Which MLA edition is supported?

MLA Handbook 9th edition, published April 2021. It is the current standard taught in most US high schools and many universities, replacing the 8th edition.

How many authors before "et al." kicks in?

MLA 9 uses "First Author, et al." for any source with three or more authors. The tool applies that rule automatically.

Why are some titles in quotation marks and others italicised?

MLA distinguishes short works (articles, web pages, episodes) using quotation marks from whole works (books, journals, films) using italics. The tool applies the correct treatment per source type.

Do I need an access date for websites?

MLA 9 recommends an access date when a publication date is missing or the content is likely to change. The tool surfaces an Accessed field on website sources — fill it in when relevant.

Does it support container hierarchies?

It handles the common single-container case (journal name, site name, newspaper name) inline. Nested containers (e.g., a chapter in a book in a database) currently need a manual touch-up.

MLA Citation Tool

Generate MLA 9th edition Works Cited entries for books, journals, websites, and newspaper articles.

Written by Golam Rabbani, Founder & Lead Engineer

This interactive tool requires JavaScript. Read the formula and worked example below; you can compute the result by hand.

How to use this mla citation tool

Pick the source type — Book, Journal article, Website, or Newspaper article.
Enter the author(s); use semicolons to separate multiple authors.
Fill in the title plus the fields shown for that source (publisher, journal, volume, etc.).
Press Generate MLA citation.
Use Copy to paste the entry into your Works Cited list.

About this mla citation tool

The MLA citation tool formats one source to MLA Handbook 9th edition (2021) rules — the current MLA standard for Works Cited entries. Author names follow the "Last, First" pattern for the first author and "First Last" for any co-author; lists of three or more authors collapse to "First Author, et al." per MLA 9 §5.7. Titles use title case and are placed in quotation marks for short works (articles, web pages) or italicised for whole works (books, journals).

For books the format is Author. Title. Edition ed., Publisher, Year. For journal articles: Author. "Article Title." Journal Name, vol. X, no. Y, Year, pp. ZZ-ZZ. DOI/URL. For websites: Author. "Page Title." Site Name, date, URL. Accessed date. The tool also handles the modern container model implicitly — by placing the journal/site name where MLA 9 expects the first container.

For example, with author "Jane Q. Smith", title "Reading habits in early childhood", journal "Journal of Child Development", volume 12, issue 3, year 2024, pages 120-145, and DOI 10.1000/xyz123, the tool produces: Smith, Jane Q. "Reading habits in early childhood." Journal of Child Development, vol. 12, no. 3, 2024, pp. 120-145. https://doi.org/10.1000/xyz123.

FAQ

Which MLA edition is supported?: MLA Handbook 9th edition, published April 2021. It is the current standard taught in most US high schools and many universities, replacing the 8th edition.
How many authors before "et al." kicks in?: MLA 9 uses "First Author, et al." for any source with three or more authors. The tool applies that rule automatically.
Why are some titles in quotation marks and others italicised?: MLA distinguishes short works (articles, web pages, episodes) using quotation marks from whole works (books, journals, films) using italics. The tool applies the correct treatment per source type.
Do I need an access date for websites?: MLA 9 recommends an access date when a publication date is missing or the content is likely to change. The tool surfaces an Accessed field on website sources — fill it in when relevant.
Does it support container hierarchies?: It handles the common single-container case (journal name, site name, newspaper name) inline. Nested containers (e.g., a chapter in a book in a database) currently need a manual touch-up.