How to cite a website in MLA 9

In MLA the website is the container and the page you read is the source. You cite the specific page, not the whole site.

Works Cited format

Last, First. "Title of the Page." Website Name, Publisher (if different from the website's name), Day Month Year, URL.

Alder, Jamie. “How to Read a Research Paper in 20 Minutes.” Open Study Hub, Brightwell Learning Trust, 12 Feb. 2025, example.org/read-a-paper.

• Author. The person or organization responsible. If no author is named, begin with the title of the page.
• Title. The page title in quotation marks.
• Website. The name of the site, in italics. MLA calls this the container.
• Publisher. The organization that runs the site, if it differs from the site’s name.
• Date. The date the page was posted. If none is shown, MLA’s guidance is to use the copyright year in the site’s footer.
• URL. Copy the address from your browser. MLA lets you leave off “https://”.

One entry per page

If you use three pages from the same site, write three entries. Don’t make one entry for the website and refer back to it.

In-text citation

Use the author’s last name: (Alder). A web page usually has no page numbers, so give none. MLA’s rule is that when a source has no page or other part number, the parenthetical has no number.

If the entry begins with the title because there is no author, use the title or a shortened form of it in your text: (“How to Read a Research Paper”). If the page has no author and it is unclear who produced the site, use the site’s title.

Check before you submit

• Access dates. MLA treats them as optional. Add one if your instructor asks.
• The URL. Test it before you submit, in case the page has moved.