Website citations have become common in academic papers. So, it’s essential to know how to cite a website in APA, MLA, and Chicago styles. Get step-by-step instructions for online social media, blog, video, and website citations.
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How to Cite a Website in APA 7
Learn how to cite a website in APA in any paper. Break down how to cite full websites, online articles, blog posts, Facebook posts, tweets, and videos for your APA paper on gene therapy.
How to Cite a Website in APA: Entire Website
When it comes to citing a whole website, APA doesn’t need you to create a citation. Instead, you just include the website text and the URL in parenthesis. That’s pretty simple, right?
We work to create the best citations at Bibliography (www.bibliography.com).
How to Cite Online Articles in APA
When it comes to citing online articles in APA, you need more than the URL. Depending on the website type, the information you need to find includes:
- Author, if one is listed
- Date
- Title of article
- Web name
- URL
Most of this information is found on the top or bottom of the website.
You’ll also come across issues like not having an author and missing dates. See how to format an APA online article even when you have no author or no date through these APA website examples.
Why some people with anxiety love watching horror movies. (2019, October 31). HuffPost. https://www.huffpost.com/anxiety
How to Cite a Website in APA: Blog Post
How to cite a blog post in APA isn’t common knowledge for everyone. Therefore, it can be helpful to have a basic understanding of the different parts that go into citing a blog post including:
- the author or username
- date
- title
- name of the blog
- URL
When you put it all together, it looks like a fabulous APA blog citation.
Author, A. (2019, November 30). Title of the blog post in sentence case. Blog Name in Italics. https://websiteURL.com/science
How to Cite a Tweet, Facebook, and Instagram Posts in APA
Now, it’s time to look at a few examples of how to cite social media in APA. Typically, you need:
- the username or name
- date
- first 20 words of the post in italics
- descriptor in brackets
- website
- URL
Now, it’s time to see a social media post in action!
Username [@username]. (Year, Month Day). First Twenty Words of Post [Descriptor]. Website. URL
APA Databases [@APA_Databases]. (2020, August 11). APA is continuing to find ways to support #libraries during the #COVID19 pandemic. Bookmark our resources page to find a variety [Image attached] [Tweet]. Twitter. https://twitter.com/APA
News From Science. (2020, June 21). A galaxy found in the early universe turns out to look—well, remarkably like our own calm, well-ordered Milky [Image attached] [Status update]. Facebook. https://www.facebook.com/ScienceNOW
Chicago Museum of Art [@chicmuseum]. (2020, August 3). It’s amazing to walk into work and see such an amazing collection of paintings and art from artists around the [Photograph]. Instagram. https://www.instagram.com/p/B89/
How to Cite YouTube in APA
Do you need to cite a video in your APA paper? Well, it’s a good thing that APA gives clear instructions for how to cite a YouTube video in APA.
Author. (Year, Month Day). Title of Video [Descriptor]. Website. URL
How to Cite a Website In-Text APA
When it comes to in-text citations for a website, APA uses the author-date style. So, in the citation, you use the author, if one is available, and the date of the source. If you need to include an identifier for a quote, you include the paragraph number or section.
Date: (Jones, 2020)
Paragraph Number: (Jones, para. 4)
Section Name: (Center of Disease Control, 2020, Key Facts section)
How to Cite a Website in MLA 8
Creating a website citation in MLA format is made more accessible by the nine core elements. However, there are different types of websites you might find yourself citing in your MLA paper on Shakespeare. To keep life simple, explore how to create a website, blog, social media, and online video citation.
Cite a Website and Web Page in MLA
When it comes to citing a website, it’s all about adapting the nine core elements system to fit your citation. Just as a reminder, the nine core elements include:
- Author.
- “Title of the Source.”
- Title of the Container,
- Other Contributions,
- Version,
- Number,
- Publisher,
- Publication Date,
- Location.
Mathewson, Adrienne. “MLA Website Citation Examples.” Bibliography, 17 Aug. 2019, www.bibliography.com/mla/mla-website-citation-examples.
Mabillard, Amanda, and Jill Danica. “Shakespeare on Jealousy.” Shakespeare Online. 20 Aug. 2020, www.shakespeare-online.com/quotes.
Olito, Frank, et al. “Popular Conspiracy Theories in the US.” Insider. 4 May 2020, www.insider.com/popular-conspiracy-theories.
“Women in Archaeology.” Indian Art and Culture, Museum of Indian Arts & Culture, 9 Oct. 2020, www.miaclab.org/ID=4063.
How to Cite a Tweet, Instagram, or Facebook Post in MLA
Depending on the topic, you might find it helpful to add information from social media sites to your essay or paper. Be sure to double-check with your instructor first, but the basic format for a social media citation in MLA is pretty simple.
Last Name, First Name, or Account Name. Post Description. Social Media Platform, Day Month Year of Post, Time of Post, URL.
Between The Posts. “Europa League Trophy.” Twitter, 12 Aug. 2020, 8:52 a.m., twitter.com/BetweenThePosts/1293.
The Library of America. “How Libraries of America Happened.” Facebook, 12 Aug. 2020, 3:36 p.m., www.facebook.com/libraryofamerica/.
motherteresaquotes. Photograph of Mother Teresa. Instagram, 5 Sept. 2018, www.instagram.com/p/BnWmyjigAQt/.
