An APA title page centers the paper title in bold, three to four lines down from the top of the page, followed by the author’s name, affiliation, and a few additional lines of information that differ depending on whether you’re writing a student paper or a professional manuscript. The entire page uses double spacing, 1-inch margins on all sides, and a page number of 1 in the top right corner. Here’s exactly how to set it up.
Student vs. Professional Title Pages
APA 7th edition defines two distinct title page formats. Most college students will use the student version, while researchers submitting to journals use the professional version. The core layout is the same, but each version includes different elements below the author’s name.
A student title page includes these elements, in order from top to bottom:
- Page number: Top right corner, using your word processor’s automatic page-numbering function. Set it to 1.
- Paper title: Centered and bold, placed three to four lines down from the top of the page.
- Author name: Centered, one double-spaced blank line below the title.
- Author affiliation: Your department and institution, separated by a comma (e.g., “Department of Psychology, University of Michigan”).
- Course number and name: Listed as shown on your syllabus, such as “PSY 301: Research Methods.”
- Instructor name: Use the format your instructor uses on course materials.
- Assignment due date.
Each element goes on its own line, centered, with standard double spacing between lines. No extra blank lines between elements beyond the one blank line separating the title from the author name.
A professional title page includes:
- Running head and page number: The running head (a shortened version of your title in all capital letters) is left-aligned in the header, with the page number right-aligned on the same line.
- Paper title: Centered and bold, three to four lines from the top.
- Author name(s): Centered, one double-spaced blank line below the title. When multiple authors have different institutional affiliations, use superscript numerals after each name to link them to the correct affiliation.
- Author affiliation(s): Each affiliation on its own centered line, with matching superscript numerals.
- Author note: Placed in the bottom half of the page. The label “Author Note” is centered and bold, and the paragraphs below it are left-aligned.
Page Layout and Font
Set 1-inch margins on all four sides of the page. Use double spacing for everything, including the title page. Do not add extra spacing before or after any line.
APA 7th edition accepts several fonts: 12-point Times New Roman, 11-point Calibri, 11-point Arial, 12-point Aptos, and 11-point Georgia are all listed as acceptable options. Using the default font in your word processor is fine as long as it’s legible and one of the approved choices. Stick with the same font throughout the entire paper, title page included.
How to Format the Paper Title
Your title should be centered, bold, and written in title case. Title case means you capitalize all major words (nouns, verbs, adjectives, adverbs, pronouns, and any word four letters or longer) while lowercasing minor words of three letters or fewer, like “and,” “of,” “the,” “for,” and “in.” The one exception: always capitalize the first word of the title and the first word after a colon, regardless of length.
For example, a correctly formatted title would look like: Effects of Sleep Deprivation on Short-Term Memory in College Students. Notice that “of,” “on,” and “in” are lowercase, while “Short-Term” capitalizes both parts of the hyphenated phrase because both are major words.
APA recommends keeping your title concise and focused. It should clearly convey the topic of the paper without unnecessary filler words.
Running Head Rules
Student papers do not include a running head unless your instructor specifically asks for one. This is a change from earlier editions of APA, so if you’ve seen older guides telling you to include one, you can skip it for most class assignments.
Professional papers always include a running head. It appears in the page header on every page, left-aligned, in all capital letters. Keep it to 50 characters or fewer, including spaces and punctuation. If your full title is long, create an abbreviated version that still captures the key idea. Do not type “Running head:” before it. That label was required in APA 6th edition but was dropped in the 7th edition.
On all pages, the page number sits in the top right corner of the header. For professional papers, the running head and the page number share the same header line, one on the left and one on the right.
Author Name and Affiliation
Write your name as you would for professional or academic purposes. For student papers, list your department and school on the next line (e.g., “Department of English, Portland State University”). If your program doesn’t have a specific department, just list the institution name.
For professional papers with multiple authors from different institutions, use superscript numbers to match each author to their affiliation. For instance, if Jane Smith is at one university and John Doe is at another, you’d place a superscript 1 after Smith’s name and a superscript 2 after Doe’s, then list each numbered affiliation on its own centered line below.
Author Note on Professional Papers
The author note only appears on professional papers. It sits in the bottom half of the title page, starting with a centered, bold “Author Note” label. The content below that label is left-aligned and organized into paragraphs. The first paragraph typically includes each author’s ORCID iD if they have one. Additional paragraphs can include changes in affiliation, disclosures, acknowledgments, and contact information.
Student papers skip the author note entirely. The course number, instructor name, and due date serve as the identifying information instead.
Putting It All Together
Open a new document and set your margins to 1 inch on all sides. Change the line spacing to double with no extra spacing before or after paragraphs. Insert an automatic page number in the top right corner of the header. Move your cursor about three to four lines down from the top of the page and type your title, centered and bold, in title case. Press Enter once (which gives you one double-spaced blank line), then type your name centered. On the next line, type your affiliation. If you’re writing a student paper, continue with the course number and name, instructor name, and due date, each on its own centered line. If you’re writing a professional paper, add the running head to the left side of the header and place your author note in the bottom half of the page.
Double-check that no element is left-aligned when it should be centered, that the title is bold, and that your page number reads 1. Those small details are exactly what instructors and reviewers look for first.