APA Website Citation with No Author
In APA style, if a webpage does not name a person or organization author, begin the reference with the full webpage title, then add the date, website name, and URL.
Use this guide when the webpage itself does not credit a person or organization author. If you also need the matching in-text citation, see APA In-Text Citation for Websites with No Author.
When an APA website has no author
Start the reference with the full webpage title in italic sentence case.
Put the date after the title. If the page has no date, use (n.d.).
Add the website name after the title and date, then end with the direct URL.
For the matching in-text citation, use a shortened title in quotation marks, not the full reference-entry title.
Need the broader APA website pattern for pages with a named author or organization?
See the APA Website Citation Guide.
If you want to build the entry from a URL, use the URL Citation tool.
APA Rules for Website References with No Author
Confirm that the page truly has no author
Before you move the title into the first position, check whether the page credits an individual author, editorial team, or organization.
Many webpages look anonymous at first glance, but the real author appears in a byline, footer, or publisher block.
If an organization is clearly responsible for the content, treat that organization as the author instead of using the no-author format.
Move the full webpage title to the first position
In an APA reference list entry, the title takes the author slot when no author is listed.
Use the full webpage title in italic sentence case. Do not shorten the title in the reference list entry.
Shortened titles belong to in-text citations only. The reference entry should still show the full title that readers can match to the source.
Put the date after the title
After the title, add the publication or last updated date in parentheses.
If the webpage has no usable date, replace the date with (n.d.).
Use the most specific date shown on the page. If you only see a year or a year and month, use only the information available.
Keep the website name and URL
After the title and date, add the overall website name and then the direct URL of the specific page.
The reference entry should show the site name and the full URL so readers can find the exact page.
Do not add a period after the URL.
Use a retrieval date only for content designed to change over time
Most ordinary webpages do not need a retrieval date in APA.
Add a retrieval date only when the page is designed to change over time, such as a wiki, a live dashboard, or another page that is updated in place.
If you add a retrieval date, it appears before the URL in the form Retrieved Month Day, Year, from.
How to Format an APA Website Reference with No Author
Use this sequence when the webpage itself does not name an author.
- Check the page for a real person or organization author.
- If no author is credited, move the full webpage title to the first position.
- Write the title in italic sentence case.
- Add the publication or update date in parentheses.
- If no date is shown, replace it with (n.d.).
- Add the website name after the date.
- Finish with the direct URL and do not add a trailing period.
- If the page is designed to change over time, insert a retrieval date before the URL.
- For the matching in-text citation, switch to a shortened title in quotation marks.
Title of webpage. (Year, Month Day). Website Name. URL Title of webpage. (n.d.). Website Name. URL Title of webpage. (n.d.). Retrieved Month Day, Year, from URL APA Website Citation Examples with No Author
These examples show the reference list entry only. For the matching in-text form, use APA In-Text Citation for Websites with No Author.
Standard no-author webpage
Use the full title first, followed by the date, website name, and URL.
Reference list entry
Workplace flexibility trends in 2024. (2024, February 8). Workforce Lab. https://www.workforcelab.org/flexibility-trends-2024
No date available
Replace the date with (n.d.), but keep the rest of the entry intact.
Reference list entry
Account security checklist for remote teams. (n.d.). SecureOps Journal. https://www.secureopsjournal.com/account-security-checklist
Long webpage title
Keep the full title in the reference list entry even if the matching in-text citation will later use a shortened version.
Reference list entry
City heat response plan for cooling centers, emergency alerts, and public transit. (2023, July 19). Metro Resilience Office. https://www.metroresilience.gov/heat-response-plan
Matching in-text start
The matching in-text citation would begin with a shortened title such as ("City Heat Response Plan," 2023).
Continuously updated page with retrieval date
Use a retrieval date only when the page is designed to change over time.
Reference list entry
Global drought map. (n.d.). Climate Watch. Retrieved March 13, 2026, from https://www.climatewatch.org/global-drought-map
Webpage that looks anonymous but has a group author
Use the standard APA website format instead if the page clearly credits an organization.
Correct approach
If the page credits National Cybersecurity Center, cite the organization as the author instead of starting with the title.
Common Mistakes in APA Website References with No Author
Treating a group author as if the page had no author
A missing personal byline does not automatically mean the page has no author.
Wrong
✕Emergency travel updates. (2025, January 14). National Cybersecurity Center. https://www.ncc.gov/travel-updates
Correct
✓ National Cybersecurity Center. (2025, January 14). Emergency travel updates. https://www.ncc.gov/travel-updates
Using a shortened title in the reference list
APA shortens titles in in-text citations, not in the reference list.
Wrong
✕City heat response plan. (2023, July 19). Metro Resilience Office. https://www.metroresilience.gov/heat-response-plan
Correct
✓City heat response plan for cooling centers, emergency alerts, and public transit. (2023, July 19). Metro Resilience Office. https://www.metroresilience.gov/heat-response-plan
Putting quotation marks around the title in the reference entry
For a webpage reference, the title should be italicized, not enclosed in quotation marks.
Wrong
✕ "Account security checklist for remote teams." (n.d.). SecureOps Journal. https://www.secureopsjournal.com/account-security-checklist
Correct
✓Account security checklist for remote teams. (n.d.). SecureOps Journal. https://www.secureopsjournal.com/account-security-checklist
Forgetting the website name or the direct URL
A complete webpage reference still needs the site context and the direct link back to the page.
Wrong
✕Workplace flexibility trends in 2024. (2024, February 8).
Correct
✓Workplace flexibility trends in 2024. (2024, February 8). Workforce Lab. https://www.workforcelab.org/flexibility-trends-2024
Need the matching shortened-title in-text form for the same webpage?
How This APA Pattern Differs
In this APA pattern, the full webpage title moves to the first position, stays in italics, and is followed by the date in parentheses.
Do not carry this exact sequence into MLA or Chicago. Those styles do not use this same APA order for title treatment, punctuation, and date placement.
For those styles, use MLA Website Citation or Chicago Author-Date Website Citation.
Official APA References Used for This Page
We aligned this page to APA 7 guidance for webpage references and title-based reference entries when no author is listed.
- APA Style: Webpage on a website references
- APA Style: References
- Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association, Seventh Edition
This guide focuses on the reference list entry. For the broader APA website format, use APA Website Citation. For the matching shortened-title in-text form, use APA In-Text Citation for Websites with No Author.
Related APA Guides
Support
About YesCite 
YesCite © 2026 YesCite.com. All rights reserved.