Need a correctly formatted reference list without wrestling with punctuation rules? This free citation generator builds a formatted reference entry and the matching in-text citation for journal articles, books and websites, in five styles. Add your sources one by one, build a full bibliography, sort it A to Z, then copy it or download it as a text file. Whether you use it as a free citation creator for a single source or as an online reference generator for a whole assignment, everything happens on this page, with no sign-up.
One honest note about scope: this tool covers journal articles, books and websites only, and it offers Chicago author-date referencing, not the Chicago notes and bibliography system. If your course asks for a book chapter, a video or a report, you will need to format that entry by hand using your style guide. For these three types, the fields adapt to the type you pick.
Key features
- Five styles in one place: APA 7, MLA 9, Chicago 17 author-date, Harvard and IEEE, with switching that needs no retyping.
- Three source types, tailored fields: journal article, book and website forms show the fields that type needs, and you can add multiple authors.
- DOI and ISBN lookup: paste a DOI to pull article details from Crossref, or an ISBN to pull book details from Open Library, then check and edit before you generate.
- Reference plus in-text citation: every source gives you a reference list entry with a hanging indent and the matching in-text citation, ready to copy with italics kept where your browser allows.
- Build and organise a list: add sources to a bibliography, sort it A to Z, copy the whole list or download it as a .txt file.
- Saved in your browser: your list is stored in your browser storage, so it is still there when you come back on the same device.
How to use
- Pick a citation style and a source type: journal article, book or website.
- Add the details by hand, or use lookup: enter a DOI or ISBN to fill the fields, then check them against your source.
- Add every author with the add author button, and complete the year, title and other fields shown for that source type.
- Click Format citation to see the reference entry and the in-text citation, then copy the one you need or add it to your bibliography list.
- When your list is complete, sort it A to Z if your style needs alphabetical order, then copy the whole list or download it as a .txt file.
The five citation styles explained
Styles differ mainly in author name order, date position, title capitalisation and punctuation, which is why the same source looks quite different in each one.
APA 7 is the American Psychological Association style, common in psychology, education and the social sciences. It uses author and date in text, and lists authors by surname and initials in the reference list.
MLA 9 is the Modern Language Association style, common in English and humanities subjects. It uses author and page number in text, and builds entries from core elements such as author, title and publisher.
Chicago 17 author-date follows The Chicago Manual of Style with author and date in text and a matching reference list entry. This tool covers the author-date system only, not notes and bibliography.
Harvard is a widely used author and date family of styles in the UK and Australia, though details vary between universities. Check your institution version, because Harvard is a family of similar styles, not one single standard.
IEEE is the numbered style used in engineering and computing, with sources cited as bracketed numbers in the order they appear. In this tool, journal titles are shown in full rather than in the abbreviated form IEEE normally uses.
Honest limits worth knowing
Three limits are worth knowing before you rely on the output. First, source types are limited to journal articles, books and websites, so chapters, videos, reports and other formats are not covered. Second, export is a plain .txt file only: there is no Word or PDF export, although copying keeps formatting where your browser allows. Third, lookup needs an internet connection and an exact DOI or ISBN, and it can only return what Crossref or Open Library holds, so always check the filled fields against the source itself and do a final read through against your style guide.
Private by design
Like every Savozi tool, this generator runs entirely in your browser. Your sources and your list stay on your device and are saved only in your browser storage, never uploaded to our server. It is part of our free writing tools collection: no account, no limits and nothing to install.