What is a citation?
A citation is a description of someone's work (books, articles, speeches, graphs, papers, picture, etc.) that includes, at minimum, the author or creator, title, publisher information, and date of publication or creation. Citations are a way to give credit to individuals for their creative and intellectual work that you used to support your research. Citations are also used by others to locate the sources referenced within your work.
Why should I cite my sources?
What style should I use?
Different academic disciplines use different citation styles. To choose the correct citation style, as your professor which style to use.
Jump to a Section
APA Citation Style
Before You Start
Formatting Examples
Chicago Citation Style
Before You Start
Formatting Examples
MLA Citation Style
Before You Start
Formatting Examples
About APA Style
APA is one of the most commonly used citation styles. Created by the American Psychology Association, this style is used in the social sciences. Majors that use APA citation style include Accounting, Behavioral Sciences, Business, Criminal Justice and Forensic Sciences, Economics, Education, Nursing, Psychology, Sociology, and Sports Management. Always check with your professor to determine which citation style you should use before beginning your paper or project.
Before You Start
Before you start creating your citations, you will need to identify:
Book
Author, A. A., Author, B. B., & Author, C. C. (Year). Title of Book. Publisher Name.
Journal Article
Author, A. A., Author, B. B., & Author, C. C. (Year). Title of article. Title of Periodical, volume number(issue number), pages. https://doi.org/xx.xxx/yyyy
Magazine
Author, A. A., Author, B. B., & Author, C. C. (Year). Title of article. Title of Periodical, volume number(issue number), pages. https://doi.org/xx.xxx/yyyy
Newspaper
Author, A. A., Author, B. B., & Author, C. C. (Year). Title of article. Title of Newspaper, section numbers. https://url
Website
Author, A. A., Author, B. B., & Author, C. C. (Date of Publication). Title of webpage. Title of Website Host. https://url
Learn more about the APA Citation Style by visiting
the Citing Sources guide's APA Style Page.
About Chicago Style
Chicago Style is most commonly used by those working in literature, history, and the arts. History majors most commonly use Chicago Style. Turabian is a simpler version of Chicago style meant for students who are writing materials that will not be published. The Turabian guide is shorter and includes information on formatting rules, the basics of researching and writing academic papers, and citation style. Always check with your professor to determine which citation style you should use before beginning your paper or project.
Before You Start
Before you start creating your citations, you will need to identify:
There are two styles in which to cite your sources: Notes Style and Author-Date Style. Always ask your instructor about which style to use before beginning your research.
Notes Style: In this style, you signal that you have used a source by placing a superscript number at the end of the sentence in which you used the source. You will then create a note where you will place the full citation. Notes are placed either at the bottom of the page (footnotes) or at the end of the chapter (endnotes). You will also list all sources used at the end of the paper in a Bibliography.
Author-Date Style: In this style, you signal that you have used a source by placing a parenthetical citation (including author, date, and page numbers) next to your reference and within the body of your paper. Example: (Lepore 2015, 17). You will also list all sources used at the end of the paper in a Bibliography.
Book for Footnote or Endnote
1. First name Last name, Title of Book (Place of publication: Publisher, Year of publication), page number.
Book for Corresponding Bibliographical Entry
Last name, First name. Title of Book. Place of publication: Publisher, Year of publication.
Academic Article for Footnote or Endnote
1. First name Last name, "Title of Article," Title of Journal volume number, (year): issue number, accessed date, URL permalink.
Academic Article for Corresponding Bibliographical Entry
Last name, First name, "Title of Article," Title of Journal volume number, (year): issue number, accessed date, URL permalink.
Online News Article for Footnote or Endnote
First name Last Name, "Title of Article," News Organization Title, Date Published, URL.
Online News Article for Corresponding Bibliographical Entry
Last name, First name, "Title of Article," News Organization Title, Date Published, URL.
Website for Footnote or Endnote
1. First name Last name, “Title of Web Page,” Name of Website, Publishing Organization, publication or revision date if available, access date if no other date is available, URL.
Website for for Corresponding Bibliographical Entry
Last name, First name. “Title of Web Page.” Name of Website. Publishing organization, publication or revision date if available. Access date if no other date is available. URL.
About MLA Style
MLA is one of the most commonly used citation styles. This style is used within the language arts, cultural studies, and other humanities disciplines. Majors that use MLA citation style include Communication, Digital Media, English, Music, Religion & Philosophy, and Theatre. Always check with your professor to determine which citation style you should use before beginning your paper or project.
Before You Start
Before you start creating your citations, you will need to identify:
Book
Last Name, First Name. Title of Book. City of Publication, Publisher, Publication Date.
Journal Article
Last Name, First Name. "Title of Article." Title of Scholarly Journal, vol. #, no. #, Year, pp. ##.
Magazines and Newspapers
Last Name, First Name. "Title of Article." Title of Periodical, Day Month Year, pages.
Website
Last Name, First Name. "Title of Webpage." Title of Website, Day Month Year of Publication, URL. Accessed Day Month Year.
Learn more about the MLA Citation Style by visiting
the Citing Sources guide's MLA Style Page.
| Citation Styles | Features | |
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Add unlimited citations and a bibliography directly to your paper. Improve sentence structure, punctuation, writing style, and grammar with 5 free suggestions. |
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Grammar checks for the first 5 errors. Saves your citations. Creates a full bibliography. |
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APA (6th edition) AMA (American Medical Association) Chicago (16th edition) / Turabian (8th edition) MLA (7th edition) |
Create citations from scratch or import from your computer. Switch between citation styles. Share and download reference lists. Chrome extension available. |
What is Zotero?
Zotero is a free, easy-to-use tool to help you collect, organize, cite, and share research. Zotero can be downloaded and is available for Mac, Windows, and Linux.
Collect with a click.
Zotero is the only software that automatically senses research on the web. Need an article from JSTOR or a preprint from arXiv.org? A news story from the New York Times or a book from a library? Zotero has you covered, everywhere.
Organize your way.
Zotero helps you organize your research any way you want. You can sort items into collections and tag them with keywords. Or create saved searches that automatically fill with relevant materials as you work.
Cite in style.
Zotero instantly creates references and bibliographies for any text editor, and directly inside Word, LibreOffice, and Google Docs. With support for over 9,000 citation styles, you can format your work to match any style guide or publication.
Stay in sync.
Zotero can optionally synchronize your data across devices, keeping your notes, files, and bibliographic records seamlessly up to date. If you decide to sync, you can also always access your research from any web browser.
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