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Free web tool

Citation Generator

Enter a DOI, arXiv ID, or ISBN and get a formatted citation in four styles: APA 7th, MLA 9th, Chicago (author-date), and IEEE. Copy any of them with one click, or type the details in by hand.

DOI and ISBN lookups go directly from your browser to Crossref / Open Library. arXiv lookups relay through our server, since arXiv does not allow direct browser access. We never log or store anything you enter.

How to generate a citation

  1. Paste a DOI, arXiv ID, or ISBN into the box (a doi.org or arxiv.org URL works too).
  2. Click Generate. Your browser looks the reference up and formats it in four styles.
  3. Click Copy on the style you need. Don't have an identifier? Use enter details manually instead.
  4. Proofread the result against your style guide. Automated metadata is good but not flawless.

About this tool

This is a dependency-free citation generator. It resolves DOIs through Crossref, ISBNs through Open Library, and arXiv IDs through the arXiv API, then formats the metadata into APA 7th, MLA 9th, Chicago author-date, and IEEE styles entirely in your browser.

Which identifiers are supported?
DOIs (e.g. 10.1038/nphys1170 or a doi.org URL), arXiv IDs (e.g. 1706.03762 or an arxiv.org URL), and ISBN-10/13 (hyphens optional). You can also fill in the manual entry form for anything without an identifier, such as a website.
How accurate are the citations?
They are built from the metadata that Crossref or Open Library returns, which is usually accurate but occasionally incomplete or inconsistently capitalised. Treat the output as a strong draft and always check author order, title case, page ranges, and punctuation against your required style.
Why might an arXiv lookup fail?
Usually because the identifier doesn't match a paper on arXiv, or arXiv is briefly unreachable. If a lookup fails, the tool will tell you. Try the article's DOI instead (most arXiv papers have one once published), or use manual entry.
Is anything stored?
No. DOI and ISBN lookups go directly from your browser to the public APIs. arXiv lookups relay through our server, since arXiv doesn't allow direct browser access. All formatting happens locally either way, and we never log or store anything you enter.

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