APA 7th Edition Citation Format: Complete Guide with Examples (2026)
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APA 7th edition (American Psychological Association, 2020) is the most widely required citation format in social sciences, education, psychology, nursing, and management research. This guide covers every APA 7 rule you need — from in-text citation to reference list formatting — with examples for all source types.
APA 7th Edition: In-Text Citation Rules
| Scenario | Format | Example |
|---|---|---|
| 1 author, paraphrase | (Last, Year) | (Smith, 2022) |
| 2 authors | (Last1 & Last2, Year) | (Smith & Jones, 2022) |
| 3+ authors (all citations) | (First author et al., Year) | (Smith et al., 2022) |
| Direct quote | (Last, Year, p. #) | (Smith, 2022, p. 45) |
| Quote, no page number | (Last, Year, para. #) | (Smith, 2022, para. 3) |
| Author in sentence | Last (Year) found… | Smith (2022) argued that… |
| No author | ("Short Title," Year) | ("Education Policy," 2022) |
| Organisation as author | (Org, Year) | (UGC, 2022) |
| Two works, same author, same year | (Last, Yeara) and (Last, Yearb) | (Smith, 2022a) and (Smith, 2022b) |
| Multiple sources in one parenthesis | (Last, Year; Last2, Year) | (Smith, 2022; Jones, 2021) |
APA 7th Edition: Reference List Format by Source Type
Book
Format: Author, A. A. (Year). Title in sentence case (Edition, if not first). Publisher.
Example: Creswell, J. W. (2014). Research design: Qualitative, quantitative, and mixed methods approaches (4th ed.). SAGE.
Edited Book
Format: Editor, E. E. (Ed.). (Year). Title of book. Publisher.
Example: Kumar, R. (Ed.). (2021). Advances in educational research in India. Routledge.
Chapter in an Edited Book
Format: Author, A. A. (Year). Chapter title. In E. E. Editor (Ed.), Book title (pp. xx–xx). Publisher.
Example: Sharma, P. (2022). Academic writing in Indian universities. In R. Kumar (Ed.), Higher education pedagogy (pp. 45–68). Sage India.
Journal Article (with DOI)
Format: Author, A. A., & Author, B. B. (Year). Title of article. Journal Name, Volume(Issue), pages. https://doi.org/xxxx
Example: Patel, S., & Mehta, R. (2023). Research writing challenges among PhD scholars in India. Journal of Higher Education Research, 12(2), 88–104. https://doi.org/10.XXXX
Website
Format: Author, A. (Year, Month Day). Title of page. Site Name. URL
Example: University Grants Commission. (2022, September 10). PhD regulations 2022. University Grants Commission. https://www.ugc.ac.in
PhD Thesis/Dissertation
Format: Author, A. (Year). Title of thesis [Doctoral dissertation, University Name]. Repository Name. URL
Example: Sharma, P. (2023). Academic writing pedagogy in Indian universities [Doctoral dissertation, University of Delhi]. Shodhganga. https://shodhganga.inflibnet.ac.in
Report (Government/Organisation)
Format: Author, A., or Organisation. (Year). Title of report (Report No. if given). Publisher. URL
Example: Ministry of Education. (2020). National education policy 2020. Government of India. https://www.education.gov.in/nep
| APA 7 Key Rules Summary | Detail |
|---|---|
| Page title | References (centred, bold) |
| Spacing | Double-spaced throughout |
| Indent | Hanging indent (0.5 inch / 1.27 cm) for 2nd+ lines |
| Author order | Alphabetical by last name |
| Article title case | Sentence case (only first word + proper nouns capitalised) |
| Journal title case | Title case (all major words capitalised) |
| DOI format | https://doi.org/xxxxxx (as hyperlink) |
| Publisher location | No longer included in APA 7 |
| Edition | Only include if not first edition: (2nd ed.) |
Quickest Way to Generate APA 7 Citations
Use free tools: (1) Zotero — save sources while browsing, generate APA 7 bibliography with one click; (2) Google Scholar — click the Cite button under any search result, copy the APA format; (3) DOI.org — paste a DOI at doi.org/lookup to get the formatted APA reference; (4) APA's own tool at apastyle.apa.org has worked examples. These tools eliminate formatting errors, especially for complex sources like edited book chapters or government reports.
Need your APA citations checked and formatted for journal submission or thesis? Our academic writing specialists ensure your references are APA 7 compliant.
Related Reading from Thesis Ace Writers
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Frequently Asked Questions
Click a question to expand the answer.
APA 7th edition refers to the 7th edition of the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association, published in 2020. It is the updated citation and style guide used in social sciences, psychology, education, nursing, business, and management. Key changes from APA 6th: (1) running head removed for student papers; (2) up to 20 authors listed in references (previously 7); (3) DOI formatted as hyperlink; (4) et al. used for 3+ authors from first citation (previously 6+); (5) bias-free language guidelines updated.
APA 7th edition in-text citations use the author-date format: (Author, Year). Rules: 1 author: (Smith, 2022). 2 authors: (Smith & Jones, 2022). 3+ authors: (Smith et al., 2022) — use et al. from first mention. Direct quote: (Smith, 2022, p. 45) — page number required. Quote from online source without page: (Smith, 2022, para. 3). Author mentioned in sentence: Smith (2022) found that... No author: Use shortened title in quotes: ('APA Format,' 2022).
APA 7th edition reference list rules: Title the page 'References' (centred, bold). All entries are double-spaced with a hanging indent (0.5 inches). Entries are alphabetical by author's last name. Include all authors up to 20; for 21+, list first 19, add ..., then last author. Include DOI for all articles that have one. Use sentence case for article/book titles (only first word, proper nouns, and first word after colon are capitalised). Journal name and volume are italicised.
APA 7 journal article format: Author, A. A., & Author, B. B. (Year). Title of article in sentence case. Title of Journal in Title Case, Volume(Issue), page–page. https://doi.org/XXXX. Example: Creswell, J. W., & Plano Clark, V. L. (2018). Designing and conducting mixed methods research. Journal of Mixed Methods Research, 12(3), 217–231. https://doi.org/10.1177/1558689817745558. If no DOI, include journal's homepage URL.
APA 7 website format: Author, A. A. (Year, Month Day). Title of page in sentence case. Site Name. URL. Example: University Grants Commission. (2022, September 10). UGC PhD regulations 2022. University Grants Commission. https://www.ugc.ac.in/phd. If no date: use (n.d.) for 'no date'. If no author: start with the title, then (Year). Retrieved dates are no longer required unless content changes over time.
Key changes in APA 7th edition (2020): (1) Running head removed from student papers; (2) Author threshold for et al. changed from 7 to 3; (3) Up to 20 authors now listed (was 7); (4) DOI formatted as 'https://doi.org/...' hyperlink; (5) Publisher location removed from book references; (6) New chapter on bias-free language (gender, race, disability); (7) New student paper guidelines separate from professional papers; (8) New guidance on use of they/them pronouns; (9) Expanded guidance on social media and online sources.