APA citation generator for APA 7 references and in-text citations
APA 7 has small rules that cost marks: sentence case for article titles, italics for journal names and volumes, DOIs as links, et al. from three authors. Send your todo.is agent a list of links, DOIs or PDFs, and this prompt gets you a formatted reference list, the matching in-text citations and a note wherever a detail is missing.
The prompt
- Create APA 7 citations for these sources: [SOURCES]. For each one, open the link or file, find the author(s), date, title, source and DOI or URL, and write the reference in APA 7 (student paper format). Use sentence case for article and book titles, italics where APA requires them, and DOIs as https://doi.org/ links. Give me the parenthetical and narrative in-text citation for each. Sort the reference list alphabetically with a hanging indent. If a detail is missing (no date, no author), use the APA rule for it and flag it so I can check. Put the result in a Word document with [FORMATTING] and email it to me.
What to change
- [SOURCES]: Paste links, DOIs or ISBNs, one per line, or attach PDFs or a photo of your source list.
- [FORMATTING]: E.g. "Times New Roman 12, double-spaced, References title centered in bold", or "my school's template" (attach it).
Example result
- References (APA 7, student paper)
- Sorted alphabetically · hanging indent · double-spaced in the Word file
- Journal article with DOI
- Moreno, L., & Tan, J. (2022). Sleep duration and exam performance in first-year students. *Journal of College Learning*, *14*(2), 101–118. https://doi.org/10.0000/jcl.2022.0142
- • In text: (Moreno & Tan, 2022) · Moreno and Tan (2022) found…
- Three or more authors
- Okafor, C., Lindqvist, A., & Reyes, P. (2023). Digital note-taking and recall. *Educational Practice Review*, *9*(4), 22–39. https://doi.org/10.0000/epr.2023.094
- • In text: (Okafor et al., 2023) · Okafor et al. (2023)
- Book
- Harlow, D. (2021). *Learning that lasts: Memory science for students* (2nd ed.). Brightfield Press.
- • In text: (Harlow, 2021)
- Chapter in an edited book
- Singh, R. (2020). Spaced practice in classrooms. In M. Byrne (Ed.), *Teaching with evidence* (pp. 55–74). Northgate Academic.
- Webpage with an organisation as author
- National Study Skills Council. (2024, March 5). *How to plan revision for finals*. https://www.example.org/revision-planning
- • In text: (National Study Skills Council, 2024)
- Webpage with no date (flagged)
- Campus Learning Centre. (n.d.). *Active recall techniques*. Retrieved October 8, 2026, from https://www.example.edu/active-recall
- • Flag: no publication date found on the page. APA uses n.d.; a retrieval date is added only for pages meant to change over time.
- Rules applied
- • Article titles in sentence case, not italic; journal name and volume in italics, issue in brackets not italic
- • Up to 20 authors listed in the reference; et al. from 3 authors in text
- • Use & between authors inside brackets and in the reference list, "and" in running text
- • No "Retrieved from" before a DOI, and no full stop after a DOI or URL
How to do it with todo.is
- Paste your links or DOIs, or attach PDFs or a photo of the source list.
- Send the to-do to your agent in todo.is, on WhatsApp or by email.
- You get a Word document with the reference list and the in-text citations, plus flags for missing details.
- Send new sources any time and ask your agent to add them to the same list in the right order.
Tips for a better result
- Give DOIs when you have them. They lead to the publisher's record with the exact authors, volume and pages.
- Check the flagged items yourself. A missing date or author is often on the page footer or the About page.
- Student papers in APA 7 do not need a running head unless your teacher asks for one.
- Ask your agent to remember your course's style rules so future lists come out the same way.
APA citation generator: FAQ
- What is the APA 7 format for a journal article? Author, A. A., & Author, B. B. (Year). Title of article in sentence case. Journal Name in Italics, Volume in italics(Issue), pages. https://doi.org/xxxx
- When do I use et al. in APA 7? In in-text citations for any source with three or more authors, from the first citation: (Okafor et al., 2023). The reference list still names up to 20 authors.
- How do I cite a website with no author in APA? Use the organisation as the author if there is one. If not, move the title to the author position, and use n.d. if there is no date.
- Can it do MLA or Chicago too? Yes. Change APA 7 to MLA 9, Chicago or Harvard in the prompt and your agent formats the same sources in that style.
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