IEEE Citation Generator
Updated July 2026
Paste a DOI, URL, or ISBN and get an IEEE style reference instantly — select IEEE on the result to copy it into your numbered reference list.
IEEE style is the standard for electrical engineering, computer science, and most technical fields. Its signature: sources are cited by bracketed numbers — [1], [2], [3] — in order of first appearance, and the reference list is numbered to match rather than alphabetized.
We'll identify it and build your citation.
IEEE format examples
B. Rasch and J. Born, "About sleep's role in memory," Physiological Reviews, vol. 93, no. 2, pp. 681-766, 2013. doi: 10.1152/physrev.00032.2012.
In-text[1]
R. C. Martin, Clean Code: A Handbook of Agile Software Craftsmanship. Prentice Hall, 2008.
In-text[1]
M. Alvarez, "How memory consolidation works during sleep," Science Daily. https://www.sciencedaily.com/memory-consolidation-sleep (accessed June 1, 2026).
In-text[1]
The IEEE reference formula
A. A. Author and B. B. Author, “Title of paper,” Journal Name, vol. X, no. X, pp. xx-xx, Mon. Year. doi: xxxx.
IEEE puts initials before surnames (B. Rasch, not Rasch, B.), wraps paper titles in quotation marks with sentence-style capitalization, italicizes the journal name, abbreviates months, and writes the DOI as doi: 10.xxxx rather than a URL. Books swap the journal block for edition, publisher, and year.
Citing in the text: numbers, not names
In-text citations are just the bracket: "as shown in [1]" or "sleep consolidates memory [2], [5]-[7]". The number is assigned at first mention and reused for every later reference to the same source. Because order matters, finalize your reference numbering last, after the text stops moving — or use the Bibliography Builder, which preserves your citation order and renders the [n] numbering for you in IEEE mode.
IEEE specifics worth knowing
- Up to six authors are listed; more become the first author plus et al.
- Journal names are conventionally abbreviated (IEEE Trans. Neural Netw.) — acceptable in full for coursework, abbreviated for publication.
- Online sources include the URL and an accessed date in the form (accessed Mon. day, year).
- The reference list is titled References and entries appear in citation order — never alphabetical.
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Go Premium — $5/monthFrequently asked questions
- How do IEEE in-text citations work?
- Bracketed numbers in order of first appearance: [1], [2]. Reuse the same number for repeat citations. Ranges compress: [2]-[4]. The bibliography builder numbers your list to match.
- Is the reference list alphabetized?
- No — IEEE lists references in the order they're first cited in the text. This is the main structural difference from APA/MLA/Harvard.
- How does IEEE format DOIs?
- As doi: 10.xxxx/xxxx at the end of the reference, not as a clickable https link. The generator formats this automatically.
- What about citing standards, datasheets, or RFCs?
- Use Manual Entry with the website or book type — include the standard number in the title (e.g., "IEEE Std 802.11-2020"). The numbered citation mechanics work the same.