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How to Cite a Website in APA

This guide explains all of the important steps to referencing a website/web page in your APA research papers. The guidance below follows APA style, 7th edition.

APA format is much different than MLA format and other styles. If you need to cite websites in MLA , or you’re looking for more styles , check out the other resources on EasyBib.com!

Guide Overview

Here’s a run-through of everything this page includes:

What is a website? Am I citing a website or a web page?

Citing a website in the text (in-text citation), citing a website on the reference page, citing a general web article without an author, titles of pages on the web, extra information, publisher information, web addresses and dois, apa format for online news articles, additional website citation examples, troubleshooting.

A website is a place on the Internet that holds a group of individual pages (called web pages).

Think of a website like a tree. A website is the tree, and the individual web pages are the branches. Use YouTube as an example. YouTube is the site, and the individual channel pages and video pages are the branches. Wikipedia is a site, and each article has its own individual web page on that site.

Most of the time, you aren’t trying to cite a whole, entire site, but actually an individual web page. If you used a YouTube video to help you with your research project, you wouldn’t cite the entire YouTube site, you would cite the specific YouTube page the video was found on.

Here’s a similar question we’re often asked when it comes to the APA citation of a web page:

Q: This page describes citing specific pages and articles. Can I cite an entire site?

A: According to the APA manual (7th edition), it is not necessary to cite a site in its entirety in a reference list. Instead, include a reference to the website in the body of your paper and cite any web page individually.

The Department of Justice has just released a new site called ReportCrime.gov at https://www.reportcrime.gov/ to help people identify and report crimes in their area.

In the above passage, the website is stated in the text rather than cited. This guide focuses on how to cite individual pages found on the web (web pages). If you used an entire website, it’s perfectly acceptable to cite the whole site in the text of your paper, as shown above, but for the most part, you want to cite the page where the information was found.

If you’re seeking out an APA citation website to take the stress away from proper referencing, try out EasyBib.com! Stop typing into the search bar, “how to cite a website APA” or “APA in-text citation website.” EasyBib.com is the answer to your referencing questions and needs!

When you include a piece of information from a site in your project, you must include two citations: a brief citation in the text and also a full citation on the reference page.

When it comes to mentions in the text, students are sometimes tempted to put the web address in the body of a project. However, URLs can be long, clunky, and distracting. They should never be written in the body of a project.

Instead of writing the full address in the text, use the last name of the author and the date the source was published. If no author is shown, write the title of the individual page and the date.

For direct quotations, you may use paragraphs to indicate the quotation’s location in the work. Count the paragraphs manually if needed and use the abbreviation “para.” for paragraph.

Check out this in-text citation APA website example:

                 Cite your source

The above APA website in-text citation (the author’s last name and the date the information was published) corresponds to the information on the final page of the project, the reference page.

Here’s how the full APA citation for a web page looks on the final page of the project:

Need more in-text citation APA website info? Here’s more on how to build an APA parenthetical citation . You may also like our full-length guide on how to create an APA in-text citation .

If you’re looking for information on structuring other styles in the text of your paper, check out our page on MLA in-text and parenthetical citations .

In the next section of this APA citation website guide, we’re going to focus on how to format an APA website citation. If you’re wondering how to create an APA citation of a web page, the majority of web references use the structure shown below.

General structure for how to cite a website in APA

Note: A retrieval date is no longer required for online sources. It’s only needed if the content is likely to change over time (such as wikis and social media). The article or page title should be italicized. The URL is at the end and does not have a period after it.

Full reference example:

View Screenshot | Cite your source

Example of an in-text citation for a website in APA:

If you’re looking for an APA format website to do the work for you, try out EasyBib.com’s citation generator. Our APA citation website makes referencing a breeze!

APA citation for website structure:

Do you need to cite a source with no author in APA ? No problem. Wikipedia pages, online dictionary sites, and online encyclopedia sites are just a few examples of sites without an author. When there is no clear individual author, use the website organization (group author) as the author.

Group authors

There are plenty of times when an individual’s name isn’t listed as the author, but the information on the site is written by a group, organization, or company.

In an APA website citation, it is completely acceptable to use the group’s name in the author position. Type it out in its entirety and add a period at the end. Check out the various APA citation of web page examples at the bottom of the page to see group authors in action!

Note: If the author name and website name is the same, just list it once in as the author; leave out the website name section in the APA citation. 

APA citation for website example:

If you’re wondering whether to include the full date in your APA citation for web pages (month, day, and year) or just the year, we have the answer for you here.

An APA citation of web page reference includes the month, day, and year if it’s a site that is updated with new information frequently. Blog posts, newspaper articles, posts from social media profiles, and YouTube videos are just a few of the sources that would display the full date. In an APA citation for web pages, it’s written in this order in parentheses: (Year, Month Day).

If there is any information missing, simply include what is available. Also, if there is no date , indicate this by using (n.d.).

No date APA website example:

If you’re using the EasyBib citation generator to create an APA citation for a web page, our technology structures dates for you in their proper order. It’s the APA format website (and also the APA in-text citation website) you’ve been waiting for. Give it a whirl!

Here’s the advice we provide on many of our guides:

• If the source you are citing is a standalone source, meaning an entire book, television series, or film, the title of such sources should be in italics.
• If, however, you are citing a piece of a larger source, i.e., a journal article, a page on a site, or an episode of a show, the title should be in sentence case and not in italics.

Long story short, do not italicize an APA citation for web pages’ title in the text and on the final page of references.

For full references on the final page of the project, only include capital letters at the beginning of the title, at the beginning of each proper noun, and at the beginning of the first word in the subtitle.

The title is written in the text only when there isn’t an author listed. So, instead of showing the reference as (Author, Date), use (“Title of Page,” Date) in any APA citation for web pages. Notice the switch from sentence case to title case in the text reference.

A little extra information goes a long way when it comes to site citations. If you’re including a unique source type, include information about the medium directly after the title. This information is placed in brackets. Only the first letter is capitalized.

