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Citing sources according to APA guidelines

APA Style @ TiU

4.11 Webpages

What is considered a webpage?
Just because you found something on the web doesn't automatically mean that you're dealing with a webpage. Look at the material closely – is it a journal article? A report? A newspaper article? A blog post? An ebook? Use the format that best describes the source. APA treats an online source as a webpage only when it does not fit another category.

On this page:

Webpage on a government website

In the reference list

National Institute of Mental Health. (2021, November). Autism spectrum disorder. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, National Institutes of Health. https://www.nimh.nih.gov/health/topics/autism-spectrum-disorders-asd

Canadian Intellectual Property Office. (2021, June 6). Clean technology and intellectual property. Government of Canada. https://ised-isde.canada.ca/site/canadian-intellectual-property-office/en/clean-technology-and-intellectual-property

  • Begin the refence with the name of the organizational author. When numerous layers of government are listed as the author of the webpage, use the most specific one. Capitalize the first word and all major words in the organizational author's name.
  • Provide as specific a date as possible. If no date is available, and an update date is provided that clearly applies to the specific content you are citing, use that date (as in the second example). If the webpage does not specify an update date, use "n.d." (for "no date").
  • List the title of the webpage (in italics). Capitalize the first word of the title, the subtitle (if present), and any proper nouns. 
  • After the title, provide the name of the publishing government organization. For government webpages, this is the parent agency not present in the organizational author name. Sometimes there are several parent agencies (as in the first example). When this is the case, name the parent governmental organization first, place a comma and then name the underlying organization. Note that the first word and all major words of the publishing organization's name are capitalized. 
  • End the reference with the URL (do not include a period after the URL). 

In the text

Parenthetical citations: (National Institute of Mental Health, 2021; Canadian Intellectual Property Office, 2021)

Narrative citations: National Institute of Mental Health (2021) and Canadian Intellectual Property Office (2021)

Webpage on a news website

Use this format for news sites with no associated daily or weekly newspaper. For articles from newspaper websites such as The New York Times or The Times, use the format for newspaper articles.

In the reference list

McDonell, S. (2021, November 15). Why China is still trying to achieve zero Covid. BBC News. https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-china-59257496

  • Begin the reference with the surname(s) and initial(s) of the author(s). 
  • Provide as specific a date as possible. If no date is available, and an update date is provided that clearly applies to the specific content you are citing, use that date. If the webpage does not specify an update date, use "n.d." (for "no date").
  • List the title of the webpage (in italics). Capitalize the first word of the title, the subtitle (if present), and any proper nouns. 
  • After the title, provide the name of the publishing organization. Capitalize the first word and all major words. 
  • End the reference with the URL (do not include a period after the URL). 

In the text

Parenthetical citation: (McDonell, 2021)

Narrative citation: McDonell (2021)

Webpage on a website

In the reference list

World Health Organization. (2021, March 30). Global leaders unite in urgent call for international pandemic treaty. https://www.who.int/news/item/30-03-2021-global-leaders-unite-in-urgent-call-for-international-pandemic-treaty

  • Begin the refence with the full name of the organizational author. Capitalize the first word and all major words in the organizational author's name.
  • Provide as specific a date as possible. If no date is available, and an update date is provided that clearly applies to the specific content you are citing, use that date. If the webpage does not specify an update date, use "n.d." (for "no date").
  • List the title of the webpage (in italics). Capitalize the first word of the title, the subtitle (if present), and any proper nouns. 
  • Normally the site name is provided after the title (where the first word and all major words in the site name are capitalized). In this example, the organizational author of the web page and the site name are identical. To avoid repetition, omit the site name.
  • End the reference with the URL (do not include a period after the URL). 

In the text

Parenthetical citation: (World Health Organization, 2021)

Narrative citation: World Health Organization (2021)

In the reference list

Rapaport, L. (2022, December 27). Coffee tied to premature death risk in some people with high blood pressure. Everyday Health. https://www.everydayhealth.com/heart-disease/coffee-tied-to-premature-death-risk-in-some-people-with-high-blood-pressure/

  • Begin the reference with the surname(s) and initial(s) of the author(s). 
  • Provide as specific a date as possible. If no date is available, and an update date is provided that clearly applies to the specific content you are citing, use that date. If the webpage does not specify an update date, use "n.d." (for "no date").
  • List the title of the webpage (in italics). Capitalize the first word of the title, the subtitle (if present), and any proper nouns. 
  • After the title, provide the name of the site. Capitalize the first word and all major words. 
  • End the reference with the URL (do not include a period after the URL). 

In the text

Parenthetical citation: (Rapaport, 2022)

Narrative citation: Rapaport (2022)

Webpage on a website with no date

In the reference list

National Nurses United. (n.d.). Quad-demic: RSV, influenza, Covid-19, and crisis standards of care. https://www.nationalnursesunited.org/quad-demic

  • Begin the reference with the surname(s) and initial(s) of the author(s) or the full name of the organizational author. Capitalize the first word and all major words in the organizational author's name.
  • On the position of the date, use "n.d." (for "no date").
  • List the title of the webpage (in italics). Capitalize the first word of the title, the subtitle (if present), and any proper nouns. 
  • Normally the site name is provided after the title (where the first word and all major words in the site name are capitalized). In this example, the organizational author of the webpage and the site name are identical. To avoid repetition, omit the site name. 
  • End the reference with the URL (do not include a period after the URL). 

In the text

Parenthetical citation: (National Nurses United, n.d.)

Narrative citation: National Nurses United (n.d.)

Webpage on a website, retrieval date required

In the reference list

Australian Bureau of Statistics. (n.d.). Population clock. Retrieved July 12, 2022, from https://www.abs.gov.au/ausstats/abs%40.nsf/94713ad445ff1425ca25682000192af2/
1647509ef7e25faaca2568a900154b63?OpenDocument

  • Begin the reference with the surname(s) and initial(s) of the author(s) or the full name of the organizational author. Capitalize the first word and all major words in the organizational author's name.
  • On the position of the date, use "n.d." (for "no date").
  • List the title of the webpage (in italics). Capitalize the first word of the title, the subtitle (if present), and any proper nouns. 
  • Normally the site name is provided after the title (where the first word and all major words in the site name are capitalized). In this example, the organizational author of the webpage and the site name are identical. To avoid repetition, omit the site name. 
  • End the reference with the URL. Since the web page is subject to change and is not archived, include the retrieval date before the URL.
  • Do not include a period after the URL. 

In the text

Parenthetical citation: (Australian Bureau of Statistics, n.d.)

Narrative citation: Australian Bureau of Statistics (n.d.)