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APA (7th Edition) Referencing Guide

  • Information for EndNote Users
  • Authors - Numbers, Rules and Formatting
  • In-Text Citations

Everything must match!

Setting out the reference list, example reference list, apa 7th reference lists.

  • Books & eBooks
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  • Blog Posts and Social Media
  • First Nations Works
  • Dictionary and Encyclopedia Entries
  • Personal Communication
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  • Film / TV / DVD
  • AI software
  • APA Format for Assignments
  • What If...?
  • Other Guides

Coins showing Heads and Tails

Notes on the layout for your reference list:

Layout of page:

  • The reference list starts on a new page, after your assignment and before any appendices. Place the word "References", centered, in bold, at the top of the page. APA does not require other formatting for the title of your reference page (like underlining), but check with your lecturer.
  • Each entry in the reference list has a hanging indent , so that the first line of the entry is flush with the left margin, but all other lines are indented (this is the opposite of the paragraph structure in the body of your essay). Tip: You can do this easily by selecting your references, and pressing Ctrl + T on a PC, or Command (⌘) + T on a Mac. (For Word Online, see the instructions for creating a hanging indent here: https://libanswers.jcu.edu.au/faq/266638 ).

Order of references:

  • For APA the reference list is arranged in alphabetical order of authors' surnames.
  • Arrange by first author's name, then by second author if you have the same first author, etc. ( check the page on Authors for how to lay out the reference if you have more than one author ).
  • If a reference has no author , list it alphabetically according to the title. Ignore the words 'A', 'An' and 'The' at the beginning of a corporate author or title for deciding where it fits alphabetically.
  • N.B. A year without a date is considered to be "older" than a year with a date ("nothing comes before something"), so 2018 will go before 2018, September - and a month without a day will go before a month with a day, so 2018, September will go before 2018, September 12. Please note that the year only is required in-text, so you will need to follow the advice below whenever you have multiple citations in the same year.
  • N.B. If you have a full date, only use the title to order the references if the date is identical. Always use 'a', 'b', etc after the year, if more than one work has been published by the same author in the same year, as this is used in the in-text referencing, e.g. (2019a, April 12), (2019b, March 23). For example:

Queensland Health. (2017a, April 9). Managing your asthma symptoms . https://www.health.qld.gov.au/news-alerts/news/managing-asthma-symptoms

Queensland Health. (2017b, August 23). Five things you might not know about asthma . https://www.health.qld.gov.au/news-alerts/news/5-things-you-might-not-know-about-asthma

Format of titles:

  • APA uses sentence case for all titles except for journal titles.
  • Begin each title and subtitle with a capital letter, but only names should be capitalised for all titles other than journal titles.

Below is an example of a reference list formatted in APA style.  Mouse over the references to find more information about writing a reference list.

This list has been single spaced for this guide, but you will probably be asked to double-space your assignment, and that includes the reference list.

Note: the DOIs and URLs in the reference list above should be hyperlinked to the appropriate page, but the code for hyperlinking and the code for mouseover text was not compatible. In your reference list, make sure your DOIs and URLs are hyperlinked to the relevant page.

Click to play in full screen

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  • Last Updated: Feb 21, 2024 8:21 AM
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Acknowledgement of Country

APA 7th referencing style

  • About APA 7th
  • Printing this guide
  • In-text references
  • Direct quotations

Reference list formatting

Difference between reference list and bibliography, order of works with no title, publisher details, publication date, page numbers, multiple works with same author(s) and same year, example 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
  • Works in non-English languages
  • Works in non-English scripts, such as Arabic or Chinese
  • No specific font type or size required. Recommendations include Calibri size 11, Arial size 11, Lucida size 10, Times New Roman size 12, Georgia size 11 or Computer Modern size 10 (LaTeX).
  • The reference list is double spaced  (between each reference AND within the reference).
  • A reference list is arranged alphabetically by author last name .
  • Each reference appears on a new line.
  • Each item in the reference list is required to have a hanging indent .

Zarate, K., Maggin, D. M., & Passmore, A. (2019). Meta‐analysis of mindfulness training on teacher well‐being. Psychology in the Schools , 56(10), 1700–1715. https://doi.org/10.1002/pits.22308

  • References should not be numbered.
  • If a reference has no author, it is cited by title, and included in the alphabetical list using the first significant word of the title.
  • If you have more than one item with the same author, list the items chronologically, starting with the earliest publication.
  • If there is no date, the abbreviation n.d. may be used.
  • Use the full journal name , not the abbreviated name.
  • Web addresses or DOIs can either be live links (blue and underlined) or as normal black text with no underline. If the work containing the reference list is to be made available online, use the live link format.
  • APA 7th sample papers Includes example papers formatted in the APA 7th style from the American Psychological Association
  • A reference list only includes the books, articles, and web pages etc that are cited in the text of the document.
  • A bibliography includes all sources consulted, even if they are not cited in the document
  • ​ use  sentence case  (the first word uses a capital letter with each subsequent word in lower case). The exceptions are for names eg. countries and after a colon : eg. Writing prose in Australia: Words of wisdom from the best
  • do not use single or double quotation marks.
  • do not italicise.
  • ​ use  sentence case   
  • italicise the title 
  • should be provided in full (not abbreviated) and use capitals where appropriate (rather than sentence case) eg.  Psychological Review .
  • they should be  italicised .
  • Website titles should be italicised.  
  • add a description of the reference used, including the type of reference in square brackets. For example, [Image of a child playing in outdoor playground]. 
  • For social media posts or comments without a title , add up to the first 20 words used in the post or comment and italicise it. Also include a description of the work in square brackets. For example, Join us for the UQ R User Group’s end-of-year event tomorrow! [Facebook post] .
  • use the title in place of the author
  • list alphabetically
  • Use the first significant word of the title. Ignore "A", "And" and "The".

For example, 

The best 10 years of Radio magazine. (2003).  Radio ,  9 (9), 79.

The only 10 recipes you'll ever need. (1998).  Good Housekeeping ,  227 (3).

  • List multiple publisher names in the order in which they appear, separated by semicolons. 
  • For publisher names, words like "Co.", "Publishers" or "Inc." should not be included. For example, use Springer, not Springer Publishers.
  • Places of publication are not included.
  • Do not include publisher name if it is the same as the author.
  • Use n.d. if there is no date available
  • Use in press when the work is accepted for publication but has not been published
  • When the work has been published online prior to publication , include the year of when it was added online.
  • When a month, date or season is used, use (Year, Month Date) or (Year, Season). For example, (2019, November 8) or (2019, Autumn/Winter).
  • If a "Last Updated" date in used, include this as the publication date. This is only when the information has been clearly changed, not just reviewed.
  • For online works that are meant to be changed regularly eg. Facebook, dictionary entry, use Retrieved Month, Date, Year, from Web address. For example, Retrieved November 8, 2019, from https://www.facebook.com/uniofqldlibrary
  • Use the full page range and full page numbers eg. 121-138
  • For an online publication that uses article numbers or similar, include Article then the article number in the Page Number place. For example, Article e09645731
  • Page numbers are included when you are referring to a section of a greater work eg. book chapter, journal article.
  • Use pp. for book chapter  page numbers but not for journal articles.
  • Arrange works with the same author(s) and same year alphabetically by title in the reference list. This then determines which references uses a, b, c etc.
  • Add the relevant letter after the year (which is also used for corresponding in-text references). The first reference listed in the reference list uses "a", second uses "b" etc.

Yang, Q., & Harris, J. G. (2010a). Dynamic range control for audio signals using fourth-order level estimation  [Paper presentation]. 129th Audio Engineering Society Convention, San Francisco, CA.

Yang, Q., & Harris, J. G. (2010b). A higher-order spectro-temporal integration model for predicting signal audibility  [Paper presentation]. International Conference on Acoustics, Speech, and Signal Processing, Dallas, TX. 

(Yang & Harris, 2010a)

(Yang & Harris, 2010b)

  • If the date is n.d . (for no date), include a dash then the relevant letter at the end eg. n.d.-a. It will appear before any specified years.
  • If the date is " in press ", include a dash then the relevant letter at the end eg. in press-a. It will appear after any specified years.
  • If a month and day are included , references with just a year are first , followed by specified dates in chronological order. For example:-

(Taylor, 2019a)

(Taylor, 2019b, May 14)

(Taylor, 2019c, August 3)

  • This applies to all reference types with the same author(s) and year.

Ballard, T., Yeo, G., B. Vancouver, J., & Neal, A. (2017). The dynamics of avoidance goal regulation [Advance online publication]. Motivation and Emotion , 1-10. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11031-017-9640-8

Brown, C. G. (2020). Ethical and legal considerations for using mind–body interventions in schools. In Promoting mind–body health in schools: Interventions for mental health professionals. (pp. 113-128). American Psychological Association. https://doi.org/10.1037/0000157-008

Carson-Chahhoud, K. V., Ameer, F., Sayehmiri, K., Hnin, K., van, A. J. E., Sayehmiri, F., Brinn, M. P., Esterman, A. J., Chang, A. B., & Smith, B. J. (2017). Mass media interventions for preventing smoking in young people. Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews (6). http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/14651858.CD001006.pub3/abstract

Csikszentmihalyi, M. (2000). Beyond boredom and anxiety . Jossey-Bass. (Original work published 1975).

Dravsnik, J., Signal, T., & Canoy, D. (2018). Canine co‐therapy: The potential of dogs to improve the acceptability of trauma‐focused therapies for children. Australian Journal of Psychology, 70 , 208-216. https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1111/ajpy.12199

Leigh, J. (2010). Self-determined mindfulness and attachment style in college students (Publication Number 305210119) [Doctoral dissertation, Indiana State University]. ProQuest Dissertations and Theses Global.