Here are a few examples you might see in an APA citation for a web page:

[Image attached]

[Infographic]

[Status update]

To see some of the extra information in action, scroll down to the examples towards the bottom of this page.

Speaking of extra information, it may not hurt to get some extra details on grammar topics in that brain of yours. Brush up on your adjective , pronoun , and interjection knowledge with our comprehensive guides!

Any information related to the publisher is not invited to the web citation party. In an APA citation of a web page, you do not need to include information about the company that made the site, where its offices are located, or any other similar information about the company in any web references. One thing less to worry about in your APA citation for web pages!

Other source types are much different, so before you exclude publisher information from all of your references, make sure you check out our APA citation page. While you’re at it, check out our other helpful resources, such as APA reference page  and MLA works cited .

We also need a web address and DOI number in an APA citation for a web page. Including site addresses and DOIs are an absolute necessity. Addresses and DOIs (which stand for direct object identifiers) are usually the last item in an APA website citation.

For sites, after adding the full URL to the APA citation for a web page, do not end it with a period. If the address is very long, it is acceptable to roll it onto the next line, but break it up so that a type of punctuation mark or symbol is the first item closest to the left margin. Check out the APA citation of a webpage URL below.

APA citation of a webpage example of a properly structured URL:

DOI numbers are assigned by publishers to electronic sources such as journal articles, e-books, datasets, and more. They’re a string of numbers and sometimes other characters. If the source you’re using has a DOI number assigned to it, place it at the end of the APA website citation, instead of the URL, in this format: https://doi.org/10.XXXXXXXXX. Place the DOI string in place of the X’s shown above.

DOIs were created to combat the problem of broken links and 404 errors (pages taken down). Think about it: if a webpage is taken off of the Internet, it can be pretty difficult to find a copy of it. If you’re lucky, an archive site may have a copy stored somewhere, but for the most part, when sites are gone, they’re gone. DOIs are permanent, making them the ideal choice to include in any APA citation for webpages.

APA properly structured DOI:

APA differentiates between traditional newspapers that are online versus news websites with no daily/weekly/monthly newspaper or magazine edition. Unsure what you’re citing? Follow this decision tree:

• YES –> Cite it as a newspaper article.
• NO –> Cite it as a web page or a news site article.
• NO –> Cite it as a web page or news site article.

Online news article APA example:

News sites with no associated daily/weekly/monthly publication should be cited like a web page. That means the article title is italicized and the publisher/site name is in plan font. This format applies to articles from these sites:

• MSNBC Fox News

Newspaper article online APA example:

Sites associated with a daily/weekly/monthly publication should be cited as a newspaper article. That means the article title is in plain font and the publisher/site name is italicized. This format applies to articles from these sites:

• The New York Times
• The Guardian
• The Times of India
• The Wall Street Journal
• The Washington Post
• Yomiuri Shimbun

Below are various web reference examples to give you a quick visual of how pages are structured and organized. Quick reminder that if you’re trying to create a reference for an e-book found on the web, use the APA book citation page. In addition, if it’s an online article from journal, use our APA journal page.

If you’re looking for a quick and easy way to build your references, EasyBib.com is an APA citation website that does the work for you. Try it out and say hello to stress-free referencing and goodbye to constantly searching for “how to cite a website APA” or “how to cite APA” on search engines. The APA offers more information here .

How to cite a group/organization/company:

How to cite a blog post in apa:.

The structure is the same, but the format is slightly different: The blog article title is in plain text, and the name of the blog is italicized.

APA citation of a web page example for Facebook:

The text of the post is italicized, while the site name (Facebook) is in plain text.

APA citation of a web page example for Twitter:

Cite your source

If the name of the author is unknown, start the APA citation of a web page for Twitter with the username.

Need another set of eyes to check your paper for grammar and spelling edits? Not quite sure if every determiner , preposition , or conjunction is where it belongs? Check out our grammar and plagiarism checker . It’s the answer to all of your grammar questions!

If you’re still confused and typing into the search bar, “how to cite APA” or “how to cite a website APA,” try out EasyBib.com’s reference generator. It’s fast, easy, and allows you to focus on your writing and research, and less on your references. The best part? It creates both types of references. It has an in-text citation website APA generator and also a full reference generator! What are you waiting for? Go see the magic happen!

Here’s a quick video overview of how to cite a website in APA:

Solution #1: Determining the website company, the author, the publisher, or both (APA)

A website citation included in an APA-format bibliography doesn’t need a publisher, so you do not need to worry whether the website company is the publisher of a page you want to cite!

If an author isn’t credited on a given webpage, the website company should be listed as the author. This also goes for online encyclopedias, dictionaries, etc.

Here’s an example for a full bibliography:

Roman empire. (2022, February 6). In Wikipedia . https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roman_Empire

Here is an example for an in-text citation:

(“Roman Empire,” 2022)

Solution #2: How to cite images and videos from social media in APA format

Making a bibliographic citation for a photo or video from social media is similar to making a citation for any website. Examples that fall into this category include photos, videos, or social media-specific mediums like highlights, reels, moments, or lives.

For your full citation in your bibliography, use the caption of the photo or video, up to 20 words, as the title. Denote the style of media in brackets, following the title.

For sources like Instagram Reels, Highlights, and other media whose exact date of posting is hard to discern, include the date you found and cited the photo or video rather than the original date the media was shared.

Here are examples of bibliographic citations:

World Wildlife Foundation [wwf]. (2021, October 20). This year marks our 60 years of action for people and nature. Together, we’ve done so much… [Photo]. Instagram. https://www.instagram.com/p/CVQQbF_KmA6/

New York Times [nytimes]. (n.d.) NYC Marathon 2021 [Highlight]. Instagram. https://www.instagram.com/stories/highlights/17928514339867051/

Here are the corresponding in-text citations:

(World Wildlife Foundation, 2021)

(New York Times, 2021)

Solution #3: How emojis are cited in APA format

If the website or social media post you are citing contains an emoji, keep the emoji in your full bibliographic citation without altering it.

