An APA quote citation needs three things: the author, the year, and the page number where the quote appears.
That holds for every direct quote, whether you write it into a sentence or set it off as a block.
Here is exactly how to format direct quotes in APA 7th edition, with the in-text citation, page numbers, and the short-versus-block rule.
How to cite a direct quote in APA
A direct quote reproduces wording from a source word for word.
In APA, every direct quote gets author, year, and a page or location number.
You can place that information two ways: in a parenthetical citation or in a narrative citation.
A parenthetical citation puts everything in parentheses after the quote:
The study found that “memory is reconstructive rather than reproductive” (Loftus, 2019, p. 44).
A narrative citation works the author and year into your sentence and saves the page number for the parentheses:
Loftus (2019) argued that “memory is reconstructive rather than reproductive” (p. 44).
Both are correct. Pick whichever reads better in the sentence.
Where does the in-text citation go after a quote?
For a short quote run into your text, the citation goes after the closing quotation mark and before the final period.
The period comes last:
Researchers describe attention as “a limited resource that depletes with use” (Kahneman, 2011, p. 41).
Do not put the period inside the quotation marks when a citation follows. The citation and period both sit outside the closing mark.
If the quote ends with a question mark or exclamation point, keep that mark inside the quotation marks, then add the citation, then a period:
She asked, “Who decides what counts as knowledge?” (Harding, 2015, p. 8).
How do page numbers work in an APA quote?
Use “p.” for a single page and “pp.” for a range.
A single page looks like p. 44. A range uses an en dash: pp. 44–45.
Some sources have no page numbers, such as web pages and many ebooks.
In that case, point the reader to the location another way.
Use a paragraph number with the label “para.”:
The agency noted that “rates have fallen since 2010” (CDC, 2021, para. 3).
You can also name a heading and count paragraphs from it if the section is long:
The report states the trend “shows no sign of reversing” (Smith, 2020, Methods section, para. 2).
For a quote that spans two pages, cite both: pp. 17–18.
Short quote vs. block quote in APA
The cutoff is 40 words.
A quote of fewer than 40 words is a short quote. Run it into your paragraph inside double quotation marks.
A quote of 40 words or more is a block quote. It gets its own formatting and no quotation marks.
Count the words in the quoted material itself, not your surrounding sentence.
Short quote example
A short quote stays in the flow of your text:
The author warns that “first impressions are sticky and resist correction” (Willingham, 2017, p. 92).
How to format an APA block quote
For 40 words or more, start the quote on a new line.
Indent the entire block half an inch (0.5″) from the left margin.
Do not use quotation marks. The indentation signals the quote on its own.
Keep it double-spaced, like the rest of your paper.
The citation goes after the final punctuation of the quote, with no period after the parentheses:
Learning is not a spectator sport. Students do not learn much just by sitting in classes listening to teachers, memorizing prepackaged assignments, and spitting out answers. They must talk about what they are learning, write reflectively about it, relate it to past experiences, and apply it to their daily lives. (Chickering & Gamson, 1987, p. 4)
Notice the difference from a short quote: in a block quote, the period comes before the parentheses, and nothing follows the parentheses.
If you name the author in your lead-in sentence, put only the page number after the block:
Students do not learn much just by sitting in classes listening to teachers, memorizing prepackaged assignments, and spitting out answers. They must talk about what they are learning, write reflectively about it, relate it to past experiences, and apply it to their daily lives. (p. 4)
Quoting a source with two or more authors
For two authors, join them with an ampersand in parentheses and the word “and” in narrative text.
Parenthetical: (Chickering & Gamson, 1987, p. 4).
Narrative: Chickering and Gamson (1987) wrote that… (p. 4).
For three or more authors, use the first author followed by “et al.” every time:
The team concluded that “feedback timing matters more than feedback length” (Hattie et al., 2018, p. 122).
Changing a quote: brackets and ellipses
To add or change a word for clarity, put your change in square brackets:
The report found that “[teachers] underestimated the effect” (Dweck, 2016, p. 30).
To cut words from the middle of a quote, use three spaced periods (an ellipsis):
She wrote that ability “is not fixed . . . it grows with effort” (Dweck, 2016, p. 31).
Do not start or end a quote with an ellipsis. Readers assume the quote is a fragment of a longer passage.
FAQ
Do I need a page number for an APA paraphrase?
APA encourages a page number for paraphrases but does not require one. It is required for every direct quote.
What if the quote has no author?
Use a short form of the title in place of the author. Put titles of articles or chapters in quotation marks and italicize titles of books or reports: (“Study Habits,” 2020, p. 5).
Does the year go in a block quote citation?
Yes, unless you already gave the author and year in your lead-in sentence. Then the block citation needs only the page number.
How do I cite a quote I found quoted in another source?
Cite the source you actually read using “as cited in”: (Vygotsky, 1934, as cited in Wood, 2019, p. 12). Only the source you read goes in your reference list.
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