Comparison Chart of APA-6 and APA-7

APA 6th APA 7th

Title page Standardized across all forums Separate format for students and professionals,
with additional spacing between elements
Includes running head that differs on
title page from rest of paper LU administration has chosen to have
undergraduate students follow APA-7
Centered in upper third of page with no “student” version, and graduate/doctoral
extra spacing between: students follow APA-7 “professional” version.
• Name of Paper (unbolded)
• Student Name
• Name of Institution Student Title Page
• Title of paper (bolded)
• Name of each author
• Name of department and institution
• Course number and name
• Instructor name
• NO running head
• Page number in top right corner of
header

Professional Title Page

• Title of paper (bolded)
• Name of each author
• Affiliation
• Author note
• Running head (without the phrase
“Running head:”) in top left corner; same
for all pages of paper
• Page number in top right corner of
header
Required Title Page Student
elements of Abstract (unless otherwise noted) • Title Page
paper Body • Body
Reference List • Reference List
Possibly appendix/appendices
Professional
• Title Page
• Abstract
• Body
• References
• May also include footnotes, appendices,
and supplemental materials.
Title of Paper Limited to no more than 12 words No limit.
 APA 6th APA 7th

Running heads Must be a shortened or abbreviated If the title is 50 characters or less, the entire title
version of paper’s title. Title page also can now be used as the running head on
includes extra section title denoting professional papers. Running head is now the
“Running head:” that is omitted on same on every page.
pages two+.

Abstract Section title Abstract is not bolded. When included, the term Abstract is now bolded.
Required 150-250 words. It is limited to no more than 250 words, with no
lower word-count mandates. No change in
keyword requirements.

Title of Paper Section title comprised of the title of Title of paper is now bolded and regarded as a
the paper is not bolded. “de facto Level 1 heading” for the introduction
section. Any subheadings within the
introductory section must begin as Level 2
headings.

Introduction Optional section under title of paper, “The body of a paper always opens with an
but writers are authorized to go right introduction.” Students may include subheadings
into a Level 1 heading beneath title. within the introduction, but those are not
required. When used, they would be Level 2
headings.
Levels of Mixed title and sentence case, as well All levels are bolded and in title case. The
Heading as bolded versus unbolded paper’s title is now named as a “de facto Level 1
heading” and any subheadings in the
Level 1 Title Case introductory section should be presented as
Level 2 Title Case Level 2 headings.
Level 3 sentence case. Text goes
here… Level 1 Title Case
Level 4 sentence case. Text goes Level 2 Title Case
here… Level 3 Title Case
Level 5 sentence case. Text goes Level 4 Title Case. Text goes here…
here… Level 5 Title Case. Text goes here…

References Section title of References is not Section title of References should be bolded
bolded.

Annotated Not discussed. New section altogether. Follow formatting rules

bibliographies for block quotes (if second paragraph, indent it
½”).

Appendices Not bolded Bold appendices titles

 APA 6th APA 7th
Footnotes Rare Encouraged. May be presented as footnotes at
the bottom of each page or as endnotes
following the reference list. LU administration
prefers placement of footnotes, when used, at
the bottom of each page for LU class papers.

Font Times New Romans 12-point font APA no longer requires or recommends any font
or size. It mentions several options, ranging in
size from 8 to 14 point for figures. Instead, it
recommends “using word count rather than page
count to gauge paper length.”

Line-spacing Everything must be double-spaced, Add an extra blank double-spaced line on the
with no extra/blank lines between --- title page between the title and author’s name
except tables and figures, which may
be single-spaced Table and figures may be single-, 1-1/2, or
double-spaced

Footnotes at the bottom of the page should be

single-spaced. If they are on a separate page
after the reference list, they should be double-
spaced.

Equations can be triple- or quadruple-spaced.

Spaces after In body, two spaces after closing One space after all closing punctuation in body
punctuation punctuation; only one space in and reference list.
reference list.

