Every research project requires you to go outside your own knowledge and gather varying ideas and perspectives into a cohesive whole. The first crucial step in this is gathering a number of sources to inform you. It lays a foundation that allows you to complete your project, and like any foundation, you can't just move past it once you are done researching. You take the knowledge and synthesize it into your project, whether it be a speech, essay, video, or presentation, but you must also take those source names and synthesize them too into a bibliography.
A bibliography (also called a Works Cited page) is a list of sources used in a research essay project, whether it is persuasive, expository, or functional in nature. While a bibliography seems very simple, it can be a struggle—so much so that providing AI software programs that create bibliographies (often incorrectly) is a multimillion-dollar industry. But a writer doesn't need those fancy, always error-ridden programs. By following the steps below, a writer can have a perfect bibliography every time.
NOTE: While the examples below are for an MLA-style Works Cited page, APA-style and Chicago-style (CMOS) are nearly identical in their layout. Any differences between MLA style and these other styles are noted at the bottom of this article.
A bibliography (also called a Works Cited page) is a list of sources used in a research essay project, whether it is persuasive, expository, or functional in nature. While a bibliography seems very simple, it can be a struggle—so much so that providing AI software programs that create bibliographies (often incorrectly) is a multimillion-dollar industry. But a writer doesn't need those fancy, always error-ridden programs. By following the steps below, a writer can have a perfect bibliography every time.
NOTE: While the examples below are for an MLA-style Works Cited page, APA-style and Chicago-style (CMOS) are nearly identical in their layout. Any differences between MLA style and these other styles are noted at the bottom of this article.
STEP ONE: Make a new page
Even if the writer only cites one source, a Works Cited page is ALWAYS on a separate page at the very end of the essay after any appendices and endnotes.
The Works Cited page should continue the pagination from the pages before it (surname and page number in the top right). Like the other pages, it should also have 1" margins on all sides and the same font in the same size as the rest of the essay.
The Works Cited page should continue the pagination from the pages before it (surname and page number in the top right). Like the other pages, it should also have 1" margins on all sides and the same font in the same size as the rest of the essay.
STEP TWO: Title the page
At the top of the page, title the page Works Cited in the normal body font: no bolding, no underline, no italics, and no adjustment in size.
The name of the assignment or essay does not have to follow the words Work Cited unless the Works Cited page is being submitted separately from the essay (and in this case, make sure that there is a proper MLA header in the upper right corner).
If only one work is cited, change the title to Work Cited without the plural.
Make sure the title is center justified.
The name of the assignment or essay does not have to follow the words Work Cited unless the Works Cited page is being submitted separately from the essay (and in this case, make sure that there is a proper MLA header in the upper right corner).
If only one work is cited, change the title to Work Cited without the plural.
Make sure the title is center justified.
STEP THREE: Add source citations
Copy the source citations from each set of research notes taken for the project onto the Works Cited page. There is an entire section of this site about how to cite a source properly, but the basics are this: Author. Title. Container. Information about the source that might fall under the container umbrella includes:
When typing out citations, keep MLA title case in mind: whole works are italicized, parts of larger works are quoted, and scripture and supreme governing documents get no special face. Titles in MLA always start with a capital letter, and every other word in the title is capitalized unless it is an article, coordination conjunction, or preposition.
A writer may elect to use citation-making software. If using a citation builder, a writer needs to first make sure the software is updated to cite sources according to MLA 9th ed. standards--many online sites still use MLA8, MLA7, or even MLA6, none of which are accurate to the current version. Even a site that uses MLA9 standards can produce major errors in capitalization and punctuation, so writers still need to review each citation carefully for errors.
There should be a full empty line placed between citations.
- container name
- contributors
- version
- number
- publisher
- date
- location
When typing out citations, keep MLA title case in mind: whole works are italicized, parts of larger works are quoted, and scripture and supreme governing documents get no special face. Titles in MLA always start with a capital letter, and every other word in the title is capitalized unless it is an article, coordination conjunction, or preposition.
A writer may elect to use citation-making software. If using a citation builder, a writer needs to first make sure the software is updated to cite sources according to MLA 9th ed. standards--many online sites still use MLA8, MLA7, or even MLA6, none of which are accurate to the current version. Even a site that uses MLA9 standards can produce major errors in capitalization and punctuation, so writers still need to review each citation carefully for errors.
There should be a full empty line placed between citations.
