Citing a website requires four core pieces of information: the author, the page title, the website name, and the URL. The exact order and punctuation depend on which style guide you’re using. APA, MLA, and Chicago are the three most common, and each has its own format for arranging these elements. Here’s how to build a proper citation in each style, including what to do when information is missing.
The Four Elements Every Citation Needs
Regardless of style, you’ll want to gather the same basic information before writing your citation. Start by looking for the author’s name, which may appear at the top or bottom of the article. Next, note the title of the specific page or article. Then identify the name of the overall website (this is different from the page title). Finally, copy the full URL from your browser’s address bar.
You’ll also want the publication date if one is listed. Look near the byline or at the bottom of the page for a “published” or “last updated” date. If you can’t find one, don’t make one up. Each style has a specific way to handle missing dates.
APA Style (7th Edition)
APA is widely used in the social sciences, education, and psychology. A website citation in APA follows this pattern:
Lastname, F. M. (Year, Month Day). Title of page. Website Name. https://www.example.com/page
A few details matter here. The page title is in sentence case, meaning only the first word and proper nouns are capitalized. The website name is in italics. The URL goes at the end with no period after it. You do not need to write “Retrieved from” before the URL, as APA dropped that requirement. If the work has a DOI (a permanent digital identifier sometimes found on journal articles published online), use that instead of the URL. If both a DOI and a URL exist, include only the DOI, formatted as https://doi.org/xxxxx.
For the in-text citation, use parentheses with the author’s last name and year: (Smith, 2024). If you’re weaving the author’s name into your sentence, just put the year in parentheses: Smith (2024) reported that…
MLA Style (9th Edition)
MLA is the standard in the humanities, especially English and literature courses. The format looks like this:
Lastname, Firstname. “Title of Page.” Website Name, Day Month Year, URL.
In MLA, the page title goes in quotation marks and uses title case (capitalize major words). The website name is italicized. For URLs, copy the full address from your browser. If you’re submitting work online, include the https:// prefix so the link is clickable. For print submissions, your instructor may prefer you omit the protocol.
Access dates are optional in MLA but encouraged when the page has no publication date or when the content is likely to change, such as a wiki. Format it at the end of the entry: Accessed 15 June 2025.
In-text citations in MLA use the author’s last name and a page number in parentheses. Since websites rarely have page numbers, just use the author’s last name: (Smith). If the author’s name already appears in your sentence, no parenthetical is needed.
Chicago Style (17th Edition)
Chicago is common in history, the arts, and some business writing. It offers two systems: notes-bibliography (footnotes) and author-date. Most students encounter the footnote system, which works like this:
For a footnote or endnote:
1. Firstname Lastname, “Title of Web Page,” Name of Website, Publishing Organization, publication or revision date, URL.
For the corresponding bibliography entry:
Lastname, Firstname. “Title of Web Page.” Name of Website. Publishing Organization, publication or revision date. URL.
Chicago treats website names in roman type (no italics, no quotation marks), while titles of specific pages or articles go in quotation marks. Blog titles are an exception and get italics. If the page shows a revision date rather than a publication date, note that clearly: “Last modified May 17, 2019.” If no date is available at all, use the date you accessed the page: “Accessed August 7, 2019.”
When the Author Is Missing
Many web pages don’t list an author. Each style handles this differently, but the general approach is the same: move the title to the front of the citation where the author’s name would normally go.
In APA, the page title takes the author’s position, followed by the date, source, and URL. Do not write “Anonymous” unless the page is literally signed “Anonymous.” For the in-text citation, use a shortened version of the title in parentheses along with the year.
In MLA, simply start the works cited entry with the article title in quotation marks. Your in-text citation would use a shortened title as well.
In Chicago, start with the title. If a clear publishing organization is listed on the site, you can use that in place of an individual author’s name. Some websites also use screen names or pseudonyms. If the real name isn’t available, use the screen name as the author.
When the Date Is Missing
No publication date is a common problem with web content. In APA, replace the year with “n.d.” (short for “no date”) in both the reference list entry and the in-text citation: (Smith, n.d.). In MLA, you can omit the date from the works cited entry and add an access date at the end instead. In Chicago, use the access date preceded by “Accessed” when no other date is available.
If both the author and the date are missing, combine the strategies. In APA, that means the title moves to the front and “n.d.” replaces the year. In MLA, the title leads the entry with an access date at the end. In Chicago, the title comes first with an access date.
When the Title Is Missing or Unclear
Some web pages lack a clear title, especially data dashboards, interactive tools, or pages with only images. In APA, write a brief description of the content in square brackets where the title would go: [Interactive map of census data]. This bracketed description also serves as the in-text citation. MLA and Chicago similarly allow you to describe the content in place of a title, though the formatting of that description varies.
URLs, DOIs, and Permalinks
Always include the URL for a website citation unless your instructor says otherwise. Copy it directly from your browser’s address bar, and strip out any unnecessary query strings (the characters after a question mark that track your session or search terms).
If you’re citing an article that appears both on a website and in an academic database, check whether it has a DOI. A DOI is a permanent link assigned to scholarly works that won’t break over time, unlike regular URLs. In APA, if a DOI exists, use it and skip the URL entirely. Format it as a full hyperlink: https://doi.org/10.xxxx/xxxxx. For works you found through a standard academic database like JSTOR or EBSCOhost that don’t have DOIs, APA says to leave out both the URL and the database name, since readers can find widely available works on their own.
MLA and Chicago don’t use DOIs as frequently, but if your source has one, including it is always a good practice since it gives readers a reliable way to find the exact source.
Formatting Tips That Apply Across Styles
Use a hanging indent for your reference list, works cited, or bibliography. The first line of each entry sits flush left, and every subsequent line is indented half an inch. This is standard across APA, MLA, and Chicago.
Double-check that your URL actually works by pasting it into a browser. If the link requires a login or is session-specific, provide the URL of the website’s home page instead. Alphabetize your entries by the first word of each citation, whether that’s an author’s last name or a title (skip articles like “A,” “An,” and “The” when alphabetizing titles).
When in doubt about which style to use, check your assignment guidelines or ask your instructor. The formatting differences between APA, MLA, and Chicago are small but matter for grading, so pick one style and apply it consistently throughout your paper.