Malcolm, L. (2002-present). All in the mind [Audio podcast]. https://www.abc.net.au/radionational/programs/allinthemind/

Mindfulness-based cognitive therapy. (n.d.). Wikipedia . Retrieved November 20, 2019, from https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Mindfulness-based_cognitive_therapy&oldid=905716408

O’Brien, B. (2017, May 5). NVivo 11 training - full video (5/4/17) - updated [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eNo-Qxsp-mk

Office of Fair Trading. (2018, August 17). Community groups key to seniors staying engaged [Press release]. https://www.qld.gov.au/law/laws-regulated-industries-and-accountability/queensland-laws-and-regulations/fair-trading-services-programs-and-resources/fair-trading-latest-news/media-statements/community-groups-key-to-seniors-staying-engaged

Quealy-Gainer, K. (2014, 16 April). I kill the mockingbird by Paul Acampora (review). Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books , 67 (10), 494-494. https://doi.org/10.1353/bcc.2014.0415

Rappaport, J., & Dubin, C. S. (1983, January 24). Say no more (Season 11, Episode 12) [Television series episode]. In B. Metcalfe, M*A*S*H . 20th Century Fox Television; CBS.

Shapiro, R. E., & Cowan, R. (2017, January 10). Key points about caffeine and migraines . American Migraine Foundation. https://americanmigrainefoundation.org/resource-library/caffeine-and-migraine/

Siegal, Z. V., Teasdale, J. D., & Williams, G. M. G. (2011). Mindfulness-based cognitive therapy: Theoretical rationale and empirical status. In S. C. Hayes, V. M. Follette, & M. M. Linehan (Eds.), Mindfulness and acceptance: Expanding the cognitive-behavioral tradition (pp. 45-65). Guilford Publications. https://books.google.com.au/books?id=Tr0N7aGgAS4C

Simon, P., & Garfunkel, A. (1965). The sounds of silence. On Wednesday Morning, 3 A.M. [Song]. Columbia.

U2. (1988). Rattle and hum [Album]. Island; Sun Studio; Point Depot; Danesmoat; STS Studio; A&M Studios; Ocean Way.

University of Queensland Library [@UQ_Library]. (2017, October 4). Turtles down by UQ St Lucia lakes today. Air conditioned library or enjoying the sun and the view - tough choice! [Image attached] [Tweet]. Twitter. https://twitter.com/uqlibrary/status/915782138905034752

University of Queensland Library. (2017, October 4). The winners of the 2017 Queensland Literary Awards will be revealed at tonight’s ceremony. Good luck to all shortlisted writers! [Status update]. Facebook. https://www.facebook.com/pg/uniofqldlibrary/posts/

Zachary, K. C. (2018). Treatment of seasonal influenza in adults. UpToDate . Retrieved May 3, 2018, from https://www-uptodate-com.ezp3.library.uq.edu.au/contents/treatment-of-seasonal-influenza-in-adults

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APA Style, 7th edition - Citing Sources

  • Getting Started
  • Formatting the Paper
  • Dissertation & SPP Formatting
  • Student vs. Professional
  • Writing Style

Reference List Rules

Apa style scaffolded reference elements worksheet, using ebsco cite tool, how to create a hanging indent.

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  • OVERVIEW - READ FIRST!
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  • Want Your Paper Reviewed for APA?

Your paper ends with a list of all the sources cited in the text of the paper. Follow these rules for the reference list.

  • Start a new page for your reference list. Place the label References  at the top center of the page.  Place it in bold format but do not capitalize or italicize it.
  • Double-space the list. Do not add any extra spaces between references.
  • Start the first line of each reference at the left margin; indent each subsequent line five spaces (a hanging indent).  TIP: Use MS Word function under the  Paragraph tab to create this.  
  • Put your list in alphabetical order. Alphabetize the list by the first word in the reference, which will typically be the author’s last name. When the author is unknown, alphabetize by the first word in the title, ignoring the words a, an, the .
  • For each author, provide the last name followed by a comma and the first (and middle, if listed) initials followed by periods.
  • Italicize the titles of individual works: books, films, reports, newspapers, and the title and volume number of journals and magazines.
  • Do not italicize titles of articles from newspapers, magazines, or journals, chapter titles from a book, or chapters or sections of an Internet document.
  • For article, book, report,  and chapter titles: Capitalize only the first letter of the first word of a title and subtitle, and all proper nouns (names of people, places, organizations).
  • Every in-text citation should have a corresponding entry in the reference list (except for personal communication).
  • Do not include personal communication (such as interviews, emails) in the reference list.  Simply include an in-text citation.
  • Journal articles should include DOIs.  
  • Do not place a period after a DOI or a URL.
  • Include the header on your references page.
  • See the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association (7th ed.), starting on p. 281 for more information.
  • APA Scaffolded Reference Elements Worksheet Use this worksheet to help you formulate your References list based on the different elements of the citation.

Use the Cite Tools in databases such as EBSCO’s CINAHL with caution!

While the citations created can be a good “starting point,” they often have errors.  Make sure you proofread and correct!  Pay particular attention to capitalization, punctuation, and italicization. Look for missing information, such as the DOI.  EBSCO posts this at the top of each set of citations created by the tool:

...Make any necessary corrections before using. Pay special attention to personal names, capitalization, and dates. Always consult your library resources for the exact formatting and punctuation guidelines.

See the document below for an example and more information. 

  • Example of corrected EBSCO citation in APA 7th style.

APA style requires you to use a hanging indent for your sources. These are instructions for creating a hanging indent in Word documents.

  • Place your cursor at the beginning of your second line, before any text.
  • Right click your mouse.
  • Select Paragraph from the resulting pop up menu.
  • Under Indentation, use the Special pull-down menu to select Hanging .

Right click your mouse to open the Paragraph tab, or choose it from the ribbon bar.

apa reference list spacing

Under "Special," select "Hanging."

apa reference list spacing

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  • In-text citation

Reference list

  • Artificial intelligence
  • Audiovisual
  • Books and chapters
  • Conferences
  • Course materials
  • Government and business reports
  • Medicine and health sources
  • Music scores
  • Tables and figures
  • Theses and dissertations
  • Web and social media
  • Other sources
  • Print this page
  • Other styles AGLC4 APA 7th Chicago 17th (A) Notes Chicago 17th (B) Author-Date Harvard MLA 9th Vancouver
  • Referencing home

Your reference list in APA 7th style needs to include all the works you have cited in your assignment (except for any personal communications). It is placed at the end of your essay on a new page and has a specific format you need to follow.

Setting up your list

Formatting rules and examples.

Author, A. A.

  • Beckett, S. T. (2008). The science of chocolate (2nd ed.). Royal Society of Chemistry. https://doi.org/10.1039/9781847558053

Two authors

Author, A. A., & Author, B. B.

Hadgkiss, E. J., & Renzaho, A. M. (2014). The physical health status, service utilisation and barriers to accessing care for asylum seekers residing in the community: A systematic review of the literature. Australian Health Review, 38 (2), 142–159. https://doi.org/10.1071/AH13113

Three to twenty authors

List all author names.

Author, A. A., Author, B. B., Author, C. C., Author, D. D., Author, E. E., Author, F. F., Author, G. G., Author, H. H., Author, I. I., & Author, J. J.

Wolchik, S. A., West, S. G., Sandler, I. N., Tein, J., Coatsworth, D., Lengua, L., Weiss, L., Anderson, E. R., Green, S. M., & Griffin, W. A. (2000). An experimental evaluation of theory-based mother and mother-child programs for children of divorce. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 68 (5), 843–856. https://doi.org/10.1037/0022-006X.68.5.843

21 or more authors

List the first 19 authors, then add a three-dot ellipsis, then the last author.

Author, A. A., Author, B. B., Author, C. C., Author, D. D., Author, E. E., Author, F. F., Author, G. G., Author, H. H., Author, I. I., Author, J. J., Author, K. K., Author, L. L., Author, M. M., Author, N. N., Author, O. O., Author, P. P., Author, Q. Q., Author, R. R., Author, S. S., ...Author, Z. Z.

Griswold, M. G., Fullman, N., Hawley, C., Arian, N., Zimsen, S. R., Tymeson, H. D., Venkateswaran, V., Tapp, A. D., Forouzanfar, M. H., Salama, J. S., Abate, K. H., Abate, D., Abay, S. M., Abbafati, C., Abdulkader, R. S., Abebe, Z., Aboyans, V., Abrar, M. M., Acharya, P., ... Gakidou, E. (2018). Alcohol use and burden for 195 countries and territories, 1990–2016: A systematic analysis for the Global Burden of Disease Study 2016. The Lancet, 392 (10152), 1015–1035. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0140-6736(18)31310-2

Use the title in place of the author.

500,000 Oregon residents evacuate statewide due to wildfires . (2020, September 10). HuffPost. https://www.huffpost.com/entry/oregon-residents-evacuations-wildfire

  • Merriam-Webster’s biographical dictionary . (1995). Merriam-Webster.

Author referred to in secondary source

APA 7th guidelines specify that secondary citations should ONLY be used where the original is unavailable (e.g. out-of-print). Wherever possible, read and cite the original source.

If the original source is not available, ONLY include in your reference list the details of the source that you actually read (in the following example the work by Ward and Decan).

In-text: . . . (Farrow, 1968, as cited in Ward & Decan, 1988).

