APA 7th Edition vs APA 6th: What Changed

The transition from APA 6th to APA 7th edition introduced significant changes. If you learned APA formatting on the 6th edition, you're likely making several errors without realizing it. ## Major Changes at a Glance ### Running Head APA 6th required a running head on every page (max 50 characters). APA 7th now requires a running head only for professional papers; student papers omit it entirely. ### Author Format In APA 6th, references listed up to 7 authors before using ellipsis. APA 7th expanded this to up to 20 authors. ### Publisher Location APA 6th required publisher location in book references. APA 7th eliminated this requirement entirely. ### DOI Format APA 6th used the format "doi:10.xxxx/xxxx". APA 7th uses the hyperlink format "https://doi.org/10.xxxx/xxxx". ### Heading Format APA 6th used bold for Level 1, bold+centered for Level 2, and italicized for Level 3. APA 7th simplified all levels to use bold formatting. ### Singular They APA 7th officially endorses the singular "they" as a pronoun, reflecting inclusive language best practices. ## Why This Matters Mixing APA 6th and 7th edition rules is one of the most common formatting errors. Many professors specify which edition to use, but even when they don't, APA 7th is the current standard. Formatly's engine is built on APA 7th edition rules. Every paper formatted with Formatly is guaranteed to follow current APA guidelines, eliminating the risk of mixing obsolete rules.