Citing resources Name all of the authors the first time Use et al. for all citations of all sources with
with 3-5 authors you cite the source in the body of the three or more authors in the body of the paper.
in the body of paper. For the second+ citation(s),
the paper name the first author’s last name and
use et al.

References with List all authors up to seven. List all authors up to 20.
8+ or 21+
authors For resources with eight or more For resources with 21 or more authors, name the
authors, name the first six, followed by first 19, followed by an ellipsis, and then the
an ellipsis, and then the final author’s final author’s name.
name.
 APA 6th APA 7th
Citing and Include the full name of the version Spell out name of version fully for all citations;
referencing the cited the first time you cite that include the original and republished year of
Bible version, and then omit unless/until you publication, and the chapter/verse: The person
change versions. vowed to “set me as a seal upon thine heart”
(King James Bible, 1769/2017, Song of Solomon
8:6).

Omitted from reference list. Include reference entry in reference list (see next
section for further details). Note that the name of
the Bible is italicized even in citations.

Religious or Cite in the body of the paper but omit Cite like books. Religious works are treated as
Classical Works from reference list. having no author. An annotated version of a
religious work would be treated as having an
editor. Include publication dates for the Bible
and other classical works. See section 8.28 on p.
274 for more details. NOTE: APA’s Style Expert
Stefanie clarified that Bible citations are
required for both direct quotes and paraphrases.

Citing and Not discussed. For plays, cite the act, scene, and line(s).
referencing Include a reference entry as well.
plays
Order of Arrange alphabetically as they appear “To highlight the work(s) most directly relevant
multiple in the reference list, separated by to your point in a given sentence, place those
citations in same colons. citations first within parentheses in alphabetical
parentheses. order and then insert a semicolon and a phrase,
such as ‘see also,’ before the first of the
remaining citations… (Sampson & Hughes,
2020; see also Augustine, 2018; Melara et al.,
2018).”

Corporate Use the word Author in place of the Now omit the word Author (special rule in 6th
authors/ publisher’s name. ed.) in the publisher’s place when it is the same
publishers as the author.

Location Provide page or paragraph number No longer limited to just page or paragraph; now
specifier includes page, paragraph, section, tables, figures,
footnotes, chapters, forewords, timestamps of
videos, and slide numbers in PowerPoint
presentations.
 APA 6th APA 7th
Repeating year Omit for subsequent narrative citations APA 7th makes the exception for years of
in narrative in the same paragraph provided the publication in subsequent narrative citations in a
citations first citation in that paragraph is paragraph clearer: The year of publication
narrative and not parenthetical. should be omitted from the second narrative
citation in any paragraph; it should be included
in all parenthetical citations.

Self-plagiarism Expressly forbidden “In specific circumstances, authors may wish to

duplicate their previously used works without
quotation marks or citation …, feeling that
extensive self-referencing is undesirable or
awkward and that rewording may lead to
inaccuracies. When the duplicated material is
limited in scope, this approach is permissible.”

APA 7th adds “Do not use quotation marks or

block quotation formatting around your own
duplicated material.”

Also specifies: “I have previously discussed”

(with a citation to the prior class paper)

Unique author Not discussed. The 7th details how to credit persons with one
crediting name (i.e., Prince) or a stage name (i.e., Lady
Gaga), names with @ symbol in them, and
authors whose real and stage names are both
known.

Maintain the author’s preferred capitalization in

7th (i.e., cummings, e. for e.e. cummings).

Check government report to see who to credit as

author.

Title of resource Not specifically addressed, in terms of Italicize webpage and website resources in the
italicizing webpages in the reference reference list.
list.
Concurrent edition and volume If both edition and volume numbers are given,
numbers are not expressly discussed. the edition comes first (e.g., 2nd ed., Vol. 1);
superscripting of the edition numbers is optional
as long as consistent.
 APA 6th APA 7th
“If a numbered volume has its own title, the
volume number and title are included as part of
the main title, rather than in parentheses.”

