How do I cite a letter in APA?

To cite a letter in APA (7th edition), include the author, title, date, and source location. Use our free citation generator for automatic formatting.

What does the in-text citation look like for a letter in APA?

In APA, the in-text citation for the example above is (Adams, 1963, p. 370)

How to Cite a Letter in APA (7th edition)

Learn how to cite published letters, letters in archives, and open letters in APA format (7th edition). This guide includes the reference list format, in-text citation examples, and key formatting rules.

APA Reference List Format

Here is the standard APA format for citing a letter in your reference list:

Writer, A. A. (Year of collection). [Letter to Recipient Name, Month Day, Year]. In E. E. Editor (Ed.), Title of collection (Vol. #, pp. xx–xx). Publisher.

APA Example for a Letter

A complete APA reference for a letter, written by hand and checked against the official APA guidance for this source:

Adams, A. (1963). [Letter to John Adams, March 31, 1776]. In L. H. Butterfield (Ed.), Adams family correspondence (Vol. 1, pp. 369–371). Belknap Press of Harvard University Press.

Matching in-text citation: (Adams, 1963, p. 370)

APA In-Text Citation

Use one of these formats when referencing this source within your paper:

Parenthetical

(Adams, 1963, p. 370)

Narrative

In her March 31, 1776, letter, Adams (1963) urged her husband to “Remember the Ladies” (p. 370).

Key APA Formatting Rules

Cite a letter in a published collection like a chapter in an edited book, with the writer as author and the collection’s year in the date.
Describe an untitled letter in square brackets, naming the recipient and the date it was written, and mention that date in your sentence.
For a letter in an archive, give the letter’s own date and add the collection, any box or folder, the repository and its location, for example Adams, A. (1776, March 31). [Letter to John Adams]. Adams Family Papers, Massachusetts Historical Society, Boston, MA, United States.
A letter you received that readers cannot retrieve is a personal communication: cite it in the text only, for example (J. Smith, personal communication, March 4, 2024).

Step-by-Step Guide

Gather source information: Collect the author name, title, publication date, and URL or DOI for your letter.
Format the reference: Arrange the elements following the APA (7th edition) template shown above.
Create the in-text citation: Add a parenthetical or narrative citation in your paper where you reference this source.
Add to your reference list: Include the full formatted citation at the end of your paper.
Double-check formatting: Verify italics, punctuation, capitalization, and hanging indents match APA requirements.

Evidence and review notes

Worked examples on this page are written by hand from the style's own published guidance and checked against it, because the general CSL styles do not encode this source's rules. Editorial guidance and sources in this section were reviewed on 2026-08-14.

Metadata to collect

writer and recipient
date the letter was written
collection title, editor, publisher, year and pages, if published
collection name, box or folder, and repository, if archival
URL of a digitized copy, if you used one

Common metadata traps

A private letter sent to you that no reader can consult is a personal communication; cite it the way the email page shows, not with the formats below.
In a published collection the editor’s heading is not the letter’s title; describe the letter by writer, recipient and date.
An open letter printed in a newspaper or posted online is cited as that article or web page, with the publication that carried it.

Editorial sources

APA Style — references →

Frequently Asked Questions

How do I cite a letter in APA?: To cite a letter in APA (7th edition), include the author, title, date, and source location. Use our free citation generator for automatic formatting.
What is the APA format for a letter citation?: The APA format for a letter is: Writer, A. A. (Year of collection). [Letter to Recipient Name, Month Day, Year]. In E. E. Editor (Ed.), Title of collection (Vol. #, pp. xx–xx). Publisher.
What does the in-text citation look like for a letter in APA?: In APA, the in-text citation for the example above is (Adams, 1963, p. 370)