APA 7th Edition Cheat Sheet
Quick reference for the most common APA citation formats.
General Rules
- Use hanging indentation (first line flush left, subsequent lines indented 0.5")
- Double-space all entries
- Alphabetize by author's last name
- Italicize titles of books, journals, and volumes
- Use DOI when available
In-Text Citations
| Situation | Format | Example |
|---|---|---|
| 1 author | (Author, Year) | (Smith, 2024) |
| 2 authors | (Author & Author, Year) | (Smith & Jones, 2024) |
| 3+ authors | (First Author et al., Year) | (Smith et al., 2024) |
| Direct quote | (Author, Year, p. #) | (Smith, 2024, p. 45) |
| No author | ("Title," Year) | ("Study Results," 2024) |
Reference List Examples
Book
Author, A. A. (Year). Title of work: Capital letter also for subtitle. Publisher. https://doi.org/xxxxx
Journal Article
Author, A. A., & Author, B. B. (Year). Title of article. Title of Periodical, Volume(Issue), Page–Page. https://doi.org/xxxxx
Website
Author, A. A. (Year, Month Day). Title of page. Site Name. https://www.example.com/page
Edited Book Chapter
Author, A. A. (Year). Title of chapter. In E. E. Editor (Ed.), Title of book (pp. #–#). Publisher.
Conference Paper
Author, A. A. (Year, Month Days). Title of paper [Paper presentation]. Conference Name, Location.
Key Differences from APA 6th
- No "Retrieved from" before URLs
- Include DOI as https://doi.org/ link format
- Up to 20 authors listed before using ellipsis
- Publisher location no longer required
- Use singular "they" for gender-neutral language
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