Citation Generator — Generate APA, MLA, and Chicago Citations Free
Proper citations are required in academic writing, journalism, and professional research. They give credit to original authors, allow readers to verify sources, and protect against plagiarism accusations. The free citation generator on PublicSoftTools formats citations in APA, MLA, and Chicago style instantly — just enter the source details and copy the formatted reference.
Citation Styles Overview
| Style | Common disciplines | Book example |
|---|---|---|
| APA (7th ed.) | Psychology, social sciences, education, business | Smith, J. A., & Jones, B. (2022). The psychology of learning. Oxford University Press. |
| MLA (9th ed.) | Literature, humanities, languages, cultural studies | Smith, Jane A., and Bob Jones. The Psychology of Learning. Oxford UP, 2022. |
| Chicago (Author-Date) | History, arts, sciences (author-date variant) | Smith, Jane A., and Bob Jones. 2022. The Psychology of Learning. Oxford University Press. |
| Chicago (Notes-Bibliography) | History, arts, humanities (footnote variant) | Jane A. Smith and Bob Jones, The Psychology of Learning (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2022), 45. |
| Harvard | UK/Australian universities, sciences, social sciences | Smith, J.A. and Jones, B. (2022) The psychology of learning. Oxford: Oxford University Press. |
How to Use the Citation Generator
- Open the citation generator.
- Select your citation style (APA, MLA, or Chicago).
- Choose the source type (book, journal article, website, etc.).
- Fill in the available fields — author name(s), title, year, publisher, URL, etc. More fields = more accurate citation.
- Click Generate. The correctly formatted citation appears below.
- Click Copy to copy the citation to your clipboard, then paste it directly into your reference list.
What Each Source Type Requires
| Source type | Key elements needed | Common mistake |
|---|---|---|
| Journal article | Author(s), year, article title, journal name (italicised), volume(issue), pages, DOI | DOI is now required in most styles if available. Always include. |
| Book | Author(s), year, title (italicised), edition if not first, publisher | Include the publisher city in older style editions; APA 7th no longer requires it. |
| Book chapter (edited book) | Chapter author(s), year, chapter title, In Editor (Ed.), book title (italicised), page range, publisher | Note "In" before the editor name — this marks it as a chapter, not the whole book. |
| Website | Author (if known), year (or "n.d."), page title, website name, URL, retrieval date (if content changes) | Retrieval date is only needed in APA for content that changes over time (e.g., Wikipedia). |
| Newspaper article | Author, year, article title, newspaper name (italicised), URL or page number | Online newspaper articles: include URL. Print: include page number. |
| Government report | Agency name, year, report title, department, URL | Use the full government body name as the author. No individual author needed. |
APA 7th Edition: Key Rules
Author formatting
Author names appear as: Last name, First initial. Middle initial. For two authors: Author One, A. A., & Author Two, B. B. For three to twenty authors, list all authors with commas, using & before the last author. For twenty-one or more authors, list the first nineteen, add an ellipsis (...), then the final author.
For organisations as authors (government bodies, companies), write the full name without abbreviation: "World Health Organization, 2023" — not "WHO, 2023". Abbreviate only in subsequent in-text citations once established: "(World Health Organization [WHO], 2023)" then "(WHO, 2023)".
DOI and URL formatting
APA 7th requires DOIs when available for journal articles. Format as: doi.org/10.xxxx/xxxxx — include the https:// prefix (not required in older APA 6th style). URLs for websites should be live links where possible. If no DOI exists and the article was retrieved online, include the URL of the journal's homepage, not the specific article URL (which may expire).
In-text citations
APA uses author-date in-text citations: (Smith, 2022) or (Smith & Jones, 2022) for paraphrase, or (Smith, 2022, p. 45) for a direct quote with page number. For three or more authors, use first author + et al. from the first citation: (Smith et al., 2022).
MLA 9th Edition: Key Rules
Works Cited vs. Bibliography
MLA uses a "Works Cited" page — it lists only sources actually cited in the text. A "Bibliography" or "Works Consulted" page lists all sources you consulted, whether cited or not. Unless instructed otherwise, MLA essays use a Works Cited page.
