A reference list can look polished until one book title appears in headline style and one article title copies the publisher's capitalization. APA title capitalization in references follows a different pattern from APA paper titles, headings, and table titles.
According to the official APA publication manual, the guidelines for formatting sources require careful attention to detail. APA 7th edition uses sentence case for most work titles in a reference entry, while adhering to standard APA style conventions. However, journal titles keep title case, and that single contrast causes many of the errors students and editors need to fix.
Key Takeaways
- Use sentence case for titles of articles, books, book titles, reports, webpages, book chapters, and similar works in APA reference entries.
- Capitalize the first word of a title, the first word after a colon or dash, and proper nouns, acronyms, and registered brand names.
- Keep journal titles and magazine titles in title case, capitalizing major words throughout the publication name.
- Do not copy title case from a book cover, publisher webpage, database record, or Google Scholar result without checking APA rules.
- Author names, publishers, DOIs, URLs, dates, italics, and hanging indents follow separate APA 7 formatting rules.
The Core APA Rule: Most Reference Titles Use Sentence Case
Sentence case makes a title read much like an ordinary sentence. Capitalize the first word, then use lowercase for most remaining words unless normal grammar requires capitals.
For example, APA converts the book title Thinking, Fast and Slow to:
Thinking, fast and slow
The first word, "Thinking," stays capitalized. The rest becomes lowercase because the words aren't proper nouns or acronyms. If a title contains hyphenated words, capitalize only the first element unless the second part is a proper noun.
APA also capitalizes the first word after a colon, even when that word would usually be lowercase:
Emotions in storybooks: A comparison of storybooks that represent ethnic and racial groups in the United States
"Comparison" starts a subtitle, so it takes a capital letter. "United States" remains capitalized because it is a proper noun.
The same approach applies after a dash that separates subtitles or a second title unit. You don't need to capitalize ordinary nouns merely because they appear important.
In an APA reference, the work's title usually uses sentence case, while the journal's title uses title case.
The distinction feels strange at first because APA uses title case in other places. Paper titles, section headings, and table titles may follow title case rules. For a quick comparison, see these APA 7 title case rules, then return to the reference list rule: most source titles stay in sentence case.
Which Titles Use Sentence Case and Which Use Title Case?
A reference entry can contain more than one title. Each title has its own capitalization rule, based on what it names.
Use sentence case for the title of the work itself. That includes journal articles, books, reports, webpages, dissertations, podcasts, audiovisual works, and chapters in edited books. APA's reference list basics from Purdue OWL provide a useful cross-check for these source-level titles.
Journal, magazine, and newspaper titles work differently. When citing academic journals, along with magazines and newspapers, they are treated as periodical titles, so APA writes their major words with capitals. Keep the publication's full name rather than abbreviating it. If you have ever consulted another style guide, such as the Chicago Manual of Style or the MLA handbook, you might notice that rules differ across formats, which is why following the specific APA rules is essential.
This table shows the usual split.
| Reference element | Capitalization style | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Journal article title | Sentence case | Emotions in storybooks: A comparison of storybooks... |
| Book title | Sentence case | Thinking, fast and slow |
| Webpage title | Sentence case | About sleep and your health |
| Report title | Sentence case | The state of mental health in America |
| Journal title | Title case | Psychology of Popular Media Culture |
| Magazine title | Title case | Scientific American |
In title case, capitalize major words such as nouns, verbs, adjectives, adverbs, and pronouns. APA also capitalizes words of four letters or more. Articles, short prepositions, and coordinating conjunctions usually remain lowercase unless they begin the title.
Therefore, write Journal of Health Care for the Poor and Underserved, not Journal of health care for the poor and underserved. The journal title identifies a publication, so it should retain its title-style capitalization.
APA 7 Reference List Examples You Can Model
Seeing a full reference makes the capitalization rules easier to apply. Each example below uses APA 7th edition capitalization, though your final document also needs a hanging indent.
Journal article
Grady, J. S., Her, M., Moreno, G., Perez, C., & Yelinek, J. (2019). Emotions in storybooks: A comparison of storybooks that represent ethnic and racial groups in the United States. Psychology of Popular Media Culture, 8(3), 207-217. https://doi.org/10.1037/ppm0000185
The article title begins with "Emotions," so it starts with a capital. "Comparison" is capitalized after the colon. "United States" remains capitalized as a place name.
Meanwhile, Psychology of Popular Media Culture keeps title case because it is the journal title. The italicized volume number, 8, is not part of the journal title.
Book
Kahneman, D. (2011). Thinking, fast and slow. Farrar, Straus and Giroux.
