How to Cite a Journal Article in APA
Updated July 2026
Citing a journal article in APA comes down to one template and a handful of rules. Below: the exact 7th edition format, a real example produced by our citation engine, and the in-text form — or paste your source into the generator and copy the finished citation.
The APA format
Author, A. A., & Author, B. B. (Year). Title of article in sentence case. Journal Name, Volume(Issue), pages. https://doi.org/xxxx
APA (7th edition) formats a journal article reference as shown above. A real example, generated by our citation engine:
Rasch, B., & Born, J. (2013). About sleep's role in memory. Physiological Reviews, 93(2), 681-766. https://doi.org/10.1152/physrev.00032.2012
In-text(Rasch & Born, 2013)
Finding the pieces
Or skip the hunt: Paste the article's DOI into the generator's DOI tab, and every field is filled from the source's own record — then select APA on the result.
- DOI — first page of the PDF or the article's landing page; it fills everything else automatically
- Volume and issue — the year's bound set and its installment: 93(2)
- Page range — the article's full span in the journal, not the pages you quoted
- Journal name — italicized in every style
APA's formatting rules at work
- Authors are inverted with initials: Alvarez, M.
- Titles use sentence case — only the first word, proper nouns, and the word after a colon are capitalized
- The date comes right after the author, in parentheses
- DOIs are formatted as full links: https://doi.org/10.xxxx
Journal Article-specific pitfalls
- The article title is never italicized — the journal name always is
- Online-only articles without page ranges use the article number instead
- Cite the version of record (the published version), not the preprint, when both exist
In-text citations in APA
APA cites in the text with author and date: (Alvarez, 2024) for a paraphrase, with a page or paragraph locator for quotes — (Alvarez, 2024, p. 12) or (Alvarez, 2024, para. 3). Three or more authors shorten to et al. from the first citation: (Harris et al., 2020).
No author? A short version of the title stands in, in quotes: ("First Words of Title," 2024). No date? Use (Author, n.d.).
Building the References
Every in-text citation pairs with a full entry on the References page, alphabetized by author. Add each citation to your bibliography as you generate it, and the Bibliography Builder assembles and exports the finished page to Word with the title, ordering, and indentation APA requires.
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Go Premium — $5/monthFrequently asked questions
- What's the basic APA format for a journal article?
- Author, A. A., & Author, B. B. (Year). Title of article in sentence case. Journal Name, Volume(Issue), pages. https://doi.org/xxxx — see the worked example above, generated by the same engine that powers the free citation tool.
- Do I mention the database (JSTOR, EBSCO) I used?
- Generally no in current styles — the DOI suffices. MLA permits the database as a second container for items only available there.
- How do I cite a journal article in APA in-text?
- Author and year: (Alvarez, 2024), adding a page or paragraph locator for direct quotes.
- Can I get this citation in other styles too?
- Yes — every result in the generator renders APA, MLA, Chicago, Harvard, and IEEE simultaneously. Generate once, switch styles with one click.