APA 7 guide

APA in-text citations, every case.

An APA citation gives the author’s last name and the year: (Walker, 2017). Add a page for a quotation: (Walker, 2017, p. 112). It points to one entry in your References.

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On this page
  1. Two forms
  2. Every case, made by the formatter
  3. More rules
  4. Common mistakes
  5. Questions

Updated

Two forms

  • ParentheticalSleep loss harms memory (Walker, 2017).
  • NarrativeWalker (2017) argued that sleep loss harms memory.
  • QuotationStudents report “excessive daytime sleepiness” (Hershner & Chervin, 2014, p. 75).

Use an ampersand (&) inside parentheses and “and” in your sentence. Page numbers are required for quotations and encouraged for paraphrases that point to one spot.

Every case, made by the formatter

One author, with a page

(Walker, 2017, p. 112)

Two authors

(Hershner & Chervin, 2014, p. 75)

Three or more authors: et al. from the first citation

(Aron et al., 2019, p. 350)

A group author

(Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2024)

No page: a paragraph number

(Bernstein, 2002, para. 4)

No date

(Bernstein, n.d.)

A video: the time stamp

(TED, 2019, 3:42)

Quoted in another source

(as cited in Walker, 2017, p. 112)

A personal communication

(E. Robinson, personal communication, January 4, 2019)

More rules

  • No author: the title, shortened, in italics for a book or web page and in quotation marks for an article: (About sleep, 2024).
  • Two works, same author, same year: letters after the year, in the order of the reference list: (Walker, 2017a, 2017b).
  • Several sources at once: alphabetical, with semicolons: (Hershner & Chervin, 2014; Walker, 2017).
  • Group abbreviations: spell the name out the first time with the abbreviation in brackets, then use it: (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention [CDC], 2024), then (CDC, 2024).
  • Repeated narrative citations in one paragraph can leave out the year after the first, unless a parenthetical citation follows.

Common mistakes

  1. No comma before the year. (Walker, 2017), with a comma.
  2. “&” in a sentence. Write “and” in running text; the ampersand is for parentheses.
  3. Waiting for the second citation to use et al. APA 7 uses et al. from the first citation for three or more authors.
  4. Leaving out the page in a quotation. Every quotation needs one, or a paragraph or time stamp.

Questions

Do I need a page number in APA?

For direct quotations, yes. For paraphrases, it is optional but helpful.

How do I cite a source with no date?

Use n.d.: (Bernstein, n.d.).

Where does the citation go in a sentence?

Before the period, or right after the author’s name in a narrative citation.