The cover title uses title case, but APA changes it to sentence case in the reference list. "Fast" and "slow" do not need capitals in this context.
This rule applies to most book titles even when a publisher's catalog, a bookstore listing, or a library record capitalizes every major word. APA reference formatting takes priority over the display style used elsewhere.
Webpage
American Psychological Association. (n.d.). APA Style. https://apastyle.apa.org/
This example has a branded title. "APA" is an acronym, and "Style" is part of the official site name, so the capitalization stays intact.
A typical webpage title has fewer capitals. For instance, a page called "How to prepare for graduate school" would retain only the first word and any proper nouns.
Chapter in an edited book
Balsam, K. F., Martell, C. R., Jones, K. P., & Safren, S. A. (2019). Affirmative cognitive behavior therapy with sexual and gender minority people. In G. Y. Iwamasa & P. A. Hays (Eds.), Culturally responsive cognitive behavior therapy: Practice and supervision (2nd ed., pp. 287-314). American Psychological Association.
The chapter title uses sentence case. The edited book title also uses sentence case, while "Practice" begins the subtitle after the colon.
For more title-focused examples across reference types, the APA citation title examples from UMGC show the same difference between work titles and periodical titles.
Proper Nouns, Acronyms, and Scientific Names Keep Their Case
Sentence case does not mean lowercasing every word after the first. Proper nouns, official names, abbreviations, and technical terms with established casing still need their standard form. Even when dealing with sentence case, major words that function as proper nouns or specific designations retain their unique formatting.
Write these forms as they normally appear:
- The impact of COVID-19 on U.S. college students
- iPhone use and sleep quality among adolescents
- Climate policy in New Zealand
- Gene expression in Escherichia coli
"COVID-19," "U.S.," "iPhone," and "New Zealand" keep their required capitalization. In the scientific name Escherichia coli, capitalize and italicize the genus name, while the species name remains lowercase.
Do not correct a brand name into ordinary title case. Apple writes "iPhone," not "Iphone." Similarly, keep official acronyms such as APA, CDC, UNESCO, and NASA capitalized.
Common APA Reference Capitalization Errors
The most frequent mistake is treating every title in a reference like a paper heading. A student may write The Effects of Social Media on Sleep Quality because it looks professional. APA reference style requires The effects of social media on sleep quality.
Another error is lowercasing the journal name to match the article title. When citing sources from academic journals, the correct pairing looks like this:
The effects of social media on sleep quality. Journal of Adolescent Health
The article title is sentence case. The journal title is title case.
Writers also sometimes forget the capital after a colon. Write Language development: A longitudinal study, not Language development: a longitudinal study.
Table titles add another source of confusion because specific APA capitalization rules apply to different elements of a paper. APA tables use italicized title case, which differs from a reference-list book or article title. Review the separate rules for APA table title capitalization before applying reference-list conventions to a table.
A Fast Review Before You Submit
Start by identifying each title's role. If it names the article, book, report, chapter, or webpage you consulted, apply sentence case and make sure the first word of the main title is capitalized. If it names a journal, magazine, or newspaper, apply title case.
Next, scan for colons, dashes, acronyms, proper nouns, scientific names, and brand names. Remember that any subtitles following a colon or punctuation mark also need their first word capitalized, while keeping proper nouns and other specific details correctly formatted.
Finally, check the rest of the entry separately. APA author names use initials and a particular order. Publishers follow their own rules, while DOIs and URLs should stay accurate and unaltered. A correctly capitalized title cannot repair a missing author, wrong publication year, or broken DOI.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do APA reference list titles use sentence case or title case?
Most titles in an APA reference entry use sentence case, meaning only the first word, the first word after a colon or dash, and proper nouns are capitalized. However, journal, magazine, and newspaper titles are exceptions and use title case.
Why do journal titles use a different capitalization style than article titles?
APA treats the article itself as the specific work, which takes sentence case, while the periodical name represents the broader publication, which takes title case. This distinct contrast helps readers immediately identify the type of source being cited.
Should I copy the capitalization from a book's cover or publisher website?
No, publishers often use title case or all caps on book covers and promotional pages. You must convert these titles into standard APA sentence case for your reference list entries.
Final Check for APA Reference Titles
APA reference list capitalization becomes predictable once you separate the title of the work from the title of the publication. Keep most work titles in sentence case, and reserve title case for journal, magazine, and newspaper names.
That small formatting choice ensures your entries follow proper APA style, making each reference list easier to read and consistent with the seventh edition.
More APA capitalization guides: APA title case rules for titles and headings, APA table titles, APA figure titles, and APA 7 heading levels. For how APA compares with other guides, see the title case styles comparison.
