BYTETOOLS

MLA Citation Generator

Create MLA 9th edition Works Cited entries and parenthetical in-text citations for books, articles, web pages, anthologies and videos in seconds.

Authors — the third and later names collapse to “et al.” automatically

Everything is typed by you and formatted in your browser — this tool never looks a source up online, so no DOI, ISBN or URL is ever sent anywhere. MLA 9 is deliberately flexible about optional elements; check the finished entry against your instructor's requirements.

What is the MLA Citation Generator?

An MLA citation generator formats the author, title, container, publisher, date and location you enter into the MLA 9th edition core-elements order, giving you a Works Cited entry and a matching in-text citation.

  • MLA 9th edition core-elements template for five source types
  • Automatic et al. for three or more authors, in the entry and in-text
  • Optional MLA title case that leaves words like iPhone untouched
  • MLA month abbreviations and protocol-free URLs applied automatically
  • In-text citation with the page number and no comma, as MLA requires
  • Runs entirely in your browser — no lookups, no uploads, no sign-in

How to use the MLA Citation Generator

  1. 1

    Select the source type — book, journal article, web page, work in an anthology, or video.

  2. 2

    Enter the authors, surname first; extra names are added with the Add author button.

  3. 3

    Type the title of the source and, for anything inside a container, the container's name.

  4. 4

    Add the publisher, volume, issue, pages, date and URL that apply to that source type.

  5. 5

    Copy the finished Works Cited entry and the in-text citation into your essay.

About the MLA Citation Generator

The ByteTools MLA Citation Generator builds Works Cited entries the way MLA 9 wants them: author, title of source, title of container, contributors, version, number, publisher, date, and location — each separated by the right comma or full stop. Choose your source type and the fields you need appear, so you are never guessing which element belongs where.

It also handles the details people get wrong. Two authors are joined with “and” after the first is inverted, three or more become et al., titles of parts of a container go in quotation marks while containers are italicised, dates use MLA's month abbreviations, and URLs are printed without http:// as MLA 9 specifies. An optional switch applies MLA title case for you.

Everything runs in your browser. Nothing is uploaded, no account is needed, and the tool never fetches a source from the web — you type in the details from the copy in front of you and it does the formatting.

Frequently asked questions

How do you cite a website in MLA 9?

Give the author, the page title in quotation marks, the website name in italics, the publication date, and the URL without http:// — for example: Smith, John. “Revision Tips.” The Guardian, 14 May 2023, example.com/tips.

What is the difference between MLA 8 and MLA 9?

MLA 9 keeps the nine core elements introduced in MLA 8 and adds more guidance rather than changing the format, including fuller advice on annotated bibliographies and inclusive language. Entries built to MLA 8 rules are still correct in MLA 9.

How do you write an MLA in-text citation?

Put the author's surname and the page number in brackets with no comma between them, like (Smith 23). With three or more authors use (Smith et al. 23), and if there is no author use a shortened title in quotation marks instead.

Should MLA citations include the URL?

Yes, MLA 9 asks for the URL of online sources, written without the http:// or https:// prefix. A DOI is preferred when the source has one, written in full as https://doi.org/… .

Does this MLA generator look up sources automatically?

No, and that is deliberate. Automatic lookup requires sending the URL or ISBN to an outside database. This tool formats only what you type, so nothing about your reading list ever leaves your device.

What is a container in MLA style?

A container is the larger work that holds the source — the journal an article appears in, the website a page belongs to, or the anthology that contains a short story. Container titles are italicised; the part inside them goes in quotation marks.

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