Expands rules for bracketed descriptions, to

include an example of one which has
parenthetical content followed by bracketed
content; it also specifies that back-to-back
brackets are acceptable in the reference list,
though section 9.22 then recommends to try and
“specify the medium in the description of the
untitled work … rather than including two
bracketed descriptions.”

“For untitled comments on periodical articles

include up to the first 20 words of the comment
or post in addition to a description” in the name-
of-the-resource place in the reference entry; as
with social media posts.

Works with Not discussed. Conference presentations = include the location:

specific locations city, ST, Country.

Dictionary Cite the word searched in the author’s Name the dictionary itself in the author’s place
entries place (e.g., Heuristic, n.d.) in both (e.g., Merriam-Webster, n.d.) and include the
citation and reference list. retrieval date. Use same format as chapter in an
edited book.

Publisher Include the publisher’s city and state. Omit the city and state of the publisher from all
sources reference entries.

Only include the city and two-letter state

abbreviation “for works associated with a
specific location, such as conference
presentations.”

Publishing Special rule for omitting the issue Include the issue number for all resources that
information number when the volumes were have one
numbered consecutively (i.e., each did
not begin again with page 1).

Omit Publisher, Company, Omit “designations of business structure (e.g.,

Corporation, etc. Inc., Ltd., LLC) in the publisher name” but do
include Publisher or Publication.
 APA 6th APA 7th
“If two or more publishers are listed on the
Use only the location listed first or the copyright page, include all of them in the order
location of the publisher’s home office. shown on the work, separated by semicolons”
(p. 296).

Use the publisher’s format as shown in the

source(s) consulted, adding that “it is not
necessary to standardize the presentation of a
publisher’s name if it appears in multiple entries
in a reference list” (p. 296) ---i.e., SAGE
Publishing vs. Sage Publications.

Write the word “Article” (without the quotation

marks) and then provide the article number for
articles an eLocator number rather than
volume/issue (i.e., Article e0158474).

Do not italicize the punctuation (comma or

APA used to advise to italicize the period) that follows italicized text in the
punctuation that followed italicized reference list.
text.
Databases are “seldom needed in reference list
entries” (p. 296); specifically, regarding
university databases and library-provided
services. See section 9.30 for more specifics.

DOI or URL Not discussed. May use shortDOIs (http://shortdoi.org/) or

shorteners shortened URL

URLS for Not clear. Do not include database URLs that require log-
databases on credentials.

“Provide database or other online archive

information in a reference only when it is
necessary for readers to retrieve the cited work
from that exact database or archive.”

Website sources Not clear. When the webpage has an author that is not the
same as the overall website, provide the website
name in title case with no italics after the name
of the webpage (note to OMIT “Retrieved from):
 APA 6th APA 7th
Doe, J. (n.d.). Name of webpage. BBC News.
https://URL

When to include Less clear. Use a DOI whenever available (no URL if there
DOIs or URLs is a DOI)

Use a URL for online resources with no DOI

Do not use a URL for print resources that have

no DOI

“For works from academic databases, do not

include a URL or database information
because these works are widely available. The
reference should be the same as the reference for
a print version of the work.”

Format of DOIs doi:10.1037/0000092-001 or Present both only as hyperlinks:

and URLs https://doi.org/10.1037/0000092-001 https://doi.org/10.1037/0000092-001 or
https://www.website.com https://www.website.com

include the “Retrieved from” Omit “Retrieved from” or “Accessed from”

Silent about whether links should be Acceptable to use either blue underlined or plain
live or not. text that is not underlined, but links should be
live.

Order of Alphabetically by first word in author’s Alphabetize numerals as though they were
reference works position. Less clear about titles spelled out (i.e., 22 = t for twenty-two)
with no author. beginning with numbers.

Classroom Not discussed. Classroom lectures and intranet sources should

lectures be cited as among personal communications, as
they are nonrecoverable to outside readers.

Active vs. Specifies to use active voice rather than APA 7th advises that “both active and passive
Passive voice passive voice. voices are permitted in APA Style” though
active voice is preferred in academic writing.

