Free Citation Generator
Choose APA, MLA, Chicago, IEEE, Harvard, AMA, ACS, CSE, Turabian, or ASA, then turn your source details into a reference and matching in-text citation.
Published September 10, 2026Reviewed September 10, 2026Huggle editorial
Direct answer
What this tool does
A citation generator converts source details into a reference-list, works-cited, bibliography, or note entry and the matching in-text form. Select the style first, then provide a URL, DOI, title, author list, existing citation, BibTeX entry, or a fuller source description.
Citation details
Your formatted citation will appear here
Opens as an editable file in Huggle.
How to use the Citation generator
- 01Choose the citation style required by your course, institution, journal, or publisher.
- 02Paste a URL, DOI, title, existing citation, BibTeX entry, or complete source details and generate the reference.
- 03Verify the result against the source, then copy it or continue in Huggle to build the full document and bibliography.
What is a citation generator?
A citation generator converts source details into a reference-list, works-cited, bibliography, or note entry and the matching in-text form. Select the style first, then provide a URL, DOI, title, author list, existing citation, BibTeX entry, or a fuller source description.
The generator supports the most common academic and scientific systems on Huggle: APA, MLA, Chicago, IEEE, Harvard, AMA, ACS, CSE, Turabian, and ASA. Each system has different rules for author order, dates, capitalization, containers, locators, and in-text citations.
Choose the citation style your reader expects
APA is common in the social sciences, MLA in the humanities, Chicago and Turabian in history and multidisciplinary writing, IEEE in engineering, Harvard across many UK and Australian institutions, AMA in medicine, ACS in chemistry, CSE in the sciences, and ASA in sociology.
Do not choose a style based only on appearance. Follow the assignment, university, journal, conference, or publisher guidance, including any local variation it names.
A generated citation still needs a source check
Citation formatting depends on metadata. Missing authors, unclear publication dates, incomplete container titles, and redirected URLs can all produce an incomplete result. This tool omits unknown fields rather than inventing them.
Check the result against the original source and its official record. For a direct quotation, add the page, paragraph, timestamp, section, or other locator required by the selected style.
Example input and output
APA journal article
- Input
- Style: APA; Vaswani et al., "Attention Is All You Need," NeurIPS 2017.
- Output
- Vaswani, A., et al. (2017). Attention is all you need. Advances in Neural Information Processing Systems, 30. In text: (Vaswani et al., 2017).
Supported inputs and outputs
| Format | Support | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| URL, DOI, title, citation, or BibTeX | Supported | Completeness depends on the metadata supplied. |
| Reference and in-text form | Supported | Output follows the selected style contract. |
| Uploaded private files | Not supported | Use the authenticated Huggle workspace for file-based context. |
Rules and common mistakes
Rules to follow
- Use the style required by the assignment or publisher.
- Keep the reference entry and in-text citation consistent.
- Add a locator for direct quotations when the style requires one.
Mistakes to avoid
- Leaving out source facts or constraints the Citation generator needs.
- Copying generated output without checking it against the original material.
- Ignoring the local instructions supplied by a course, journal, client, or organization.
Choose the right workflow
| Option | Best for | Difference |
|---|---|---|
| Citation generator | A fast, focused result | Runs on this public page with bounded inputs and output. |
| Huggle workspace | A complete editable artifact | Carries the work into a larger document with saved context and iteration. |
Limitations and sources
What to verify
- The tool cannot verify facts or recover source details that are absent from the input.
- Specialized institutional, publisher, legal, or regulatory requirements may need manual changes.
- Review the result before submitting, publishing, or relying on it.
Frequently asked questions
- Is this citation generator free?
- Yes. Limited citation generation and copying are available without an account. Huggle adds saved work, more generation, and the editable workspace for the full document.
- Which citation styles are supported?
- APA 7, MLA 9, Chicago 18, IEEE, Harvard, AMA, ACS, CSE, Turabian 9, and ASA are available. Use the dedicated style page when you want deeper examples and rules.
- Can I cite a website?
- Yes. Provide the page author or organization, publication or update date, page title, website name, and URL when available. Some styles also require an access date.
- Can it make in-text citations?
- Yes. The tool returns the in-text, parenthetical, narrative, note, or numbered form used by the selected style.
- How accurate is an automatic citation?
- Formatting can be accurate only when the source details are accurate and complete. The tool does not invent missing metadata; verify the result against the source and your required guide.
Go further in Huggle
Templates that build the whole document
From focused output to finished artifact
Build the full document and bibliography in Huggle
Carry this starting point into an editable workspace with saved context, iteration, and export options.