MLA Citation Generator
Paste a URL, DOI, or ISBN and get a correct MLA 9th edition citation instantly — select MLA 9 on the result to copy your Works Cited entry.
MLA is the standard for English, literature, and the humanities. Its 9th edition uses the "container" system: every source is described by the same nine core elements, which makes MLA flexible but easy to get subtly wrong. The generator applies the rules — full author first names, Title Case, et al. for three or more authors — automatically.
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MLA format examples
Alvarez, Maria. "How memory consolidation works during sleep." Science Daily, 18 Mar. 2024, https://www.sciencedaily.com/memory-consolidation-sleep. Accessed 1 June 2026.
Martin, Robert C. Clean Code: A Handbook of Agile Software Craftsmanship. Prentice Hall, 2008.
Rasch, Björn, and Jan Born. "About sleep's role in memory." Physiological Reviews, vol. 93, no. 2, 2013, pp. 681-766, https://doi.org/10.1152/physrev.00032.2012.
The MLA core-elements formula
Author. “Title of Source.” Title of Container, vol. X, no. X, Year, pp. xx-xx, DOI or URL.
MLA inverts only the first author's name (Rasch, Björn, and Jan Born). Source titles take quotation marks when they live inside a container (an article in a journal, a page on a website); standalone works like books are italicized. Containers — the journal, the website — are always italicized.
Unlike APA, MLA keeps Title Case for All Major Words and places the date near the end of the entry rather than up front. Three or more authors become the first author plus et al.
MLA in-text citations
MLA uses author–page format: (Rasch and Born 685). No comma, no year, no "p." — just the name and the page. If the author is named in your sentence, only the page number goes in parentheses. For sources without page numbers (most websites), the author name alone is enough: (Alvarez).
Two authors: (Rasch and Born 685). Three or more: (Harris et al. 360). No author: a shortened title in quotes — ("Sleep and Memory").
Works Cited, not Bibliography
MLA's reference list is titled Works Cited, alphabetized by author surname, double-spaced, with hanging indents. Only sources actually cited in the paper belong on it. The Bibliography Builder assembles and exports it with the correct title and formatting when you select MLA.
More source types in MLA
The nine core elements flex to any source. Two beyond the big three:
- Videos — the uploader as author, YouTube as the italicized container, upload date, URL.
- Reports — issuing organization as author; when author and site match, start with the title.
- Anthology pieces — the poem/story in quotes, the anthology italicized, editors as contributors, page range as location.
- No-author pages — begin with the title; alphabetize by it on the Works Cited page (ignoring A/An/The).
Kurzgesagt – In a Nutshell. "Why you should put yourself first." YouTube, 12 Sep. 2023, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eVTXPUF4Oz4. Accessed 1 June 2026.
National Sleep Foundation. "Sleep in America poll: Sleep and mental health." National Sleep Foundation, 2024, https://www.thensf.org/sleep-in-america-poll-2024. Accessed 1 June 2026.
MLA's most-missed details
- Containers within containers — a journal article from JSTOR can list both: the journal (container 1) and the database (container 2). Needed only when the database is the sole access point.
- "pp." only in the list — page ranges take pp. on the Works Cited page but the bare number in-text: (Rasch and Born 685).
- Inclusive page style — MLA compresses ranges: 681–766 stays, but 102–109 becomes 102–09.
- The comma before et al. — Harris, Charles R., et al. — inverted name, comma, et al.
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Go Premium — $5/monthFrequently asked questions
- Is this MLA 8 or MLA 9?
- MLA 9th edition (2021), which kept the 8th edition's container system and refined the details. Citations valid in MLA 9 are nearly always valid in MLA 8 as well.
- Do MLA citations need an access date for websites?
- MLA recommends an access date when the source has no publication date or is likely to change. The generator adds "Accessed" dates to web citations so you're covered either way — your instructor can always strike it.
- How does MLA handle three or more authors?
- First author inverted plus et al.: Harris, Charles R., et al. The in-text form matches: (Harris et al. 360). The generator applies this automatically.
- Quotation marks or italics for the title?
- Italics for standalone works (books, films, whole websites); quotation marks for works inside a container (articles, web pages, chapters, episodes). The generator decides based on your source type.