Book: how to cite in APA (7th ed.)?

Create a spot-on reference in APA 7 and 6

Select a source type:

Basic rules

In order to cite a book in a list of references under APA 7, provide the following data in the bibliographic reference: data of the author(s), publication year, book title, and publisher.

If the book to be cited features editors, translators, or other contributors, their data should be given according to the appropriate rules.

For a book which is an edition other than the first, the edition number should be given in the reference as well.

The following components are not included in the bibliographic reference:

  • number of pages;
  • city of publication;
  • ISBN.

How to cite in a bibliography

See in detail how to cite authors, editors, and translators in this article.

Book with an author (authors)

Basic reference template:

Author(s). (Year). Book title. Publisher.

Examples of references:

Black, J. (2003). World War Two: A military history. Routledge.

Girolami, G. S., Rauchfuss, T. B., & Angelici, R. J. (1999). Synthesis and technique in inorganic chemistry: A laboratory manual (3rd ed.). University Science Books.

Book with an author (authors) and an editor (credited on the cover)

Basic reference template:

Author(s). (Year). Book title (Editor, Ed.). Publisher.

Examples of references:

Shakespeare, W. (2007). Complete works (J. Bate & E. Rasmussen, Eds.). Modern Library.

Book with no author (with an editor)

Basic reference template:

Editor (Ed.). (Year). Book title. Publisher.

Examples of references:

Martelli, A., & Ascher, D. (Eds.). (2002). Python cookbook. O'Reilly.

Translated book

Basic reference template:

Author(s). (Year). Book title (Translator, Trans.). Publisher. (Original work published year of original publication)

Examples of references:

Čapek, K. (2010). War with the newts (M. Weatherhall & R. Weatherhall, Trans.). Penguin Modern Classics. (Original work published 1936)

Edition other than the first

Basic reference template:

Author(s). (Year). Book title (edition number). Publisher.

Examples of references:

Schmidt-Nielsen, K. (1997). Animal physiology: Adaptation and environment (5th ed.). Cambridge University Press.

Volume (part of a multivolume edition)

For a volume that does not have an own individual title, use the following basic reference template:

Author(s). (Year). Book title (Vol. volume number). Publisher.

Examples of references:

Gopinath, S., & Stanyek, J. (Eds.). (2014). The Oxford handbook of mobile music studies (Vol. 2). Oxford University Press.

Should a volume have its own individual title, use the following template:

Author(s). (Year). Book title: Vol. volume number. Volume title. Publisher.

Examples of references:

Wrobel, L. C. (2002). The boundary element method: Vol. 1. Applications in thermo-fluids and acoustics. John Wiley & Sons.

Chapter of an edited book

For citing a chapter of an edited book, see this article.

Other citation styles: