How to Cite a Journal Article in APA 7th Edition
The APA 7th edition format for a journal article reference places six elements in a fixed order, applies italics to two of them (journal name and volume), and routes all DOIs through a hyperlink prefix. Get the order and the italics right and the rest follows. Digging into the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association (7th ed.)while building Classeva's referencing resources, the rule I found students most consistently miss is the issue number: APA 7th edition requires it every time, even when the journal uses continuous page numbering across an entire volume.
What Is the APA 7th Edition Format for a Journal Article?
The APA 7th edition reference-list entry for a journal article follows this structure: Author(s). (Year). Article title in sentence case. Journal Title in Title Case, Volume(Issue), first page-last page. https://doi.org/xxxxx
Each element carries specific formatting. Sentence case on the article title means only the first word, the first word after a colon or dash, and proper nouns receive capital letters. Title case on the journal name means every major word is capitalised. Two elements are italicised: the journal name and the volume number. Nothing else in the reference gets italics.
The Six Fields in Order
| Field | Format Rule | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Authors | Surname, Initial. & Surname, Initial. | Garcia, M. R., & Okonkwo, J. T. |
| Year | In parentheses, followed by period | (2023). |
| Article title | Sentence case, no italics | Working memory and academic performance. |
| Journal name | Title case, italicised | Journal of Educational Psychology, |
| Volume(Issue) | Volume italicised, issue in plain parentheses | 115(3), |
| Pages / DOI | Page range, then DOI as hyperlink URL | 412-429. https://doi.org/10.1037/edu0000123 |
The six fields of an APA 7th edition journal article reference, in order.
Italics, Capitalisation, and Punctuation
Italics appear on the journal name and the volume number only. A common slip is to italicise the issue number too: it sits in parentheses immediately after the volume, but those parentheses and the number inside them are not italicised. Another frequent error is title-casing the article title. Article titles use sentence case; journal names use title case. The distinction matters because APA checkers and tutors scan for it.
Punctuation runs as follows: a period ends the article title, a comma follows the journal name, a comma follows the volume-issue-pages block, and the DOI ends the reference with no period after it. When no DOI or URL is included, the page range ends the reference with a period.
Italicise the journal name and the volume number. Do not italicise the article title, the issue number, or the page range.
How Do You Format a DOI in APA 7th Edition?
The DOI (Digital Object Identifier) serves as a permanent, clickable link to the article. APA 7th edition changed the DOI presentation from the older doi: prefix to a full hyperlink URL. Every DOI now starts with https://doi.org/ followed by the DOI string, and there is no period at the end of the reference.
When a DOI Is Available
Include the DOI for every journal article that has one, regardless of whether you accessed the article in print or through a database. The DOI belongs to the article, not to any particular access route. Format it exactly like this, as a live URL: https://doi.org/10.1037/edu0000123
Do not add a period after the DOI. The DOI ends the reference. Adding a trailing period risks breaking the hyperlink and signals a formatting error to any checker.
When There Is No DOI
APA 7th edition distinguishes between two scenarios when no DOI exists. If the article came from an academic subscription database (PsycINFO, JSTOR, Scopus, Web of Science, and similar), do not include the database name or a database URL. The reference looks identical to the print version and ends after the page range with a period. If the article came from a standalone journal website that is freely accessible and the URL will resolve for readers, include that URL at the end of the reference.
A reference for a database article with no DOI ends after the page range: 115(3), 412-429. No URL, no database name. That is correct APA 7th edition format.
How Do You Cite a Journal Article In-Text?
APA in-text citations follow the author-date system: the author's surname and the publication year appear wherever you use the source. They appear either in parentheses at the end of the sentence or woven into the sentence as a narrative citation. Both styles are correct; vary them to avoid repetitive sentence structures.
One Author, Two Authors, Three or More
For one author, cite the surname and year. For two authors, cite both surnames every time, joined by an ampersand in parenthetical style and by “and” in narrative style. For three or more authors, use only the first author's surname followed by et al., even on the first citation in the text. APA 7th edition removed the rule that required listing all authors on first mention for works with three, four, or five authors: et al. applies from the first appearance.
| Number of authors | Parenthetical citation | Narrative citation |
|---|---|---|
| 1 author | (Garcia, 2023) | Garcia (2023) |
| 2 authors | (Garcia & Okonkwo, 2023) | Garcia and Okonkwo (2023) |
| 3+ authors | (Garcia et al., 2023) | Garcia et al. (2023) |
| No author | ("Working Memory," 2023) | "Working Memory" (2023) |
| Group/organisation | (World Health Organization [WHO], 2023) | World Health Organization (WHO) (2023) |
APA 7th edition in-text citation format by author count. Three or more authors always use et al. from the first citation.
Narrative vs Parenthetical Citation
A narrative citation places the author's name as part of the sentence: Garcia and Okonkwo (2023) found that working memory capacity predicted academic performance independently of prior knowledge. A parenthetical citation places both name and year in brackets at the sentence end: Working memory capacity predicted academic performance independently of prior knowledge (Garcia & Okonkwo, 2023).
Both are equally correct. Narrative citations work well when you want to foreground who conducted the research. Parenthetical citations keep the prose flowing when the finding itself matters more than the authors. For direct quotations, add a page number: (Garcia & Okonkwo, 2023, p. 415).
Use narrative citations when discussing what a particular author argued. Use parenthetical citations when reporting a finding that multiple studies support. Mixing both styles prevents the citation-heavy paragraphs that make academic writing feel mechanical.