Reference list: Ward, D., & Decan S. K. (1988). The future of the urban city . Routledge.

Same author, two or more works

Use author name for all entries, listing entries by year with the earliest first. Any references with no date (n.d.) are listed first.

Jones, M. (n.d.). More than you bargained for . https//www.randomthoughts.org

Jones, M. (2015). Popular culture: The rise of the super hero . Palgrave Macmillan.

Jones, M. (2019). A guide to Australian graphic novels . Bloomsbury.

Same author, two or more works and same year

List alphabetically by title, assigning a suffix of a, b, c, d, etc. after the year.

  • Smith, A. (2007a). Emerging in between: The multi-level governance of renewable energy in the English regions. Energy Policy, 35 (12), 6266–6280. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.enpol.2007.07.023

Smith, A. (2007b). Translating sustainabilities between green niches and socio-technical regimes. Technology Analysis & Strategic Management , 19(4), 427–450. https://doi.org/10.1080/09537320701403334

Group or corporate author

Do not use acronyms for the author, spell out the full name.

Australian Bureau of Statistics. (2017, June). Childhood education and care, Australia . https://www.abs.gov.au/statistics/people/education/childhood-education-and-care-australia/latest-release

Sample reference list

  • Australian Bureau of Statistics. (2017, June). Childhood education and care, Australia . https://www.abs.gov.au/statistics/people/education/childhood-education-and-care- australia/latest-release
  • Branch, S., Ramsay, S., & Barker, M. (2007). The bullied boss: A conceptual exploration of upwards bullying. In A. Glendon, B. M. Thompson, & B. Myors (Eds.), Advances in organisational psychology (pp. 93–112). Australian Academic Press.
  • Cioe, J. (2012). The normal distribution [Lecture notes]. Moodle@MU. https://lms.monash.edu
  • Corporations Act 2001 (Cth). http://www.austlii.edu.au/
  • Department of Health and Ageing. (2012). Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health performance framework 2012 report . https://www1.health.gov.au/internet/publications/publishing.nsf/Content/oatsih-hpf- 2012-toc
  • Griswold, M. G., Fullman, N., Hawley, C., Arian, N., Zimsen, S. R., Tymeson, H. D., Venkateswaran, V., Tapp, A. D., Forouzanfar, M. H., Salama, J. S., Abate, K. H., Abate, D., Abay, S. M., Abbafati, C., Abdulkader, R. S., Abebe, Z., Aboyans, V., Abrar, M. M., Acharya, P., . . . Gakidou, E. (2018). Alcohol use and burden for 195 countries and territories, 1990–2016: A systematic analysis for the Global Burden of Disease Study 2016. The Lancet, 392 (10152), 1015–1035. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0140-6736(18)31310-2
  • MacIntyre, S. (2008, August 10-12). Participation in the classroom, productivity in the workforce: Unfulfilled expectations [Paper presentation]. Australian Council for Educational Research Conference, Brisbane, QLD, Australia. https://research.acer.edu.au/research_conference_2008/8/
  • Orwell, G. (2000). Nineteen eighty-four . Penguin Books. (Original work published 1949)
  • Preston, R. M., & Flynn, D. J. (2010). Observations in acute care: Evidence-based approach to patient safety. British Journal of Nursing , 19(7), 442–447. https://doi.org/10.12968/bjon.2010.19.7.47446
  • Sievers, W. (1966). Monash University [Photograph]. Trove. https://trove.nla.gov.au/work/15565401?q=monash&c=picture&versionId=18284000
  • Smith, A. (2007b). Translating sustainabilities between green niches and socio-technical regimes. Technology Analysis & Strategic Management, 19 (4), 427–450. https://doi.org/10.1080/09537320701403334
  • Winter, J., Hunter, S., Sim, J., & Crome, P. (2011). Hands-on therapy interventions for upper limb motor dysfunction following stroke. Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews, 2011 (6). https://doi.org/10.1002/14651858.CD006609.pub2
  • Wolchik, S. A., West, S. G., Sandler, I. N., Tein, J., Coatsworth, D., Lengua, L., Weiss, L., Anderson, E. R., Green, S. M., & Griffin, W. A. (2000). An experimental evaluation of theory-based mother and mother-child programs for children of divorce. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 68 (5), 843–856. https://doi.org/10.1037/0022- 006X.68.5.843
  • World Health Organization. (2020, September 24). How to wear a fabric mask safely during COVID-19: Don'ts. [Video]. Facebook. https://www.facebook.com/WHO/videos/1010459366082970
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  • Setting Up the APA Reference Page | Formatting & References (Examples)

Setting Up the APA Reference Page | Formatting & References (Examples)

Published on November 4, 2020 by Raimo Streefkerk . Revised on January 17, 2024.

APA reference page (7th edition)

On the APA reference page, you list all the sources that you’ve cited in your paper. The list starts on a new page right after the body text.

Follow these instructions to set up your APA reference page:

  • Place the section label “References” in bold at the top of the page (centered).
  • Order the references alphabetically .
  • Double-space all text.
  • Apply a hanging indent of 0.5 inches.

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Table of contents

Setting up the apa reference page, apa alphabetization guidelines, which sources to include on the reference page, annotated bibliography, creating apa references.

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The AI-powered Citation Checker helps you avoid common mistakes such as:

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  • Missing reference entries

apa reference list spacing

References are ordered alphabetically by the first author’s last name. If the author is unknown, order the reference entry by the first meaningful word of the title (ignoring articles: “the”, “a”, or “an”).

Word processors like Word or Google Docs and citation generators can usually order the reference list automatically. However, ordering becomes challenging when citing multiple works by the same author or works by authors with the same last name.

Our in-depth article on ordering references in APA Style explains what to do in these situations.

Only include references for sources cited in the body text (with an APA in-text citation ). Don’t include references for:

  • Sources that you only consulted;
  • Personal communications (e.g., emails or phone calls);
  • General mentions of websites or periodicals ;
  • Common knowledge .

For some student papers, it’s common to describe or evaluate the source in an annotation . These annotations are placed on a new line below the corresponding reference entry. The entire annotation is indented 0.5 inches.

If an annotation consists of multiple paragraphs, the first line of the second and any subsequent paragraphs is indented an additional 0.5 inches.

APA annotated bibliography (7th edition)

Prevent plagiarism. Run a free check.

The format of an APA reference differs depending on the source type. Play around with the options in the Scribbr Example Generator to get familiar with APA Style.

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With Scribbr’s free APA citation generator you can easily cite your sources according to the new 7th edition guidelines. It’s accurate, fast, and easy to use. Give it a try!

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APA citation examples

Check out Scribbr’s citation examples to learn more about citing each type of source, ranging from books and journals to podcasts and tweets !

Periodicals

  • Journal article
  • Newspaper article

Reports and gray literature

  • Press release
  • Dissertation or thesis
  • Conference paper

Books and reference works

  • Dictionary entry
  • Encyclopedia entry

Audiovisual works

  • Movie or documentary
  • YouTube video

Online media

  • Personal communication
  • Tables and figures

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.

Streefkerk, R. (2024, January 17). Setting Up the APA Reference Page | Formatting & References (Examples). Scribbr. Retrieved February 20, 2024, from https://www.scribbr.com/apa-style/apa-reference-page/

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APA 7th Edition Referencing Guide1

  • What is APA?
  • In-text citations

Reference list

  • Chapter in an edited book
  • Journal articles & Databases
  • Works with multiple authors
  • Webpages & online
  • General images faqs
  • Audiovisual media
  • Personal communication
  • Study material
  • New Zealand legislation
  • Other resources
  • Tricky health resources
  • Health books
  • Health journals
  • Health web resources
  • Systematic reviews
  • Point-of-care resources
  • Visual health resources
  • Tricky health FAQs
  • APA for publication

How do I reference multiple works by the same author?

Do I have to write the full name of the publisher?

How do I order two authors with the same last name?

apa reference list spacing

Reference list quick links

apa reference list spacing

While the in-text citations in your assignment include just a few basic details (author, date, page/ para.), the reference list provides much more information so your tutors/readers can locate the sources you have used. Reference list entries might include the full title and publication details of printed works, the names of editors (where applicable), a URL or DOI for electronic resources, and other information.

What's the difference between a bibliography and a reference list?

A bibliography is a list of all of the sources you read and which may have influenced or directed your research, whether or not you actually quote or paraphrase information from them in your work.

A reference list is a list of ONLY the sources whose information you quote directly or paraphrase in your work. Your tutors will usually only require you to include a reference list with your assignments.

The basic formula of an APA reference list entry

Reference list entries typically have four main parts:

Who. (When).   What .   Where.

Author. (Date).   Title . Source.

'Sentence case' versus 'Title Case'

Sentence case The way this sentence is written, beginning with a capital and all other words in lower case (unless proper nouns, e.g., New Zealand).

Title case When Each Main Word in a Title Begins With a Capital Letter Like This (Except Words Less Than Four Letters Long).

First name(s) & surname/family name(s)

These terms pertain to the parts of an author's name:

First/given name(s) Surname/family name(s) Robert Louis Stevenson

  • Check how other scholars have cited the author’s name and follow the most common format.  
  • If the author provides a reference list, check to see if they have cited their own work and replicate the format they have used.  
  • Check your resource to see if the author’s surname is written in a distinguishing way. Sometimes surnames are written in all capitals (e.g., Robert Louis STEVENSON), or the surname is written first, followed by a comma and the author's first name(s) (e.g., Stevenson, Robert Louis) which can help you work out how to reference correctly.  
  • Check the library catalogue or database bibliographic record for the work you are citing.  For example:

apa reference list spacing

Formatting the reference list

These guidelines will help you properly format your reference list in APA style:

  • Begin the reference list on a new page at the end of your assignment .  
  • Title the reference list References in bold and centred at the top of the page.  
  • Order your reference list alphabetically by author .   
  • Apply a hanging indent to each reference list entry. This means that the first line of each entry is left aligned, while the second and subsequent lines are indented (the  Publication Manual recommends 0.5" or 1.27cm—the default in Microsoft Word).  
  • The  Publication Manual  also recommends double-line spacing within and between reference list entries, but check your tutor or department's preferences.  
  • Make all links to websites or DOIs live (hit the space bar after each entry).

