APA formatting follows a specific set of rules from the American Psychological Association, now in its 7th edition, that govern everything from your margins and font to how you cite sources and build a reference list. Most people encounter APA style in college courses for psychology, education, nursing, and the social sciences, but it’s also the standard for many professional journals. Here’s how to set up your paper correctly from the first page to the last.
Page Layout and Font
Start by setting your margins to 1 inch on all sides: top, bottom, left, and right. Use double spacing for the entire paper, including block quotations and your reference list. Do not add extra blank lines before or after headings, and do not add extra spacing before or after paragraphs. Most word processors add space after paragraphs by default, so you may need to turn that off in your paragraph settings.
APA 7th edition accepts several fonts rather than requiring a single one. Any of these work: 12-point Times New Roman, 11-point Calibri, 11-point Arial, 12-point Aptos, or 11-point Georgia. The default font in your word processor is generally fine. Just pick one and use it consistently throughout the paper.
Insert page numbers in the top right corner of every page, starting with page 1 on the title page. Use your word processor’s automatic page-numbering function so the numbers update if you add or remove pages.
Setting Up the Title Page
The title page looks different depending on whether you’re writing a student paper or a professional manuscript. Most readers searching for APA help are writing student papers, so that’s the version covered first.
Student Title Page
Place your paper title three to four lines down from the top of the page. Center it, bold it, and capitalize the major words. If your title has a subtitle, put it on a separate double-spaced line. Below the title, leave one double-spaced blank line, then center the following items, each on its own double-spaced line:
- Your name (first name, middle initial if you use one, last name)
- Department and school name, separated by a comma (e.g., Department of Psychology, University of North Texas)
- Course number and name (e.g., PSY 3100: Research Methods)
- Instructor name, using whatever format appears on your course materials
- Assignment due date
Student papers do not include a running head (the abbreviated title that appears in the header of every page) unless your instructor specifically asks for one.
Professional Title Page
Professional papers include the same centered, bolded title but replace the course details with each author’s institutional affiliation and, when applicable, an author note. If different authors are at different institutions, use superscript numerals after each name to link them to the correct affiliation. Professional manuscripts also include a running head: a shortened version of the title, in all caps, flush left in the page header on every page.
Headings and Body Text
APA uses five levels of headings to organize a paper, though most student papers only need the first two or three. Level 1 headings are centered, bold, and in title case. Level 2 headings are flush left, bold, and in title case. Level 3 headings are flush left, bold italic, and in title case. Each heading level has progressively less visual prominence, which signals the hierarchy of your ideas.
Indent the first line of every paragraph by half an inch (0.5 inches). The easiest way to do this is to set a first-line indent in your paragraph formatting rather than hitting the tab key each time. Do not add extra space between paragraphs. The double spacing you already set handles the visual separation.
In-Text Citations
Every time you refer to someone else’s idea, data, or direct words, you need an in-text citation that points the reader to the full entry on your reference list. APA uses an author-date system, meaning the citation includes the author’s last name and the year of publication.
There are two ways to work a citation into your sentence. A parenthetical citation puts the author and year in parentheses at the end of the relevant clause: (Smith, 2022). A narrative citation weaves the author’s name into the sentence itself, with only the year in parentheses: Smith (2022) found that…
One Author
Use the author’s last name and year in every citation. For a direct quote, add the page number: (Smith, 2022, p. 14).
Two Authors
Include both names every time you cite the work. In a parenthetical citation, use an ampersand: (Salas & D’Agostino, 2020). In a narrative citation, spell out “and”: Salas and D’Agostino (2020).
Three or More Authors
List only the first author’s last name followed by “et al.” from the very first citation onward. This is a change from older editions of APA, which required listing all authors the first time. Now it’s always shortened: (Martin et al., 2020) or Martin et al. (2020).
Building the Reference List
The reference list appears on its own page at the end of your paper. Center the word “References” in bold at the top, then list every source you cited in the body of the paper. Arrange entries alphabetically by the first author’s last name. Each entry uses a hanging indent: the first line is flush left, and every subsequent line is indented 0.5 inches. Your word processor can apply this automatically through paragraph settings.
The general pattern for most reference entries follows four elements: author, date, title, and source.
Journal Article
The format for a journal article with a DOI (a permanent digital identifier assigned to most published research) looks like this:
Author, A. A., Author, B. B., & Author, C. C. (Year). Title of article. Title of Periodical, volume number(issue number), page range. https://doi.org/xx.xxx/yyyy
A real example: Baniya, S., & Weech, S. (2019). Data and experience design: Negotiating community-oriented digital research with service-learning. Purdue Journal of Service-Learning and International Engagement, 6(1), 11–16. https://doi.org/10.5703/1288284316979
Notice that only the first word of the article title is capitalized (plus any proper nouns and the first word after a colon), while the journal name uses title case and is italicized along with the volume number. The issue number sits in parentheses and is not italicized. If your article has a DOI, always include it as a live hyperlink at the end of the entry with no period after it.
Book
For a book, the pattern is: Author, A. A. (Year). Title of work: Capital letter also for subtitle. Publisher Name. If the book has a DOI, add it at the end.
Website
For a webpage or online article that is not part of a journal or book, the pattern is: Author, A. A. (Year, Month Day). Title of page. Site Name. URL. If the author and site name are the same (for example, an organization publishing on its own website), omit the site name to avoid repetition.
Formatting Direct Quotations
Short quotations of fewer than 40 words go inside double quotation marks within your paragraph text, followed by a parenthetical citation that includes the page number: (Smith, 2022, p. 45).
Quotations of 40 words or more become block quotations. Start the quote on a new line, indent the entire block 0.5 inches from the left margin, and do not use quotation marks. Keep double spacing. Place the parenthetical citation after the closing punctuation of the block quote.
Using Inclusive Language
APA style requires bias-free language throughout your paper. In practice, this means using terms that respect people’s identities and avoid reinforcing stereotypes. Use “they” as a singular pronoun when gender is unknown or when referring to a person who uses they/them pronouns. Refer to people using the terms they use for themselves, whether that involves race, ethnicity, disability, age, or gender identity. Avoid language that defines people by a condition (“the disabled”) and instead use person-first or identity-first language based on the community’s preference (“people with disabilities” or “disabled people,” depending on context).
Quick Checklist Before You Submit
- Margins: 1 inch on all four sides
- Spacing: Double-spaced everywhere, no extra lines between paragraphs or around headings
- Font: One consistent, legible font (12-point Times New Roman, 11-point Calibri, etc.)
- Page numbers: Top right corner, starting at 1 on the title page
- Title page: Includes title, your name, affiliation, course, instructor, and due date (for student papers)
- Paragraphs: First line indented 0.5 inches
- In-text citations: Every borrowed idea has an author-date citation; works with three or more authors use “et al.”
- Reference list: Alphabetical, hanging indent, on its own page
- DOIs: Included as hyperlinks for any source that has one