Reference list example:

Grande, A [arianagrande]. (2021, October 18) the final #voicebattles begin tonight @nbcthevoice.🧚🏼‍♂️ thank you @kchenoweth, i love you. [Photo]. Instagram. https://www.instagram.com/p/CVLfY_vv_3c/

In-text citation example:

(Grande, 2021)

If you have trouble pasting the emoji into your full citation, put the emoji’s name followed by the word “emoji” all in brackets within your citation instead. Use Unicode’s Emoji Charts to look up the widely accepted, technical name of the emoji you want to cite.

Grande, A [arianagrande]. the final the final #voicebattles  begin tonight  @nbcthevoice . [woman fairy emoji] thank you  @kchenoweth , i love you. [Photo]. Instagram. https://www.instagram.com/p/CVLfY_vv_3c/

This guide is not officially associated with the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association, but it does provide information in line with the manual. 

APA Formatting Guide

APA Formatting

• Annotated Bibliography
• Block Quotes
• et al Usage
• In-text Citations
• Multiple Authors
• Paraphrasing
• Page Numbers
• Parenthetical Citations
• Reference Page
• Sample Paper
• APA 7 Updates
• View APA Guide

Citation Examples

• Book Chapter
• Journal Article
• Magazine Article
• Newspaper Article
• Website (no author)
• View all APA Examples

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You will need the webpage’s author’s name, publication date, title of the page, website name, and the URL.

Here is an example with an author:

Geggel, L. (2021, July 6). A brief history of dinosaurs . LiveScience. https://www.livescience.com/3945-history-dinosaurs.html

Usually, if no author is shown the website is assumed to be the author. In these cases, the website name replaces the author name in the beginning of the reference.

For example:

National Park Service. (2018, July 23). Night skies as a cultural-historical resource . https://www.nps.gov/subjects/nightskies/cultural.htm

The URL of a website is mandatory if you cite a website or a webpage. Where you include the URL depends on the type of citation. To cite a website as a general reference without any reference to a specific page or particular details, simply add the name of the website in the text and include the URL in parentheses. There is no need to add a reference list entry. However, to cite a webpage on a website, you need to provide both an in-text citation and a reference list entry. Do not add the URL in the in-text citation. Just add the author’s name and year. The URL is given only in the reference list entry. Templates for in-text citations and reference list entries of a website or webpage along with examples are given below.

Website as a general reference

In-text style:

We took the data from the Office of the Registrar General & Census Commissioner, India (https://censusindia.gov.in/).

Webpage of a website

In-text citation templates and examples:

Author Surname (publication year)

Skelton (2017)

Parenthetical:

(Author Surname, publication year)

(Skelton, 2017)

Note that month and day are not mentioned in in-text citations.

Reference list entry template and example:

Author Surname, F. M. (Year, Month Day). Title of the webpage. Name of the Site. URL

Skelton, R. (2017, February 16). Fact check’s return perfect timing in ‘post truth’ age. ABC Opinion. https://www.abc.net.au/news/2017-02-16/fact-check-return-perfect-timing-in-post-truth-age/8277268

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Cite a Website

Don't let plagiarism errors spoil your paper, citing a website in apa.

Once you’ve identified a credible website to use, create a citation and begin building your reference list. Citation Machine citing tools can help you create references for online news articles, government websites, blogs, and many other website! Keeping track of sources as you research and write can help you stay organized and ethical. If you end up not using a source, you can easily delete it from your bibliography. Ready to create a citation? Enter the website’s URL into the search box above. You’ll get a list of results, so you can identify and choose the correct source you want to cite. It’s that easy to begin!

If you’re wondering how to cite a website in APA, use the structure below.

Author Last Name, First initial. (Year, Month Date Published). Title of web page . Name of Website. URL

Example of an APA format website:

Austerlitz, S. (2015, March 3). How long can a spinoff like ‘Better Call Saul’ last? FiveThirtyEight. http://fivethirtyeight.com/features/how-long-can-a-spinoff-like-better-call-saul-last/

Keep in mind that not all information found on a website follows the structure above. Only use the Website format above if your online source does not fit another source category. For example, if you’re looking at a video on YouTube, refer to the ‘YouTube Video’ section. If you’re citing a newspaper article found online, refer to ‘Newspapers Found Online’ section. Again, an APA website citation is strictly for web pages that do not fit better with one of the other categories on this page.

Social media:

When adding the text of a post, keep the original capitalization, spelling, hashtags, emojis (if possible), and links within the text.

Facebook posts:

Structure: Facebook user’s Last name, F. M. (Year, Monday Day of Post). Up to the first 20 words of Facebook post [Source type if attached] [Post type]. Facebook. URL

Source type examples: [Video attached], [Image attached]

Post type examples: [Status update], [Video], [Image], [Infographic]

Gomez, S. (2020, February 4). Guys, I’ve been working on this special project for two years and can officially say Rare Beauty is launching in [Video]. Facebook. https://www.facebook.com/Selena/videos/1340031502835436/

Life at Chegg. (2020, February 7) It breaks our heart that 50% of college students right here in Silicon Valley are hungry. That’s why Chegg has [Images attached] [Status update]. Facebook. https://www.facebook.com/LifeAtChegg/posts/1076718522691591

Twitter posts:

Structure: Account holder’s Last name, F. M. [Twitter Handle]. (Year, Month Day of Post). Up to the first 20 words of tweet [source type if attached] [Tweet]. Twitter. URL

Source type examples: [Video attached], [Image attached], [Poll attached]

Example: Edelman, J. [Edelman11]. (2018, April 26). Nine years ago today my life changed forever. New England took a chance on a long shot and I’ve worked [Video attached] [Tweet]. Twitter. https://twitter.com/Edelman11/status/989652345922473985

Instagram posts:

APA citation format: Account holder’s Last name, F. M. [@Instagram handle]. (Year, Month Day). Up to the first 20 words of caption [Photograph(s) and/or Video(s)]. Instagram. URL

Example: Portman, N. [@natalieportman]. (2019, January 5). Many of my best experiences last year were getting to listen to and learn from so many incredible people through [Videos]. Instagram. https://www.instagram.com/p/BsRD-FBB8HI/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link

If this guide hasn’t helped solve all of your referencing questions, or if you’re still feeling the need to type “how to cite a website APA” into Google, then check out our APA citation generator on CitationMachine.com, which can build your references for you!