A short sample reference list showing the correct title placement, alphabetisation, hanging indent, and double-spaced format:

Hales, M. (2015). Community health nursing. In A. Berman, S. Snyder, T. Levett-Jones, T. Dwyer, M. Hales, N. Harvey, Y. Luxford, L. Moxham, T. Park, B. Parker, K. Reid-Searl, & D. Stanley (Eds.),  Kozier and Erb's fundamentals of nursing  (3rd Australian ed., Vol. 1, pp. 127–141). Pearson.

Hubbard, J., Thomas, C., & Varnham, S. (2010).  Principles of law for New Zealand business students  (4th ed.). Pearson.

Stulz, J. (2006). Integrating exposure therapy and analytic therapy in trauma treatment.  American Journal of Orthopsychiatry , 76 (4), 482–488. https://doi.org/10.1037/0002-9432.76.4.482

Formatting your reference list in Microsoft Word (handing indents)

Having entered and alphabetised your reference list entries in your document, highlight them all and click the little arrow in the paragraph section of the top ribbon to display the paragraph formatting dialog.

In the indentation section, select 'hanging'. Under spacing, set the line spacing on 'double'.

apa reference list spacing

Click OK to save the settings . Your reference list should now have hanging indents and double line spacing!

Another easy way to get your hanging indent in Word is to highlight your reference list and then press ctrl + t .

Reformatting hyperlinks in Word

Word may automatically format your hyperlinks to the main words of the title. However, in APA 7 your hyperlinks need to be the web address as it appears in your browser (https://...).

There are several ways to reverse the Word autoformatting:

1. As you are copying the link:

Copy the link and as you paste it into your Word document, right click. Then select "Paste as plain text". It will paste the link in the standard format.

2. Once it is already pasted, use the paste function:

Right click on the hyperlink and click on the clipboard with the A under Paste Options.

apa reference list spacing

The hyperlink will revert back to the standard format.

3. Edit the hyperlink

Right click on the hyperlink and click on "Edit Hyperlink"

apa reference list spacing

Highlight the words shown in the "Text to display" box and delete them. 

apa reference list spacing

Click "OK" and the hyperlink should revert to the standard format.

Organising a reference list into alphabetical order in Word

1. Create your reference list

2. Highlight it

3. Click on the A>Z button in the Word toolbar

apa reference list spacing

4. Click OK

Changing the case of letters in Word

1. Highlight the text you want to change the case of (the title of your information source, for example).

2. Select the Aa button in the font section of the toolbar:

apa reference list spacing

3. Select the case you want (e.g. sentence case or to give each word a capital).

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  • Last Updated: Feb 21, 2024 11:38 AM
  • URL: https://libguides.wintec.ac.nz/APA7

ACAP

ACAP LEARNING RESOURCES

Reference in APA 7

  • Printable Guides & Sample Papers
  • Headings & Page Order
  • ACAP Presentation Requirements This link opens in a new window
  • APA Style Guidelines, Blog & Socials
  • Paraphrasing
  • Time Stamps, Verbatim, Transcripts & Personal Comms
  • Secondary Sources
  • Tables & Figures
  • Missing, Same, Repeated, Multiples, Parts & Abbreviations
  • Reference List Elements
  • Formatting the Reference List
  • DOIs, URLs & Hyperlinks
  • Missing Information
  • Annotated Bibliographies
  • Edited, Republished & Translated Books
  • Reference Works
  • Diagnostic Manuals (DSM & ICD)
  • Religious & Ancient Works
  • Newspaper Articles
  • Conferences & Theses
  • Reports, Policies & Grey Literature
  • YouTube & Other Streaming
  • Podcasts, TV & Radio
  • Transcripts
  • Artwork & Images
  • Social Media
  • Legislation
  • Standards & Patents
  • Unpublished Works
  • Statistics, Tests & Data Sets
  • Generative Artificial Intelligence

Format reference lists using the following elements:

Ahmmed, M. M., Babu, M. A., & Salim, Z. R. (2020). Depression and associated factors among undergraduate students of private universities in Bangladesh: A cross-sectional study.  International Journal of Psychosocial Rehabilitation, 24 (2), 97–108.

Azevedo, J., Vieira-Coelho, M., Castelo-Branco, M., Coelho, R., & Figueiredo-Braga, M. (2020). Impulsive and premeditated aggression in male offenders with antisocial personality disorder.  PLoS ONE, 15 (3), 1–18. https://doi-org/10.1371/journal.pone.0229876

Cooper, M. (2008). Essential research findings in counselling and psychotherapy: The facts are friendly (2nd ed.). Sage Publications.

Ivey, A. E., & Rigazio-Digilio, S. A. (2009). Developmental counseling and therapy: The basics of why it may be helpful and how to use it. Turkish Psychological Counseling & Guidance Journal, 4 (32), 1–11.

Jones, R. (Host). (2020, April 21). The coronavirus endgame (Episode No. 206) [Audio podcast]. In R. Schwartz, & M. Macklem (Producers), 7am,  Schwartz Media.  https://7ampodcast.com.au/episodes/the-coronavirus-endgame

Kalhori, F., Masoumi, S. Z., Shamsaei, F., Mohammadi, Y., & Yavangi, M. (2020). Effect of mindfulness-based group counseling on depression in infertile women: Randomized clinical trial study.  International Journal of Fertility & Sterility, 14 (1), 10–16. https://doi-org/10.22074/ijfs.2020.5785

Renck, J. (Director), & Manzin, C. (Writer). (2019, May 27). The happiness of all mankind (Season No. 1, Episode No. 4) [TV series episode]. In C. Mazin, C, Strauss, J. Featherstone, J. Renck, & C. Fry (Executive producers), Chernobyl.  HBO; Sky UK; Sister Pictures; The Mighty Mint; Word Games.

Rickard, J. (2017).  Australia: A cultural history  (3rd ed.). Monash University Publishing. https://www.oapen.org/search?identifier=645355

Tinker, M. (Director), Milch, D., & Mann, T. (Writers). (2006, June 11). Tell your God to ready for blood (Season No. 3, Episode No. 1). [TV series episode]. In D. Milch, G. Feinberg, & M. Tinker (Executive producers), Deadwood. HBO.

Van Deurzen, E., & Arnold-Baker, C. (2018).  Existential therapy: Distinctive features . Routledge. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781315461939

Academic Writer Tutorial: Formatting Reference Lists

The Academic Writer Tutorial below provides a downloadable example of an APA Style reference list.

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  • Next: DOIs, URLs & Hyperlinks >>
  • Last Updated: Nov 8, 2023 11:37 AM
  • URL: https://libguides.navitas.com/apa7

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APA Style (7th ed.)

  • 1a. General practice exercises
  • 1b. Sample paper
  • 2a. APA Style (7th ed.) formatting checklist
  • 2b. Formatting practice exercises
  • 3. Quoting and paraphrasing
  • 4a. Citations versus attributions
  • 4b. APA Style (7th ed.) citations checklist
  • 4c. Citations practice exercise
  • 5a. APA Style (7th ed.) references checklist

APA Style (7th ed.) references checklist

  • 5b. References practice exercises
  • 6. Academic integrity checklist
  • 7. Ordering the APA Style manual from the RRU Bookstore
  • Looking for more APA Style information?

Get help from the Writing Centre

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If you're using the APA Style rules and want to review your references before you submit your document for grading or publication, check for these 10 common problem areas. To see examples of these 10 items, please refer to the Annotated Student Sample Paper by the American Psychological Association.:

1.  Placement in document

References typically appear after the main text but before appendices (American Psychological Association [APA], 2020, p. 43). If you’re unsure of the order expected in your work, please check with your instructor or publishing editor.

2.  Start references on a new page titled “References”

References should begin on a new page, and the page should be titled “References” (APA, 2020, p. 303). “References” is a section label, not a section heading, which means the word should be centred and bolded (APA, 2020, p. 49). If the list only has one entry, title the page "Reference". See How Should I Format My References in APA Style? for more information.

3.  Double-space references

The references should be double-spaced without extra spaces between references (APA, 2020, p. 303). See How Should I Format My References in APA Style? for more information.

4.  Left-align references with a hanging indent

The first line of a reference should start flush to the left margin, and references should be left-aligned with a ragged right margin (APA, 2020, p. 303). Do not break words or URLs at the end of a line; instead, use your word processor’s automatic line-wrapping function (APA, 2020, p. 300). Second and subsequent lines of every reference should have a hanging indent (APA, 2020, p. 303). Use your word processor’s  settings to set up an automatic hanging indent. For example:

See How Should I Format My References in APA Style? for more information.

5.  Check spacing after punctuation

Provide one space after a comma or a period within references, including after an author’s initials e.g., Author, A. A. (APA, 2020, p. 154).

