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Chicago style citation

How the Chicago Manual of Style (18th edition, 2024) notes-and-bibliography system works: what goes in a footnote, when to shorten it, and how to lay out the bibliography.

How Chicago footnotes work

Instead of putting the source in brackets, Chicago places a small superscript number at the end of the sentence and gives the source at the foot of the page. Numbers run consecutively through the paper (1, 2, 3…), and each note ends with the page you used.

Kimmerer describes the reciprocity between people and plants as a form of gratitude that shapes land management practice.1

1. Robin Wall Kimmerer, Braiding Sweetgrass: Indigenous Wisdom, Scientific Knowledge, and the Teachings of Plants (Milkweed Editions, 2013), 45.

The first time you cite a source, the note gives everything in natural order — first name first — separated by commas, with publication facts in parentheses and the page you used at the end.

Chicago format rules

  • Notes: single-spaced, first line indented, a blank line between notes; full note the first time, short note after.
  • Bibliography: titled Bibliography, alphabetised by surname, single-spaced within entries with a blank line between them, 0.5-inch hanging indent.
  • Punctuation: full stops and commas go inside quotation marks (American style).
  • Many authors: in notes, give one to three names, and use et al. after the first name for four or more. In the bibliography, list up to ten; for eleven or more, list the first seven followed by et al.
  • Online sources: add a DOI or URL at the end; include an access date only if there is no publication or revision date.

Chicago examples by source type

SourceExample
a websiteWorld Health Organization. “Climate Change and Health.” World Health Organization, October 12, 2023. https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/climate-change-and-health.
a bookKahneman, Daniel. Thinking, Fast and Slow. Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 2011.
a journal articleWatson, James D., and Francis H. C. Crick. “Molecular Structure of Nucleic Acids: A Structure for Deoxyribose Nucleic Acid.” Nature 171, no. 4356 (April 25, 1953): 737–738. https://doi.org/10.1038/171737a0.
a YouTube videoKurzgesagt – In a Nutshell. “The Immune System Explained I – Bacteria Infection.” YouTube, July 1, 2014. Video, 6:47. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zQGOcOUBi6s.
ChatGPTOpenAI. ChatGPT. GPT-6. Response to “Explain the main causes of the French Revolution,” September 20, 2026. https://chatgpt.com.
a newspaper articleWoodward, Bob, and Carl Bernstein. “GOP Security Aide among Five Arrested in Bugging Affair.” The Washington Post, June 19, 1972.

Create your own with the Chicago citation generator — it gives the full note, short note and bibliography entry at once.

Chicago style questions

Where do Chicago footnote numbers go?

After the punctuation at the end of the clause or sentence, as a superscript: …as Kimmerer argues.¹ The exception is a dash, which the number goes before.

Do I need a bibliography if I use footnotes?

Chicago 18 says a bibliography is recommended for longer works but optional when your notes give full details. Most instructors want one — check your assignment.

How do I format Chicago footnotes in Word?

Use References › Insert Footnote so numbering updates automatically. Notes are single-spaced with a blank line between them, and the first line is indented.

What is the difference between Turabian and Chicago?

Turabian (A Manual for Writers) is Kate Turabian’s student version of Chicago. Citation formats are the same; Turabian adds guidance on student-paper layout such as title pages.