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APA Style (7th Edition) Citation Guide: Websites

• Introduction
• Journal Articles
• Magazine/Newspaper Articles
• Books & Ebooks
• Government & Legal Documents
• Biblical Sources
• Secondary Sources
• Films/Videos/TV Shows
• How to Cite: Other
• Additional Help

Table of Contents

Entire Website - No Separate Pages or Sections

Page or Section from a Website

Note: All citations should be double spaced and have a hanging indent in a Reference List.

A "hanging indent" means that each subsequent line after the first line of your citation should be indented by 0.5 inches.

This Microsoft support page contains instructions about how to format a hanging indent in a paper.

It can sometimes be difficult to find out who the author of a website is. Remember that an author can be a corporation or group, not only a specific person. Author information can sometimes be found under an "About" section on a website.

If there is no known author, start the citation with the title of the website instead.

The best date to use for a website is the date that the content was last updated. Otherwise look for a copyright or original publication date. Unfortunately this information may not be provided or may be hard to find. Often date information is put on the bottom of the pages of a website.

If you do not know the complete date, put as much information as you can find. For example you may have a year but no month or day.

If an original publication date and a last updated date are provided, use the last updated date. If the more current date is "last reviewed" instead of "last updated," use the original publication date (since the review may not have changed the content).

If there is no date provided, put the letters (n.d.) in round brackets where you'd normally put the date.

Titles should be italicized when the document stands alone (e.g. books, reports, websites, etc.), but not when it is part of a greater whole (e.g. chapters, articles, webpages, etc.).

Website Name

Provide website names in title case without italics after titles of work. Include a period after the website name, followed by the URL. When the author of the work is the same as the website name, omit the site name from the reference.

Retrieval Date

If the content of a website is likely to change over time (e.g. Wikis), you must provide the date you last visited the website.

If a URL is too long to fit onto one line, try to break it at a slash (/).

Entire Website

Note: If you are quoting or paraphrasing part of a website, you should create a reference for a Page or Section. If you mention a website in general, do not create a reference list entry or an in-text citation. Instead, include the name of the website in the text and provide the URL in parentheses.

The Department of Justice has a site called ReportCrime.gov at https://www.reportcrime.gov/ to help people identify and report crimes in their area.

Note : If you cite multiple webpages from a website, create a reference for each. Include the date you retrieved the information if the content is likely to change over time.

Created by a Corporate or Group Author

Corporation/Group/Organization's Name. (Year website was last updated/published, Month Day if given). Title of page: Subtitle (if any). Website Name. URL

Example in which the content is unlikely to change over time:

American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals. (2019, November 21). Justice served: Case closed for over 40 dogfighting victims . https://www.aspca.org/news/justice-served-case-closed-over-40-dogfighting-victims

Example in which the content is likely to change over time:

Adidas. (2020). Sustainability . Retrieved January 23, 2020, from https://www.adidas.com/us/sustainability

Note: When the author and site name are the same, omit the site name in the reference.

In-Text Paraphrase:

(Corporation/Group's Name, Year)

Example: (Adidas, 2020)

In-Text Quote:

(Corporation/Group's Name, year, Section Name section, para. Paragraph Number if more than one paragraph in section)

Example: (Adidas, 2020, Sustainability section, para. 1)

Note: When there are no visible page numbers or paragraph numbers, you may cite the section heading and the number of the paragraph in that section to identify where your quote came from.

Abbreviating Corporation/Group Author Name in In-Text citations:

Author names for corporations/groups can often be abbreviated. The first time you refer to the author, provide the full name, along with the abbreviation.

If the group name appears in the text of your paper, include the abbreviation in the in-text parenthetical citation:

Example: The American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ASPCA, 2019) assisted in the rescue of 40 dogs.

If the group name first appears within a parenthetical citation, include the full group name as well as the abbreviation in square brackets:

Example: Forty dogs were rescued in Bendena, Kansas (American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals [ASPCA], 2019).

Provide the full group name (without an abbreviation) in the reference list entry: 

Created by an Individual Author 

Author's Last Name, First Initial. Second Initial if Given. (Year website was last updated/published, Month Day if given). Title of page: Subtitle (if any). Website Name. URL

Price, D. (2018, March 23). Laziness does not exist . Medium. https://humanparts.medium.com/laziness-does-not-exist-3af27e312d01

Shillam, S. (2018). Message from the Dean . University of Portland. Retrieved October 1, 2018, from https://nursing.up.edu/about/index.html

(Author Last Name, Year)

Example: (Shillam, 2018)

(Author Last Name, Year, Section Name section, para. Paragraph Number if more than one paragraph in section)

Example: (Shillam, 2018, Message from the dean section, para. 2)

Created by an Unknown Author 

Title of page: Subtitle (if any). (Year website was last updated/published, Month Day if given). Website Name. URL

Example in which the content is unlikely to change over time (because the restaurant has closed) :

Jarra's Ethiopian Restaurant [Reviews]. (2012, November 9). Yelp. https://www.yelp.com/biz/jarras-ethiopian-restaurant-portland

Powell's City of Books [Reviews]. (2020, February 25). Yelp. Retrieved February 28, 2020, from https://www.yelp.com/biz/powells-city-of-books-portland-4

("Title," Year)

Example: ("Powell's City of Books," 2020)

("Title," Year, Section Name section, para. Paragraph Number if more than one paragraph in section)

Example: ("Powell's City of Books," 2020, Review Highlights)

Note: When there are no visible page numbers or paragraph numbers, you may cite the section heading and the number of the paragraph in that section to identify where your quote came from. In this example, there is only one paragraph under the specific heading, so no paragraph number is needed.

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APA Style 7th Edition: Citing Your Sources

• Basics of APA Formatting
• In Text Quick View
• Block Quotes
• Books & eBooks
• Thesis/Dissertation

Standard Format

Formatting rules, various examples.