6.  Check capitalization of resource titles

Use sentence case (i.e., capitalize the first word of a title, the first word of a subtitle, and proper nouns) in the title of a work that is part of a larger work, such as a journal article, book chapter, newspaper article, magazine article, blog post, social media post, or encyclopedia or dictionary entry (APA, 2020, p. 291). Stand-alone resources, such as a report, dissertation, thesis, YouTube or TED Talk video, web page, brochures, press releases, and conference papers should also be presented in title case (APA, 2020, p. 291).

Use title case (i.e., all major words capitalized) in periodical titles (e.g., journal, newspaper, magazine) (APA, 2020, p. 294).

7.  Check italicization of resource titles

Italicize the title of a stand-alone resource (APA, 2020, p. 291), such as a book, journal, report, dissertation or thesis, newspaper, magazine, encyclopedia, dictionary, or web page.

Do not italicize the title of a resource that is part of a greater whole (APA, 2020, p. 291), such as a journal article, book chapter, newspaper article, magazine article, encyclopedia entry, or dictionary entry.

8.  Provide a DOI if the resource has one assigned

If the resource has a DOI, whether you worked with a print or electronic version, provide that information in the https://doi.org/xxxx form (APA, 2020, p. 299). If you're unsure if the resource has a DOI, search for the article in Crossref's Free DOI Lookup . 

9.  Do not provide a URL if the resource doesn't have a DOI

If you worked with an electronic resource that doesn't have a DOI assigned to it, do not provide a URL to the resource in the reference. If you are referencing a journal article, provide the title of the periodical in the reference (APA, 2020, p. 316). If you're referencing a book or reference work, provide the publisher's name (APA, 2020, p. 321) and "use the spelling of the publisher name as shown on the work you used" (APA, 2020, p. 296). These details can usually be found on the reverse side of the resource’s title page. If the publisher is also the author, "the publisher or site name is omitted from the source element" (APA, 2020, p. 294). 

If you retrieved the resource from an academic research database (e.g., eBook Collection in EBSCOhost) and the resource doesn't have a DOI assigned to it, do not provide a URL for the resource. 

For example references, please see How Do I Reference a Journal Article in APA Style (No DOI)? or How Do I Reference a Book in APA Style? in WriteAnswers.

10.  Do not include personal communication in the references

If your resource isn’t recoverable to the intended reader, use the format for personal communication to cite the resource only in text (APA, 2020, p. 260). Personal communication isn’t included in the references because readers can’t access the resource. See  How Do I Cite or Reference Personal Communications in APA Style? for more information.

For extensive information on references to specific resource types, including examples, please search  WriteAnswers  by keyword.

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

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APA Referencing - Education & CCSC students: Reference lists

Abbreviations.

  • Journal article
  • Quotes & citations

Reference lists

  • Referencing questions
  • Audiovisual works
  • Brochure or pamphlet
  • Conference paper
  • Dictionary/Encyclopedia
  • Government publication
  • Gray literature

Group author

  • Interviews/Research data
  • Lecture notes/Tutorial material
  • Newspaper/Magazine
  • Personal communication
  • Self-referencing
  • Software app
  • Figures & tables
  • Unpublished or informally published work

In the 7th edition,  the location of the publisher is omitted.

Reference Lists

Apa 7th edition.

These are the acceptable abbreviations in the reference list to refer to parts of the source being referenced.

Hanging Indents

Hanging indents are used to align the first author's surname with the margin and wrap the second and subsequent lines of the reference using an indent. The instructions for hanging indents in  MS Word  are:

  • Select the text of the reference list
  • Select  Paragraph Settings
  • Select the drop-down list under  Special
  • Choose  Hanging
  • Type a measurement, e.g. 1.27 cm. This is the size of the indentation of the second and subsequent lines of the paragraph from the margin.
  • Click  OK

If an organisation or group is given as the author (i.e. there are no individual author names) write the organisation's name in full as the author.

If the group author is also the publisher, omit the publisher.

For  Endnote  users, type a comma at the end of the organisation's name in the author field to stop  Endnote  abbreviating the organisation's name as though it were an individual's name.

(American Psychological Association, 2020, p. 288)

If there is no author or the author is not known, use the title in place of the author and alphabetise by the first significant word. In this example, the reference would be alphabetised by "S." The title remains italicised.

The word  Anonymous  is used only for works that have "Anonymous" as the author.

Several works by different authors with the same surname are ordered by first initial.

References by the same author with the same publication date are arranged alphabetically by title (excluding  A  or  The ). Place lowercase letters-- a, b, c , and so forth--immediately after the year, within the parentheses.

See also the references to Cooling's work in the Sample Reference List below.

(American Psychological Association, 2020, p. 303-306)

References by the same author with the same publication date

References by the same author(s) with the same publication date are arranged alphabetically by title (excluding  A  or  The ). Place lowercase letters-- a, b, c , and so forth--immediately after the year, within the parentheses. 

Baheti, J. R. (2001a).  Control ... Baheti, J. R. (2001b).  Roles of ...

Once you know the order of the reference list (by title) use the publication year with the lower-case letter for in-text citations, e.g. (Baheti, 2001b).

The reference list is located at the end of your assignment. It starts on a new page and includes the details of every source you have referred to in your assignment. APA Style does not use bibliographies (all the sources you read) but a reference list only (sources you referred to in your assignment). 

Reference lists should be organised alphabetically according to authors' names and then chronologically if there is the same author for two or more references.

Ames, M. (2013). Engaging "apolitical" adolescents: analyzing the popularity and educational potential of dystopian literature post-9/11.  High School Journal, 97 (1), 3-20.

Arnold, M., & Kunzel, B. (2007). Speculative fiction: classroom must-reads.  English Journal, 97 (1), 118-122.

Blakemore, S.-J., & Frith, U. (2005). The learning brain: Lessons for education . Blackwell. 

Blakemore, S.-J., & Frith, U. (2008). The literate brain. In K. W. Fischer & M. H. Immordino-Yang (Eds.), The Jossey-Bass reader on the brain and learning (pp. 229-241). Jossey-Bass. 

The title of the book or journal article should be italicised and hanging indents should be used (not shown in this example). See the Sample Reference List on this page for correct format of hanging indents.

Sample Reference List

Sample reference list in apa 7th edition.

Formatted in  MS Word

apa reference list spacing

Line spacing

The reference list uses the same line spacing as the body of your assignment (1.5 or double-spaced). A blank line between entries in the reference list is optional.

Author initials (spacing)

Author names with two or more initials have a blank space between initials. See Sample Reference List for more examples.

Reference list

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Apa spacing: getting it right in apa 7, published by steve tippins on february 1, 2022 february 1, 2022.

Last Updated on: 2nd February 2024, 05:08 am

APA style can be confusing – especially with the relatively recent switch from APA 6 to APA 7. Not to worry – we’ve got your back. Here are all your APA spacing questions answered

Is APA Single or Double Spaced?

In APA 7 th edition, the default line spacing guideline is to use double-spacing throughout your paper, including block quotations and the reference list. Also, you should not add blank lines before or after headings or add extra spacing between paragraphs.

To set up your document to ​double-line spacing and to be sure not to add lines between paragraphs or before or after headings, follow these directions:

  • On the Home tab, click on the Paragraph menu.
  • Set the Spacing Before and After to 0 pt.
  • Check “Don’t add space between paragraphs of the same style”.
  • From the Line spacing menu, select “Double”. 
  • Click on “Set As Default”.

One Space Requirement

One space is required after a period at the end of a sentence, when the period separates parts of a reference entry, and after the author’s abbreviations in the reference list. Also put one space after any other punctuation mark at the end of a sentence. 

APA Spacing for Title Page

Insert a double-spaced blank line between the title and your name. Double space the rest of the information.

APA Spacing for Tables and Figures

Double space the title and table number and title above the table or figure itself, and any note that you provide below the table or figure. The spacing inside the cells of your table or figure can be adjusted to whatever spacing best presents your information. You can add an extra blank line above and/or below the figure or table to separate it from the text that is on the same page.  

APA Spacing for an Image

Double space the image’s caption that is below the image. You can space any text in the actual image any way that best presents your information. You can add an extra blank line above and/or below the image to separate it from the text that is on the same page.  

apa reference list spacing

APA Spacing for Appendices 

Double space all of the information in the Appendices.

APA Spacing for Abbreviations 

Do not put a space after internal periods in abbreviations, such as U.S., B.A., e.g., and p.m. Do not put a space between a word and a colon. 

Example : The following are the guidelines for spacing:

APA Spacing for Colons

When writing hours and minutes in numeral form, do not put a space before or after the colon.

When a ration is expressed with two numbers, do not put a space before or after the colon.

When writing Biblical chapters and verses, do not put a space before or after the colon.

Genesis 2:14

APA Spacing for Footnotes

When you insert footnotes, use should use the footnotes function of the word-processing program and choose the default font settings, which are single-spaced and a smaller font than the text.

APA Spacing for Equations

For equations, to make them more visible to readers, you can use triple- or quadruple-spacing before and after them.

APA Spacing for Ellipses

An ellipsis is a set of three periods, which indicates an omission. There should not be any spaces between the three periods. However, you should put a single space on either side of the ellipses to separate it from the text. 

An ellipsis … indicates an omission.

If you have an ellipsis after a complete sentence, put the period, question mark, or exclamation point after the last word of the sentence. Then, put a space between the punctuation mark and the ellipsis, and a space after the ellipses. For colons, the same spacing is required.

apa reference list spacing

    Ellipses have three periods. … They indicate omission.

For commas, it the comma comes before the ellipsis, the same rules as above apply. However, if the comma comes after the ellipsis, you should not put space between the comma and the ellipsis.

