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APA Style Quick Reference Guide

APA 7th Edition formatting at a glance

Color-Coded Legend

Author= Blue
Title= Green
Date= Orange
Publisher= Purple
URL= Indigo
Volume/Issue= Pink

Source Types

Website Citation

Website

Format Pattern:

Author, A. A. (Year, Month Day). Title of page. Site Name. https://www.example.com

Example:

Smith, J. (2023, March 15). How to cite websites in APA format. Citation Guide. https://www.citationguide.com/apa-websites

Notes:

  • Include access date only if content may change
  • Use "n.d." if no date is available
  • If no author, start with title

Book Citation

Book

Format Pattern:

Author, A. A. (Year). Title of book. Publisher.

Example:

Brown, T. (2022). Academic writing essentials. Oxford University Press.

Notes:

  • Book titles are italicized
  • Include edition if not the first (e.g., 2nd ed.)
  • For ebooks, add DOI or URL at the end

Journal Article Citation

Journal Article

Format Pattern:

Author, A. A., & Author, B. B. (Year). Title of article. Journal Name, Volume(Issue), pages. https://doi.org/xxx

Example:

Johnson, M., & Davis, R. (2023). The impact of citation management on research productivity. Journal of Academic Research, 15(3), 234-250. https://doi.org/10.1000/jar.2023.15.3.234

Notes:

  • Journal name and volume number are italicized
  • Issue number in parentheses (not italicized)
  • Include DOI when available

Video Citation

Video

Format Pattern:

Author/Creator, A. A. (Year, Month Day). Title of video [Video]. Platform. https://www.example.com

Example:

TED (2023, January 10). The power of effective communication [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=example

Notes:

  • Use uploader/channel name as author
  • Include [Video] description
  • Platform name is italicized

Image Citation

Image

Format Pattern:

Creator, A. A. (Year). Title of image [Type]. Source. https://www.example.com

Example:

Smith, P. (2022). Mountain landscape [Photograph]. Unsplash. https://unsplash.com/photos/example

Notes:

  • Include type: [Photograph], [Illustration], [Infographic], etc.
  • If museum collection, include location

Report Citation

Report

Format Pattern:

Author, A. A. (Year). Title of report (Report No. XXX). Publisher. https://www.example.com

Example:

National Institute of Health (2023). Annual health statistics report (Report No. 2023-15). U.S. Department of Health. https://www.nih.gov/reports/2023-15

Notes:

  • Include report number in parentheses
  • Government reports often use agency as author

Conference Paper Citation

Conference Paper

Format Pattern:

Author, A. A. (Year, Month Day-Day). Title of paper [Conference presentation]. Conference Name, Location. https://www.example.com

Example:

Lee, K. (2023, June 15-17). Advances in citation technology [Conference presentation]. International Conference on Academic Writing, Boston, MA, United States. https://www.icaw.com/2023/papers/lee

Notes:

  • Include [Conference presentation] or [Paper presentation]
  • Add URL if available online

Newspaper Article Citation

Newspaper

Format Pattern:

Author, A. A. (Year, Month Day). Title of article. Newspaper Name. https://www.example.com

Example:

Williams, S. (2023, February 20). New study reveals importance of proper citations. The New York Times. https://www.nytimes.com/2023/02/20/study-citations

Notes:

  • Newspaper name is italicized
  • Include URL for online articles
  • For print, include page numbers

Common APA Mistakes to Avoid

❌ Incorrect Author Format

Wrong: John Smith

Correct: Smith, J.

❌ Missing Italics

Wrong: Journal of Research, 15(3)

Correct: Journal of Research, 15(3)

❌ Incorrect Date Format

Wrong: (2023)

Correct: (2023, March 15) for websites with specific dates

❌ Missing DOI

Wrong: Ending without DOI when available

Correct: https://doi.org/10.xxxx/xxxxx

❌ Incorrect Punctuation

Wrong: Smith, J. (2023) Title of work Publisher

Correct: Smith, J. (2023). Title of work. Publisher.

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