STEP FOUR: Alphabetize the sources
Once all the source citations are listed on the Works Cited page, the citations should be arranged in alphabetical order by the first letter that appears in the entry. For most sources, this will be the author's last name, but if there is no author, the writer uses the first word of the title that is not a, an, or the. Author names should never start with a, an, or the.
Angelou, Maya. I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings. Ballantine Books, 2009.
“The Beatnik Generation.” Voices of East Anglia. Voices of East Anglia, 2011.
Beatles. "Yesterday." Help! EMI London, 1965.
Bukowski, Charles. Post Office. Ecco, 2002.
If the author's name or title starts with a typographical symbol, the symbol is skipped. If the name or title starts with digits, the writer should alphabetize the source as if the digit were spelled out.
Angelou, Maya. I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings. Ballantine Books, 2009.
@Neilmakesart. "Inception Infographic." DeviantArt, 24 August 2010, fav.me/d2x5vou.
2chainz. "Watch Out." ColleGrove. Def Jam Recordings, 2016.
If two or more sources have the same surname, they are alphabetized by their first name:
Ginsberg, Allen. “Howl.” Poets.org. Academy of American Poets, 1956.
Ginsberg, Debra. Waiting: The True Confessions of a Waitress. Harper Perennial, 2001.
If two or more sources have the same author, alphabetize by the text title:
Ginsberg, Allen. “Howl.” Poets.org. Academy of American Poets, 1956.
Ginsberg. Kaddish. Arion Press, 1992.
If two or more sources have the same author and the author has two different names (for example, a pseudonym and true name or a maiden name and married name), keep whatever name is on the source but add a parenthetical note with the author's true name in brackets after the alternative name. The exception to this is if the alternative name is the dead name of a transgender author: in this case, change all author names to their name of choice even if the source is published under the dead name.
Robb, J.D. [Nora Roberts]. Brotherhood in Death. Berkley Press, 2016.
Roberts, Nora. The Search. 2010. Jove, 2011.
Angelou, Maya. I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings. Ballantine Books, 2009.
“The Beatnik Generation.” Voices of East Anglia. Voices of East Anglia, 2011.
Beatles. "Yesterday." Help! EMI London, 1965.
Bukowski, Charles. Post Office. Ecco, 2002.
If the author's name or title starts with a typographical symbol, the symbol is skipped. If the name or title starts with digits, the writer should alphabetize the source as if the digit were spelled out.
Angelou, Maya. I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings. Ballantine Books, 2009.
@Neilmakesart. "Inception Infographic." DeviantArt, 24 August 2010, fav.me/d2x5vou.
2chainz. "Watch Out." ColleGrove. Def Jam Recordings, 2016.
If two or more sources have the same surname, they are alphabetized by their first name:
Ginsberg, Allen. “Howl.” Poets.org. Academy of American Poets, 1956.
Ginsberg, Debra. Waiting: The True Confessions of a Waitress. Harper Perennial, 2001.
If two or more sources have the same author, alphabetize by the text title:
Ginsberg, Allen. “Howl.” Poets.org. Academy of American Poets, 1956.
Ginsberg. Kaddish. Arion Press, 1992.
If two or more sources have the same author and the author has two different names (for example, a pseudonym and true name or a maiden name and married name), keep whatever name is on the source but add a parenthetical note with the author's true name in brackets after the alternative name. The exception to this is if the alternative name is the dead name of a transgender author: in this case, change all author names to their name of choice even if the source is published under the dead name.
Robb, J.D. [Nora Roberts]. Brotherhood in Death. Berkley Press, 2016.
Roberts, Nora. The Search. 2010. Jove, 2011.
STEP FIVE: Hang the indent
Once all the sources are in the correct order, make sure to give each a 1/2" hanging indent. This means that the first line is not indented, but every line afterward is.
STEP SIX: Dash redundant authors
Let's say that two sources are by the same author, like so:
Ginsberg, Allen. “Howl.” Poets.org. Academy of American Poets, 1956.
Ginsberg. Kaddish. Arion Press, 1992.
To reduce redundancy, the repeated author name is replaced on any citation after the first with four en dashes or eight hyphens--about the length of the 1/2" hanging indent--followed by a period.
Ginsberg, Allen. “Howl.” Poets.org. Academy of American Poets, 1956.
--------. Kaddish. Arion Press, 1992.
Ginsberg, Allen. “Howl.” Poets.org. Academy of American Poets, 1956.
Ginsberg. Kaddish. Arion Press, 1992.