Example : 

Put the period, question mark …, after the last word of the sentence.

Note: For more information, refer to sections 2.21 and 6.8 of the APA Manual , 7th edition. For more support, see our Dissertation Editing and Dissertation Coaching services.

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APA Style (7th ed.): Citation Guide

  • Getting Started with APA

Formatting a Paper in APA

Apa paper visual guide.

  • Citing Sources in APA
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  • Citation Guides Homepage

Sample Student Paper

  • Sample APA Paper

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  • Paper Formatting
  • Headings within the Paper
  • References Page

APA Basic Formatting Rules for Student Papers

The following guidelines are the basic formatting rules outlined in the  APA Publication Manual  7th edition. If your instructor sets different requirements, always use your instructor's guidelines first.

  • clearly legible, regular-sized font
  • recommendations: 12pt Times New Roman, 11pt Arial, 11pt Calibri, 10pt Lucida Sans Unicode, 11pt Georgia
  • double spaced throughout all parts of the paper including title, headings, and footnotes
  • 1-inch margins on all sides
  • Indent the first line of each paragraph by 1/2-inch (tab)
  • left-justified for the body of the paper

Running Head & Page Numbers:

  • not required to include shortened version of the title for student papers- unless requested by your instructor
  • include the page number in the top right corner of all pages

APA Title Page for Student Papers

Page number:.

  • include the page number in the top right margin. (It will be 1 for the Title Page. Continue numbering throughout the paper and References page.)

Heading about a 1/3 of the way down the page:

  • Paper Title : bold, centered
  • Author : your name
  • Institutional Affiliation : Lone Star College- Online
  • Course : your course number and the name of the course (ex. PSYC 2301: General Psychology)
  • Instructor : your instructor's name (ex- Prof. Jane Smith)
  • Due Date:  Month day, year format (ex- January 1, 2024)

APA Headings within the Body of the Paper

Paper title:.

  • include on the first line of the first page of the body of your paper
  • bold and centered

Headings and Sub-headings (use when needed)

  • APA uses a hierarchy of five levels for headings within the paper
  • short paper may not need headings at all

References Page Formatting

The following guidelines are the basic formatting rules outlined in the APA Publication Manual  7th edition. If your instructor sets different requirements, always use your instructor's guidelines first.

  • needs to start on a new page following the end of your paper
  • include the title References centered on the first line of the page
  • everything after the title is left-justified
  • listed in alphabetical order by the first part of the citation (usually the author)
  • double spaced throughout all parts
  • Each citation should have a hanging indent- or it should start at the left margin and then have all lines after it indented by 1/2-inch

Click on the information circles for tips on how to use Microsoft Word to format your paper in APA Style.

  • << Previous: Getting Started with APA
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  • Last Updated: Feb 21, 2024 3:21 PM
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APA reference list

This page describes reference lists in APA:

The reference list

List format, year of publication, publication information, databases with original, proprietary content, order of entries, entries with the same author(s) and year of publication, punctuation.

New to referencing? See the introduction to referencing .

Create customised interactive examples of APA references and in-text citations with this online tool.

The reference list appears at the end of the assignment, under the heading “References.” It lists detailed information about each source that has been cited in the assignment. Every source mentioned in an in-text citation should be listed in the reference list. If a source doesn't have an in-text citation, it should not be listed here.

Example reference list:

Bowker, N., & Tuffin, K. (2002). Users with disabilities' social and economic development through online access. In M. Boumedine (Ed.), Proceedings of the IASTED International Conference on Information and Knowledge Sharing (pp. 122–127). ACTA Press.

Durie, M. (2003). Ngā kāhui pou: Launching Māori futures . Huia Publishers.

Hazledine, T., & Quiggan, J. (2006). Public policy in Australia and New Zealand: The new global context. Australian Journal of Political Science, 41 (2), 131–143.

Ministry for Primary Industries. (2012). Rural communities . http://www.mpi.govt.nz/agriculture/rural-communities

apa reference list spacing

Every entry in an APA reference list has a hanging indent. This means that every line after the first is moved a few spaces to the right.

The entries are in alphabetical order according to the first author listed. See order of entries below for details.

Different types of source have different formats, and everything about each entry (from the punctuation to the capitalisation of words) is strictly prescribed. Getting it exactly right takes some practice, but these pages should highlight some common pitfalls.

Punctuation is important in the reference list. Look at the examples and use the same punctuation (commas, full stops, and brackets). The year of publication, for example, always appears in brackets.

Punctuation in the reference list

Each entry has four basic parts:

  • The name of the author
  • The year of publication
  • The publisher's name

The author can be a person, people, an organisation (e.g. a group, company, ministry) or a combination of people and groups. In the reference list, the surname (family name) of an author comes first, followed by the first initials. Write the authors name exactly as it appears on the source including hyphenated or two part surnames, and preferred capitalisation:

van der Spuy, E.

Write out organisational authors in full not abbreviations:

Ministry of Health. NOT MoH

If there are several authors, each is separated from the others with a comma, and there is an ‘&’ before the final author:

Cunningham, B. M., Nikolai, L. A., & Bazley, J. D.

See 2+ authors for details.

If there is no author, see no author .

The year of publication appears in brackets after the author(s), with a full stop after the closing bracket.

If there is no year, see no year for details.

Some magazine, journal, and newspaper articles also include a date (or sometimes a season) here:

Howe, J. (2007, November 16). Manawatu worth $8.1b. Manawatu Standard , p. 1.

Carter, E. (2021, Winter). Specificities of gene markers. Animal Husbandry , 17-34.

Months and dates should always appear after the year of publication. In the in-text citation, however, only the year is given. With a website , provide the most specific date available. If a last updated date is available for the specific page being cited, then use this in the reference list. In an in-text citation, however, only give the year. Note: a last reviewed date implies the web page content has simply been reviewed and not changed or updated so use the original date given, or the last updated date if available.

Sometimes there is more than one reference with the same author and the same year. In these cases, a letter is added after the year to differentiate the entries. See entries with identical authors and years of publication for details.

The main titles of printed material and web pages are written in italics.

Sometimes a reference will have two titles: the name of an article or entry, and the name of the whole work. For example, journals have a name, but each individual article also has a title. Edited books have both a book title and a chapter title. In these cases, the main title is written in italics, but the section (article or chapter) title is not written in italics:

Most titles (e.g., the titles of books) only have upper-case letters for the first word of the title, the first word of any subtitle, and any proper nouns (the names of places, people, organisations, etc.):

Organisational behaviour on the Pacific Rim

Upper-case letters are used for all the words in the name of a journal, newspaper, or magazine, however:

Australian Journal of Political Science

Put edition information, report numbers and volume numbers in brackets after the title without an intervening full stop. Do not italicise the information in brackets. If both edition and volume details are available place both in the same brackets, separated with a comma and the edition details first:

The Fundamentals of chemistry (3rd ed.).

Developments in robotics (2nd ed., Vol. 2).

Sometimes you may need square brackets after a title to identify what kind of source it is. Examples include computer software, grey literature such as press releases, and audio visual material :

Robox script (Version 3.4) [Computer Software].

The publication information depends on the type of source. For a book, it is the name of the publisher. For a journal article, it is the name of the journal, the volume and/or issue number, and the page range of the article. For a website, or webpage it is the DOI or URL address and not a hyperlink.

Note: When the author and the publisher are the same, omit the publisher detail to avoid repetition.

If a work is not locatable by the reader (e.g. personal communication or in-house reports) treat it as having no source and do not include in the reference list.

Formatting details for each type of source are given on these pages:

Only include database details if it publishes original, proprietary works such as UpToDate or the Cochrane Database of Systemic Reviews. Treat these databases as you would a journal title- title case and in italics after the article title:

Rush, A. (2022). Unipolar major depression in adults: Choosing initial treatment. UpToDate . Retrieved June 20, 2023, from https://www-uptodate-com/contents/unipolar-major-depression-in-adults-choosing-initial-treatment

If you're not sure which source type to use, see what type of source is this?

See referencing elements for a more detailed discussion of the different types of publication information, including solutions to common problems.

Entries are alphabetised according to the first author's surname, or whatever else appears first in the entry. You can use the sort text feature of Microsoft Word to do this quickly and easily.

If two authors have the same surname, alphabetise them according to their first initial.

If there are two entries with identical authors, order them chronologically, earliest first.

If two different entries begin with the same author, entries that have only that one author come before entries with 2+ authors. If two different 2+ author entries begin with the same author, alphabetise by the second author. If the second author is the same, use the third, and so forth.

Durie, M. (2013)…

Johnson, I. (2012)…

Johnson, I. (2014)…

Johnson, I., & Chen, C. (2016)…

Johnson, I., Nguyen, T., & Chen, C. (2014)…

MacArthur, A. (2019)…

McAllister, C. (2019)…

Ministry of Health. (2018)…

Singh, Y. (2017)…

Statistics New Zealand. (2010)…

Villafuerte, S. (2016).

If two entries have the same author(s) and the same year of publication, see same year, same author .

In some rare cases, you may need to reference two different sources that have the same author and the same year of publication.

The entries should be ordered alphabetically, according to the first word of the title (aside from “a,” “an,” or “the”). Then add a lower-case letter (“a,” “b,” and so on) after the year to distinguish them:

Johnson, I. (2020a). Publishing …

Johnson, I. (2020b). United …

This letter also appears in the in-text citation:

According to Johnson (2020a), the …

According to Johnson (2020b), the …

Serial commas

APA has rules about punctuation. APA uses serial commas (sometimes called an Oxford, Harvard, or series comma). So in the reference list, the last author is preceded by a comma. E.g. Nguyen, J., Han, K., Wyatt, E., & Singh, K.