Seriation All options required punctuation; APA 7th clarifies to use numbered lists for full
unclear mandates for indention. sentences/paragraphs and bulleted lists for
phrases (bottom of p. 189), but then includes
instructions for “items that are complete
 APA 6th APA 7th
sentences” under section 6.52 for bulleted lists.
APA 7th also advises in both 6.51 and 6.52 to
“use the bulleted list function of your word-
processor program to create the bulleted list; this
will automatically indent the list as well.”
APA’s Style Expert Stefanie clarified to use
indentations. APA 7th also allows for a bulleted
list with no punctuation after each entry.

Orphaned Inconsistent, even in clarifications from APA specifies to leave headings at the bottom of
headings APA Style Expert. Because allowing a the page, separated from its content, if it falls
heading separate from its content did that way.
not align with APA’s purpose and
intent of organizing content in a
cohesive manner, LU OWC has
currently opted to advise students not
to allow such, in order to keep the
heading with its supporting content.

Words Capitalize any word that begins a “Do not capitalize a personal name that begins
beginning a sentence. with a lowercase letter when the name begins a
sentence sentence.” Likewise, for proper nouns and
statistical terms.

Singular “They” Silent; specifies that “each pronoun Complete new section mandating that writers
should refer clearly to its antecedent should use the singular “they” to refer to a
and should agree with the antecedent in person who has specified a preference to use
number and gender.” “they” as their personal pronoun.

Italics of Italicize websites but not webpages. Italicize webpages.

punctuation Italicize the punctuation that follows Do not italicize the punctuation mark after an
italicized text. italicized word or phrase, except when part of a
book title or heading.

Superscripting Do not superscript (e.g., 2nd ed.) Allows ordinal numbers with or without
of ordinal superscript (e.g., 2nd ed. or 2nd ed.), provided
numbers you are consistent throughout your paper.

Data display The preferred font for text in figures “is The recommended fonts for figures are Arial,
either Arial, Futura, or Helvetica, and Calibri, or Lucinda Sans Unicode, also ranging
font size may range from 8 to 14 from 8 to 14 point.
points.”
Color Prefers grayscale Approves the use of color in photographs and
figures specifically in student papers.
 APA 6th APA 7th
Citation Requires citation for every single Does not require citations to be included for
frequency instance of paraphrased content. every instance. Instead, only cite a source in a
paragraph “in the first sentence in which it is
relevant and do not repeat the citation in
subsequent sentences [of that same paragraph] as
long as the source remains clear and
unchanged.”

Quotations from Not discussed. New section. Clarifies to name as participants,

Research not personal communications.
Participants
Direct Quotes Only include ellipsis at beginning or “Regardless of quotation length, do not insert an
end of a quote “unless, to prevent ellipsis at the beginning and/or end of a
misinterpretation, you need to quotation unless the original source includes an
emphasize that the quotation begins or ellipsis.”
ends midsentence.”

Parenthetical citations must follow NOTE: Page 271 includes a statement that a
immediately after the direct quote, parenthetical citation should follow “either
even if midsentence. immediately after the quotation or at the end of
the sentence.” However, the second example on
p. 272 shows the citation for the direct-quoted
material falling at the end of the sentence, rather
than after the direct quote itself. APA’s Style
Expert Stefanie clarified that either is fine.

Epigraphs Not discussed. New section. APA 7th instructs not to include “a
reference entry for an epigraph from an
academic source (e.g., scholarly book or journal)
or a quotation used with permission.” This may
add confusion since there will be no correlating
reference entry.
Correspondence Not discussed. New section. “References included in a meta-
Between analysis, which are marked with an asterisk in
Reference List the reference list, may be cited in the text (or
and Text not) at the author’s discretion…”

Primary and Only include the publication year “If the year of publication of the primary source
Secondary details for the secondary source. is known [when citing a secondary source], also
sources include it in the text.”

Classroom or Not discussed. Include URL to login page (i.e.,

intranet sources myLU.liberty.edu, in the case of a course in
Blackboard).