• Audiovisual
• Conference Presentations
• Social Media
• Legal References
• Reports and Gray Literature
• Academic Integrity and Plagiarism
• Additional Resources
• Reference Page

Adapted from American Psychological Association. (2020). Publication manual of the American Psychological Association (7th ed).  https://doi.org/10.1037/0000165-000

• Use when there is no other reference category that fits the source type and the work has no overarching publication (e.g., journal, blog, conference proceedings, etc.) other than the website itself
• If you refer to a website in general in you text, do not create a reference or in-text citation, instead refer to the websites name in the text followed by the URL in parentheses
• Provide the most specific date possible
• When site name is the designated author, omit including the site name from the reference
• Include a retrieval date when content is designed to change and the page is not archived

Website Examples

See Ch. 10 pp. 313-352 of APA Manual for more examples and formatting rules

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APA Website Citation

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Use the following template to cite a website using the APA citation format. There are also BibMe style guides for the MLA and Chicago styles.

Here’s a table of contents for this guide:

• Cite a website on BibMe citation generator
• Cite a website article with an author
• Cite a website article without an author
• Cite a website article without a date

How to Cite a Website in APA

Cite in websites in apa automatically with bibme.

To have your bibliography or works cited list automatically made for you, check out our free APA citation generator . Once you’re finished with your citations, you can also find help with creating an APA title page .

Citing a general website article in APA with an author

Author, A. (Year, Month Date of Publication). Article title . Website/Publisher Name. URL

Simmons, B. (2015, January 9). The tale of two Flaccos . Grantland. http://grantland.com/the-triangle/the-tale-of-two-flaccos/

Citing a general website article in APA without an author

Article title . (Year, Month Date of Publication). Website/Publisher Name. URL

Teen posed as doctor at West Palm Beach hospital: police . (2015, January 16). NBC Miami. http://www.nbcmiami.com/news/local/Teen-Posed-as-Doctor-at-West-Palm-Beach-Hospital-Police-288810831.html

Citing a general website article in APA without a date

Author, A. (n.d.). Article title . Website/Publisher Name. URL

University of California Santa Barbara. (n.d.). About UC Santa Barbara . UC Santa Barbara. https://www.ucsb.edu/about

Note that if the webpage contents are likely to change, include a retrieval date, formatted as follows:

University of California Santa Barbara. (n.d.). About UC Santa Barbara . UC Santa Barbara. Retrieved November 3, 2021, from https://www.ucsb.edu/about

How to cite from social media in APA

Apa citation example for facebook.

Author/Page Name. (Year, Month Date). First 20 words of post text [Status update]. Facebook. URL

Gates, B. (2020, December 1). 75 years after its founding, the United Nations’ work is as important as ever. In addition to working towards the [Status update]. Facebook. https://www.facebook.com/BillGates/posts/10157610753046961

APA citation example for Twitter

Author name [@twitterhandle]. (Year, Month Date). First 20 words of tweet text [Tweet]. Twitter. URL

 World Health Organization [@WHO]. (2021, January 27). Nutritious & safe food is 🔑 to achieve #HealthForAll. Together, let’s create food systems that are: 🥗 Healthy ♻️ Sustainable [Tweet]. Twitter. https://twitter.com/WHO/status/1354450281321345029

Note that if emojis are used in a tweet (or any type of social media post that you are citing), they should be included and counted as one word (but should not be italicized). Hashtags also count as one word.

APA citation example for Instagram

Author name [@username]. (Year, Month Date). First 20 words of post text [Photograph or Video]. Instagram. URL

National Geographic [@NatGeo]. (2021, January 26). Photo by @paulnicklen / I took this photo while waiting for leopard seals in Antarctica—my favorite assignment from 20 years [Photograph]. Instagram. https://www.instagram.com/p/CKg4XeSDHhG/

For more information on how to cite in APA, check out the APA style guide and  Cornell .

Important Note:

For information on how to cite other types of online sources in APA, check out the following guides:

• Online Book
• Online Magazine
• Online Newspaper
• Online Journal
• Online Encyclopedia

←Back to APA Citation Guide

“A word after a word after a word is power.” — Margaret Atwood

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When there is no date available for a webpage, use “n.d.” signifying “no date” in in-text citations, along with the author’s surname or the name of the institution.

Example in-text citation with author and no date:

(Ramsay, n.d.)

Example in-text citation with institution and no date:

(NIMH, n.d.)

Per section 10 of the APA Publication Manual , the contributor’s name (either the individual or the organization who shared the Instagram post) along with the year should be used when citing an Instagram post in an in-text citation.

Parenthetical: (Poster’s Last Name, year post was published)

Narrative: Poster’s Last Name (year post was published)

Parenthetical: (Vedika, 2022)

Narrative: Vedika (2022)

APA 7th referencing style

• About APA 7th
• Printing this guide
• In-text references
• Direct quotations
• Reference list
• Author information
• Additional referencing information
• Using headings
• Book chapter
• Brochure and pamphlets
• ChatGPT and other generative AI tools
• Conferences
• Dictionary or encyclopaedia
• Government legislation
• Journal article
• Lecture notes and slides
• Legal sources
• Newspaper or magazine article
• Other web sources
• Patents and standards
• Personal communication
• Press (media) release
• Secondary source (indirect citation)
• Social media
• Software and mobile apps
• Specialised health information
• Television program

Referencing webpages

Webpage within website - individual author, webpage within website - group author, webpage within website - no date.

• Works in non-English languages
• Works in non-English scripts, such as Arabic or Chinese

• If you use multiple pages from within the same website, reference each page individually.
• If referring to a website in general, do not include it in the in-text reference or in the reference list. Include website name within the text and add the web address in parentheses. For example - The survey was developed using Checkbox (http://www.checkbox.com) 
• Leave out the name of the website if the author and site name are the same.
• If a part of the date is not available eg. not specific date eg. March 16 or no month, just include the year.

The University of Queensland. (2020).

The University of Queensland. (2020, October).

The University of Queensland. (2020, October 15).

