Free Citation Style Converter
Paste any citation and convert it to APA, MLA, Chicago, Harvard, IEEE, or Vancouver format. Our parser automatically detects the source style and reformats the reference for you.
How Does the Citation Style Converter Work?
Our citation converter uses a multi-pass parser to analyze your input. It first attempts to detect the citation style by examining structural patterns such as bracket numbering (IEEE), parenthetical years (APA), quoted titles (MLA), and author formatting conventions. Then it extracts metadata fields -- authors, title, year, journal name, volume, issue, and pages -- and reformats them according to the rules of your chosen target style.
When Should You Use This Tool?
- Switching journals: many journals require a specific citation format. Use this tool to quickly reformat your references.
- Collaborating across disciplines: if co-authors use different style guides, convert all references to a single format.
- Quick reference formatting: paste a raw citation you found online and get a properly formatted version instantly.
Supported Styles
We support the six most widely used academic citation styles: APA (American Psychological Association, 7th edition), MLA (Modern Language Association, 9th edition), Chicago (17th edition), Harvard, IEEE (Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers), and Vancouver.
Tips for Best Results
- Paste a single complete citation (not an abbreviated in-text reference).
- Include as much information as possible: authors, year, title, journal, volume, pages.
- If the DOI is included, the formatted output will contain the DOI link.