Blog Post Citation Example MLA
Blogs are becoming all the rage on the internet; therefore, a blog post citation could easily make its way into your works cited. Learn the ins and outs of citing a blog post now.
Last Name, First Name or Username. “Blog Post Title.” Name of Blog, Blog Network/Publisher if given, Day Month Year, URL.
How to Cite an Online Video in MLA
Video citations are another standard website citation students can find tricky. However, it’s not as hard as you think. For a video citation, you need:
- the author, role (if available)
- title
- contributors
- publisher
- date
- location
Lauritzen, Jacob. “How to Cite Using MLA Style.” YouTube, uploaded by Read, Write, and Cite, 1 Sept. 2017, www.youtube.com/watch?v=SG2.
How to Cite a Website In-Text MLA
Citing a website in-text in MLA gets even easier. When it comes to the MLA in-text citation, you just use the author or creator’s name.
(Jones)
How to Cite a Website in Chicago
Looking to cite a website in Chicago style, you’ve come to the right place. Like MLA and APA, the Chicago Manual of Style has its own way to cite a website post. However, since you have two different citation types in Chicago/Turabian style, it’s essential to look at both when creating citations for websites, blogs, and video citations.
How to Cite a Website in Author-Date
When it comes to citing a website in the author-date style, you need a few different things. These include:
- the author
- publication date
- page title
- site title
- owner of the site
- URL
Make sure to end with a period.
Mathewson, Adrienne. 2019. “Chicago Author-Date Citations for Websites and Social Media.” Bibliography. https://www.bibliography.com/chicago/.
Bibliography. 2020. “Bibliography Citation Generator.” Last modified August 10, 2020. https://www.bibliography.com/generator/.
Mathewson, Adrienne. n.d. “Chicago Author-Date Citations for Social Media.” Bibliography. Accessed August 13, 2020. https://www.bibliography.com/chicago/.
How to Cite a Website in Notes-Bibliography
Author-date wasn’t so hard, so now it is time to look at citing a website in notes-bibliography style, too. The notes-bibliography citation includes the same core elements as the author-date style, but their orientation is a bit different. Additionally, for no date, you just add the date you accessed it. See how it works through examples.
Mathewson, Adrienne. “Creating Notes-Biblio Entries for Online Sources.” Accessed August 10, 2020, https://www.bibliography.com/chicago/.
Bibliography. “Bibliography Citation Generator.” Accessed August 13, 2020. https://www.bibliography.com/generator/.
How to Reference a Blog and Social Media Posts in Chicago
Blog and social media posts are unique in Chicago style, in the fact that you don’t have to include them in your reference or bibliography citations. The temporary nature of blog and social media posts make them hard to reference, according to Chicago. If you would like to keep a reference for your records, you can take a screenshot of the post.
How to Cite a Video in Author-Date Style
Chicago/Turabian style has you covered when it comes to your author-date video Chicago citations. For these citations, you include:
- the author
- title
- type
- run-time
- medium
Barry, Chuck. “Interview With Toby Daniels.” YouTube Video, 1hr., 10 min. December 6, 2019, https://youtu.be/SofFSkwi.
How to Cite a Video in Notes-Bibliography Style
You can just include a video in your notes citation. However, if it makes a significant impact on your argument, you might consider adding a bibliography citation. See what this looks like through an example.
Garrett, Dale, and Sally Holmes “#951 – Homeless in America.” Recorded May 17, 2020 in Chicago, IL. NPR Planet Money. https://www.npr.org/episode-951.
The Art of Citing a Website
When it comes to citing websites in MLA format, APA citations, and Chicago style, there is a lot of variety. Just follow your style guide, and you’ll never go wrong. And remember, when it comes to social media citations, ask your instructor first.
FAQ How to Cite a Website Properly in Any Paper
How do you cite a website in APA?
To cite a website article in APA, you need the author, date, title, website, and URL. An example of a website citation looks like:
Betts, J. (2020). How to Cite a Website in APA, MLA, and Chicago in Any Paper. https://www.bibliography.com/citations/how-to-cite-a-website-properly-in-any-paper/
How do you cite a government website in APA?
To cite a government website in APA format, you include the name of the organization in place of the author with appropriate abbreviations. An example looks like:
U.S. Census Bureau. (2020). Mortality statistics. U.S. Department of Commerce. https://www.census.gov/
How do you cite a website with no author?
When you need to cite a website with no author, you include the title of the article in place of the author's name. If the website is owned by a government entity, you use the name of the government entity in place of the author.
How do you cite website in MLA format?
To cite a website in MLA format, you use the author, title of work, website, date, and URL. For this website, it looks like:
Betts, Jennifer. "How to Cite a Website Properly in Any Paper." Bibliography, 25 Aug. 2020, https://www.bibliography.com/citations/howtociteawebsiteinanyformat/.
How do you cite a government website?
To cite a government website, you use the name of the government entity running the website in place of the author for the different types of citations. For example, in MLA format, this looks like:
U.S. Census Bureau. "Mortality Rates." U.S. Department of Commerce, 25 Aug. 2020, https://www.census.gov/mortalityrates.