You carefully built your entire reference list in MLA format, only to discover your professor requires APA. Now you need to convert every citation — and the differences go far beyond just changing the title from “Works Cited” to “References.”

Converting citations from MLA to APA can feel overwhelming, but once you understand the structural differences, the process is straightforward. This guide breaks down every difference between MLA 9th and APA 7th edition citation styles, with a step-by-step conversion process for the most common source types.

Key Structural Differences

Element	MLA 9th Edition	APA 7th Edition
List title	Works Cited	References
Author format	Last, First Middle	Last, First Initial(s)
Date placement	Near the end of the citation	Immediately after author(s)
Title capitalization	Title Case	Sentence case
In-text citation	(Author Page)	(Author, Year, p. Page)
Title page	Not required (info on first page)	Required

Step-by-Step Conversion Guide

Step 1: Convert Author Names

MLA uses full first names; APA uses initials only.

MLA: Smith, John A.
APA: Smith, J. A.

Step 2: Move the Publication Date

In MLA, the date appears near the end of the citation for most source types. In APA, the date immediately follows the author names in parentheses.

MLA: Smith, John. The Art of Research. Penguin, 2023.
APA: Smith, J. (2023). The art of research. Penguin.

Step 3: Change Title Capitalization

MLA uses title case for all titles. APA uses sentence case for article and book titles (but title case for journal titles).

MLA (book): The Art of Research: A Practical Guide
APA (book): The art of research: A practical guide

Step 4: Update In-Text Citations

MLA uses author-page: (Smith 45). APA uses author-date-page: (Smith, 2023, p. 45). If you’re paraphrasing, APA typically omits the page number.

Step 5: Retitle Your Final Page

Change “Works Cited” to “References.” Both are centered at the top of the page.

Source-by-Source Conversion Examples

Journal Article

MLA: Chen, Lisa, and Mark Patel. “Neural Correlates of Language Acquisition.” Journal of Cognitive Neuroscience, vol. 36, no. 2, 2024, pp. 112–30. JSTOR, www.jstor.org/stable/12345.

APA: Chen, L., & Patel, M. (2024). Neural correlates of language acquisition. Journal of Cognitive Neuroscience, 36(2), 112–130. https://doi.org/10.1234/jcn.2024.36.2.112

Book

MLA: Williams, Rebecca. Digital Privacy in the Modern Age. MIT Press, 2025.

APA: Williams, R. (2025). Digital privacy in the modern age. MIT Press.

Website

MLA: “Climate Change Indicators: Greenhouse Gases.” EPA, 10 Mar. 2026, www.epa.gov/climate-indicators/greenhouse-gases.

APA: Environmental Protection Agency. (2026, March 10). Climate change indicators: Greenhouse gases. https://www.epa.gov/climate-indicators/greenhouse-gases

Tools That Help with Conversion

For a small number of citations, manual conversion works fine. If you’re converting an entire reference list, consider using a reference manager like Zotero or Mendeley — both allow you to switch the output style and automatically reformat your entire bibliography. For the most reliable results, Formatly applies APA, MLA, Chicago, Harvard, and Turabian rules automatically with tracked changes, so you can verify every adjustment.

Convert Your Citations Without the Headache

Converting between citation styles is time-consuming and easy to mess up. Formatly handles the conversion automatically — upload your document in any format and receive a perfectly formatted output in your target style. Try Formatly free and convert your citations in seconds.