Note: This page reflects the latest version of the APA Publication Manual (i.e., APA 7), which released in October 2019. The equivalent resource for the older APA 6 style can be found here.

Important Note: Some electronic citations necessitate the use of brackets. APA style dictates that brackets should directly surround their content without spaces (e.g., [bracketed content] should look like this). When possible, include the year, month, and date in references. If the month and date are not available, use the year of publication. Additionally, APA 7^th edition no longer requires the use of “Retrieved from” before URLs or DOIs; special exceptions, however, are made for resources that are unarchived. Including the retrieval date for these sources indicates to readers that the version of the work they retrieve may be different than what was originally used. 

Please note: the following contains a list of the most commonly cited electronic sources. For a complete list of how to cite electronic sources, please refer to the 7^th edition of the APA Publication Manual.

Webpage or Piece of Online Content

If the page names an individual author, cite their name first:

If the resource was written by a group or organization, use the name of the group/organization as the author. Additionally, if the author and site name are the same, omit the site name from the citation.

If the page's author is not listed, start with the title instead. Additionally, include a retrieval date when the page's content is likely to change over time (like, for instance, if you're citing a wiki that is publicly edited).

If the date of publication is not listed, use the abbreviation (n.d.). 

Wikipedia Article

APA 7 treats Wikipedia articles as special instances of entries in reference works. Thus, there are a few differences between reference entries for pages on Wikipedia and those for generic webpages.

Wikipedia articles often update frequently. For this reason, the date refers to the date that the cited version of the page was published. Note also that the manual recommends linking to the archived version of the page, rather than the current version of the page on the site, since the latter can change over time. Access the archived version by clicking "View History," then clicking the date/timestamp of the version you'd like to cite.

Online Scholarly Journal Article: Citing DOIs

Please note: Because online materials can potentially change URLs, APA recommends providing a Digital Object Identifier (DOI), when it is available, as opposed to the URL. DOIs are an attempt to provide stable, long-lasting links for online articles. They are unique to their documents and consist of a long alphanumeric code. Many—but not all—publishers will provide an article's DOI on the first page of the document.

Note also that some online bibliographies provide an article's DOI but may "hide" the code under a button which may read "Article" or may be an abbreviation of a vendor's name like "CrossRef" or "PubMed." This button will usually lead the user to the full article which will include the DOI. Find DOIs from print publications or ones that go to dead links with doi.org's "Resolve a DOI" function, available on the site's home page.

APA 7 also advises writers to include a DOI (if available), even when using the print source.

Article from an Online Periodical with DOI Assigned

Article from an Online Periodical with no DOI Assigned

If an online scholarly journal article has no DOI and is published on a website, include the URL. If an online scholarly article has no DOI and is published on a database, do not include a URL or any database information. The only exception is for databases that publish articles that are in limited circulation (like ERIC) or that are only available on that particular database (like UpToDate). Note that retrieval dates are required for unarchived sources that are likely, or intended, to change over time. 

Abstract

APA 7^th edition does not provide guidance on how to cite abstracts. However, if you only use information from the abstract but the full text of the article is also available, we advise you to add "[Abstract]" after the article or source name. If the full text is not available, you may use an abstract that is available through an abstracts database as a secondary source.

Online News Article

Note: The format for this type of source depends on whether your source comes from a site with an associated newspaper.

If the source does come from a site with an associated newspaper, leave the title of the article unformatted, but italicize the title of the newspaper.

On the other hand, if the source doesn't come from a site with an associated newspaper, italicize the title of the article, but leave the name of the site unformatted.

Electronic or Kindle Books

It is not necessary to note that you have used an eBook or audiobook when the content is the same as a physical book. However, you should distinguish between the eBook or audiobook and the print version if the content is different or abridged, or if you would like to cite the narrator of an audiobook.

Dissertation/Thesis from a Database

Entry in an Online Dictionary, Thesaurus, or Encyclopedia with a Group Author

Note: An online dictionary, thesaurus, or encyclopedia may be continuously updated and therefore not include a publication date (like in the example below). If that’s the case, use “n.d.” for the date and include the retrieval date in the citation.

Entry in an Online Dictionary, Thesaurus, or Encyclopedia with an Individual Author

Note: If the dictionary, thesaurus, or encyclopedia does not include an edition, simply skip that step.

Data Sets

Graphic Data (e.g. Interactive Maps, Infographics, and Other Graphic Representations of Data)

Give the name of the organization or individual followed by the date and the title. If there is no title, in brackets, you should provide a brief explanation of what type of data is there and in what form it appears. Include the URL and the retrieval date if there is no publication date.

Qualitative Data and Online Interviews

If an interview is not retrievable in audio or print form, cite the interview only in the text (not in the reference list) and provide the month, day, and year in the text. If the interview transcript is published in an online periodical, like a magazine, cite the interview the same way you would cite the medium where it is published, as shown below:

If it is an audio file or transcript published in a database, credit the interviewee as the author and use the following model:

Online Lecture Notes and Presentation Slides

When citing online lecture notes, be sure to provide the file format in brackets after the lecture title (e.g. PowerPoint slides, Word document).

Computer Software/Downloaded Software

Do not cite standard office software (e.g. Word, Excel) or programming languages. Provide references only for specialized software.

Email

E-mails are not included in the list of references, though you should parenthetically cite them in your main text:

Online Forum or Discussion Posting

Tweet

Note: If the tweet includes images, videos, or links to other sources, indicate that information in brackets after the content description. Also attempt to replicate emojis if possible.

Twitter Profile

Facebook Post

Note: If the Facebook post includes images, videos, or links to other sources, indicate that information in brackets after the content description. Also attempt to replicate emojis if possible.

Facebook Page

Instagram Photo or Video

Blog Post 

YouTube or other Streaming Video

Note: The person or group who uploaded the video is considered the author. If the author’s name is the same as the username, you can omit the [Username].

Ted Talk

Or (if on YouTube)

Podcast Episode