• If there is no date at all, include n.d.
• If there are references with the same author(s) and year , list them in alphabetically by title in the reference list. For he first of these references, add "a" after the year , b after the year for the second reference and so on. Use the relevant letter after the year in the in-text reference.

If there is no date or no month , these can be left out eg. Shapiro, R. E., & Cowan, R. (2017) or Shapiro, R. E., & Cowan, R. (2017, January).

If there is no date or no month , these can be left out eg. Mayo Clinic. (2017) or Mayo Clinic. (2017, March).

• << Previous: Video
• Next: Works in non-English languages >>
• Last Updated: Mar 26, 2024 5:00 PM
• URL: https://guides.library.uq.edu.au/referencing/apa7

Purdue Online Writing Lab Purdue OWL® College of Liberal Arts

In-Text Citations: The Basics

Welcome to the Purdue OWL

This page is brought to you by the OWL at Purdue University. When printing this page, you must include the entire legal notice.

Copyright ©1995-2018 by The Writing Lab & The OWL at Purdue and Purdue University. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, reproduced, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed without permission. Use of this site constitutes acceptance of our terms and conditions of fair use.

Note:  This page reflects the latest version of the APA Publication Manual (i.e., APA 7), which released in October 2019. The equivalent resource for the older APA 6 style  can be found here .

Reference citations in text are covered on pages 261-268 of the Publication Manual. What follows are some general guidelines for referring to the works of others in your essay.

Note:  On pages 117-118, the Publication Manual suggests that authors of research papers should use the past tense or present perfect tense for signal phrases that occur in the literature review and procedure descriptions (for example, Jones (1998)  found  or Jones (1998)  has found ...). Contexts other than traditionally-structured research writing may permit the simple present tense (for example, Jones (1998)  finds ).

APA Citation Basics

When using APA format, follow the author-date method of in-text citation. This means that the author's last name and the year of publication for the source should appear in the text, like, for example, (Jones, 1998). One complete reference for each source should appear in the reference list at the end of the paper.

If you are referring to an idea from another work but  NOT  directly quoting the material, or making reference to an entire book, article or other work, you only have to make reference to the author and year of publication and not the page number in your in-text reference.

On the other hand, if you are directly quoting or borrowing from another work, you should include the page number at the end of the parenthetical citation. Use the abbreviation “p.” (for one page) or “pp.” (for multiple pages) before listing the page number(s). Use an en dash for page ranges. For example, you might write (Jones, 1998, p. 199) or (Jones, 1998, pp. 199–201). This information is reiterated below.

Regardless of how they are referenced, all sources that are cited in the text must appear in the reference list at the end of the paper.

In-text citation capitalization, quotes, and italics/underlining

• Always capitalize proper nouns, including author names and initials: D. Jones.
• If you refer to the title of a source within your paper, capitalize all words that are four letters long or greater within the title of a source:  Permanence and Change . Exceptions apply to short words that are verbs, nouns, pronouns, adjectives, and adverbs:  Writing New Media ,  There Is Nothing Left to Lose .

( Note:  in your References list, only the first word of a title will be capitalized:  Writing new media .)

• When capitalizing titles, capitalize both words in a hyphenated compound word:  Natural-Born Cyborgs .
• Capitalize the first word after a dash or colon: "Defining Film Rhetoric: The Case of Hitchcock's  Vertigo ."
• If the title of the work is italicized in your reference list, italicize it and use title case capitalization in the text:  The Closing of the American Mind ;  The Wizard of Oz ;  Friends .
• If the title of the work is not italicized in your reference list, use double quotation marks and title case capitalization (even though the reference list uses sentence case): "Multimedia Narration: Constructing Possible Worlds;" "The One Where Chandler Can't Cry."

Short quotations

If you are directly quoting from a work, you will need to include the author, year of publication, and page number for the reference (preceded by "p." for a single page and “pp.” for a span of multiple pages, with the page numbers separated by an en dash).

You can introduce the quotation with a signal phrase that includes the author's last name followed by the date of publication in parentheses.

If you do not include the author’s name in the text of the sentence, place the author's last name, the year of publication, and the page number in parentheses after the quotation.

Long quotations

Place direct quotations that are 40 words or longer in a free-standing block of typewritten lines and omit quotation marks. Start the quotation on a new line, indented 1/2 inch from the left margin, i.e., in the same place you would begin a new paragraph. Type the entire quotation on the new margin, and indent the first line of any subsequent paragraph within the quotation 1/2 inch from the new margin. Maintain double-spacing throughout, but do not add an extra blank line before or after it. The parenthetical citation should come after the closing punctuation mark.

Because block quotation formatting is difficult for us to replicate in the OWL's content management system, we have simply provided a screenshot of a generic example below.

Formatting example for block quotations in APA 7 style.

Quotations from sources without pages

Direct quotations from sources that do not contain pages should not reference a page number. Instead, you may reference another logical identifying element: a paragraph, a chapter number, a section number, a table number, or something else. Older works (like religious texts) can also incorporate special location identifiers like verse numbers. In short: pick a substitute for page numbers that makes sense for your source.

Summary or paraphrase

If you are paraphrasing an idea from another work, you only have to make reference to the author and year of publication in your in-text reference and may omit the page numbers. APA guidelines, however, do encourage including a page range for a summary or paraphrase when it will help the reader find the information in a longer work. 

• Bibliography Answers

How to cite a website in APA, MLA, or Harvard style

There are many different ways to cite a website, depending on which citation style you need to format it in.

 The easy way to cite a website in any citation style

Use our citation generator below to automatically cite a website in any style, including APA, MLA 7 and 8, and Harvard. Just select the style you need, copy the URL into the search box, and press search. We’ll do the rest.

 The manual way to cite a website

To cite a website by hand just follow the instructions below. For the 3 most popular styles–APA, MLA 8, and Harvard–this is as follows:

 In APA style

You need to locate these details for the website: page or article author, page or article title, website name, published date, access date, page URL (web address) .

