# Citation Generator

> Free citation generator for books and websites. Enter the author, title, and publication details to get formatted citations in APA 7th, MLA 9th, and Chicago style.

Enter a book or website's details once and get a correctly formatted citation in APA 7th edition, MLA 9th edition, and Chicago style, ready to copy into your bibliography.

*Interactive tool: enter your values at https://toollantern.win/citation-generator/ and results update instantly in your browser.*

## How the formats differ

The three major citation styles order the same facts differently. **APA** (American Psychological Association, 7th edition) puts the year right after the author and is standard in the social sciences. **MLA** (Modern Language Association, 9th edition) puts the year at the end and is standard in the humanities. **Chicago** (17th edition, bibliography style) resembles MLA but is common in history and publishing.

## Book format rules used here

- **APA 7th:** Last, F. M. (Year). *Title in sentence case and italics*. Publisher.

- **MLA 9th:** Last, First. *Title in Title Case and Italics*. Publisher, Year.

- **Chicago:** Last, First. *Title in Title Case and Italics*. Publisher, Year.

## Website format rules used here

- **APA 7th:** Last, F. M. (Year, Month Day). *Title of page*. Site Name. https://url

- **MLA 9th:** Last, First. "Title of Page." *Site Name*, Day Month Year, URL.

- **Chicago:** Last, First. "Title of Page." *Site Name*. Month Day, Year. URL.

APA 7th no longer requires "Retrieved from" before URLs, and MLA 9th drops the http:// or https:// prefix. When there is no author, all three styles begin the citation with the title.

## Worked example (book)

Author "Orwell, George", title "Nineteen Eighty-Four", year 1949, publisher "Secker and Warburg" becomes:

    APA: Orwell, G. (1949). *Nineteen eighty-four*. Secker and Warburg.

    MLA: Orwell, George. *Nineteen Eighty-Four*. Secker and Warburg, 1949.

    Chicago: Orwell, George. *Nineteen Eighty-Four*. Secker and Warburg, 1949.

## Limitations

Real citations have many edge cases: corporate authors, translators, editions, chapters in edited books, DOIs, and missing dates each have their own rules. This generator covers the common single-author book and basic webpage cases. For anything unusual, consult the official manual: the *Publication Manual of the APA* (7th ed.), the *MLA Handbook* (9th ed.), or the *Chicago Manual of Style* (17th ed.).

## Frequently asked questions
### Which citation style should I use?

Follow your instructor's requirement. As a rough guide: APA for psychology, education, and social sciences; MLA for literature, languages, and humanities; Chicago for history and some publishing contexts.

### What is the difference between APA 7th and MLA 9th?

APA puts the publication year in parentheses right after the author and uses sentence case for titles. MLA puts the year at the end and uses title case. They also format website citations and in-text citations differently.

### How do I cite a website with no author?

Start with the title instead of the author in all three styles. In APA, the title moves into the author position followed by the date; in MLA and Chicago, the citation begins with the title in quotation marks.

### Do I need the access date for websites?

MLA 9th does not require access dates unless the page is likely to change. APA 7th only needs a retrieval date for unarchived, changeable content like wikis. Chicago recommends access dates only for sources without publication dates.

### Are these citations guaranteed correct?

They follow the standard rules for common cases, but style guides have many edge cases. Always verify against the official manual or your school's guide before submitting a paper.

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Interactive version: https://toollantern.win/citation-generator/