APA Mistakes Are Usually Small, but They Add Up Fast

The most frustrating APA errors are the ones that look minor: a missing indent, the wrong heading style, or a reference entry that is almost right. Those details are exactly why students lose points.

Use The Ultimate APA 7th Edition Formatting Guide and How to Format an APA Title Page as your quick reference set, then compare Formatly features to see how the whole document can stay aligned.

APA formatting mistakes are among the most common reasons students lose points on papers. If you find the APA manual confusing and tedious, you know how frustrating this struggle can be. Here are the five most frequent errors and how to fix them — or how Formatly fixes them automatically.

Mistake 1: Incorrect Title Page Formatting

Student papers using running heads (not required in APA 7th), missing course information, or incorrect title capitalization. The fix: APA 7th edition student papers do not need a running head. Your title page should include the paper title, name, institution, course, instructor, and date.

Mistake 2: Wrong In-Text Citation Format

Incorrect parenthetical formatting — missing commas, wrong placement of page numbers, or mixing author-page with author-date. The fix: APA uses author-date format: (Smith, 2020, p. 45). One author uses "and" in narrative, "&" in parenthetical. Three or more authors use "et al." after the first author.

Mistake 3: Reference List Errors

Mixed hanging indents, missing DOIs, incorrect author formatting, and wrong date placement. The fix: APA 7th requires hanging indents, hyperlinked DOIs, up to 20 authors, and specific date placement. Each type of source has its own format.

Mistake 4: Heading Hierarchy

Using the wrong heading level, inconsistent formatting, or skipping levels. The fix: APA 7th edition uses five levels of headings. Level 1 is centered and bold, Level 2 is left-aligned and bold, Level 3 is left-aligned bold italic, and so on.

Mistake 5: Margin and Spacing Errors

Inconsistent spacing between paragraphs, wrong margins, or incorrect line spacing. The fix: APA requires 1-inch margins on all sides, double spacing throughout, and no extra spacing between paragraphs.

How Formatly Prevents These Mistakes

Formatly's rule-based engine scans your entire document against APA 7th edition rules and automatically corrects every violation. Tracked changes show you what was fixed, so you learn the rules while getting a perfect paper.

Submit with confidence. Try Formatly today to upload and format your manuscript to perfect APA 7th edition guidelines instantly.

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