To reduce redundancy, the repeated author name is replaced on any citation after the first with four en dashes or eight hyphens--about the length of the 1/2" hanging indent--followed by a period.
Ginsberg, Allen. “Howl.” Poets.org. Academy of American Poets, 1956.
--------. Kaddish. Arion Press, 1992.
STEP SEVEN: Double check that all entries are used
Before submission, a writer should go through their essay and make sure that every in-text citation matches a source on the Works Cited page. If there is an in-text citation without a source, it needs to be added to the Works Cited page. Conversely, if there is a source on your Works Cited page that is not cited in the essay, take it off the Works Cited page, as the essay didn't actually cite that work.
An exception to this is when tables and figures are used. If the caption for the table or figure contains the MLA citation details, the work does not need to be cited again in the Works Cited. However, if the caption does not contain this information, then it must be included in the Works Cited. Do not cite media on a separate Media Used list.
An exception to this is when tables and figures are used. If the caption for the table or figure contains the MLA citation details, the work does not need to be cited again in the Works Cited. However, if the caption does not contain this information, then it must be included in the Works Cited. Do not cite media on a separate Media Used list.
APA Style and Chicago Style Differences
STEP ONE: MAKE A NEW PAGE
Though the pagination that APA and CMOS use are different from that used by MLA, all three start their bibliographies on a separate page after all endnotes and appendices that continue the same essay pagination.
STEP TWO: TITLE THE PAGE
APA titles their bibliography page References. CMOS titles the page Works Cited when using Author-Date citation, and it titles the page Bibliography when using Note-Bibliography citation.
STEP THREE: ADD SOURCE CITATIONS
Source citation style for APA and CMOS are both very different from each other and MLA style. For help citing sources in APA style, click here. For help citing sources in CMOS, click here. Keep in mind that there are two different styles of CMOS: Author-Date Citation Style (AD) and Note-Bibliography Citation Style (NB); not only are the textual citations different for both, but the bibliography citations are formatted differently as well, so make sure that it's clear which style the instructor wants.
STEP FOUR: ALPHABETIZE SOURCES
APA and CMOS follow the same alphabetizing rules except for cases of two or more texts by the same author--MLA orders these entries alphabetically by title of the work, while APA and CMOS order these entries by year of publication from oldest to newest. If more than one sources shares the same author and year, the entries are then ordered alphabetically by title of the work and add a lowercase letter from a to z to the end of the year to indicate which source matches which in-text or noted citation: e.g., Coon, B. (2020a).
STEP FIVE: HANG THE INDENT
Same as MLA.
STEP SIX: DASH RENDUNDANT AUTHORS
Neither APA nor CMOS engage in this practice.
STEP SEVEN: DOUBLE CHECK ENTRIES
Obviously, this should always be done regardless of the citation style.
Though the pagination that APA and CMOS use are different from that used by MLA, all three start their bibliographies on a separate page after all endnotes and appendices that continue the same essay pagination.
STEP TWO: TITLE THE PAGE
APA titles their bibliography page References. CMOS titles the page Works Cited when using Author-Date citation, and it titles the page Bibliography when using Note-Bibliography citation.
STEP THREE: ADD SOURCE CITATIONS
Source citation style for APA and CMOS are both very different from each other and MLA style. For help citing sources in APA style, click here. For help citing sources in CMOS, click here. Keep in mind that there are two different styles of CMOS: Author-Date Citation Style (AD) and Note-Bibliography Citation Style (NB); not only are the textual citations different for both, but the bibliography citations are formatted differently as well, so make sure that it's clear which style the instructor wants.
STEP FOUR: ALPHABETIZE SOURCES
APA and CMOS follow the same alphabetizing rules except for cases of two or more texts by the same author--MLA orders these entries alphabetically by title of the work, while APA and CMOS order these entries by year of publication from oldest to newest. If more than one sources shares the same author and year, the entries are then ordered alphabetically by title of the work and add a lowercase letter from a to z to the end of the year to indicate which source matches which in-text or noted citation: e.g., Coon, B. (2020a).
STEP FIVE: HANG THE INDENT
Same as MLA.
STEP SIX: DASH RENDUNDANT AUTHORS
Neither APA nor CMOS engage in this practice.
STEP SEVEN: DOUBLE CHECK ENTRIES
Obviously, this should always be done regardless of the citation style.
Page last updated 30 March 2024.
Further Reading
"Ordering the List of Works Cited [5.123]." MLA Handbook. 9th ed., Modern Language Association of America, 2021, pp. 219–24.