Free APA and MLA Citation Generator
Create an APA 7 reference or MLA 9 Works Cited entry for a webpage, journal article or book. Enter the source details, review the reference and parenthetical citation together, then download your draft as TXT, JSON or formatted HTML.
EduGuestPost’s free citation generator formats sources in an isolated browser workspace. Create an individual draft or add sources to a session-only bibliography. You supply the facts; the formatter applies the selected citation style.
APA 7 · MLA 9 · No account required · Local bibliography · Import, copy and export
Format your reference
Choose APA 7th edition or MLA 9th edition, then select Webpage, Journal article or Book. Add the source title, authors and available publication details.
Use Add person author for an individual and Add group author for an organization. Keep the authors in the order shown on the source.
This version uses the details you enter. It does not look up a URL, DOI or ISBN, read the original source, or verify the facts inside it.
Formatting uses English (US). Enter plain text rather than HTML or formatting tags. Each source accepts up to 30 authors and 32 KiB of supported metadata. Individual draft downloads are limited to 128 KiB; a bibliography allows up to 50 sources and 1 MiB per collection, import or export under the current default admin limits.
APA 7 · MLA 9 · Supplied source details
Format a reference, then check it against your source
Create one reference entry and a standalone parenthetical citation for a webpage, journal article or book. The generator uses pinned Citation Style Language rules in English (US); it does not find, read or verify the source.
Your details stay in the isolated workspace. Missing information is flagged, not invented. Review names, capitalization, dates and your instructor or publisher requirements before using a citation.
(c) Frank Bennett — citeproc-js implements the Citation Style Language. CSL styles and locale: CC BY-SA 3.0. Attribution and source notices · Covered source archive · CPAL license
If the embedded workspace does not load, open the isolated citation generator in a separate tab.
How to use the citation generator
- Choose the required style. Follow the edition named by your instructor, journal or publisher. APA 7 and MLA 9 arrange the same source details differently.
- Choose the source type. Use Journal article for a journal paper, even when you read it online. Use Book for a whole book and Webpage for a page on a website.
- Enter details from the source. Add the title, author or organization, publication date and relevant publication information. Leave unavailable optional details blank.
- Format and review. Select Format citation. Compare the reference entry, parenthetical preview, warnings and normalized metadata with the original work.
- Copy or export the result. Download an individual TXT, JSON or HTML draft, or add the formatted source to your bibliography and export the complete list. Review the final citations in your document before submitting or publishing it.
Change a detail or switch styles, then format again to refresh the result. Use the synthetic demo to explore the controls with invented source information.
Cite websites, journal articles and books
Different sources need different details. A webpage’s site name, a journal’s title and a book’s publisher have different roles in a reference.
Webpage
Page title, person or organization author, publication date, website title and specific page URL
Use the page you actually consulted. A site’s general copyright year may not be the page’s publication date.
Journal article
Article title, authors, publication year, journal title, volume, issue, article pages and DOI when available
Check the published version. The article’s full page range differs from the page you quote.
Book
Book title, authors, publication year, publisher and edition when relevant
Use the edition you read. Chapters, edited collections and translated works need additional fields that this version does not support.
A DOI can be entered as a bare identifier or an HTTPS doi.org address. A source URL must be an absolute HTTP or HTTPS address. The generator checks supported syntax and prefers a supplied DOI when both are entered; it does not confirm that either identifier resolves to the correct source.
APA references and MLA Works Cited entries
APA commonly identifies a source in the text through its author and publication year. MLA commonly uses an author and a locator, such as a page number. Both need enough reference details for readers to identify the work.
| Citation detail | APA 7 | MLA 9 |
|---|---|---|
| List heading | References | Works Cited |
| Typical parenthetical form | Author, year; add a locator when needed | Author and page or another appropriate locator |
| Book title | Usually sentence case and italicized | Usually title case and italicized |
| Article title | Usually sentence case | Usually title case and in quotation marks |
| Publication details | Depend on the type of work | Depend on the relevant core elements and container |
Your assignment or publisher’s instructions decide which style to use. Review proper nouns, acronyms, author names and special cases even when a formatter adjusts capitalization.
See the difference with a book example
The following source is invented for demonstration. It is not a real book or evidence for a research claim.
Supplied details: Alex Rivera and Samira Khan; A practical guide to community reading; second edition; Example Press; 2022. The cited passage is on page 27.
APA 7 reference
Rivera, A., & Khan, S. (2022). A practical guide to community reading (2nd ed.). Example Press.
Parenthetical preview: (Rivera & Khan, 2022, p. 27)
MLA 9 Works Cited entry
Rivera, Alex, and Samira Khan. A Practical Guide to Community Reading. 2nd ed., Example Press, 2022.
Parenthetical preview: (Rivera and Khan 27)
The author names, title, edition and year describe the same source. Their order, punctuation and presentation change with the citation style.
Review the reference and the passage citation separately
The reference entry identifies the whole source. The parenthetical citation points readers from a passage in your writing to that source.
For a quotation from page 48 of an article spanning pages 45–59, enter 45–59 as the article page range and 48 as the citation locator. Do not replace the article’s full range with the single page you quoted.
The workspace supports Page and Paragraph locators. Supply a value you have checked against the source; the generator does not locate the passage for you.
This is a standalone preview. Two works by the same author in the same year, authors with matching surnames, or repeated citations can need document-wide adjustments. Review the full paper’s citations and reference list together.
Handle missing source details without guessing
If no author is listed, first check whether an organization is credited. If a publication date is unavailable, leave it blank and read the warning. The selected style applies its fallback rules; APA may use n.d. for an unknown date, while MLA generally omits an unavailable date.
