Citation Generator
Generate accurate academic citations in APA, MLA, Chicago, Harvard, and IEEE formats with automatic formatting, source validation, and bibliography generation. Create properly formatted reference lists for research papers, essays, dissertations, and academic publications with comprehensive source type support and citation style compliance.
Complete Guide: Citation Generator
Everything you need to know about using this tool effectively
The Citation Generator creates properly formatted citations for academic papers and research. You enter the source details (author, title, date, URL, etc.) and the tool formats them into APA, MLA, or Chicago style citations. The output is plain text ready to paste into your bibliography. All processing happens in the browser.
This tool takes your source information and applies the formatting rules for the selected citation style. APA emphasizes the date, MLA emphasizes the author, and Chicago uses footnotes or author-date. The tool handles books, journal articles, websites, and other common source types.
Writing a research paper
Generate citations for all your sources in the required format.
Creating a bibliography
Build a complete reference list by adding citations one at a time.
Citing web sources
Format website citations with proper access dates and URLs.
Learning citation formats
See how source details map to each citation style for educational purposes.
Select citation style
Choose APA, MLA, or Chicago.
Select source type
Choose book, journal article, website, or other source.
Enter source details
Fill in the author, title, date, publisher, URL, and other fields.
Copy the citation
Copy the formatted citation for use in your paper.
Always double-check generated citations against the official style guide.
APA emphasizes the publication date. MLA emphasizes the author's name.
Include access dates for online sources in all styles.
Sort your bibliography alphabetically by author last name.
What citation styles are supported?
APA (7th edition), MLA (9th edition), and Chicago (17th edition). These are the most commonly required styles in academic writing.
What source types are supported?
Books, journal articles, websites, newspaper articles, and other common source types.
Is my data sent to a server?
No. All formatting happens in your browser. Nothing is transmitted.
Can I save a bibliography?
Yes. Add multiple citations to a list and export the complete bibliography as text.
Should I verify the citations?
Yes. While the tool follows the style guides, always check citations against your instructor's or publisher's requirements.