To cite a review in APA 7, list the reviewer, date, title, [Review of …], source, volume(issue), pages, and a DOI or a working URL.
Why Reviews Need Special Handling In APA 7
Reviews don’t behave like regular articles. You have two works living in one citation: the review itself and the item being reviewed. APA 7 handles that by placing a short description in square brackets after the review’s title. The description names the thing under review and the creator, such as a book by an author or a film by a director. That small bracketed cue tells readers the piece they’ll find if they follow your source.
Once you see the pattern, the rest of the reference follows the source type. A review in a journal uses the journal template; a review in a newspaper uses the newspaper template. The bracketed description is the extra piece that signals a review.
APA Review Templates By Source Type
| Source Type | Reference List Template | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Journal Review (with DOI) | Reviewer, A. A. (Year). Title of review. [Review of the book Title of book, by A. A. Author]. Title of Journal, volume(issue), pp–pp. https://doi.org/xxxxx | Journal title and volume are italic. Use sentence case for the review title. |
| Journal Review (no DOI, URL) | Reviewer, A. A. (Year). Title of review. [Review of the film Title, Dir. D. Director]. Title of Journal, volume(issue), pp–pp. URL | Include a stable URL when no DOI exists. |
| Magazine Review (online) | Reviewer, A. A. (Year, Month Day). Title of review. [Review of the album Title, by A. A. Artist]. Title of Magazine. URL | Newspapers and magazines include a full date. |
| Newspaper Review (print) | Reviewer, A. A. (Year, Month Day). Title of review. [Review of the play Title, by A. A. Playwright]. Title of Newspaper, p. A1, A4. | List section letters with pages when shown. |
| Website Review | Reviewer, A. A. (Year, Month Day). Title of review. [Review of the product Title]. Site Name. URL | Use the site name as the source. |
| Review Without Its Own Title | Reviewer, A. A. (Year). [Review of the book Title of book, by A. A. Author]. Title of Source, volume(issue), pp–pp. URL or DOI | When the review lacks a title, the bracketed line becomes the title element. |
| Software Or App Review | Reviewer, A. A. (Year, Month Day). Title of review. [Review of the app Title, version X.X]. Title of Source. URL | Add the version number inside the brackets when relevant. |
Citing A Review In APA: Core Patterns
Think in four parts: author, date, title, source. Add the bracketed description right after the title. Then follow the rules for the source type you’re using. Keep author names as initials, use sentence case for titles, and italicize only what the source type calls for.
Reviewer And Date
List the reviewer as the author. Use the year alone for journals and the full date for newspapers, magazines, and websites. Follow the author–date style in text as well: a parenthetical citation looks like (Reviewer, Year), and a narrative citation wraps the year in parentheses after the name.
Title And Bracketed Description
Give the review’s title in sentence case. Add square brackets right after it: [Review of the book Title, by A. A. Author]. Swap in film, album, app, or product as needed. Name the creator of the work reviewed: author for a book, director for a film, artist for an album, developer for an app.
Source, Volume, Pages, DOI Or URL
For journals, add the journal name, volume in italics, issue in parentheses, and page range. For newspapers and magazines, give the source title and date, plus pages if available. For web-only pieces, include the site name and a live URL. When a DOI exists, prefer it to a URL.
You can confirm these elements in widely used guides like Purdue OWL’s periodicals page, which outlines author, date, title, and source rules for APA 7. For the bracketed review wording, see the clear templates in the UMGC guide to book, film, and product reviews.
Worked Examples Across Media
Use these models as patterns you can adapt to your source. All names, titles, and details below are placeholders.
Journal Review With DOI
Lee, J. R. (2024). Close reading of a crime debut. [Review of the book Shadows In Summer, by A. B. Cole]. Crime Fiction Studies, 12(3), 155–158. https://doi.org/10.1037/abc0001234
In-text: (Lee, 2024)
Magazine Review Online
Martinez, C. (2023, October 7). A singer who trades gloss for grit. [Review of the album Quiet Thunder, by R. Vale]. Sound & Stage. https://www.soundandstage.example/reviews/quiet-thunder
In-text: (Martinez, 2023)
Newspaper Review In Print
Nguyen, T. (2022, April 14). A historical drama that earns its tears. [Review of the film Harbor Lights, Dir. L. Ito]. City Herald, pp. B1, B6.
