What the generator does
Pick the kind of source, then search by title, DOI, ISBN or web address. The details come from Crossref, DataCite, OpenAlex, PubMed, Open Library and Google Books, or from the page itself. If nothing is found you can type the details in. The form shows only the fields APA needs for that kind of source and tells you what is still missing, such as a year or a publisher, before you copy the result.
You get two things: the reference-list entry and the matching in-text citation. Add several to your list and export them together as a .docx, BibTeX or RIS file. The list is kept in your own browser and is never sent to us.
What APA 7 asks for
APA is an author–date style. In your text you give the author and year, such as (Martin et al., 2020). At the end of your paper the full details go in a list headed References.
- Order. Entries are alphabetized by the first word of each entry, which is usually the first author’s surname. A work with no author is placed by its title.
- Authors. Surname first, then initials, with an ampersand before the last author. Up to 20 authors are listed.
- Titles. Article and chapter titles are in sentence case with no italics and no quotation marks. Book and report titles are in sentence case and italic.
- DOIs. Written as links. Older forms such as “doi:10.1037/…” should be converted.
Where to be careful
The generator follows APA 7, but your instructor may ask for something different, such as a retrieval date on every web page or a different list heading. Follow the instructor. Records in databases also contain mistakes: a misspelled name, a missing issue number, a title in capitals. Read the result against the source before you paste it into your paper.
Questions people ask
Does the generator set the hanging indent?
No. The generator gives you the text of each entry, with italics kept when you copy it. The 0.5-inch hanging indent, the bold, centered “References” heading and the alphabetical order are set in your word processor. APA describes all three on its reference list setup page.
Why does it offer to change my title to sentence case?
APA writes the titles of articles, chapters and books in sentence case in the reference list: the first word, the first word after a colon and proper nouns are capitalized, and the rest is lowercase. Databases often store titles in title case, so the generator offers to convert one. Check proper nouns after it does.
How many authors does an APA reference list?
Up to 20. With 21 or more, APA lists the first 19, then an ellipsis, then the final author. In your text, a source with three or more authors is cited as the first author plus “et al.” from the first mention.
Do I write “Retrieved from” before a DOI or link?
No. APA drops those words and writes the DOI as a link starting with https://doi.org/. If a work has both a DOI and a URL, use the DOI. APA asks for a retrieval date only for pages that are not archived and are designed to change over time.
I have a whole reference list, not one source. What then?
Paste it into the reference checker with APA 7 selected. It looks up each entry, shows what doesn't match the published record, and gives you corrected APA citations.
Official sources
- APA Style: Reference list setup
- APA Style: How many names to include in a reference
- APA Style: Sentence case capitalization
- APA Style: DOIs and URLs
- APA Style: Author–date citation system
We paraphrase official guidance and link to it. When in doubt, follow the source and your instructor.