Skip to content
ToolsVerse

MLA Citation

MLA Citation - a browser-based student tools utility.

Browser tool

About MLA Citation

Works Cited entries in MLA 9th edition, which replaced the old type-by-type templates with one container model: the same handful of elements assembled in the same order, whatever the source happens to be. Free, with no sign-up and no cap on entries. Each reference is formatted in the page from your own details.

How to use it

  1. Enter the source detailsWho made it, what it is called, and the container it appeared inside — a journal, a website, an anthology.
  2. Add the container informationVolume, issue, publisher, date and location, as applicable to what you have.
  3. Copy the entry and the in-text formMLA in-text citations are author and page, so both are produced together.

The container model, briefly

Rather than a separate template per source type, MLA 9 asks for the work and then the container it sits in: an article inside a journal, an episode inside a series, a chapter inside a book. Containers can nest — an article inside a journal inside a database — and each takes the same ordered elements. Once the model clicks, formatting an unfamiliar source type stops being a lookup.

What it does not do

  • Follows the published 9th edition; departmental variations take precedence.
  • Deeply nested containers and unusual media can need judgement the fields here do not capture.

Questions people ask

When do I use et al. in MLA?
With three or more. Both the Works Cited entry and the in-text citation name only the first author and append et al. Exactly two authors are both named, joined by "and".
Do I need an access date for a website?
It is optional in MLA 9 and recommended where the source has no publication date or is likely to change. For a dated, stable page it adds nothing.

Questions about ToolsVerse itself — privacy, cost, what happens to your files — are answered in the frequently asked questions.

Related tools

The tools people most often need alongside MLA Citation.

Can’t find the tool you need?

Tell us what you’re looking for and we’ll consider adding it.

Request a tool →