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APA Citation Guide (7th edition) : Getting Started

This guide shows you how to cite using APA 7th edition.

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APA 7th Edition

The major changes in APA 7th edition:

  • Book references now omit the publisher location.
  • Journal articles should always include an issue number.
  • Sources retrieved from databases are now referenced as print sources.
  • You can add up to 20 authors in a reference list instead of only 7.
  • Social media examples were added.
  • Websites’ URLs omit the “Retrieved from” or "Accessed from" phrase.

Digital Object Identifiers (DOI)

Also known as a permalink, a DOI, or digital object identifier, is an article's permanent online location. DOIs are used for a variety of academic and non-academic sources that are located online. 

Include a DOI for all works that have a DOI, regardless of whether you used the online version or the print version. If an online work has both a DOI and a URL, include only the DOI; if the source only has a URL, include the URL.

What is APA?

APA style was created by the American Psychological Association. It is a set of rules for research papers and publications.

In APA, you must cite sources that you have paraphrased, quoted, or consulted to write your research paper. Cite your sources in two places:

  1. In the body of your paper (in-text citation).
  2. In the Reference list at the end of your paper (full bibliographic reference).