Worked Examples: Standard and Edge Cases
The four examples below cover the most common scenarios. Each shows the full reference-list entry and the matching in-text citation. Copy the format exactly, substituting your own article details.
Standard Article With DOI
This is the format you will use for the vast majority of journal articles found through databases such as PsycINFO, Web of Science, or Google Scholar when a DOI exists.
Garcia, M. R., & Okonkwo, J. T. (2023). Working memory and academic performance in university students. Journal of Educational Psychology, 115(3), 412-429. https://doi.org/10.1037/edu0000123
Parenthetical: (Garcia & Okonkwo, 2023)
Narrative: Garcia and Okonkwo (2023) demonstrated that...
Article Without a DOI
When no DOI exists and you retrieved the article from a subscription database, end the reference after the page range. Do not add the database name or a database URL. If the article is from a freely accessible journal website with a stable URL, add that URL after the page range.
Patel, S., & Nguyen, L. (2021). Retrieval practice in higher education settings. Higher Education Research & Development, 40(2), 188-203.
Parenthetical: (Patel & Nguyen, 2021)
Narrative: Patel and Nguyen (2021) reported that...
Article With More Than 20 Authors
For articles with 21 or more authors, APA 7th edition lists the first 19 authors, inserts an ellipsis (three dots), then gives the final author's name. This replaced the APA 6th edition rule that truncated at seven authors and added et al. In the in-text citation, still use the first author's surname followed by et al.
Author, A. A., Author, B. B., Author, C. C., Author, D. D., Author, E. E., Author, F. F., Author, G. G., Author, H. H., Author, I. I., Author, J. J., Author, K. K., Author, L. L., Author, M. M., Author, N. N., Author, O. O., Author, P. P., Author, Q. Q., Author, R. R., Author, S. S., ... Author, Z. Z. (2022). Article title in sentence case. Journal Title, 58(1), 1-14. https://doi.org/10.xxxx/xxxxxxxxx
Advance Online Publication
When an article has been published online before it receives its volume, issue, or page numbers, use “Advance online publication” in place of the volume/issue/pages block. Once the article is assigned its full citation details in a print issue, update the reference.
Chen, W., & Abramowitz, D. (2024). Distributed practice effects in graduate coursework. Educational Psychology Review. Advance online publication. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10648-024-09001-x
What Are the Most Common APA Journal Citation Mistakes?
Five errors appear in student submissions far more often than any others. Knowing them in advance cuts the time you spend checking references before a deadline.
| Mistake | Incorrect | Correct |
|---|---|---|
| Italicising article title | Working memory and academic performance. | Working memory and academic performance. (plain text) |
| Wrong capitalisation on article title | Working Memory and Academic Performance | Working memory and academic performance |
| Omitting issue number | Journal of Educational Psychology, 115, 412-429. | Journal of Educational Psychology, 115(3), 412-429. |
| Old DOI prefix | doi:10.1037/edu0000123 | https://doi.org/10.1037/edu0000123 |
| Adding database URL when not needed | ...412-429. https://psycnet.apa.org/record/xxx | ...412-429. (no URL for database articles with no DOI) |
The five most common APA 7th edition journal article citation errors. The issue number and DOI format changes catch students most often.
The issue-number omission trips students who learned APA 6th edition. That edition only required the issue number when a journal restarted page numbering with each issue. APA 7th edition dropped that condition: the issue number appears every time, no exceptions. Check every reference in your list before submitting.
The DOI prefix error persists because many databases still display DOIs using the old doi: format. When you copy a DOI from a database record, manually replace doi: with https://doi.org/ to meet the current standard.
APA 7th edition requires the issue number for every journal article. The APA 6th edition conditional rule (only for journals with non-continuous pagination) no longer applies. If your reference has no issue number in parentheses after the volume, add it.
The referencing tools at Classeva's citations hub can generate APA 7th edition references for journal articles and check your existing references against the current standard.
APA Citation Generator
Generate correctly formatted APA 7th edition journal article references. Handles DOI formatting, author count rules, and edge cases automatically.
For a broader guide to APA referencing across all source types, the university resources hub links to walkthroughs covering books, book chapters, websites, and more. If you are working on your bibliography right now, the APA website citation guide covers the equivalent rules for web sources.
Related guides in the same cluster: how to cite a book in APA 7th edition, how to cite a book chapter in APA 7th edition, how to cite a YouTube video in APA, and how to cite a PDF in APA. All follow the same author-date structure with source-specific field variations. Browse all study and referencing guides at the university blog.
Key Takeaways
- The APA 7th edition journal article reference follows this field order: Author(s). (Year). Article title in sentence case. Journal Title in Title Case, Volume(Issue), pages. https://doi.org/xxxxx
- Italicise the journal name and the volume number only. Never italicise the article title or the issue number.
- Always include the issue number in parentheses after the volume, even for journals that use continuous page numbering across a volume.
- Format DOIs as hyperlink URLs starting with
https://doi.org/, with no period at the end of the reference. - For articles from subscription databases with no DOI, end the reference after the page range with a period. Do not add the database name or URL.
- For three or more authors in-text, use et al. from the first citation. For two authors, always name both. For 21 or more authors in the reference list, list the first 19, add an ellipsis, then give the final author's name.
- APA 7th edition differs from the 6th edition on three points: the issue number is always required, DOIs use the hyperlink URL format, and the 21-author threshold for the ellipsis rule replaces the old seven-author cutoff.
