APA Reference List Guides

Like the MLA, the American Psychological Association, or APA, has a lot of rules about how to format items in the reference list of your paper. Note that while MLA style uses the term “Works Cited,” APA style instead uses the term “Reference List.” These two terms refer to basically the same thing: a list of sources that you used in your paper included at the end or as an appendix to your main paper. They also serve the same purpose: providing the audience with the names of the sources used in your research and giving credit to the people and organizations who made the research possible. These similarities do not mean that APA follows the same rules as MLA, though, and the two look fairly different. So, if you are asked to write a paper in a citation style that you are not familiar with, be sure to find a reliable guide to using the style.

For APA, here are a few links to different guides on how to format your reference list. Find the one that works best for you and keep it handy as you go through college; you may find you need the reference again later:

Excelsior University Online Writing Lab: https://owl.excelsior.edu/citation-and-documentation/apa-style/

APA Style Official website: https://apastyle.apa.org/style-grammar-guidelines/references

Purdue University Online Writing Lab: https://owl.purdue.edu/owl/research_and_citation/apa_style/apa_formatting_and_style_guide/reference_list_basic_rules.html