• The author can typically be found on the page, but if there isn’t one listed you can use the website name in its place.
• The page title can be found near the top of the page, and you can also find it by hovering your mouse over the browser tab.
• The website name can usually be found in the web address or by looking for a logo or similar at the very top of the page.
• There often isn’t a publish date , but if there is it’ll be very close to the page title.
• The access date is the date you took information from the article (usually today).
• The page URL can be copied straight from the address bar of your browser and will start with either http:// or https://.

Then use this template, replacing the colored placeholders with the information you found on the page:

Author last name , author first name initial . ( published year , published month and day ). Page title . Retrieved accessed month and day , accessed year , from article URL .

The final formatted citation should look like this:

Ingle, S. (2018, February 11). Winter Olympics was hit by cyber-attack, officials confirm. Retrieved July 24, 2018, from https://www.theguardian.com/sport/2018/feb/11/winter-olympics-was-hit-by-cyber-attack-officials-confirm.

For a more comprehensive guide, including what to do when you can’t find certain details, have a look at our more in-depth guide to citing a website in APA format .

 In MLA 8 style

Here are the specific details you need to find on the page: page or article author, page or article title, website name, published date, access date, page URL (web address) .

Then use this template:

Author last name , author first name . “ Page title .” website name , published date day, month, year , page URL . Accessed accessed date day, month, year .

Ingle, Sean. “Winter Olympics Was Hit by Cyber-Attack, Officials Confirm.” The Guardian , 11 Feb. 2018, https://www.theguardian.com/sport/2018/feb/11/winter-olympics-was-hit-by-cyber-attack-officials-confirm. Accessed 13 July 2018.

For a more comprehensive guide, including what to do when you can’t find certain details, have a look at our more in-depth guide to citing a website in MLA 8 format .

 In Harvard style

First, find these details for the website: page or article author, page or article title, website name, published date, access date, page URL (web address) .

Author last name , author firstname initial ( published date year ). Page title . [online] website name . Available at: page URL [Accessed accessed date day, month, year ].

Ingle, S. (2018). Winter Olympics was hit by cyber-attack, officials confirm . [online] The Guardian. Available at: https://www.theguardian.com/sport/2018/feb/11/winter-olympics-was-hit-by-cyber-attack-officials-confirm [Accessed 13 Jul. 2018].

Daniel is a qualified librarian, former teacher, and citation expert. He has been contributing to MyBib since 2018.

• Jacksonville University
• Swisher Library

APA Guide 7th ed.

• Citing a Website Article
• Formatting the Author
• Formatting Your Title Page
• Citing a Book or eBook
• Citing Part of a Book or eBook
• Citing a Journal Article
• Citing a Magazine or Newspaper Article
• Citing Interviews, Emails, etc.
• Citing an Online Video
• In-text Citations
• What is a DOI?
• Creating Permanent Database Links
• Sample Paper in APA 7th ed. format
• APA Resources
• APA Style Website This link opens in a new window
• Academic Integrity Policy at JU This link opens in a new window
• What's New in the 7th edition?
• Need Help with APA?
• Older Edition of APA (6th ed.)
• APA 7th ed. Video Tutorial

Citing a Website (pp. 350-352)

Website Article with Author: (p. 351)

Format : Author, A. A. (Year, Month Day). Title of article in italics . Website Name. http://url_of_website

Website Article with an Organization as Author: (p. 351)

Format : Name of Organization. (Year, Month Day).  Title of article in italics . http://url_of_website

Website Article with No Author: (p. 289)

Format : Title of article in italics . ( Year, Month Day ). Website Name. http://url_of_website

Website with No Date: (p. 352)

Format : Author, A. A. (n.d.). Title of article in italics . Website Name. http://url_of_website

Website with a Retrieval Date: (p. 352)

Format : Author, A. A. (Year, Month Day). Title of article in italics . Website Name. Retrieved Month Day Year, from  http://url_of_website

Tips for Citing an Online Article

• When author and website name are the same, omit the site name from the source element (p. 351)
• Use n.d. (no date) when a publication date is not given.
• When the contents of the page are designed to change over time, include a retrieval date.  (example: The US Census Bureau's Population Clock)
• << Previous: Citing Interviews, Emails, etc.
• Next: Citing an Online Video >>
• Last Updated: Mar 8, 2024 2:31 PM

Decoding Academic Integrity: Mastering the Art of Citing Paraphrased Texts

Paraphrasing might seem like a way of avoiding plagiarism, but it can be considered a form of plagiarism if you don’t cite the original source. Citing paraphrases involves more than just mentioning the author’s name. Each formatting style—APA, MLA, or Chicago—has its own particular rules about how to cite paraphrased information, and these contrasting styles can be confusing.

Below, we review the rules for citing paraphrases in MLA, APA, and Chicago formats. We’ll break down the guidelines and share a paraphrase citation example or two for each style so you can see how to do it yourself.

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How to cite a paraphrase

Paraphrasing is when you restate someone else’s text or speech in your own words, keeping the original meaning. There are two challenges to doing this. One, which we’ll come back to in a minute, is that you have to cite a source, even though you’re not quoting it directly. The other challenge is that it’s not always easy to find a new way of saying what your source already said. Need help with that? In addition to the techniques mentioned in our paraphrasing guide , you can also check out our free paraphrasing tool , which lets you paste in up to 500 characters of text and then suggests a few different paraphrases for you to choose from.

One important point. You don’t need quotation marks if you are paraphrasing. Quotation marks are only for direct quotes, where you copy the original source’s wording exactly.

Now, back to the other challenge we mentioned. When you paraphrase, in order to avoid plagiarism , you need to include a citation. Citing a paraphrase in writing usually involves adding the author’s name and other information in parentheses next to the passage. This is called an in-text citation or parenthetical citation . Sometimes footnote or endnote citations can be used instead.

In academic writing , the formatting of an in-text citation and the information to include depend on the style you’re following: APA , MLA , or Chicago . Each style has its own unique rules, though there are some similarities between them. Below, we discuss the rules of citing paraphrases, based on which style you’re using.