The generator also flags missing location or publication details, such as a webpage URL, journal title or book publisher. An entry can be formatted and still be incomplete.
Do not invent an author, date, DOI, publisher or page number to make the reference look finished. Check unfamiliar cases against the official APA reference guidance or the MLA Works Cited quick guide.
Build a local bibliography from your sources
Format a source, review its warnings, then choose Add to bibliography. Add a source annotation, edit or remove entries, and switch the complete list between APA 7 and MLA 9. The pinned citation style orders the reference list; search and source-type filters change only the review view, not an All sources export.
Review imports before adding
Paste or open a local bibliography backup, CSL-JSON or tagged RIS file. The preview accounts for every record, reports rejected records and unsupported fields, and lets you select valid records to append without replacing existing sources.
Copy and select your output
Copy one reference, its parenthetical preview, or the whole bibliography. Select specific sources when you need a smaller export. Formatted copy retains supported emphasis where the browser permits it; a manual plain-text fallback appears when automatic copying is unavailable.
Keep a portable backup
Download backup JSON to retain the supplied fields, passage locators and annotations, then import it in a later workspace. Collections exist only in this tab session: no localStorage, saved account, cloud history or cross-device sync is used.
Possible duplicates are highlighted for review, never merged automatically. Undo restores the last collection change. The source form and bibliography have separate clearing controls.
Bibliography-context citation previews use the records in this list, not your complete paper or its citation order. Check same-author/year cases and all passage citations against the final document.
Download individual drafts or the complete bibliography
Plain TXT
Reference and citation text, supplied details, warnings and limitations
Moving plain text into a draft or keeping a readable record; italics and hanging indents are lost
Report JSON
Normalized metadata, citation outputs, warnings and formatter provenance
Keeping a structured record for later review
Formatted HTML
A readable report with supported emphasis and a hanging indent for the reference
Reviewing the formatted draft in a browser or transferring supported formatting into an editorial workflow
The HTML report contains no scripts or live source links. A URL displayed in the reference is citation text, not a successful link check. These downloads contain the source details you entered, so review them before sharing.
Bibliography exports: TXT, formatted HTML, RTF, Markdown, BibTeX, RIS, genuine CSL-JSON, CSV source inventory and backup JSON. Choose All sources or Selected sources and whether to include annotations. Backup JSON always retains the original annotations.
RTF provides a word-processor document with supported emphasis and hanging indents. HTML is print-ready: open the downloaded file and use your browser’s Print / Save PDF. This release does not generate DOCX or PDF files, create Google Docs, or insert live Word/Docs citation fields. Exchange formats retain their supported fields; review the record in the destination application.
Keep citation formatting local
The citation workspace processes the metadata in your browser without uploading it, calling a source lookup API or saving a project. Its formatting assets load from EduGuestPost before you enter your details. The surrounding public page makes normal website requests.
Leaving the workspace clears its entered data. Download anything you need to keep. A saved download remains on your device according to your browser and file settings.
Frequently asked questions
Is this citation generator free?
Yes. You can format supported sources, build a session-only bibliography, review local imports, and copy or export the results without an account. This release supports APA 7 and MLA 9 for webpages, journal articles and books. The interface and admin controls state the applicable source and file limits.
Does it generate in-text citations?
It generates a standalone parenthetical preview alongside the reference. You can add a page or paragraph locator. It does not manage narrative citations, every repeated-citation situation or disambiguation across an entire document.
Can I generate a citation from a URL, DOI or ISBN?
You can include a supported URL or DOI in the supplied details, but this version does not retrieve metadata from it. ISBN lookup is not available. Enter the title, authors, date and publication details yourself.
Can I create a complete bibliography?
Yes. Add formatted sources or selected valid import records to your current bibliography. Edit or remove entries, add your own annotations, review possible duplicates and let the selected APA or MLA style order the list. Search filters do not remove sources from an All sources export. The generator does not scan your paper or confirm that every in-text citation has a matching reference.
Can I cite a PDF or an ebook?
Use the source type for the work itself. A journal article saved as a PDF is still a journal article; a whole ebook uses its book details. Enter the metadata yourself. This version does not upload PDFs or extract their references, and chapters or other special works may need unsupported fields.
Will the generator fix title capitalization?
The citation styles apply their formatting rules, but names, acronyms and specialist terms still need review. The Case Converter can help with general text case; its generic title case is not a substitute for an APA or MLA style check.
What should I do when an author or date is missing?
Check the original source first, including any credited organization and publication information. Leave genuinely unavailable optional fields blank and review the warnings. Do not use a guessed name, today’s date or a site’s general copyright year to fill a gap.
Does a generated citation prove the source is reliable?
No. Formatting does not establish that a source exists, is current, has not been retracted or supports your claim. Read and evaluate the work before citing it. No warning is not the same as verification.
Is this the same as an AI citation checker?
This generator formats bibliographic details for your own writing. The AI Citation Checker reviews the citation relationships in an AI answer you supply. Choose it when you want to inspect captured answer citations rather than format an APA or MLA reference.
Can I use the result in Word or Google Docs?
You can transfer an individual reference or bibliography into your document. RTF and HTML retain supported emphasis and hanging indents; TXT loses rich formatting. Review the source address before adding a hyperlink when your style requires one. This release does not export DOCX, create a Google Doc or insert live citation fields into a word processor.
Does this tool save my sources for later?
The bibliography remains in this workspace session only and clears when you leave. It is not saved in a site account, localStorage or cloud history. Download backup JSON before leaving to retain source fields, locators and annotations, then review and import that backup in a later workspace.
Format your next source
Choose APA 7 or MLA 9, enter the details from the work you used, and review your reference and parenthetical citation together.