How to Reference a Website in an Essay Harvard, APA, MLA and Chicago
In This Guide
When to Cite a Website
Not all websites are appropriate academic sources. Before citing a website in an essay, evaluate it: Who created it? What organisation or institution hosts it? Is there any indication of author expertise or editorial review? When was it last updated? Does it cite its own sources? Government websites (.gov.uk, UN.org, WHO.int), established research institutions, professional bodies, and peer-reviewed open-access publications are generally acceptable academic sources. Personal blogs, Wikipedia, general news sites, and commercial content marketing are not appropriate for academic citation in most contexts use them to find leads, then cite the original source they reference.
Website quality tip: If you are tempted to cite Wikipedia, find the primary source that Wikipedia’s article cites and cite that instead. Wikipedia is a starting point for finding sources, not a citable academic source itself.
Information You Need for Any Website Citation
Before formatting your citation, collect this information from the webpage: Author or authors (individual name or organisation name); Title of the specific webpage or article; Name of the website or organisation hosting the content; Publication date or last updated date; URL; Date you accessed the page. If any of these is missing, your citation format adjusts to handle the gap (see the No Author section below). Always copy the URL directly from the browser address bar to avoid errors.
Harvard Format
Harvard website citation format (in-text): (Author, Year). If organisational author: (WHO, 2024).
Harvard reference list format:
Author Surname, Initial(s). (Year) Title of webpage. Available at: URL (Accessed: Day Month Year).
Example: World Health Organization (2024) WHO guidance on alcohol and health. Available at: https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/alcohol (Accessed: 5 August 2026).
For individual authors: Smith, J. (2023) Understanding cognitive biases in decision-making. Available at: https://example.com/cognitive-biases (Accessed: 10 June 2026).
APA 7th Edition Format
APA 7th in-text: (Author, Year) or (Organisation, Year).
APA 7th reference list format:
Author Last Name, Initials. (Year, Month Day). Title of webpage. Site Name. URL
Example: World Health Organization. (2024, March 12). Alcohol. https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/alcohol
Note: APA 7th does not require “Retrieved from” before the URL (this changed from APA 6th). The site name is included if it differs from the author name. No access date is required unless the content is likely to change (e.g., social media posts, Wikipedia).
MLA 9th Edition Format
MLA 9th in-text: (Author Last Name page) — for websites without page numbers, just use (Author Last Name).
MLA 9th Works Cited format:
Last Name, First Name. “Title of Webpage.” Website Name, Day Month Year, URL. Accessed Day Month Year.
Example: World Health Organization. “Alcohol.” World Health Organization, 12 Mar. 2024, www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/alcohol. Accessed 5 Aug. 2026.
Note: MLA 9th requires an access date for websites and does not use https:// before the URL — it starts with www. or the domain name directly.
Chicago Format
Chicago Notes-Bibliography uses footnotes for citations. Website footnote format:
First Last, “Title of Webpage,” Website Name, Month Day, Year, URL.
Example footnote: World Health Organization, “Alcohol,” World Health Organization, March 12, 2024, https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/alcohol.
Chicago bibliography format:
Last, First. “Title of Webpage.” Website Name. Month Day, Year. URL.
Chicago Author-Date (used in social sciences): In-text: (WHO 2024). Reference list: World Health Organization. 2024. “Alcohol.” World Health Organization. March 12, 2024. https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/alcohol.
No Author, No Date What to Do
| Missing Info | Harvard | APA 7th | MLA 9th |
|---|---|---|---|
| No author | Use organisation name or first significant words of title | Use organisation or title in italics | Begin with title, alphabetise by first significant word |
| No date | Use (no date) or (n.d.) | Use (n.d.) | Omit date from entry |
| No page numbers | Omit page from in-text | Use para. number if available | Omit page from in-text |
Common Website Citation Mistakes
- Citing Wikipedia — not an acceptable academic source; cite the primary sources Wikipedia references instead
- No access date for Harvard or MLA — access dates are required because website content can change; always include them
- Wrong URL format for MLA — MLA 9th drops “https://” before the URL; Chicago and APA retain it
- Using APA 6th edition format — APA 7th made significant changes including removing “Retrieved from” before URLs; always confirm which edition your programme requires
- Not specifying institutional author correctly — “WHO” is not the correct Harvard author format; the full name “World Health Organization” is required on first citation
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