How To Cite Under Review Paper? | Clean Citation Rules

Use your style guide’s format for unpublished or “submitted” work, or cite a public preprint; never present it as published.

Why This Matters When A Paper Is Under Review

You want to give credit without confusing your reader. A paper under review has not cleared peer review, so details can shift. Name the status plainly. Point to a version people can access when one exists. If no public draft is available, choose the wording your style allows for unpublished or submitted work and make the in-text signal unmistakable.

How To Cite An Under-Review Paper: Styles And Signals

Each style handles status labels and reader cues a little differently. Use the tables and templates below to match your case in seconds and keep wording steady across your prose and your list of sources.

Style Labels And In-Text Signals

Style	Reference List Label	In-Text Signal
APA (7th)	Bracketed note after title: [Manuscript submitted for publication], [Manuscript in preparation], or [Unpublished manuscript]. Cite a public preprint instead when available.	Author–year in parentheses or narrative use; “in press” only after acceptance.
MLA (9th)	After the title, a descriptor such as Unpublished manuscript or Manuscript submitted for publication. If a preprint is public, cite the repository item with DOI or stable link.	Surname in prose or parentheses; add a page number only when a paginated draft exists.
Chicago	Notes/Bibliography: plain wording like unpublished manuscript, submitted, or forthcoming after acceptance. Author-Date: mirror the same in the reference entry.	Notes or author–year; choose “forthcoming” only once accepted.

Core Rules Before You Type Anything

• Check whether a public preprint exists. If yes, cite that object with its DOI.
• If the draft is private, use the status wording your style permits.
• Never call a submission “in press” unless acceptance is confirmed.
• Avoid naming a journal for a submission that has not been accepted.
• Write in-text cues that match the entry so readers are never guessing.

APA Style: What To Write And Where

Reference List Entry

List authors, year, title in sentence case, then add a bracketed status note that matches reality: [Manuscript submitted for publication], [Manuscript in preparation], or [Unpublished manuscript]. Include an institutional home only if your guide or instructor requires one. If a public preprint exists, cite the preprint with its DOI instead of the private draft.

In-Text Citation

Use author–year as usual. Save “in press” for accepted work. When readers cannot retrieve the draft, say in your sentence that the evidence sits in a manuscript under review so the status is clear at first glance.

MLA Style: Signals For Works Not Yet Published

Works-Cited Entry

Build the entry from the core elements. After the title, add a descriptor such as Unpublished manuscript or Manuscript submitted for publication. When a preprint is public, cite the repository item and include the DOI or a stable link. Keep capitalization and punctuation in line with MLA practice.

In-Text Citation

Use the surname in your prose or in parentheses. Add a page number only when the draft has stable pagination. No page number is fine for unpaginated versions.

Chicago Style: Notes, Bibliographies, And The Word “Forthcoming”

Notes And Bibliography

Chicago favors plain labels and measured claims. Use author, title, and a status word such as unpublished, submitted, or forthcoming once acceptance is real. This keeps your entry accurate even if production steps shift.

Author-Date

Place the status in the reference list entry and use author–year in the text. If a public preprint exists, cite that version instead so readers can verify the content now.

Citing An Under Review Paper In Practice — Step-By-Step

1. Look for a public preprint. If one exists, cite the preprint and its DOI.
2. If no public version exists, use the status label your style prescribes.
3. Keep the in-text cue plain: say that the claim comes from a manuscript under review.
4. Update wording when the paper moves from submitted to accepted, then again when the version of record appears.

When A Preprint Exists, Use It

Preprints are public artifacts with persistent links. They let readers check claims right away. When the journal copy appears, update your next revision with the final citation and, when needed, keep the preprint in your narrative as part of the research trail.

Common Traps To Avoid

• Calling a submission “in press.”
• Listing a journal for a draft that lacks acceptance.
• Inventing volume, issue, or page details.
• Burying the status note in fine print.
• Adding a non-retrievable draft to a list that your style treats as in-text only.

Mini-Guide To Status Labels

Under Review Or Submitted

Use when the manuscript is with a journal. Pick submitted or under review per your style, never accepted or in press.

In Preparation

Use when writing is underway and nothing has been submitted. Many styles allow an Unpublished manuscript label in this case.

In Press Or Forthcoming

Use only after acceptance. Some styles replace the year with in press; others keep the year and add forthcoming. Match the book or journal guidance you follow.

Public Preprint

Treat the repository item as its own object with an identifier. Cite the thing you can link to.

Template Cheat Sheet For Three Situations

Scenario	What To Cite	Model Wording
Private draft under review	Unpublished or submitted status per style	APA: Title [Manuscript submitted for publication]. MLA: Title. Manuscript submitted for publication. Chicago N&B: “Title,” unpublished manuscript, submitted.
Accepted article, not yet in an issue	Accepted status only	APA: Title. (in press) Journal. MLA: “Title.” Journal, in press. Chicago: “Title.” Journal, forthcoming.
Public preprint	Repository object with DOI	APA: Title. Repository. DOI MLA: Title. Repository, Year, DOI Chicago: “Title.” Repository, Year. DOI

Ethics And Clarity When You Cite Work In Review

Citations shape how credit flows. Use labels that match reality. If you are the author of the draft, avoid wording that inflates certainty. If you are citing another team’s submission and the draft is private, make sure your use is appropriate for the venue. When a preprint is available, prefer that object so readers can see the full text.

Polishing Entries So They Pass Editorial Checks

Match punctuation and capitalization to the style. Keep author names in the correct order. Use sentence case for APA titles, headline-style for Chicago and MLA. Watch the bracketed note in APA, the descriptor slot in MLA, and the plain wording in Chicago notes. Proof against the official guide in front of you, not a third-party summary or a memory of a past class.

When To Refresh Your References

Two moments call for a change. First, when a submission is accepted. Second, when the version of record appears with final volume, issue, and pages. Swap “submitted” for “in press” after acceptance. Replace the whole entry with the published details once the journal posts the final item. If your draft is online, keep a short change log so readers can track the updates.

Quick Examples In The Flow Of A Paragraph

APA Author–Date

Recent findings point the same way (Rahman & Ortiz, 2025).

MLA Style

As Rahman and Ortiz note, uptake lagged in early trials.

Chicago Author–Date

Adoption slowed during pilot runs (Rahman and Ortiz 2025).

Citing Your Own Under Review Paper Without Overselling

Be transparent. In your prose, you can write, “In a manuscript under review, we report …” Then give the matching entry. If your style treats non-retrievable items as in-text only, keep the draft out of the list. If a preprint exists, cite the preprint and link the DOI so readers can check the full analysis.

Troubleshooting Edge Cases

Multiple Submissions

If a paper moves between journals, keep a neutral label such as submitted without naming a venue.

Title Changes

If the title may shift, quote a short descriptive phrase in your prose and keep the working title in the entry.

Group Authors

Follow your style on group names. APA spells out the group name the first time; later you may use an acronym when allowed.

Datasets And Appendixes Linked To The Draft

If these objects are public with their own DOIs, cite them directly in addition to the draft so readers can reach the materials.

Ready-To-Use Sentences For Methods And Notes

• “We cite the under review manuscript as an unpublished work to keep status clear for readers.”
• “A public preprint is available and serves as the citable source for this study.”
• “The analysis appears in a manuscript submitted for publication; details may change after peer review.”