How to cite a website — Quick guide (APA, MLA, Chicago)

By Robbie Creates — Published Dec 11, 2025

TL;DR: Citing a web page depends on style: **APA** needs author, date, title, site name, and URL; **MLA** uses author, page title in quotes, site name in italics, date, and URL; **Chicago** (Notes & Bibliography) often uses full citation with access/last-modified dates. If info is missing, use standard fallbacks: *no author → start with title*, *no date → (n.d.)*, and for archived pages include the archive URL and access date.

1 — When and what to cite from a website

Cite a web page when you're referencing ideas, direct quotes, data, or unique content found on a specific page. You can cite an entire site (e.g., a company's homepage) when you reference the organization generally, but for exact wording or data cite the specific page or article URL.

Essential elements: author (or organization), publication date, page/article title, website name, URL.
Fallbacks: If no author — start with the title. If no date — use (n.d.). If content is removed later, record the access date or archive the page (Wayback Machine).

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2 — APA (7th ed.) — format + example

Format:

Author, A. A. (Year, Month Day). Title of page. Website Name. URL

Example:

Doe, J. (2023, October 12). How solar panels work. SolarTech Blog. https://www.solartech.com/solar-panels

Notes:

Use the page's byline and published date when available.
If the author is an organization, put the organization name as author.
Include retrieval dates only for pages likely to change (e.g., live dashboards).

3 — MLA (9th ed.) — format + example

Format:

Author. “Title of Page.” Website Name, Day Month Year, URL.

Example:

Doe, John. “How Solar Panels Work.” SolarTech Blog, 12 Oct. 2023, https://www.solartech.com/solar-panels.

Notes:

MLA favors the day-month-year style and places the title in quotes.
Omit “http(s)://” only if your instructor/style requires—leaving the full URL is accepted and often clearer.

4 — Chicago (Notes & Bibliography) — format + example

Format (bibliography):

Author Last, First. “Title of Page.” Website Name. Last modified Month Day, Year. URL.

Example:

Doe, John. “How Solar Panels Work.” SolarTech Blog. Last modified October 12, 2023. https://www.solartech.com/solar-panels.

Notes:

Chicago often prefers the “last modified” date when a publication date is unclear.
For footnotes, Chicago uses a slightly different, shorter form—so include the full citation in the bibliography.

5 — Common edge cases & quick rules

No author: Start the citation with the title, then the date.
No date: Use (n.d.) in APA or “n.d.” in Chicago; in MLA just omit the date but note access date if required.
Dynamic or updated pages: Prefer the published or last-modified date; include an access date if the content is likely to change.
Archived pages: Cite the original URL plus the archive URL (Wayback Machine) and the access date.
Citing social posts or comments: Follow style-specific rules—treat them like web content with author, full text (or excerpt), date, and URL.

When in doubt, be consistent: pick the style your instructor/publisher requires and apply its rules uniformly across all web citations.

6 — Tools, sources & examples

Use authoritative guides and citation generators to double-check formatting:

APA Style (official) — official examples and Q&A.
Purdue OWL — MLA guide — practical examples and templates.
Chicago Manual of Style (official) — comprehensive rules (subscription-based).
Wayback Machine — archive pages you cite to prevent link-rot.

Quick generators (Zotero, Mendeley, BibTeX exporters, or citationmachine.net) are great for speed, but always verify the output against the official style guide—automated tools make mistakes with unusual sources.

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