How to Cite an Internet Resource in APA Format
- 1). Complete an in-text citation where you refer to the resource. Put the author of the web-page's surname and the date the piece was written in brackets. For example, write "(Smith, 2010)" (without quotations -- same throughout article) to cite an article written by John Smith and published in 2010. If you don't know the name of the author, and none is listed, write a shortened version of the webpage's title, and if you don't know the date, type "n.d." in the date space.
- 2). Start the references list entry with the author's name, if known. Just like with book referencing, in APA format, you write the author's surname followed by their initials. After the author's surname and initials, type the year of publication in brackets. If there is a specific date listed on the webpage, you can specify the date within the brackets after the year. An example of this step would be "Smith, J. B. (2004)."
- 3). Type the title of the page first if the author's name is not known. The title of the page should be written in italics. If the date isn't listed on the web page, you can type "(n.d.)" after the page title or author's name. The title of the page goes after the author's name and date if they are known. To continue the example, the reference would now read, "Smith, J. B. (2004) Philosophy in Strange Places."
- 4). Type "Retrieved" followed by the date you accessed the source. Type the month, then the day, and finally the year that you accessed the source. This has to be done because the Internet changes frequently, and the source may no longer exist when somebody goes to access it based on your reference. The example would now read, "Smith, J. B. (2004) Philosophy in Strange Places. Retrieved January 25th, 2010."
- 5). Type "from" followed by the URL you found the source online. This has to include the introductory "http://" part of the web address. The complete, example reference would read "Smith, J. B. (2004) Philosophy in Strange Places. Retrieved January 25th, 2010, from http://www.anywebpage.com/strangeplaces.html."