Referencing element spacing

Use one space after a full stop, comma, or any other punctuation mark after a referencing element.

References and further reading

American Psychological Association. (2020). Publication manual of the American Psychological Association (7th ed.). [Massey Library link]

These pages are provided as a guide to proper referencing. Your course, department, school, or institute may prescribe specific conventions, and their recommendations supersede these instructions. If you have questions not covered here, check in the style guide listed above, ask your course coordinator, or ask at Academic Q+A .

Page authorised by Director - Centre for Learner Success Last updated on 4 February, 2021

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Purdue Online Writing Lab Purdue OWL® College of Liberal Arts

Tables and Figures

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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 resources for the older APA 6 style  can be found at this page  as well as at this page (our old resources covered the material on this page on two separate pages).

The purpose of tables and figures in documents is to enhance your readers' understanding of the information in the document; usually, large amounts of information can be communicated more efficiently in tables or figures. Tables are any graphic that uses a row and column structure to organize information, whereas figures include any illustration or image other than a table.

General guidelines

Visual material such as tables and figures can be used quickly and efficiently to present a large amount of information to an audience, but visuals must be used to assist communication, not to use up space, or disguise marginally significant results behind a screen of complicated statistics. Ask yourself this question first: Is the table or figure necessary? For example, it is better to present simple descriptive statistics in the text, not in a table.

Relation of Tables or Figures and Text

Because tables and figures supplement the text, refer in the text to all tables and figures used and explain what the reader should look for when using the table or figure. Focus only on the important point the reader should draw from them, and leave the details for the reader to examine on their own.

Documentation

If you are using figures, tables and/or data from other sources, be sure to gather all the information you will need to properly document your sources.

Integrity and Independence

Each table and figure must be intelligible without reference to the text, so be sure to include an explanation of every abbreviation (except the standard statistical symbols and abbreviations).

Organization, Consistency, and Coherence

Number all tables sequentially as you refer to them in the text (Table 1, Table 2, etc.), likewise for figures (Figure 1, Figure 2, etc.). Abbreviations, terminology, and probability level values must be consistent across tables and figures in the same article. Likewise, formats, titles, and headings must be consistent. Do not repeat the same data in different tables.

Data in a table that would require only two or fewer columns and rows should be presented in the text. More complex data is better presented in tabular format. In order for quantitative data to be presented clearly and efficiently, it must be arranged logically, e.g. data to be compared must be presented next to one another (before/after, young/old, male/female, etc.), and statistical information (means, standard deviations, N values) must be presented in separate parts of the table. If possible, use canonical forms (such as ANOVA, regression, or correlation) to communicate your data effectively.

This image shows a table with multiple notes formatted in APA 7 style.

A generic example of a table with multiple notes formatted in APA 7 style.

Elements of Tables

Number all tables with Arabic numerals sequentially. Do not use suffix letters (e.g. Table 3a, 3b, 3c); instead, combine the related tables. If the manuscript includes an appendix with tables, identify them with capital letters and Arabic numerals (e.g. Table A1, Table B2).

Like the title of the paper itself, each table must have a clear and concise title. Titles should be written in italicized title case below the table number, with a blank line between the number and the title. When appropriate, you may use the title to explain an abbreviation parenthetically.

Comparison of Median Income of Adopted Children (AC) v. Foster Children (FC)

Keep headings clear and brief. The heading should not be much wider than the widest entry in the column. Use of standard abbreviations can aid in achieving that goal. There are several types of headings:

  • Stub headings describe the lefthand column, or stub column , which usually lists major independent variables.
  • Column headings describe entries below them, applying to just one column.
  • Column spanners are headings that describe entries below them, applying to two or more columns which each have their own column heading. Column spanners are often stacked on top of column headings and together are called decked heads .
  • Table Spanners cover the entire width of the table, allowing for more divisions or combining tables with identical column headings. They are the only type of heading that may be plural.

All columns must have headings, written in sentence case and using singular language (Item rather than Items) unless referring to a group (Men, Women). Each column’s items should be parallel (i.e., every item in a column labeled “%” should be a percentage and does not require the % symbol, since it’s already indicated in the heading). Subsections within the stub column can be shown by indenting headings rather than creating new columns:

Chemical Bonds

     Ionic

     Covalent

     Metallic

The body is the main part of the table, which includes all the reported information organized in cells (intersections of rows and columns). Entries should be center aligned unless left aligning them would make them easier to read (longer entries, usually). Word entries in the body should use sentence case. Leave cells blank if the element is not applicable or if data were not obtained; use a dash in cells and a general note if it is necessary to explain why cells are blank.   In reporting the data, consistency is key: Numerals should be expressed to a consistent number of decimal places that is determined by the precision of measurement. Never change the unit of measurement or the number of decimal places in the same column.

There are three types of notes for tables: general, specific, and probability notes. All of them must be placed below the table in that order.

General  notes explain, qualify or provide information about the table as a whole. Put explanations of abbreviations, symbols, etc. here.

Example:  Note . The racial categories used by the US Census (African-American, Asian American, Latinos/-as, Native-American, and Pacific Islander) have been collapsed into the category “non-White.” E = excludes respondents who self-identified as “White” and at least one other “non-White” race.

Specific  notes explain, qualify or provide information about a particular column, row, or individual entry. To indicate specific notes, use superscript lowercase letters (e.g.  a ,  b ,  c ), and order the superscripts from left to right, top to bottom. Each table’s first footnote must be the superscript  a .

a  n = 823.  b  One participant in this group was diagnosed with schizophrenia during the survey.

Probability  notes provide the reader with the results of the tests for statistical significance. Asterisks indicate the values for which the null hypothesis is rejected, with the probability ( p value) specified in the probability note. Such notes are required only when relevant to the data in the table. Consistently use the same number of asterisks for a given alpha level throughout your paper.

* p < .05. ** p < .01. *** p < .001

If you need to distinguish between two-tailed and one-tailed tests in the same table, use asterisks for two-tailed p values and an alternate symbol (such as daggers) for one-tailed p values.

* p < .05, two-tailed. ** p < .01, two-tailed. † p <.05, one-tailed. †† p < .01, one-tailed.

Borders 

Tables should only include borders and lines that are needed for clarity (i.e., between elements of a decked head, above column spanners, separating total rows, etc.). Do not use vertical borders, and do not use borders around each cell. Spacing and strict alignment is typically enough to clarify relationships between elements.

This image shows an example of a table presented in the text of an APA 7 paper.

Example of a table in the text of an APA 7 paper. Note the lack of vertical borders.

Tables from Other Sources

If using tables from an external source, copy the structure of the original exactly, and cite the source in accordance with  APA style .

Table Checklist

(Taken from the  Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association , 7th ed., Section 7.20)

  • Is the table necessary?
  • Does it belong in the print and electronic versions of the article, or can it go in an online supplemental file?
  • Are all comparable tables presented consistently?
  • Are all tables numbered with Arabic numerals in the order they are mentioned in the text? Is the table number bold and left-aligned?
  • Are all tables referred to in the text?
  • Is the title brief but explanatory? Is it presented in italicized title case and left-aligned?
  • Does every column have a column heading? Are column headings centered?
  • Are all abbreviations; special use of italics, parentheses, and dashes; and special symbols explained?
  • Are the notes organized according to the convention of general, specific, probability?
  • Are table borders correctly used (top and bottom of table, beneath column headings, above table spanners)?
  • Does the table use correct line spacing (double for the table number, title, and notes; single, one and a half, or double for the body)?
  • Are entries in the left column left-aligned beneath the centered stub heading? Are all other column headings and cell entries centered?
  • Are confidence intervals reported for all major point estimates?
  • Are all probability level values correctly identified, and are asterisks attached to the appropriate table entries? Is a probability level assigned the same number of asterisks in all the tables in the same document?
  • If the table or its data are from another source, is the source properly cited? Is permission necessary to reproduce the table?

Figures include all graphical displays of information that are not tables. Common types include graphs, charts, drawings, maps, plots, and photos. Just like tables, figures should supplement the text and should be both understandable on their own and referenced fully in the text. This section details elements of formatting writers must use when including a figure in an APA document, gives an example of a figure formatted in APA style, and includes a checklist for formatting figures.

Preparing Figures

In preparing figures, communication and readability must be the ultimate criteria. Avoid the temptation to use the special effects available in most advanced software packages. While three-dimensional effects, shading, and layered text may look interesting to the author, overuse, inconsistent use, and misuse may distort the data, and distract or even annoy readers. Design properly done is inconspicuous, almost invisible, because it supports communication. Design improperly, or amateurishly, done draws the reader’s attention from the data, and makes him or her question the author’s credibility. Line drawings are usually a good option for readability and simplicity; for photographs, high contrast between background and focal point is important, as well as cropping out extraneous detail to help the reader focus on the important aspects of the photo.

Parts of a Figure

All figures that are part of the main text require a number using Arabic numerals (Figure 1, Figure 2, etc.). Numbers are assigned based on the order in which figures appear in the text and are bolded and left aligned.

Under the number, write the title of the figure in italicized title case. The title should be brief, clear, and explanatory, and both the title and number should be double spaced.

The image of the figure is the body, and it is positioned underneath the number and title. The image should be legible in both size and resolution; fonts should be sans serif, consistently sized, and between 8-14 pt. Title case should be used for axis labels and other headings; descriptions within figures should be in sentence case. Shading and color should be limited for clarity; use patterns along with color and check contrast between colors with free online checkers to ensure all users (people with color vision deficiencies or readers printing in grayscale, for instance) can access the content. Gridlines and 3-D effects should be avoided unless they are necessary for clarity or essential content information.

