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APA Format Guide: Complete 7th Edition Reference

The APA (American Psychological Association) style is the standard citation format for the social sciences, education, nursing, and business. This guide covers everything you need to know about APA 7th edition formatting, from paper structure to reference page rules.

Paper Structure and Formatting

An APA-formatted paper typically includes the following sections:

  • Title Page: Running head (professional papers only), page number, title, author name, institutional affiliation, course information (student papers), and author note (professional papers).
  • Abstract: A 150-250 word summary on its own page, followed by keywords.
  • Body: Introduction, method, results, and discussion sections with proper heading levels.
  • References: All cited sources listed alphabetically on a new page.

General Formatting Rules

APA 7th edition prescribes the following page formatting:

  • Use a legible font: 12-pt Times New Roman, 11-pt Calibri, 11-pt Arial, or 10-pt Lucida Sans Unicode.
  • Double-space the entire paper, including the title page and references.
  • Set 1-inch margins on all sides.
  • Include a page number in the top-right header of every page.
  • Indent the first line of each paragraph by 0.5 inches.

Heading Levels

APA uses five levels of headings to organize content:

  • Level 1: Centered, Bold, Title Case
  • Level 2: Flush Left, Bold, Title Case
  • Level 3: Flush Left, Bold Italic, Title Case
  • Level 4: Indented, Bold, Title Case, ending with a period.
  • Level 5: Indented, Bold Italic, Title Case, ending with a period.

In-Text Citations

APA uses the author-date system for in-text citations. There are two formats:

  • Parenthetical: (Author, Year) placed at the end of the sentence.
  • Narrative: Author (Year) integrated into the sentence.

For detailed rules, see our in-text citation guide.

Reference Page

The reference page lists all sources cited in your paper. Key rules include:

  • Start on a new page with "References" centered and bolded at the top.
  • Double-space all entries with no extra space between them.
  • Use a hanging indent (first line flush left, subsequent lines indented 0.5 inches).
  • Alphabetize entries by the first author's last name.

For detailed formatting rules, see our reference page guide.

Common Mistakes to Avoid

  1. Incorrect capitalization: Use sentence case for titles in references (capitalize only the first word and proper nouns), but title case for journal names and headings.
  2. Missing DOIs: Always include a DOI when available, formatted as a URL.
  3. Including database names: Do not include the database where you accessed a source. Use the DOI or journal homepage URL instead.
  4. Using "et al." too early: For works with two authors, always list both names. Use "et al." only for three or more authors.
  5. Inconsistent formatting: Ensure italics, punctuation, and spacing are consistent across all references.
  6. Using 6th edition rules: Common holdovers include adding publisher city, limiting author lists to seven, and using "Retrieved from" before URLs.

Additional Resources