To write a paper in APA format (7th edition), set up a title page, use a readable font with double spacing and 1-inch margins, organize the body with APA's heading levels, cite sources in the text with the author's surname and year, and list every cited source on a References page with hanging indents. Student papers are simpler than professional ones: no running head and usually no abstract unless your instructor asks for one.
This guide walks through each part with fictional examples. Always check your instructor's instructions first, because course requirements override the general rules.
Basic page setup
Get the document settings right before you write. Changing them later is tedious.
| Setting | APA 7 student paper |
|---|---|
| Margins | 1 inch on all sides |
| Font | A readable font, such as 11-pt Calibri, Arial or Georgia, or 12-pt Times New Roman |
| Line spacing | Double-spaced throughout, including the title page and references |
| Alignment | Left-aligned, with a ragged right edge (not justified) |
| Paragraph indent | 0.5 inch for the first line of each paragraph |
| Page numbers | Top right corner of every page, starting with the title page |
| Running head | Not required for student papers |
The title page
The student title page contains these elements, each on its own double-spaced line, centered in the upper half of the page:
- Paper title in bold, title case, three or four lines down from the top.
- A blank double-spaced line.
- Author name(s).
- Affiliation: usually your department and university.
- Course number and name.
- Instructor's name, in the form your instructor prefers.
- Due date, in the date format common in your country.
The page number "1" appears in the top right corner.
Community Gardens and Neighborhood Trust in Mid-Sized Cities
[blank line]
Jordan A. Reyes
Department of Sociology, Lakeview State University
SOC 210: Urban Communities
Dr. Priya Malhotra
March 14, 2026
The abstract (only if required)
Most student papers don't need an abstract. If yours does, put it on page 2. Center the label Abstract in bold at the top, then write one paragraph, not indented, that summarizes your question, method or approach, main findings and conclusion. Aim for the word limit your instructor sets; APA's general guidance for professional papers is short, typically a few hundred words at most.
The first page of text
Start the body on a new page. Repeat the paper's full title at the top, centered and bold. Then begin your introduction directly below it. Don't add a heading called "Introduction," because APA assumes the opening section is the introduction.
Headings
APA uses up to five heading levels. Most student papers only need Levels 1 and 2, sometimes 3.
| Level | Format |
|---|---|
| 1 | Centered, Bold, Title Case Heading |
| 2 | Flush Left, Bold, Title Case Heading |
| 3 | Flush Left, Bold Italic, Title Case Heading |
| 4 | Indented, bold, title case heading ending with a period. Text begins on the same line. |
| 5 | Indented, bold italic, title case heading ending with a period. Text begins on the same line. |
Community Gardens and Neighborhood Trust in Mid-Sized Cities (title, repeated on page 1)
Method (Level 1, centered)
Participants (Level 2, flush left)
Data Collection (Level 2, flush left)
Interviews (Level 3, flush left, bold italic)
Surveys (Level 3, flush left, bold italic)
Results (Level 1, centered)
Discussion (Level 1, centered)
Use headings in order. Don't jump from Level 1 to Level 3, and don't use a subheading unless there are at least two subsections at that level.
In-text citations
APA uses the author-date system. Every source you quote, paraphrase or summarize needs an in-text citation, and every in-text citation must match an entry on the References page.
Basic formats
- Parenthetical: Urban gardens can strengthen ties between neighbors (Okafor, 2021).
- Narrative: Okafor (2021) found that urban gardens strengthened ties between neighbors.
Number of authors
| Authors | Parenthetical | Narrative |
|---|---|---|
| One | (Okafor, 2021) | Okafor (2021) |
| Two | (Okafor & Lindqvist, 2021) | Okafor and Lindqvist (2021) |
| Three or more | (Okafor et al., 2021) | Okafor et al. (2021) |
| Group author | (City Planning Council, 2020) | City Planning Council (2020) |
Note the ampersand (&) inside parentheses and "and" in narrative citations.
Quotations
Direct quotes need a page number or another locator.
Okafor (2021) described the gardens as "the only place on the block where strangers lingered" (p. 112).
For sources without page numbers, such as many web pages, use a paragraph number or section name if possible, for example (Okafor, 2021, para. 4).
Quotes of 40 words or more go in a block quotation: a new line, indented 0.5 inch, with no quotation marks, and the citation after the final punctuation.
No author or no date
If there's no author, use the title (shortened if long) in place of the author. If there's no date, write "n.d." For more detail, see our guide to in-text citations with no author.
APA Citation GeneratorAPA 7 references and in-text citationsThe References page
Start the reference list on a new page after the body.
- Center the label References in bold at the top.
- Double-space all entries.
- Use a 0.5-inch hanging indent (first line flush left, following lines indented).
- Alphabetize by the first author's surname.
- Include only sources you actually cited.
Common reference formats (fictional examples)
Journal article
Okafor, N. C., & Lindqvist, E. (2021). Shared plots, shared lives: Community gardens and social ties. Journal of Urban Social Research, 14(2), 101–118. https://doi.org/10.0000/jusr.2021.0142
Book
Malik, H. (2019). Green neighborhoods: Planning for people (2nd ed.). Riverbend Press.
Chapter in an edited book
Santos, L. (2020). Gardens as civic space. In R. Ito & K. Bauer (Eds.), The everyday city (pp. 45–67). Harbor Academic.
Web page
City Planning Council. (2020, June 3). Community garden permit guidelines. https://www.example.org/garden-permits
Patterns to notice:
- Article and book titles use sentence case (only the first word, the first word after a colon and proper nouns are capitalized).
- Journal names and volume numbers are italicized; the issue number in parentheses is not.
- Include a DOI as a link when one exists.
- Don't write "Retrieved from" before URLs unless the content is designed to change and you include a retrieval date.
Other formatting details
- Tables and figures: label each with a bold number (Table 1, Figure 1) above an italic title in title case, and add notes below if needed.
- Numbers: generally use words for zero through nine and numerals for 10 and above, with exceptions such as measurements, percentages and statistics.
- Bias-free language: APA asks writers to describe people with specific, respectful terms and to follow the preferences of the groups being described.
- Appendices: if your instructor allows them, they come after the References page.
A final checklist
- Title page has the title, your name, affiliation, course, instructor and date.
- Page numbers appear top right on every page.
- Everything is double-spaced with 1-inch margins and a consistent font.
- The title is repeated in bold on the first page of text.
- Headings follow APA levels in order.
- Every quote, paraphrase and summary has an in-text citation.
- Every in-text citation matches a reference entry, and vice versa.
- References are alphabetized, double-spaced and use hanging indents.
- You've proofread names, years, titles and DOIs.
For fixing citation slips, our list of common in-text citation errors is a good final check.
Key takeaways
- APA 7 student papers need a title page, page numbers, double spacing, 1-inch margins and a readable font, but no running head.
- Use APA heading levels in order; most papers need only Levels 1 and 2.
- Cite every borrowed idea with author and year, and add a page number for quotes.
- The References page uses hanging indents, alphabetical order and sentence-case titles.
- Your instructor's requirements always come first.