Many students ask for a list of the main differences between MLA and APA. Please see below. This list was obtained from Bellevue University’s Writing Center.
The main differences between MLA and APA are as follows:
| Type | MLA Format | APA Format | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Date: | The date follows the publisher in the citation and is not in parentheses. | The date follows the author and is in parentheses. | |
| Author’s Name: | The author’s full name (first and last) is spelled out. | The author’s last name is spelled out and the first name is reduced to initials. | |
| Capitalization: | All major words in the title are capitalized and the title is underlined. | Only the first word of the title, the first word of a subtitle, and any proper nouns (like names) are capitalized. Everything else is lowercase. Also, the title is written in italics. | |
| Source Page: | The source page is called a “Works Cited”. | The source page is called a “References”. | |
| In-Text Citations: | MLA uses the last name of the author and the page number. | APA uses the last name of the author and the date. | |
| MLA does not uses commas to separate the material, or p. pp. before the page numbers. | APA does use commas and, if a page is mentioned, uses p. and pp. |
Differences between MLA and APA Examples:
MLA: (Burns 101)
APA: (Burns, 1999, p. 4)
Here are two comparison examples:
MLA:
Klaphake, Elizabeth. My Life as an English Professor. Bellevue,
Nebraska: Bellevue University Press. 1999.
APA:
Klaphake, E. (1999). My life as an English professor. Bellevue,
Nebraska: Bellevue University Press.
Credit:
– Belleveu.edu Writing Center
Thank You!!
Thx alot ,it improves my understanding
Thans for sharing this information… i was searching for this and finally i got..
A very perfect distinction is made here between apa and mla.
So thanks a lot.
Thnks ….cleared my all doubts …really very interesting….
This is very educative. It has helped clear my mind just like it has with a lot of my mates. thank you.
beneficial to learners, awesome
Good explanation.
Can you also shed some light on the rationale for having different approaches in these styles. Why they have these different approaches which might be considered as trivial by some.
Thanks!!
It is very helpful and easy to understand
Thank you so much..!! 🙂 😀
Thanks this was very helpful. It seems the Universities are using the APA format as opposed to the MLA.
Thanks for the hints! I need more elaborations and details on other styles in writing. it’s better to mention which style is more common with differenes. Thanks
Thanks for posting this information 🙂
Thanks
Yes, it has helped with a better understanding.
Forgot my book, using this instead.
Thanx awesome
So clear…. Thanks
Thanks….it helps me alot
Really came in handy…tnx for your help
Aye Thanks
Thank you so much it has helped me
Things very clear. Thanks.
Thank you!
Tnx for the one provided, but what about Chicago style of writting.
Thank you for your helping
Thanx it’s helpful to my studies.
Very interesting.
This is really interesting, but what of a work cited by a cooperate authors in the same year?
APA has a few things that will be hard for me to remember, like the year in the second place, not cap all words, putting the wed site.