Container logic in MLA
MLA 9 uses a "container" concept for digital sources. The source (a journal article) sits inside a container (the journal), which may sit inside a larger container (an online database like JSTOR). The citation identifies each layer: Article title, Journal name, volume number, issue, year, pages, then Database name, DOI or URL.
In-text citations in MLA
MLA uses parenthetical author-page citations: (Smith 45) for a paraphrase on page 45. The author's last name and page number only — no year, no comma. For direct quotes with block quotation, place the parenthetical after the final punctuation.
Chicago Style: Two Versions
Chicago has two distinct citation systems, and which to use depends on your field and institution:
- Notes-Bibliography (N-B): Uses numbered footnotes or endnotes in the text, with a bibliography at the end. Common in humanities. First citation is full; subsequent citations of the same source use a shortened form.
- Author-Date (A-D): Uses in-text author-date citations like APA. More common in sciences and social sciences. All cited sources appear in a reference list.
If your instructor specifies "Chicago style" without specifying which system, check what discipline you are in or ask — using the wrong Chicago system is a common mistake.
Common Citation Mistakes
Inconsistent formatting
Mixing elements of APA and MLA in the same reference list (e.g., using APA author format with MLA title capitalisation) is one of the most common errors. Use a citation generator to ensure consistent formatting, and check your entire reference list against the same style guide before submission.
Missing DOI
APA 7th requires a DOI for journal articles when one is available. Many students include the journal URL instead. Find the DOI on the article's page — it usually appears at the top of the full-text PDF or on the journal's abstract page.
Incorrect author order
All major styles (APA, MLA, Chicago) list authors in the order they appear on the source — not alphabetically, not in order of importance. The order in which authors are listed on a paper reflects their relative contribution; changing the order misrepresents the source.
No italics on book/journal titles
In all major citation styles, book titles and journal names are italicised. Article titles are not (they appear in plain text or within quotation marks depending on style). In a digital document, italics are easy to add — do not let this slip through to submission.
Using the wrong edition of the style guide
Style guides update regularly. APA is on its 7th edition; MLA on its 9th. The formatting rules change between editions — APA 6th and 7th differ significantly in how they handle author limits, publisher location, and DOI formatting. Confirm which edition your institution or instructor requires.
In-Text vs. Reference List Citations
Every citation has two components that must work together:
- In-text citation: Appears within the body of the text at the point where you reference the source. It is brief (author, date, page) and points the reader to the full citation in the reference list.
- Reference list / Works Cited / Bibliography: Appears at the end of the document. Contains the full citation information for every source cited in-text.
Every in-text citation must have a corresponding full citation in the reference list, and every entry in the reference list must be cited at least once in the text. Orphan entries (in the list but not cited) or missing entries (cited in-text but absent from the list) are both errors.
Secondary Sources and Avoiding Over-Reliance
A secondary source discusses or interprets a primary source. If you cite Smith (2020) citing Brown (1995), you are using a secondary source. The preferred approach is to find and read the original Brown (1995) and cite it directly. When you cannot access the original:
- APA: "Brown (1995), as cited in Smith (2020)" in-text; only cite Smith (2020) in the reference list.
- MLA: Include both in-text as "qtd. in" — (Brown qtd. in Smith 45).
Avoid chains of secondary citations — each link introduces a risk of misrepresentation. If a source is important enough to cite, find the original.
Common Questions
What if a source has no author?
In APA, use the title in place of the author: ("Article Title," 2022). In MLA, use the first few words of the title: ("Article" 45). In Chicago, move the title to the beginning of the citation. Many organisations (government agencies, anonymous institutions) count as the author — use the organisation's full name.
What if a source has no date?
In APA, use "n.d." (no date) where the year normally appears: (Smith, n.d.). In MLA, leave the year field blank and note the access date for websites. Websites with "last updated" dates can use that as the publication year.
Do I need to cite things I paraphrase, or only direct quotes?
Everything you paraphrase from a source requires a citation, not only direct quotes. If you take an idea, argument, data, or conclusion from a source — even if you completely restate it in your own words — you must cite the source. Failing to cite paraphrased material is plagiarism.
Can I use the same citation generator for all my essays?
Yes, as long as you verify the output against the specific edition of the style guide your institution requires. Citation generators are tools to format correctly — always do a spot-check of the generated citation against the official style manual or your institution's guidelines to catch any edge cases the generator handles differently.
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