APA journal references use author, year, article title, journal name, volume(issue), pages, and a DOI in https://doi.org/ format.
Peer-reviewed articles sit at the center of academic writing. APA Style makes the path from a PDF to a clean reference simple once you know what to collect and how to assemble it. This guide gives you a fast, accurate method you can apply to any peer-reviewed journal article, with matching in-text citations and edge-case fixes.
Core APA Journal Reference At A Glance
Here’s a quick map of the parts that build a full APA journal reference and how each piece should look. Use it while you draft your list.
| Element | What Goes Here | Sample |
|---|---|---|
| Author | Last name, initials; list up to 20 authors; insert an ampersand before the final name | Lee, J. S., Kim, T., & Arias, P. |
| Year | Publication year in parentheses | (2024). |
| Article Title | Sentence case; only proper nouns and the first word capitalized | Measuring sleep quality in new parents. |
| Journal Name | Title case and italic | Journal Of Family Health, |
| Volume & Issue | Volume in italic; issue in parentheses (not italic) | 18(2), |
| Pages Or Article Number | Use an en dash for ranges or the article number | 145–159. |
| DOI | Present as a live URL | https://doi.org/10.xxxx/xxxxx |
For edge formats and special cases, the official APA journal article reference examples page lays out variations, and the APA page on DOIs and URLs shows the exact link style to use.
Citing Peer-Reviewed Articles In APA: Fast Checklist
- Capture every author in order. In the reference list, include up to 20 names. Use an ampersand before the last one. For 21 or more, list the first 19, add an ellipsis (… ), then the final author.
- Use the year from the journal record. Online-first pieces may show a month or season; the year alone goes in the parentheses.
- Write the article title in sentence case. Lowercase after the first word unless a proper noun appears. No italics here.
- Keep the journal name in title case and italic. The volume stays italic; place the issue number in parentheses right after it.
- Add pages or the article number. Page ranges use an en dash. If the journal assigns an eLocator or article number, use that instead of pages.
- Finish with the DOI link. Use the https://doi.org/ format with no period after it. If a DOI is missing and the piece is open on the web, include the working URL.
- Mind punctuation spacing. Each segment ends with a period, except the DOI or URL.
- Match your in-text citation. Author and year tie the reference to the sentences where you cite the work.
Build The Reference With This Template
Copy the pattern below, swap in your details, and compare to the checklist.
Author, A. A., Author, B. B., & Author, C. C. (Year). Article title in sentence case: Subtitle if shown. Journal Title In Title Case, volume(issue), page–page or Article ID. https://doi.org/xxxxx
In-Text Citations That Match The Reference
APA uses the author–date system. Place a parenthetical citation like this: (Chow & Patel, 2022) or write a narrative form like Chow and Patel (2022). When a work has three or more authors, shorten to the first author plus et al. from the first citation. For a direct quote, add a page or paragraph number: (Chow & Patel, 2022, p. 47) or (Nguyen et al., 2021, para. 6).
Group authors use the full name on first mention in-text, then an approved abbreviation: (World Health Organization [WHO], 2020), then (WHO, 2020). For two authors inside parentheses, join names with an ampersand; in narrative form, write “and”.
Formatting Details That Keep Entries Clean
- Initials only. After each last name, use initials with spaces: Li, Y. H.
- Hyphenated names. Keep both parts: Garcia-Lopez, M.
- Multiple articles by the same author in one year. Add letters after the year: (2023a), (2023b), and repeat the letter in in-text citations.
- Capitalization inside titles. Keep sentence case even if the title includes a colon; the first word after the colon also starts with a capital letter.
- Hanging indent. In your reference list, use a hanging indent so the first line aligns left and the rest indent.
- Spacing. Double-space the list; keep single spaces after commas and periods within entries.
Edge Cases You Will See In Peer-Reviewed Sources
Many Authors
The reference list prints up to 20 names. For a paper with 21 or more, list the first 19, use an ellipsis, then add the final author. No ampersand before the ellipsis.
Advance Online Publication
When a journal posts a paper before assigning an issue, write the year only and use the DOI. If the article later gains volume, issue, and pages, update your entry when you revise your paper.
Article Numbers Instead Of Pages
Some journals assign an article number. In that case, place the number where pages would sit. The journal title and volume still appear in italic.
No DOI
If the article lacks a DOI and you read it on the open web, include a stable URL. If you accessed it through a subscription database and no DOI is available, the entry ends after the page range.
Special Issue Or Section
If the issue has a theme title, cite the article normally; you do not add the theme title to the reference. The journal name and volume handle discovery.
Non-English Titles
Write the title as published. If readers need an English gloss, place a translation in square brackets after the original title and before the journal name.
In-Text Citation Patterns
Use this cheat sheet while you draft. Match the left column to your sentence plan.
| Situation | Parenthetical | Narrative |
|---|---|---|
| One author | (Lopez, 2023) | Lopez (2023) |
| Two authors | (Diaz & Noor, 2022) | Diaz and Noor (2022) |
| Three+ authors | (Khan et al., 2021) | Khan et al. (2021) |
| Group author | (American Heart Association, 2020) | American Heart Association (2020) |
| Direct quote | (Lopez, 2023, p. 14) | Lopez (2023, p. 14) |
Quick Worked Examples
Reference
Chen, R., Malik, S., & Ortega, L. (2021). Habit strength and morning routines among nurses. Health Behavior Reports, 6(3), 210–224. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.hbr.2021.03.010
In-text Paraphrase: (Chen et al., 2021). Quote: (Chen et al., 2021, p. 213).
Reference
Sato, M. (2024). Sensor layouts for wrist-worn heart tracking. Biomedical Signals, 12, Article e01927. https://doi.org/10.5555/bms.12.e01927
In-text Paraphrase: Sato (2024). Quote: (Sato, 2024, para. 4).
Reference
Rossi, A., Nguyen, P. Q., Ibrahim, H., Gomez, R., Patel, D., Choi, Y., & Burke, M. (2020). Shared decision aids in cardiology clinics. Patient Care Today, 15(4), 55–73. https://doi.org/10.4444/pct.15.4.55
In-text Paraphrase: (Rossi et al., 2020). Quote: Rossi et al. (2020, p. 60).
Peer Review Check: Journal Or Article?
APA entries point to the article, not the journal home page. To confirm that a source is peer-reviewed, open the journal’s “About” or “Instructions for Authors” page and look for language that describes review by editors and independent reviewers. Many journals also list an editorial board. The review label applies to the journal’s process, while your citation targets the specific article you read.
Common Pitfalls And Fixes
- Wrong title casing. Article titles use sentence case; journal names use title case with italics.
- Missing italics. The journal name and volume are italic; the issue is not.
- Punctuation drift. Keep periods and commas right where APA shows them.
- Dead DOI links. Test each DOI. If the link fails and no updated DOI exists, switch to the journal URL.
- Mismatched year. Pull the year from the journal record, not the PDF file date.
- Wrong author format. Use initials after last names; keep the order given on the article.
- No “et al.” in the reference list. Write the full set of authors per the 20-author rule; save et al. for in-text citations only.
Final Checks Before You Submit
Read each reference out loud once. Compare against the checklist and the two link guides above. Scan your in-text citations to verify that every source appears on the list and that names and years match line by line. If you inserted a quote, confirm the page or paragraph number. Last step: click every DOI and URL to make sure links open.