Legends, or keys, explain symbols, styles, patterns, shading, or colors in the image. Words in the legend should be in title case; legends should go within or underneath the image rather than to the side. Not all figures will require a legend.

Notes clarify the content of the figure; like tables, notes can be general, specific, or probability. General notes explain units of measurement, symbols, and abbreviations, or provide citation information. Specific notes identify specific elements using superscripts; probability notes explain statistical significance of certain values.

This image shows a generic example of a bar graph formatted as a figure in APA 7 style.

A generic example of a figure formatted in APA 7 style.

Figure Checklist 

(Taken from the  Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association , 7 th ed., Section 7.35)

  • Is the figure necessary?
  • Does the figure belong in the print and electronic versions of the article, or is it supplemental?
  • Is the figure simple, clean, and free of extraneous detail?
  • Is the figure title descriptive of the content of the figure? Is it written in italic title case and left aligned?
  • Are all elements of the figure clearly labeled?
  • Are the magnitude, scale, and direction of grid elements clearly labeled?
  • Are parallel figures or equally important figures prepared according to the same scale?
  • Are the figures numbered consecutively with Arabic numerals? Is the figure number bold and left aligned?
  • Has the figure been formatted properly? Is the font sans serif in the image portion of the figure and between sizes 8 and 14?
  • Are all abbreviations and special symbols explained?
  • If the figure has a legend, does it appear within or below the image? Are the legend’s words written in title case?
  • Are the figure notes in general, specific, and probability order? Are they double-spaced, left aligned, and in the same font as the paper?
  • Are all figures mentioned in the text?
  • Has written permission for print and electronic reuse been obtained? Is proper credit given in the figure caption?
  • Have all substantive modifications to photographic images been disclosed?
  • Are the figures being submitted in a file format acceptable to the publisher?
  • Have the files been produced at a sufficiently high resolution to allow for accurate reproduction?

IMAGES

  1. Reference lists

    apa reference list spacing

  2. APA Reference Page

    apa reference list spacing

  3. Setting Up the APA Reference Page

    apa reference list spacing

  4. APA Reference Page: How to Format Works Cited

    apa reference list spacing

  5. Essay Basics: Format a References Page in APA Style

    apa reference list spacing

  6. APA Citation Generator (Free)

    apa reference list spacing

VIDEO

  1. APA Reference List

  2. APA Style Referenncing and Citation in Word. Reference and Citation. APA . Style. Ms Office. Words

  3. Formatting Reports for APA and Accessibility

  4. APA Reference of a Book in MS Word

  5. APA Reference Page

  6. What is italicized in APA reference list?

COMMENTS

  1. Reference List: Basic Rules

    All text should be double-spaced just like the rest of your essay. Basic Rules for Most Sources All lines after the first line of each entry in your reference list should be indented one-half inch from the left margin. This is called hanging indentation. All authors' names should be inverted (i.e., last names should be provided first).

  2. APA Formatting and Style Guide (7th Edition)

    Basic Rules Basic guidelines for formatting the reference list at the end of a standard APA research paper Author/Authors Rules for handling works by a single author or multiple authors that apply to all APA-style references in your reference list, regardless of the type of work (book, article, electronic resource, etc.) Articles in Periodicals

  3. Line spacing

    Line Spacing In general, double-space all parts of an APA Style paper, including the abstract; text; block quotations; table and figure numbers, titles, and notes; and reference list (including between and within entries). Do not add extra space before or after paragraphs. Exceptions to double line spacing are as follows:

  4. Reference List

    For APA the reference list is arranged in alphabetical order of authors' surnames. Arrange by first author's name, then by second author if you have the same first author, etc. ( check the page on Authors for how to lay out the reference if you have more than one author ). If a reference has no author, list it alphabetically according to the title.

  5. Library Guides: APA 7th referencing style: Reference list

    The reference list is double spaced (between each reference AND within the reference). A reference list is arranged alphabetically by author last name. Each reference appears on a new line. Each item in the reference list is required to have a hanging indent. Zarate, K., Maggin, D. M., & Passmore, A. (2019).

  6. PDF Creating an APA Style Reference List Guide

    Double-space the reference list, both within and between references. Do not add extra lines between references. Order references alphabetically, usually by the first letter of the first author's last name. Include the authors' first and middle initials (if they have them). Do not write out first or middle names.

  7. APA Formatting and Citation (7th Ed.)

    Throughout your paper, you need to apply the following APA format guidelines: Set page margins to 1 inch on all sides. Double-space all text, including headings. Indent the first line of every paragraph 0.5 inches. Use an accessible font (e.g., Times New Roman 12pt., Arial 11pt., or Georgia 11pt.).

  8. Research Guides: APA 7th Edition : Reference List Basics

    Double-space your reference list For each author, list the last name first followed by the initials for their first and middle names Arrange your reference list alphabetically by the last name of the author Use a hanging indent after the first line of your citation Creating an APA Style Reference List - 7th Edition

  9. Reference List

    Double-space the list. Do not add any extra spaces between references. Start the first line of each reference at the left margin; indent each subsequent line five spaces (a hanging indent). TIP: Use MS Word function under the Paragraph tab to create this. Put your list in alphabetical order.

  10. Reference list

    Reference list. Your reference list in APA 7th style needs to include all the works you have cited in your assignment (except for any personal communications). It is placed at the end of your essay on a new page and has a specific format you need to follow. ... Line spacing: Double line spacing, no space between entries: Order of list ...

  11. Setting Up the APA Reference Page

    Published on November 4, 2020 by Raimo Streefkerk . Revised on January 17, 2024. This article reflects the APA 7th edition guidelines. Click here for APA 6th edition guidelines. On the APA reference page, you list all the sources that you've cited in your paper. The list starts on a new page right after the body text.

  12. LibGuides: APA 7th Edition Referencing Guide1: Reference list

    Reference list entries typically have four main parts: Who. (When). What. Where. Author. (Date). Title. Source. 'Sentence case' versus 'Title Case' Sentence case The way this sentence is written, beginning with a capital and all other words in lower case (unless proper nouns, e.g., New Zealand). Title case

  13. References

    Consistency in reference formatting allows readers to focus on the content of your reference list, discerning both the types of works you consulted and the important reference elements (who, when, what, and where) with ease.

  14. Formatting the Reference List

    Format reference lists using the following elements: Example References Ahmmed, M. M., Babu, M. A., & Salim, Z. R. (2020). Depression and associated factors among undergraduate students of private universities in Bangladesh: A cross-sectional study. International Journal of Psychosocial Rehabilitation, 24(2), 97-108.

  15. Citation Help for APA, 6th Edition: Formatting Your Paper

    Always start your reference list on a new page. Page title - The word References should appear centered at the top of the page. If you have only 1 citation the title should be Reference. Line Spacing - Double space between each line. (p. 180) Alignment - The first line of each entry should align with the left margin. All subsequent lines should be indented 5 spaces or set a hanging indent at 1 ...

  16. 5a. APA Style (7th ed.) references checklist

    Check spacing after punctuation Provide one space after a comma or a period within references, including after an author's initials e.g., Author, A. A. (APA, 2020, p. 154). 6. Check capitalization of resource titles

  17. General Format

    Please use the example at the bottom of this page to cite the Purdue OWL in APA. You can also watch our APA vidcast series on the Purdue OWL YouTube Channel.. General APA Guidelines. Your essay should be typed and double-spaced on standard-sized paper (8.5" x 11"), with 1" margins on all sides.Include a

  18. APA Referencing

    Sample Reference List in APA 7th Edition. Formatted in MS Word. Spacing. Line spacing. The reference list uses the same line spacing as the body of your assignment (1.5 or double-spaced). A blank line between entries in the reference list is optional. Author initials (spacing)

  19. APA Spacing: Getting it Right in APA 7

    One space is required after a period at the end of a sentence, when the period separates parts of a reference entry, and after the author's abbreviations in the reference list. Also put one space after any other punctuation mark at the end of a sentence. APA Spacing for Title Page Insert a double-spaced blank line between the title and your name.

  20. How do you format a bibliography in APA Style? (6th edition)

    In general, the list of references is double-spaced and listed alphabetically by first author's last name. For each reference, the first line is typed flush with the left margin, and any additional lines are indented as a group a few spaces to the right of the left margin (this is called a hanging indent ). For example:

  21. Formatting a Paper in APA

    include the title References centered on the first line of the page; everything after the title is left-justified; Citations: listed in alphabetical order by the first part of the citation (usually the author) Spacing: double spaced throughout all parts; 1-inch margins on all sides

  22. APA reference list

    The reference list. The reference list appears at the end of the assignment, under the heading "References.". It lists detailed information about each source that has been cited in the assignment. Every source mentioned in an in-text citation should be listed in the reference list. If a source doesn't have an in-text citation, it should not ...

  23. PDF 7th edition Common Reference Examples Guide

    This guide contains examples of common types of APA Style references. Section numbers indicate where to find the examples in the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association (7th ed.). More information on references and reference examples are in Chapters 9 and 10 of the Publication Manual as well as the Concise Guide to APA ...

  24. APA Tables and Figures

    Note: This page reflects the latest version of the APA Publication Manual (i.e., APA 7), which released in October 2019. The equivalent resources for the older APA 6 style can be found at this page as well as at this page (our old resources covered the material on this page on two separate pages). The purpose of tables and figures in documents is to enhance your readers' understanding of the ...