source.
| # | Source | Template and example |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Book | Author, A. A. (Year). Title of book in sentence case (edition if not first). Publisher. Okafor, N. (2019). Learning at scale (2nd ed.). Harbor Press. |
| 2 | Chapter in an edited book | Author, A. A. (Year). Title of chapter. In E. E. Editor (Ed.), Title of book (pp. xx–xx). Publisher. Lindqvist, E., & Reyes, M. (2021). Memory and sleep. In J. Park (Ed.), Handbook of student wellbeing (pp. 45–67). Meridian Press. |
| 3 | Journal article with DOI | Author, A. A., & Author, B. B. (Year). Title of article. Journal Name, volume(issue), pages. https://doi.org/… Haddad, S., & Cole, T. (2022). Spaced practice in first-year courses. Journal of Study Skills, 14(2), 101–118. https://doi.org/10.1234/jss.2022.14.2 |
| 4 | Journal article without DOI | Same as above, ending after the page range, or with the URL if the article is only available online. Cole, T. (2018). Note-taking and exam performance. Journal of Study Skills, 10(1), 22–35. |
| 5 | Webpage with author and date | Author, A. A. (Year, Month Day). Title of page. Site Name. URL Reyes, M. (2021, May 12). How to plan a revision timetable. Study Skills Hub. https://www.example.org/revision |
| 6 | Webpage with no named author | Group name. (Year, Month Day). Title of page. URL (omit the site name when it is the same as the author) National Sleep Council. (2023, March 4). Sleep and study. https://www.example.org/sleep-study |
| 7 | Report by a group author | Group name. (Year). Title of report (Report No. xx). Publisher if different. URL City Education Board. (2020). Attendance in secondary schools (Report No. 12). https://www.example.org/attendance |
| 8 | Newspaper article | Author, A. A. (Year, Month Day). Title of article. Newspaper Name. URL Park, J. (2022, September 8). Schools trial later start times. The Evening Courier. https://www.example.com/later-start |
| 9 | Video | Creator, A. A. (Year, Month Day). Title of video [Video]. Platform. URL Lindqvist, E. (2021, March 14). How memory works [Video]. YouTube. https://www.example.com/video/memory |
| 10 | Podcast episode | Host, A. A. (Host). (Year, Month Day). Title of episode (No. xx) [Audio podcast episode]. In Podcast Name. Producer. URL Park, J. (Host). (2023, January 20). Why we forget (No. 31) [Audio podcast episode]. In The Study Hour. Meridian Audio. https://www.example.com/podcast/31 |
| 11 | Dissertation or thesis | Author, A. A. (Year). Title of dissertation [Doctoral dissertation, University Name]. Database or Repository. URL Haddad, S. (2020). Retrieval practice in secondary schools [Doctoral dissertation, Northfield University]. Northfield Repository. https://www.example.edu/theses/haddad |
| 12 | AI tool | Developer. (Year). Name of tool (Version or date) [Large language model]. URL Example Labs. (2026). Example Assistant (Nov 1 version) [Large language model]. https://www.example.com/assistant |
Notes on tricky entries
- Webpages (5 and 6): if there is no date, write (n.d.). If the page changes over time and has no archive, add the retrieval date. See how to cite a website for more cases.
- Reprints and translations: include the original year after the publisher, as in "(Original work published 1990)", and cite as (Author, 1990/2019).
- Edited books as a whole: use "(Ed.)" or "(Eds.)" after the editors' names.
- AI tools (12): APA's published guidance treats the developer as the author and the tool as the title, and it advises that the text a tool generates is not a retrievable source. If you quote or paraphrase generated text, describe in your text what you asked and when, and consider putting the full prompt and response in an appendix. Check APA's current guidance and your instructor's policy, because this area has changed quickly. See how to cite ChatGPT for a worked example.
Formatting the paper
APA 7 covers the whole document, not only citations. These are the elements most often marked.
Title page
Student papers usually need a title page with the following lines, centred in the upper half of the page, in this order.
- Paper title in bold, in title case, with a blank line above and below.
- Author name.
- Department and university.
- Course number and name.
- Instructor name.
- Assignment due date.
The page number sits in the top right corner on every page, starting at 1 on the title page. APA 7 does not require a running head for student papers; professional papers do, and your instructor may ask for one.
General layout
- Margins: 1 inch on all sides.
- Line spacing: double throughout, including block quotations and the reference list.
- Font: a readable, consistent font. APA 7 accepts, for example, 11-point Calibri, 11-point Arial, 12-point Times New Roman and 11-point Georgia. Follow your instructor if they set one.
- Paragraphs: indent the first line 0.5 inch; do not add extra space between paragraphs.
- Headings: up to five levels. Level 1 is centred, bold, in title case. Level 2 is flush left, bold, title case. Level 3 is flush left, bold italic, title case. Use only as many levels as the paper needs.
