How to Cite a Book in APA Format

Books are one of the most commonly cited source types in academic writing. APA 7th edition provides clear guidelines for citing print books, e-books, edited volumes, and book chapters.

Basic Book Citation Format

The standard APA reference entry for a book is:

Reference list entry:

Author, A. A. (Year). Title of work: Capital letter also for subtitle. Publisher. https://doi.org/xxxxx

Parenthetical in-text citation: (Author, Year)

Narrative in-text citation: Author (Year)

Note: Include the DOI if one is available. Include a URL only if the book was retrieved online and no DOI exists.

In-Text Citation Examples

• One author, parenthetical: Research has shown promising results (Johnson, 2021).
• One author, narrative: Johnson (2021) demonstrated that results were promising.
• Two authors: (Smith & Lee, 2020) or Smith and Lee (2020)
• Three or more authors: (Garcia et al., 2019) or Garcia et al. (2019)

When citing a specific page or passage, include the page number:

(Johnson, 2021, p. 45) or (Johnson, 2021, pp. 45-48)

Common Variations

Edited Book

For an edited book, list the editors as authors followed by (Ed.) or (Eds.):

Williams, R. T. (Ed.). (2022). Handbook of research methods. Academic Press.

In-text: (Williams, 2022)

Book Chapter in an Edited Volume

When citing a chapter from an edited book, the chapter author is the main author:

Chen, L. (2022). Title of chapter. In R. T. Williams (Ed.), Handbook of research methods (pp. 100-125). Academic Press.

In-text: (Chen, 2022)

E-Book

Cite an e-book the same way as a print book, but include the DOI or URL:

Author, A. A. (Year). Title of work. Publisher. https://doi.org/xxxxx

Do not include the e-reader format (Kindle, Nook) or the database where you found it unless it is the only way to access the work.

Multiple Editions

If the book is not the first edition, include the edition number in parentheses after the title:

Author, A. A. (Year). Title of work (2nd ed.). Publisher.

No Author

When no author is listed, move the title to the author position:

Title of book. (Year). Publisher.

In-text: (Title of Book, Year)

Tips for Citing Books

1. Italicize the book title in the reference entry. Capitalize only the first word, proper nouns, and the first word after a colon.
2. Include edition, volume, or page numbers in parentheses after the title when applicable.
3. Publisher location is no longer needed in APA 7th edition (this was required in the 6th edition).
4. Include the DOI whenever possible. If there is no DOI and the book was found online, include the URL.
5. For reprinted or translated works, include the original publication date: (Original work published 1890).

Frequently Asked Questions

Do I cite the publisher’s city and state? No. APA 7th edition removed the publisher location requirement. Just include the publisher name.

How do I cite a book I read on Kindle? Cite it the same way as any book. Do not mention Kindle. Include a DOI if available.

What if a book has no date? Use (n.d.) in place of the year: Author, A. A. (n.d.). Title. Publisher.