Word’s citation tools store each source once and format it for you. Change the style later and every in-text citation and the reference list update together, which saves hours of manual reformatting before a deadline.
- Choose a citation style
- Insert a citation and add a new source
- Reuse a citation
- Add the references page
- Manage and edit sources
Choosing a citation style
Use this when you start a paper, or when your instructor asks for a different style.
- Go to the References tab.
- In the Citations & Bibliography group, open the Style list.
- Choose APA, MLA, Chicago or another style.
Result: New citations use that style. If you change it later, existing citations and the bibliography are reformatted.
Microsoft’s add citations in a Word document page lists the other built-in styles, including IEEE, GOST and ISO 690.
Note: Word follows the edition of each style built into your version. Check the result against your style guide before you submit.
Inserting a citation and adding a new source
Use this when you cite a book, article or website for the first time.
- Click at the end of the sentence you want to cite.
- Go to References > Insert Citation > Add New Source.
- In Create Source, pick the Type of Source, such as Book, Journal Article or Web site.
- Fill in the author, title, year and other fields. Select Show All Bibliography Fields for extras like DOI or edition.
- Click OK.
Result: A formatted citation, such as (Smith, 2024), appears in your text, and the source is saved.
Tip: Don’t have the details yet? Choose Add New Placeholder instead. Fill it in later from Manage Sources.
Reusing a saved citation
Use this when you cite the same source again.
- Click where the citation should go.
- Go to References > Insert Citation.
- Pick the source from the list.
Result: Word inserts the citation without retyping anything.
To add a page number, click the citation, open its drop-down arrow and choose Edit Citation. Type the page in Pages and click OK.
Adding a references page or bibliography
Use this when your citations are in place and you need the list at the end.
- Press Ctrl + Enter (Cmd + Return on Mac) at the end of the document to start a new page.
- Go to References > Bibliography.
- Choose Bibliography, References or Works Cited, depending on your style.
Result: Word lists every cited source, alphabetised and formatted in the current style.
When you cite something new, click inside the list and choose Update Citations and Bibliography. Microsoft covers this in create a bibliography, citations, and references.
Managing and editing sources
Use this when a source has a typo, a placeholder needs details, or you want sources from an earlier paper.
- Go to References > Manage Sources.
- Under Current List, select the source and click Edit.
- Make your changes and click OK.
- To reuse a source from another document, select it in Master List and click Copy to move it to Current List.
Result: Edits flow through to every citation of that source after you update the bibliography.
Comparing the methods
| Task | Where in Word | Works on |
|---|---|---|
| Choose citation style | References > Style | Windows, Mac |
| Add a new source | Insert Citation > Add New Source | Windows, Mac |
| Reuse a source | Insert Citation > pick source | Windows, Mac |
| Reference list | References > Bibliography | Windows, Mac |
| Edit sources | References > Manage Sources | Windows |
Platform differences
- Windows: all steps above apply, including Manage Sources with its Master List.
- Mac: citation styles, citations and the bibliography are on the References tab, but the buttons are arranged differently. Look for the citations pane to add and edit sources.
- Word for the web: the citation tools are more limited. For the full source manager, select Open in Word.
Troubleshooting citations
- Citations show as {CITATION Smi24 \l 1033}: you are seeing field codes. Press Alt + F9 on Windows or Option + F9 on Mac to switch back.
- The bibliography misses a source: update it with Update Citations and Bibliography.
- A source shows a question mark: it is a placeholder. Edit it in Manage Sources.
- You typed the reference list by hand: select it and alphabetize it in Word with Home > Sort.
- Formatting looks slightly off for your style: convert the bibliography to static text from its drop-down menu and fix it by hand, as your last step.
Writing in LaTeX instead?
If your paper started in LaTeX with BibTeX, convert LaTeX to Word with Pandoc and its --citeproc option keeps citations formatted. For cross-references to tables and figures in LaTeX, see how to refer to a table in LaTeX.
Long papers also need a table of contents in Word and numbered headings. Find more in the Microsoft Word guides.