APA Format Guide (7th Edition)
APA (American Psychological Association) format is the standard citation style for the social sciences, education, psychology, nursing, and business. The 7th edition, published in 2019, brought significant updates including simpler rules for student papers, expanded guidance on digital sources, and changes to author formatting. This guide covers everything you need to write a properly formatted APA paper.
Format Rules
Paper Margins and Font
Set all margins to 1 inch on all sides. APA 7th edition recommends accessible fonts: Times New Roman 12pt, Calibri 11pt, Arial 11pt, Lucida Sans Unicode 10pt, or Georgia 11pt. The entire paper should be double-spaced throughout, with no extra spacing between paragraphs.
Title Page
Student papers include a title page with: the paper title (bold, centered, in the upper half of the page), the author name(s), the institutional affiliation, the course name and number, the instructor's name, and the assignment due date. Professional papers also include an author note and running head.
Running Head
Student papers in APA 7 do NOT require a running head (this changed from the 6th edition). Professional papers require a running head: a shortened version of the title (50 characters max) in ALL CAPS, flush left in the page header. Page numbers appear flush right on every page.
Abstract
An abstract is a 150–250 word summary of your paper. Place it on a separate page after the title page with the label "Abstract" centered and bold at the top. The abstract text is not indented. Optionally add keywords on a new line below the abstract: indent, type <i>Keywords:</i> in italics, then list your keywords separated by commas.
In-Text Citations
APA uses an author-date system. Include the author's last name and the year of publication: (Smith, 2022). For direct quotes, also include the page number: (Smith, 2022, p. 45). If you name the author in the sentence, only put the year in parentheses: Smith (2022) argued that... For sources with no author, use the title (shortened if long) and the year.
Reference List
The reference list begins on a new page at the end of the paper with the centered bold heading "References." List all entries in alphabetical order by the first author's last name. Use a hanging indent (first line flush left, subsequent lines indented 0.5 inches). Double-space all entries with no extra space between them.
Authors: Up to 20
APA 7th edition allows up to 20 authors to be listed before using an ellipsis. List the first 19 authors, add an ellipsis (...), then list the final author. Previous editions truncated at 7 authors. For two authors, use an ampersand (&) between them in the reference list, but spell out 'and' in in-text citations.
DOI and URL Formatting
Include a DOI (Digital Object Identifier) when available — format it as a hyperlink: https://doi.org/xxxxx. If no DOI is available, include the URL. APA 7 no longer requires 'Retrieved from' before URLs (unless a retrieval date is needed). Do not end a DOI or URL with a period.
Citation Examples
Brown, B. (2018). Dare to lead. Random House.
Brown, B. (2018). Dare to lead. Random House. In-text: (Brown, 2018) or Brown (2018)
Seligman, M. E. P., & Csikszentmihalyi, M. (2000). Positive psychology: An introduction. American Psychologist, 55(1), 5–14.
Seligman, M. E. P., & Csikszentmihalyi, M. (2000). Positive psychology: An introduction. American Psychologist, 55(1), 5–14. In-text: (Seligman & Csikszentmihalyi, 2000)
Twenge, J. M., & Campbell, W. K. (2019). Media use is linked to lower psychological well-being: Evidence from three datasets. Psychiatric Quarterly, 90(2), 311–331. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11126-019-09630-7
Twenge, J. M., & Campbell, W. K. (2019). Media use is linked to lower psychological well-being: Evidence from three datasets. Psychiatric Quarterly, 90(2), 311–331. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11126-019-09630-7 In-text: (Twenge & Campbell, 2019)
Parenthood, P. (2023, March 14). How to talk to your kids about puberty. Planned Parenthood. https://www.plannedparenthood.org/learn/parents/puberty
Parenthood, P. (2023, March 14). How to talk to your kids about puberty. Planned Parenthood. https://www.plannedparenthood.org/learn/parents/puberty In-text: (Parenthood, 2023)
Understanding anxiety disorders. (2022, November 1). National Institute of Mental Health. https://www.nimh.nih.gov/health/topics/anxiety-disorders
Understanding anxiety disorders. (2022, November 1). National Institute of Mental Health. https://www.nimh.nih.gov/health/topics/anxiety-disorders In-text: ("Understanding Anxiety Disorders," 2022)
TED. (2009, September 16). The danger of a single story | Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D9Ihs241zeg
TED. (2009, September 16). The danger of a single story | Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D9Ihs241zeg In-text: (TED, 2009)
Harmon, A. (2024, January 5). Breakthrough gene therapy shows promise for rare disease. The New York Times. https://www.nytimes.com/
Harmon, A. (2024, January 5). Breakthrough gene therapy shows promise for rare disease. The New York Times. https://www.nytimes.com/ In-text: (Harmon, 2024)
McRaney, D. (Host). (2022, January 18). The backfire effect (No. 93) [Audio podcast episode]. In You Are Not So Smart. https://youarenotsosmart.com/
McRaney, D. (Host). (2022, January 18). The backfire effect (No. 93) [Audio podcast episode]. In You Are Not So Smart. https://youarenotsosmart.com/ In-text: (McRaney, 2022)
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2023). National diabetes statistics report. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. https://www.cdc.gov/diabetes/data/statistics-report/index.html
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2023). National diabetes statistics report. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. https://www.cdc.gov/diabetes/data/statistics-report/index.html In-text: (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2023) — abbreviate to (CDC, 2023) after first citation
NASA [@NASA]. (2024, February 14). Happy Valentine's Day from the cosmos! 💫 [Photograph]. Instagram. https://www.instagram.com/nasa/
NASA [@NASA]. (2024, February 14). Happy Valentine's Day from the cosmos! 💫 [Photograph]. Instagram. https://www.instagram.com/nasa/ In-text: (NASA, 2024)