Here’s another essential point. Along with creating an in-text citation or a footnote or endnote citation, you also need to add a full citation for the source in the bibliography at the end of your writing. Full citations usually include details about the publication, such as the publishing company or internet URL. Which details to include and in what order again depends on the formatting style. You can read all about that in our APA, MLA, and Chicago guides linked above. And you can use our free citation generator to help you along.

Citing paraphrases: APA

The APA format uses an author-date system for citing a paraphrased passage. This involves placing the author’s surname (last name) and the year of publication in parentheses, separated by a comma. An APA-style in-text citation for a work with two authors would look like this:

(Bell & Offen, 1983)

The in-text citation should occur at the end of the passage, but before the concluding punctuation: at the end of a sentence before the period, or at the end of a clause before the semicolon or comma.

If you mention either the author’s name or the year of publication in the words of your own text, known as a narrative citation, you can omit that information from the APA paraphrasing citation. In narrative citations that mention only the author, put the year in parentheses after the author’s name instead of the end of the passage. This may sound complicated, but it’ll be more clear if you look at some examples.

APA paraphrasing citation example

Researchers recently discovered that Kundalini yoga improved cognition and memory in several older women at risk for Alzheimer’s disease (Lavretsky, 2024).

In a 2024 study, researchers discovered that Kundalini yoga improved cognition and memory in several older women at risk for Alzheimer’s disease (Lavretsky).

The research team of Dr. Helen Lavretsky (2024) recently discovered that Kundalini yoga improved cognition and memory in several older women at risk for Alzheimer’s disease.

In a 2024 study, the research team of Dr. Helen Lavretsky discovered that Kundalini yoga improved cognition and memory in several older women at risk for Alzheimer’s disease.

Citing paraphrases: MLA

Paraphrase citing in MLA uses the author’s surname in parentheses, but with the page numbers instead of the year of publication. There is no comma to separate them, so numbers in MLA in-text citations generally refer to a page.

If you mention either the author or the page in the text—a narrative citation—you can omit that information from the citation. This is more common with the author than the page number, so in MLA papers you will often see only the page number in parentheses.

MLA paraphrasing citation example

Someone whose words and actions are not genuine, but instead represent those of another person, is considered to be an “artificial person” (Hobbes 113).

Someone whose words and actions are not genuine, but instead represent those of another person, is considered to be what Hobbes calls an “artificial person” (113).

Citing paraphrases: Chicago

The Chicago style provides for two different systems of citing sources. We’ll briefly describe each, but you don’t necessarily get to take your pick. If you’re writing for school, you’ll probably be told which system to apply. One is called the author-date system; it’s commonly used in the sciences. The other, known as the notes-and-bibliography system, is more often used in the humanities. Bear with us—this can be complicated!

The author-date system calls for using brief, in-text citations and giving full details in a reference list. The in-text citation is like APA but slightly different. You give the author’s last name followed by a space (but no comma) and the year of publication; then you add a comma and the page number if one is needed.

In the notes-and-bibliography system, you simply put a superscript number in your text ( after the punctuation ending your paraphrase), and you provide the relevant citation information in a footnote or endnote. Footnotes go at the bottom of the page; endnotes go in a separate section after the main body of your text. Under this system, you can either:

• Give all the needed details in the notes (a full citation the first time you reference that source, but a short form for later references) and omit a bibliography, or
• Give concise information in the notes (the author’s surname, an abbreviated title of the source, and the relevant page numbers) and give a full citation in a bibliography.

Chicago paraphrasing citations example

The first ruler to create a navy as we know it today was Minos of Crete, who used his to control what he called the Hellenic Sea, today known as the Aegean Sea (Thucydides 1972, 37).

The first ruler to create a navy as we know it today was Minos of Crete, who used his to control what he called the Hellenic Sea, now known as the Aegean Sea. 1

1. Thucydides, The History of the Peloponnesian War , 37.

How to Cite a Paraphrased Text FAQs

Do i have to cite a source if i paraphrase and don’t directly quote.

Yes, in formal writing like research papers you still need to cite a source after you paraphrase its message. You need to include both an in-text citation, such as a parenthetical citation, as well as a full citation in the bibliography at the end of your work.

What are the differences in citing a paraphrase between MLA, APA, and Chicago styles?

MLA, APA, and Chicago styles can all use in-text citations, also known as parenthetical citations. For APA and Chicago, this includes the author’s last name and the year of publication, whereas in MLA it includes the author’s last name and page number. Chicago also has the option of using footnotes or endnotes instead of a parenthetical citation.

Where does the citation go when citing a paraphrase?

In-text or parenthetical citations appear at the end of the passage before the concluding punctuation. For example, you could put them at the end of a sentence before the period or at the end of a clause before the semicolon or comma. For footnotes and endnotes, the superscript number appears at the end of the passage after the punctuation.

Generate accurate APA citations for free

• Knowledge Base
• No Author, Date, or Title in APA Style | Formats & Examples

No Author, Date, or Title in APA Style | Formats & Examples

Published on November 6, 2020 by Jack Caulfield . Revised on January 17, 2024.

Webpage citations in APA Style consist of five components: author, publication date, title, website name, and URL.

Unfortunately, some of these components are sometimes missing. For instance, there may be no author or publication date. This article explains how to handle different kinds and combinations of missing information.

Generate an accurate APA citation for any source now:

Table of contents, basic webpage citation format, no author or date, no author or title, no date or title, no author, date, or title.

You can explore the basic citation format for a webpage using the example generator below.

Are your APA in-text citations flawless?

The AI-powered APA Citation Checker points out every error, tells you exactly what’s wrong, and explains how to fix it. Say goodbye to losing marks on your assignment!

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Don’t forget: Our APA Citation Generator can handle all of these exceptions for you automatically!

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Cite this Scribbr article

If you want to cite this source, you can copy and paste the citation or click the “Cite this Scribbr article” button to automatically add the citation to our free Citation Generator.

Caulfield, J. (2024, January 17). No Author, Date, or Title in APA Style | Formats & Examples. Scribbr. Retrieved April 2, 2024, from https://www.scribbr.com/apa-examples/citing-online-sources-no-author-date-title/

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