In-text: (Nguyen, 2022)
Website Review
Patel, R. (2025, May 18). A pocket camera that over-delivers. [Review of the product SnapCam Pro]. GearBench. https://www.gearbench.example/reviews/snapcam-pro
In-text: (Patel, 2025)
Review Without Title
Rivera, M. (2021). [Review of the book The Green Map, by D. Xu]. Reading Quarterly, 45(2), 90–92. https://readingquarterly.example/rg45-2-90
In-text: (Rivera, 2021)
App Review
Stone, H. (2024, July 2). Best math drill for the bus ride. [Review of the app Minute Math, version 3.2]. EdTech Today. https://edtechtoday.example/minute-math-3-2
In-text: (Stone, 2024)
Edge Cases You’ll Meet
No Reviewer Name
When the byline is missing, move the organization to the author slot. If the source gives no person or organization, start with the title and shift the citation to title-year in text.
Advance Online Publication
Some journals post reviews before pagination. Use “Advance online publication” in place of volume, issue, and pages, and include the DOI. Replace that line with full volume and pages once the final version appears.
Database-Only Access
If you found the review in a research database and there’s no DOI or open URL, end the reference after the page range. Treat it like a print work. Most APA guidance advises against listing the database name for standard scholarly databases.
Formatting The In-Text Citation
Use the reviewer’s surname and year. Parenthetical: (Lopez, 2025). Narrative: Lopez (2025). Add page numbers for quotations. If you refer to the book or film being reviewed in your sentence, name it in the text and then cite the review as your source.
Quoting A Review
Parenthetical: “The third act hits with force” (Nguyen, 2022, p. B6).
Narrative: Nguyen (2022) called the ending “earned” (p. B6).
Mentioning The Work Reviewed
Name the work in the sentence and keep the reference pointing to the review: In Harbor Lights, Ito leans on quiet scenes between storms (see Nguyen, 2022).
Troubleshooting And Quick Checks
Small fixes prevent messy references. Scan for these common issues before you submit.
| Check | What To Fix | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Missing Brackets | Add [Review of the …] right after the title. | Title. [Review of the book Title, by A. A. Author]. |
| Wrong Italics | Italicize the journal title and volume; keep the review title in plain text. | Journal Name, 12(2), 45–47 |
| Dates That Don’t Match | Use a full date for news and web pieces; use year only for journals. | (2023, August 9) vs. (2023) |
| Dead Links | Prefer a DOI. If you must use a URL, pick a stable permalink. | https://doi.org/10.xxxx/xxxxx |
| Unknown Pages | Omit page numbers for web-only pieces; include them for print when present. | Web review: no pages listed |
APA Review Reference Builder: Step-By-Step
Use this eight-step list when you draft a reference. It keeps the moving parts tidy and in the right order.
- Write the reviewer’s surname and initials.
- Add the date in the right granularity: year only for journals, full date for news and web pieces.
- Give the review title in sentence case. If the review has no title, skip to step 4.
- Add a space, then the bracketed description: [Review of the book Title, by A. A. Author]. Swap in film, album, app, or product as needed.
- State the source. For journals, add the journal name, italic volume, issue, and page range. For news or magazines, add the source title and pages if listed.
- Include a DOI when available. If there is no DOI and the piece lives on the open web, add a working URL.
- Check spacing and punctuation. Periods end the author, date, and title elements. The bracketed note ends with a period inside the bracket.
- Proof the in-text version: reviewer and year, with a page number only when you quote.
Quick case: Tran, R. (2024). A prairie tale with bite. [Review of the book Blue City, Red River, by K. Morris]. American Letters, 19(2), 210–212. https://doi.org/10.0000/al.2024.0021
Citing The Original Work Versus The Review
Cite the review when you are using the reviewer’s ideas or language. Cite the original book, album, or film when you are engaging with the primary work. Naming both in your prose can be helpful: you might mention the book and then point the reader to the review that shaped your view. Keep the reference list entries aligned with what you cite in the text.
Final Notes On Review Citations
Treat the review like the source type it lives in, and add the square-bracket cue so readers see the link back to the work under review. Keep author–date in text, stick to sentence case for titles, and give a DOI when you can. With those habits, your APA review references stay clean, reader-friendly, and ready for grading today.