AI Citation Generator

Free citation generator for APA, MLA, Chicago & Harvard

Free citation generator, no sign-up. Paste a URL, book, or paper for an instant APA, MLA, Chicago, or Harvard citation — and build a full bibliography.

Scholarly's free AI citation generator creates correctly formatted APA, MLA, Chicago, and Harvard citations from a website URL, book, or journal article in seconds. Pick a style, paste your source, and copy a single reference or build a full bibliography — no account or credit card needed.

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Free to start · No credit card · APA, MLA, Chicago & Harvard

Used by 170,000+ learners and professionals worldwide
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Create a Free Citation Instantly — No Sign-Up

Fill in the source information below to generate properly formatted citations.

Your source information is securely processed by Scholarly's AI.

How it works

From source to citation in seconds

Add a source, let the AI format it, then copy it or build a full bibliography you can export.

01

Step 1: Add Source

Enter a URL, book details, journal information, or any source you need to cite for your research.

02

Step 2: AI Formats

Our AI extracts source information and creates properly formatted citations following academic standards.

03

Step 3: Copy & Export

Copy citations to your clipboard or download your bibliography as a text file for your research paper.

Citation styles

Every major style, formatted correctly

Switch between the four styles your instructors actually ask for, with the punctuation and ordering rules handled for you.

APA Style

The standard for psychology, education, and the social sciences, with author–date in-text citations.

MLA Style

Common in the humanities and English courses, using author–page references and a Works Cited list.

Chicago Style

Used in history and the arts, supporting both notes-bibliography and author-date systems.

Harvard Style

A widely used author–date style across UK and international universities and many sciences.

What you get

Citations you can actually trust

Built for real research workflows, not just a single reference at a time.

Multiple source types

Cite websites, books, and journal articles, with the right fields for each kind of source.

Instant formatting

Get a correctly ordered, punctuated citation in seconds instead of cross-checking style guides.

Accurate by design

The AI follows current style rules so your in-text citations and reference list line up.

Build a bibliography

Add citation after citation to a running reference list as you research a paper.

Copy or export

Copy a single citation to your clipboard or download your whole bibliography as a file.

Free to use

Generate citations without an account, then sign up free to save your bibliographies.

Why it helps

Spend your time on the paper, not the punctuation

Citations are where careful work quietly leaks marks. A misplaced comma, the wrong order of author and date, or an inconsistent reference list can cost points even when the research is strong. An AI citation generator removes that friction so you can focus on the argument.

Scholarly reads the details of each source, whether it is a website, a book, or a journal article, and formats it to the style you choose. As you collect sources, it builds a clean bibliography you can copy or export straight into your document.

It is also a fast way to learn the conventions. Seeing your own sources formatted correctly in APA, MLA, Chicago, or Harvard makes the rules concrete, so referencing gets easier with every paper you write.

FAQ

Frequently asked questions

Which citation styles does the generator support?

You can generate citations in APA, MLA, Chicago, and Harvard styles. Pick your style before generating and the formatting, ordering, and punctuation are handled for you.

What sources can I cite?

You can cite websites and online articles by URL, books by title and author, and journal articles with volume, issue, and page details. Each source type has the right fields built in.

Is this citation generator free?

Yes. You can generate citations for free with no account required. Sign up free to save your bibliographies, organize your research, and reach the rest of Scholarly's study tools.

Can I build a full bibliography?

Yes. Add each citation to a running reference list as you research, remove any you no longer need, and download the whole bibliography as a file when you are ready to paste it into your paper.

Is this a free citation generator with no sign-up?

Yes. You can use this free citation generator with no sign-up and no ads — generate APA, MLA, Chicago, or Harvard citations right on the page. Create a free account only when you want to save bibliographies and reuse them across your research.

How is an AI citation generator different from a manual one?

A manual citation generator just slots whatever you type into a template. Scholarly's AI citation generator reads the details of your source — a website URL, a book, or a journal article — works out the right fields, and applies the current APA, MLA, Chicago, or Harvard rules for ordering, capitalization, and punctuation, so the reference is consistent with the rest of your list.

How do I cite a website in APA?

Choose the Website/URL tab, paste the page's address, select APA Style, and click Generate. Scholarly reads the page's details — author, title, site name, and date — and returns an APA-formatted reference you can copy or add to your bibliography. The same steps work for MLA, Chicago, and Harvard: just switch the style before generating.

Can it cite PDFs and papers?

Yes. For a journal article or paper — including one you have as a PDF — use the Journal Article tab and enter the title, authors, journal name, volume, issue, pages, and year to get a correctly formatted citation. If the paper is published online, you can paste its URL on the Website/URL tab instead and let the AI pull the details.

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Pricing

Perfect Your Research with Scholarly

Sign up for free to save your bibliographies, organize research, and access more academic tools.

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Trying your first source? Start Free. Working with new material each week? Premium includes 10 AI Creation Credits a week. Need more capacity? Compare Laureate.

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Free lectures with a length control are fixed at 2 minutes. Paid plans can set a target up to 45 minutes. Short uses its own short video format.

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What customers say

Scholarly has enhanced the quality of notes and questions I administer to my tutees. Insightful, to the point.

TD Georgas

TD Georgas

Tutor

I have very good experience with Scholarly it summarize me scientific text in hovel academic level with citation. I use this for any therapeutic area . It is great and useful tool.

Diana

Diana

Scholarly user

Scholarly has been a valuable tool for my studies. The AI-generated flashcards and intuitive features make organizing and retaining information much easier.

Briana

Briana

Scholarly user

This app is great for studying for big test. Drop your PDF's in the system and it'll do the trick. You can organize it specifically for your needs.

Kelvin

Kelvin

Scholarly user

Your questions, answered

Is Scholarly free to use?

Yes! The free plan includes core study tools with lifetime allowances: 3 AI Chat messages, 500 autocomplete words, 5 quiz questions, 15 voice minutes, 1 practice exam, one free AI Creation Credit total, and 1 file upload. These allowances do not reset. Upgrade to Premium for 10 AI Creation Credits per week and unlimited uploads.

What uses my free AI Creation Credits?

AI Creation Credits are shared across flashcards, podcasts, videos, slides, AI Documents, Deep Research, and the Transcribe tool. The selected model determines the credit cost. Recording live audio and saving its transcript uses your file upload allowance instead; it does not use AI Creation Credits.

Can I cancel anytime?

Absolutely. There are no contracts or commitments. You can cancel your subscription at any time from your account settings, and you'll keep access until the end of your billing period.

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We accept all major credit and debit cards through Stripe. Pricing is displayed in USD by default, but local currency is available in the app.

Can I use Scholarly with a class or school?

Yes. For a school or organization-wide rollout, contact us at hello@scholarly.so and we'll help you find the right setup.

What happens when I hit a free plan limit?

You'll see a prompt to upgrade. Your existing work is never lost — limits only apply to new actions. Free-plan allowances are lifetime credits and do not reset. Premium includes 10 AI Creation Credits per week, podcasts up to 60 minutes, video lectures up to 45 minutes, unlimited uploads, chat, autocomplete, quizzes, and exams, plus more daily voice time.