Free Citation Generator

Generate properly formatted citations in APA, MLA, Harvard, IEEE, Vancouver, and Chicago styles. Supports journal articles, books, websites, theses, and conference papers.

How to cite references in APA format

Citing references correctly is one of the most time-consuming parts of academic writing. Each citation style — APA, MLA, Harvard, IEEE, Vancouver, Chicago — has specific rules for formatting author names, dates, titles, and source information. Getting it wrong can cost you marks or trigger a desk rejection from journals.

APA format citations (7th edition) are the most widely used in social sciences, psychology, education, and nursing. The basic format for citing with APA is: Author, A. A. (Year). Title of work. Source. When citing in APA format, you need both an in-text citation and a full reference list entry.

Our citation generator handles all the formatting rules automatically. Enter your source details — author names, year, title, journal, DOI — and get a properly formatted citation in APA style, MLA style, Harvard referencing, IEEE, Vancouver, or Chicago. Both the full reference and in-text citation are generated instantly.

Supported citation styles

APA 7th Edition

Psychology, Education, Social Sciences, Nursing

American Psychological Association

MLA 9th Edition

Humanities, Literature, Languages, Cultural Studies

Modern Language Association

Harvard Referencing

Business, Economics, many UK and Australian universities

No single governing body

IEEE

Engineering, Computer Science, Electronics, IT

Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers

Vancouver

Medicine, Biomedical Sciences, Health Sciences

International Committee of Medical Journal Editors

Chicago/Turabian

History, Arts, some Social Sciences

University of Chicago Press

FAQ

Which citation style should I use?

Check your university or journal's guidelines. Most social science departments use APA, humanities use MLA or Chicago, engineering uses IEEE, and medical fields use Vancouver. When in doubt, ask your supervisor.

Is this free?

Yes, completely free. No account needed. Generate unlimited citations.

How do I format multiple authors?

Separate author names with commas: 'John Smith, Jane Doe, Bob Johnson'. The tool automatically formats them according to the rules of each style (e.g., '& ' for APA, 'and' for MLA, et al. for 3+ authors).

What if I don't have all the information?

Fill in what you have. The tool will format whatever information is available. For missing dates, it uses 'n.d.' (no date). The minimum required is usually title + at least one author or source.

Does it support DOI formatting?

Yes. Enter just the DOI number (e.g., 10.1000/xyz123) and the tool formats it correctly for each style — as a URL for APA, 'doi:' prefix for Harvard, etc.