Newspaper citation generator
Cite any newspaper article, online or in print, in any citation style.
or fill in the details below
How to cite a newspaper article
A newspaper citation takes three steps, whether you read the article online or in print.
Step 1
Paste the article link
We fill in the headline, authors, newspaper and date. A paywalled article usually still shows them. If the paper turns us away, we fill in the newspaper and date from the link, and you add the headline and author.
Step 2
Choose online or print
Online articles end with the URL. Print articles give the page instead, like A1, and MLA adds the edition when the paper prints more than one a day.
Step 3
Copy your citation
Add the reference entry to your list and use the in-text citation in your paper. A news website like CNN or BBC News opens the website form, since it isn’t a newspaper.
How to cite a newspaper article in APA
An APA newspaper citation gives the author, the full date, the headline in sentence case, the newspaper in italics and the URL. A print article gives its page instead of the URL.
Online format
Author, A. A. (Year, Month Day). Title of article. Newspaper Name. URL
Two authors
Adams, R., & Weale, S. (2026, September 23). Pupils to be offered vocational GCSEs in radical shake-up of system in England. The Guardian. https://www.theguardian.com/education/2026/sep/23/vocational-gcse-radical-shake-up-education-system-england
In-text citation, with a paragraph number
Parenthetical: (Adams & Weale, 2026, para. 3)
Narrative: Adams & Weale (2026, para. 3)
Online articles have no page numbers, so a quotation gets a paragraph number.
Paywalled
Anthes, E. (2026, September 23). New study illuminates bats’ murky origins. The New York Times. https://www.nytimes.com/2026/09/23/science/evolution-genetics-bats.html
Cite a paywalled article like any other. The URL is the article’s own address, even if readers need an account to see it.
Print format
Author, A. A. (Year, Month Day). Title of article. Newspaper Name, A1, A4.
APA 7 lists the pages without p. or pp., and separates pages that aren’t next to each other with a comma.
No author
Title of article. (Year, Month Day). Newspaper Name. URL
The headline moves to the author position.
How to cite a newspaper article in MLA
An MLA newspaper citation gives the author, the headline in quotation marks, the newspaper in italics, the date and the URL without https://.
Format
Author. “Title of Article.” Newspaper Name, Day Month Year, URL.
Two authors
Adams, Richard, and Sally Weale. “Pupils to Be Offered Vocational GCSEs in Radical Shake-up of System in England.” The Guardian, 23 Sept. 2026, www.theguardian.com/education/2026/sep/23/vocational-gcse-radical-shake-up-education-system-england.
In-text citation
Parenthetical: (Adams and Weale)
Print, with an edition
Author. “Title of Article.” Newspaper Name, late ed., Day Month Year, p. A1+.
MLA gives the first page and a plus sign when the article continues on a later page that isn’t next to it.
How to cite a newspaper article in Chicago
Chicago cites a newspaper article with the author, the headline in quotation marks, the newspaper and the date. It drops a leading The from the paper’s name and leaves out page numbers.
Bibliography
Anthes, Emily. “New Study Illuminates Bats’ Murky Origins.” New York Times, September 23, 2026. https://www.nytimes.com/2026/09/23/science/evolution-genetics-bats.html.
Footnote
Emily Anthes, “New Study Illuminates Bats’ Murky Origins,” New York Times, September 23, 2026, https://www.nytimes.com/2026/09/23/science/evolution-genetics-bats.html.
Chicago often cites newspaper articles in notes only. Include the bibliography entry when your instructor asks for one, or when the article matters to your argument.
Newspaper vs. news website: why CNN and BBC News are cited as webpages
CNN, BBC News, NPR and Reuters publish news, but not a newspaper. APA cites their articles as webpages, with the site name in plain text and the title in italics.
BBC News in APA
Poynting, M., & Rivault, E. (2024, January 9). 2023 confirmed as world’s hottest year on record. BBC News. https://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-67861954
The same article in MLA
Poynting, Mark, and Erwan Rivault. “2023 Confirmed as World’s Hottest Year on Record.” BBC News, 9 Jan. 2024, www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-67861954.
Paste a CNN or BBC News link here and we switch to the website citation generator and tell you why. A newspaper’s website, like The New York Times or The Guardian, is still cited as a newspaper.
A wire story from the AP or Reuters that ran in a newspaper is cited as that newspaper’s article, with the author the paper names.
How to cite a paywalled or updated article
Two questions students ask about online newspapers.
Behind a paywall
Cite it as you would any online article, with its usual address. Don’t use a link from a database or a shared copy unless that’s where you read it.
Updated after publishing
Cite the version you read. When the article shows an Updated date, that is usually the version you saw, so use that date.
Read in a library database
Cite the newspaper as usual. APA leaves the database out; MLA can add it in italics after the date.
Frequently asked questions
How do I cite a newspaper article in APA?
Give the author, the full date, the headline in sentence case, the newspaper in italics and the URL. In the text, cite the author and year, for example (Adams & Weale, 2026).
How do I cite a newspaper article in MLA?
Give the author, the headline in quotation marks, the newspaper in italics, the date and the URL without https://. In the text, cite the author’s name.
Is CNN a newspaper?
No. CNN, BBC News and other news websites are cited as webpages in APA. Paste the link and we use the website form for you.
What if the article has no author?
Start with the headline. APA moves it to the author position, and the in-text citation uses a shortened headline in quotation marks.
How do I cite a print newspaper?
Choose In print and add the page, like A1. APA and MLA both give pages for print articles; MLA writes A1+ when the article jumps to a later page.
Is this newspaper citation generator free?
Yes. It’s free with no signup, and the articles you cite here go into the same list as the main Citation Generator.