- Numbers: use numerals for 10 and above and words for zero through nine, with several exceptions such as measurements and statistics.
- Abstract: student papers do not always need one. If asked, start it on a new page with the heading Abstract, a single paragraph with no indent, typically up to 250 words.
Common mistakes
| Mistake | Correction |
|---|---|
| Writing "et al." for two authors | Use both names joined by "&" or "and" |
| Writing all authors in the text for a 3+ author source | Use the first author and "et al." from the first citation |
| Capitalising every word of an article title in the reference list | Use sentence case for article, chapter and book titles |
| Italicising the article title instead of the journal name | Italicise the journal name and the volume, not the article title |
| Adding "Retrieved from" before every URL | Leave it out unless the content is designed to change and is not archived |
| Putting the DOI as "doi:10.1234/jss.2022" | Use the full https://doi.org/… form |
| Missing hanging indent or single spacing in the reference list | Apply a 0.5-inch hanging indent and double spacing to every entry |
| Citing a source in the text but leaving it out of the list (or the reverse) | Cross-check both directions before submitting |
| Listing sources by date or type | Alphabetise one single list by author surname |
| Using "p." for a page range | Use "pp." for ranges, "p." for a single page |
| Mixing two styles, such as MLA brackets with APA lists | Choose one style throughout; compare with Harvard referencing if your course is unclear |
Using the Citation Generator for APA 7
The Citation Generator builds references in APA 7, MLA 9, Chicago, Harvard and IEEE from the details you type in a form, and it runs in your browser. For APA 7 it lists up to 20 authors with an ampersand before the last, shortens a longer list to the first 19, an ellipsis and the final author, uses "et al." in text from three authors, and shows a retrieval date only when a web page is undated. It uses English abbreviations such as et al., pp. and n.d.
Treat the output as a first draft. Generators depend on what you enter, so a wrong year or a missing author gives a wrong entry. Compare each entry with your course guide or the Publication Manual before you submit, especially for unusual sources such as legal documents or AI tools, where practice varies. After pasting the references into your paper, apply the hanging indent and double spacing in your word processor.
Two other tools help around citations. The Plagiarism Checker compares your text with open sources and reports overlap as a score; it is a prompt to review your citations, not proof of anything. The Grammar Checker proofreads your paragraphs. Neither can tell whether a citation is complete or correct.
A quick pre-submission checklist
- Each in-text citation has a matching reference entry, and vice versa.
- Authors, years and titles match the source, not a secondary summary.
- Titles are in sentence case and the right elements are italicised.
- DOIs are in the https://doi.org/ form.
- The reference list is alphabetical, double-spaced and has a hanging indent.
- Quotations carry page numbers; long ones are in block form.
- The title page, margins, font and headings match your instructor's instructions.
- Paraphrased passages still have citations. If you are unsure how to paraphrase, read how to avoid plagiarism.
If you are writing a full paper, how to write an essay covers the process from prompt to proofread.
Try the tools
Frequently asked questions
When do I use "et al." in APA 7?
Use "et al." in the text whenever a source has three or more authors, starting from the first citation, as in (Okafor et al., 2019). Two authors are always both named. In the reference list, write out the authors in full, up to 20, and abbreviate only longer lists.
Do I need a DOI in every APA reference?
No. Include the DOI as an https://doi.org/ link when the source has one. If there is no DOI, give a URL for online sources, or nothing for print works. Do not add "Retrieved from" unless the page is designed to change and has no archived version.
How do I cite a source with no author or no date in APA 7?
For no author, move the title to the author position and use a shortened title in the text. If an organisation published it, that organisation is the author. For no date, write (n.d.) in both the text and the reference. Check your instructor if the source is anonymous.
Is the Citation Generator accurate enough to submit without checking?
It follows APA 7 rules for authors, dates and titles from the details you enter, but it cannot know if your input is wrong or if your department has local rules. Always compare the result with your course guide or the Publication Manual before you hand in the paper.
Related guides
- How to Cite a Website in APA, MLA and Chicago (Even With No Author or Date) — To cite a website, collect the author, the date, the title of the page, the name of the site and the URL, then arrange t…
- Et al., Ibid., Op. Cit.: Citation Abbreviations Explained — Et al. means "and others" and replaces the names of additional authors. APA 7 uses it from three authors on; MLA 9 does …
- Bibliography vs Reference List vs Works Cited — These are the end-of-paper source lists of different citation styles. APA and Harvard use a reference list, MLA uses a W…
- Harvard Referencing: In-Text Citations and Reference List Examples — Harvard is an author-date system: a short citation such as (Okafor, 2023) in the text, and a full entry in an alphabetic…
- How to Avoid Plagiarism: 7 Habits That Work — You avoid plagiarism by always showing where words and ideas came from. Keep a source tag on every note, put exact words…