In-Text Citation Generator
Generate correctly formatted in-text citations for APA, MLA, Chicago, and Harvard styles. Enter author names, year, and optional page number to get both parenthetical and narrative forms.
Separate multiple authors with commas
Generated Citations
Parenthetical citation
(Smith, 2024)
Use at the end of a sentence, before the period.
Narrative citation
Smith (2024)
Use when the author is part of the sentence.
In-Text Citation Formats by Style
APA 7th Edition
Parenthetical: (Author, Year, p. Page). Narrative: Author (Year). Use “&” for two authors in parenthetical form, “and” in narrative form. Three or more authors always use et al.
MLA 9th Edition
Parenthetical: (Author Page). No comma between author and page. No “p.” before page numbers. Narrative: Author states that ... (Page). Three or more authors use et al.
Chicago Author-Date
Parenthetical: (Author Year, Page). Narrative: Author (Year, Page). Use “and” for two authors. Four or more authors use et al.
Harvard
Parenthetical: (Author, Year, p. Page). Narrative: Author (Year, p. Page). Similar to APA but uses “and” instead of “&” for two authors. Four or more authors use et al.
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Frequently Asked Questions
- What is the difference between parenthetical and narrative citations?
- A parenthetical citation places the author and date in parentheses at the end of a sentence, like (Smith, 2024). A narrative citation uses the author's name as part of the sentence, like Smith (2024) found that...
- How do I cite multiple sources in one parenthetical?
- In APA, separate multiple sources with semicolons and list them alphabetically: (Jones, 2022; Smith, 2024). In MLA, separate with semicolons: (Jones 45; Smith 102).
- Do I need page numbers in in-text citations?
- In APA, page numbers are required for direct quotes but optional for paraphrases. In MLA, page numbers are always required when available. Chicago footnotes include page numbers for specific references.
- How do I handle sources with no author?
- In APA, use the first few words of the title in place of the author. In MLA, use the full title or a shortened version. In both cases, put the title in quotation marks for articles or italics for books.