APA citation has two parts: a brief in-text citation wherever you reference a source in your writing, and a full entry on your reference list at the end of the paper. Getting both right is straightforward once you understand the patterns. Here’s how to handle each element, from formatting your paper to citing AI tools.
In-Text Citations: Parenthetical and Narrative
Every time you use information from a source, you need an in-text citation. APA gives you two ways to do this.
A parenthetical citation places the author’s last name, publication year, and (for direct quotes) the page number in parentheses at the end of the sentence:
- She stated, “students often had difficulty using APA style” (Jones, 1998, p. 199), but she did not offer an explanation as to why.
A narrative citation works the author’s name into the sentence itself, with the year in parentheses right after the name. The page number goes in parentheses at the end of the quoted material:
- According to Jones (1998), “students often had difficulty using APA style, especially when it was their first time” (p. 199).
Both formats are correct. Use whichever reads more naturally in context. If you want to emphasize the researcher, a narrative citation puts their name front and center. If the idea matters more than who said it, a parenthetical citation keeps the text flowing.
When You Need Page Numbers
Direct quotations always require a page number. Use “p.” for a single page and “pp.” for a range of pages. If your source doesn’t have traditional page numbers (a website, for example), reference another identifying element instead: a paragraph number, chapter, section heading, or table number.
Paraphrases and summaries only require the author and year. APA does encourage adding page numbers for paraphrases from longer works so readers can locate the information, but it’s not mandatory.
Works With Multiple Authors
For a work with two authors, include both last names every time you cite it, joined by an ampersand in parenthetical citations or the word “and” in narrative citations:
- Parenthetical: (Smith & Lee, 2021)
- Narrative: Smith and Lee (2021)
For a work with three or more authors, list only the first author’s last name followed by “et al.” (Latin for “and others”) from the very first citation onward:
- Parenthetical: (Johnson et al., 2019)
- Narrative: Johnson et al. (2019)
Building Your Reference List
The reference list goes on its own page at the end of your paper, titled “References” and centered at the top. Every source you cited in the text gets a full entry here, and every entry on the list should correspond to an in-text citation. Three formatting rules govern the entire list:
Alphabetical order. Arrange entries by the first author’s last name. If you cite multiple works by the same author, list them from earliest to most recent publication year.
Hanging indentation. The first line of each entry sits flush with the left margin. Every subsequent line is indented one-half inch. Most word processors have a hanging indent option in the paragraph settings, so you don’t have to do this manually.
Sentence-case capitalization for titles. In titles of books, articles, chapters, reports, and webpages, capitalize only the first word, the first word after a colon or dash, and any proper nouns. Journal names, by contrast, keep their standard title capitalization and are italicized.
Reference Templates for Common Sources
Journal Article With a DOI
Most academic articles have a DOI (a permanent digital link). The template looks like this:
Lastname, F. M., & Lastname, F. M. (Year). Title of article. Title of Periodical, Vol.(Issue), page numbers. https://doi.org/xxxxx
A real example:
Drollinger, T., Comer, L. B., & Warrington, P. T. (2006). Development and validation of the active empathetic listening scale. Psychology & Marketing, 23(2), 161-180. https://doi.org/10.1002/mar.20105
Notice the article title is in sentence case, the journal name is italicized with standard capitalization, and the DOI appears as a full URL with no period after it.
Webpage
For a standard webpage, the template is:
Author or Organization. (Year, Month Date). Title of page. Site Name. URL
If no individual author is listed, the organization or site name serves as the author. If the page content is likely to change over time (a wiki, for instance), add a retrieval date:
Tuscan white bean pasta. (2018, February 25). Budgetbytes. Retrieved March 18, 2020, from https://www.budgetbytes.com/tuscan-white-bean-pasta/
For stable webpages, skip the retrieval date and just end with the URL.
Book
The basic book template follows a similar logic:
Lastname, F. M. (Year). Title of book (Edition if applicable). Publisher.
Italicize the book title and use sentence case. Include the edition in parentheses after the title only if it’s not the first edition.
Citing ChatGPT and Other AI Tools
APA treats AI-generated text as software output. The reference entry lists the company as the author, the year of the version you used as the date, the tool’s name (italicized) with the version in parentheses as the title, a bracketed description, and the URL:
OpenAI. (2023). ChatGPT (Mar 14 version) [Large language model]. https://chat.openai.com/chat
In-text, cite it like any other source: (OpenAI, 2023) for parenthetical, or OpenAI (2023) for narrative. This same template works for other AI models by swapping in the appropriate company, tool name, and URL.
Beyond the citation itself, describe how you used the tool in your paper. For research papers, that explanation belongs in your Method section. For essays or literature reviews, work it into the introduction. Include the prompt you used and the relevant portion of the response. Longer AI outputs can go in an appendix so readers can see the full text.
Formatting Your Paper
APA style covers more than citations. Your paper’s layout matters too. Use 1-inch margins on all four sides. Choose a legible font and stick with it throughout: 12-point Times New Roman, 11-point Calibri, 11-point Arial, and 12-point Aptos are all acceptable. The default font in your word processor is usually fine.
For student papers, the title page is page 1. Center your paper’s title, your name, your department and university, the course number and name, your instructor’s name, and the assignment due date on this page. Student papers do not need a running head (the abbreviated title that appears at the top of every page in professional manuscripts). Page numbers appear in the top-right corner of every page, starting with the title page.
Double-space the entire paper, including the reference list. Start each major section (the body, the reference list) on a new page when your instructor requires it.
Quick Reference for In-Text Patterns
- One author: (Smith, 2020) or Smith (2020)
- Two authors: (Smith & Lee, 2020) or Smith and Lee (2020)
- Three or more authors: (Smith et al., 2020) or Smith et al. (2020)
- Direct quote: Add the page number: (Smith, 2020, p. 45)
- No page numbers: Use paragraph, section, or chapter: (Smith, 2020, para. 4)
- Organization as author: (American Psychological Association, 2020)
Each of these in-text citations points the reader to a single, unambiguous entry on your reference list. If you keep that one-to-one relationship clean, your citations will be correct every time.