How to Cite a Journal Article in APA Format

This guide explains how to cite a journal article APA style (APA 7th edition) with clear, step-by-step instructions and examples. It’s written for students, researchers, and professionals who need accurate references for papers, theses, or publications.

Use Rephrasely’s free citation generator to build citations quickly: Rephrasely Citation Generator. You can also check drafts with the plagiarism checker, refine wording with the AI writer (Composer), and validate AI outputs with the AI detector.

What the APA format is and who uses it

APA (American Psychological Association) style is a widely used citation and formatting system in the social sciences, education, nursing, and some natural sciences. APA 7th edition updated rules for electronic sources, author lists, and DOI formatting.

Researchers, students, and instructors rely on APA to create consistent, clear references that let readers locate the original sources.

General Rules

Use author-date citation style: in-text citations show the author(s) and year of publication.
Reference list entries are alphabetized by the first author's last name and appear at the end of the paper.
Use a hanging indent for each reference (first line flush left; subsequent lines indented 0.5 inches).
Double-space the reference list and the entire manuscript.
Italicize journal titles and volume numbers, but not article titles or issue numbers.
Use sentence case for article titles (capitalize only the first word and proper nouns).
Provide DOIs using the https://doi.org/ prefix. If there is no DOI and the article is from an academic database, omit the URL unless it’s open access.
List up to 20 authors in the reference list. For in-text citations of three or more authors, use the first author’s surname + et al.

How to Cite by Source Type

Below are step-by-step formats and examples for common source types. Examples use APA 7th edition conventions. Citation examples are shown in code-style blocks for copyability.

Journal article (print, with DOI)

Format: Author, A. A., & Author, B. B. (Year). Article title: Subtitle. Journal Title, Volume(Issue), page–page. https://doi.org/xxxxx

Smith, J. A., & Lee, K. M. (2020). Social learning in urban environments. Journal of Urban Psychology, 12(3), 145–162. https://doi.org/10.1234/jup.2020.0123

Journal article (online, no DOI)

Format: Author, A. A. (Year). Article title. Journal Title, Volume(Issue), pages. URL

Ramirez, P. L. (2019). Remote work trends and outcomes. Workplace Studies, 8(2), 40–58. https://www.workplacestudies.org/articles/remote-work

Book

Format: Author, A. A. (Year). Book title: Subtitle. Publisher. DOI (if available)

Turner, S. R. (2018). Methods in behavioral research. Academic Press.

Website article

Format: Author, A. A. (Year, Month Day). Title of page. Site Name. URL

Jameson, T. (2021, June 10). Measuring student engagement online. EdTech Today. https://www.edtechtoday.org/measure-engagement

Conference paper / Proceedings

Format: Author, A. A. (Year). Title of paper. In E. E. Editor (Ed.), Proceedings title (pp. xx–xx). Publisher. DOI or URL

Nguyen, H. T. (2022). Adaptive learning analytics. In L. Chen (Ed.), Proceedings of the International Learning Technologies Conference (pp. 88–97). Learning Press. https://doi.org/10.1000/iltc.2022.08

Thesis / Dissertation

Format: Author, A. A. (Year). Title of thesis (Publication No. if available) [Doctoral dissertation, Institution]. Database or URL

Olson, M. J. (2017). Peer feedback and writing improvement (Doctoral dissertation, State University). ProQuest Dissertations & Theses Global.

In-Text Citations

Use in-text citations to point readers to the matching reference list entry. There are two main styles: parenthetical and narrative.

Parenthetical: include author(s) and year in parentheses. Example: (Smith & Lee, 2020).
Narrative: incorporate the author into the sentence followed by the year in parentheses. Example: Smith and Lee (2020) found...

One author

(Garcia, 2018)

Two authors

(Smith & Lee, 2020)

Three or more authors

Use the first author’s surname followed by et al. for all citations (even the first citation).

(Nguyen et al., 2022)

No author

Use a shortened title (in double quotation marks for article titles) and year.

("Measuring Student Engagement," 2021)

Personal communications

Personal communications (e.g., emails, interviews) are cited in-text only and not included in the reference list.

(A. Brown, personal communication, March 10, 2022)

Reference List: Formatting Rules and Example

Place the reference list on a new page titled "References." Follow these rules to format the list correctly.

Alphabetize by the surname of the first author.
Use a hanging indent for each entry (0.5 inches).
Double-space all entries.
Italicize journal titles and volume numbers.
Include DOIs as links (https://doi.org/...).

Example reference list (abridged):

References

Garcia, R. L. (2018). Cognitive load and multimedia learning. Educational Psychology Review, 30(1), 23–45. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10648-018-9456-2

Nguyen, H. T., Patel, S., & Li, X. (2022). Adaptive learning analytics. Journal of Learning Analytics, 9(4), 112–130. https://doi.org/10.1000/jla.2022.09

Ramirez, P. L. (2019). Remote work trends and outcomes. Workplace Studies, 8(2), 40–58. https://www.workplacestudies.org/articles/remote-work

Smith, J. A., & Lee, K. M. (2020). Social learning in urban environments. Journal of Urban Psychology, 12(3), 145–162. https://doi.org/10.1234/jup.2020.0123

Actionable tip: export citations from databases in APA format, then verify DOIs and capitalization. If you prefer automatic generation, try the Rephrasely Citation Generator and paste results into your reference list with a hanging indent.

Common Mistakes and How to Avoid Them

Incorrect DOI format. Some writers paste raw DOI numbers. Always use the https://doi.org/ prefix. Fix: change "doi:10.1234/xyz" to "https://doi.org/10.1234/xyz".
Capitalizing article titles incorrectly. Article titles should use sentence case, not title case. Fix: only capitalize the first word and proper nouns.
Mixing in-text and reference styles. Using "&" in narrative citations or "and" in parentheses is common. Fix: Use "&" in parenthetical citations (Smith & Lee, 2020) and "and" in narrative text (Smith and Lee (2020) argue…).
Forgetting the hanging indent or double-spacing. This makes the reference list look unprofessional. Fix: set your word processor to apply hanging indent 0.5" and double-space the reference list.

Extra tip: run a final check with tools like Rephrasely's plagiarism checker to ensure quoted material is properly cited, and use the AI writer to draft citation-aware summaries. If you're unsure whether a passage was AI-generated, validate with the AI detector.

Quick Checklist Before Submission

Are all cited works listed in the References and vice versa?
Are author names and publication years correct and consistently formatted?
Are DOIs formatted as https://doi.org/... and are URLs functional?
Is the reference list double-spaced with hanging indents and alphabetized?
Are in-text citations consistent with reference list entries?

Frequently Asked Questions

How do I cite a journal article APA with more than 20 authors?

List the first 19 authors, insert an ellipsis (…), then add the final author’s name. Keep the year and title formatting the same. For in-text citation, use the first author’s surname followed by et al.

Should I include the DOI or the URL for online journal articles?

Prefer the DOI when available and format it as a link (https://doi.org/…). Include a URL only if there is no DOI and the article is openly accessible online. Do not include database login URLs.

Can I use a citation generator for APA references?

Yes—citation generators save time and reduce errors. Always verify generator output against APA rules: check author spellings, DOI formatting, capitalization, and italics. Rephrasely’s free citation generator is a good starting point.

How to Cite a Journal Article in APA Format