Citation Generator
Generate APA, MLA, and Chicago citations from your source details.
Author, A. (n.d.). Title of the work.
A citation generator formats your source details into a reference entry in a chosen style. The three most common are APA (author and year first), MLA (title in quotation marks, date last), and Chicago. Enter the author, title, year, and source once, then copy the styled citation.
APA, MLA, and Chicago at a glance
Each style orders the same source details differently. APA leads with author and year — common in the sciences. MLA puts the title in quotation marks and ends with the date — standard in the humanities. Chicago is flexible and widely used in history and publishing. Enter your author, title, year, container (website, publisher, or journal), and URL once, then switch styles to see each version and copy it.
Worked example
A web page by Smith, J., titled Study Habits, published 2024 on Knidox:
- 1 APA — author then year. Smith, J. (2024). Study Habits. Knidox.
- 2 MLA — title quoted, date last. Smith, J. “Study Habits.” Knidox, 2024.
- 3 Chicago — year in parentheses at the end. Smith, J. “Study Habits.” Knidox (2024).
Which style does my field use?
Typical conventions; always follow the style your instructor or journal requires.
| Style | Common in | Leads with |
|---|---|---|
| APA | Psychology, sciences, education | Author, year |
| MLA | Literature, languages, humanities | Author, title |
| Chicago | History, publishing, fine arts | Author, title |
Common pitfalls
Author format. Enter the name inverted (Lastname, F.) so it sorts correctly in a reference list; multiple authors follow each style’s own joining rules.
Verify before you submit. A generator gets you most of the way. Check author order, capitalization, italics, and punctuation against your instructor’s required edition. Before you hand the paper in, the word counter confirms you are within the assigned length.
Missing fields. If you leave the year blank, the citation falls back to “n.d.” (no date); fill in what you can and edit the copied result for anything unusual.