How to Cite a Website in MLA
Online resources are one of the most popular and commonly cited source types today, so it’s important to know how to cite them. This guide will show you how to cite a website in MLA or social media post in MLA, 8th edition, and even give you examples to learn from.
All of the information in this guide is based off the 8th edition of the MLA Handbook, but is not associated with the Modern Language Association.
What is a Website?
A website is a collection of information pages on the Internet that are written by an individual, organization, company, or institution. Websites can range in a variety of topics including news, sports, travel, and many other interests and hobbies. Usually, you cite a single page and not an entire website, so be clear on what you’re trying to cite.
What You Need
To make an MLA website citation, you will need the following pieces of information:
- Author’s name
- “Title of the article or individual page”
- Title of the website
- Name of the publisher
- Only include the name of publisher when it differs from the Title of the Website
- If you’re having trouble finding a publisher, the Handbook tells us: “The publisher’s name can often be found in a copyright notice at the bottom of the home page or on a page that gives information about the site” (41).
- Date the page or site was published
- Section 1.5 of the Handbook instructs: “In the list of works cited, use the day-month-year style (12 Jan. 2014) to minimize the number of commas.”
- URL
Note on URLs
In previous versions of MLA, you were not required to include the URL. In MLA 8 (see p. 48 of the Handbook), it is strongly recommended to include the URL in the citation. Even though web pages and URLs can be taken down or changed, it is still possible to learn about the source from the information seen in the URL.
When including URLs in a citation, omit https:// and https:// from the website’s address. When creating a citation that will be read on a digital device, it is helpful to make the URL clickable so that readers can directly access the source themselves.
Lastly, the Handbook cautions against using “URLs produced by shortening services (like bit.ly), since such a URL may stop working if the service that produced it disappears” (110).
Structure of a Web Page Citation in MLA 8
Author’s Last name, First name. “Title of the Article or Individual Page.” Title of the Website, Name of the publisher, Date page was published, URL.
Here are more detailed instructions:
- Place the author’s name in reverse order, last name first, add a comma, and then the first name followed by a period.
- The title of the article or individual page is placed in quotation marks, with a period before the end quotation.
- The title of the website is written in italics followed by a comma.
- If the name of the publisher differs from the name of the website, include it after the title. If it is the same, omit the publisher information.
- Immediately following the publisher name is the date that the page or article was published, or posted.
- Finally, end with the URL. The URL is the website’s address.
MLA website citation example:
White, Lori. “The Newest Fad in People Helping People: Little Free Pantries.” Upworthy, Cloud Tiger Media, 3 Aug. 2016, www.upworthy.com/the-newest-fad-in-people-helping-people-little-free-pantries?g=2&c=hpstream.
In-text citation example:
(White)
Since web pages have no page numbers, none are required for the in-text citation. Just the name of the author(s) in parentheses.
How to Cite a Whole Website in MLA 8
As stated earlier, most times you will be citing a single web page or online article and not an entire website. For those rare times when you do want to cite the whole website, you should follow this structure:
Author’s Last name, First name. Title of the Website, Name of the publisher, URL. Accessed Day Month Year.
Remember: If the name of the publisher is the same as the title of the website, omit the publisher information.
Example citations for a whole website:
Chegg Play. Chegg Inc., www.chegg.com/play/. Accessed 10 May 2019.
Dash, Toni. Boulder Locavore, boulderlocavore.com/. Accessed 10 Feb 2020.
How to Cite a Website With No Author in MLA 8
Sometimes, websites do not clearly state who wrote the information on the page. When no author is listed, omit the author information from the citation. Start the citation with the title.
Example of an MLA website citation without an author in MLA 8:
“Giant Panda.” Smithsonian National Zoological Park, Smithsonian Institute, nationalzoo.si.edu/animals/giantpandas/pandafacts.
In-text citation example:
(“Giant Panda”)
Since there is no author, use the title instead. Place the title in quotation marks. The title is then surrounded by parentheses.
How to Cite a Website When There is No Page Title
When citing a web page that does not include a formal title, it is acceptable to include a description of the page. Do not place the description in italics or in quotation marks. Follow the description with the name of the website.
MLA website citation example when there is no page title:
General Information on the New York Mets. NYCData, The Weissman Center for International Business Baruch College/CUNY, www.baruch.cuny.edu/nycdata/sports/nymets.htm. Accessed 17 Mar. 2015.
In-text citation example:
(General Information)
Include the first piece of source information that will be listed first; this makes it easy to find the source in the works cited list.
This example also demonstrates how you can abbreviate long titles or descriptions. Any title that is longer than a noun phrase can be shortened.
How to Cite Social Media Websites
In an increasingly digital world, social media platforms have become one of the most popular sources students turn to when writing a research paper. Here are some examples of ways you can cite various social media platforms in your work:
TWITTER citation structure:
@TwitterHandle. “Content of Tweet.” Twitter, Date, Time, URL (omit https:// or https://).
According to the Handbook, you should include the author’s username. With Twitter, you should also include a timestamp, if possible, as it makes the source easier to find.
Example of a Twitter citation in MLA 8:
@Britannica. “Nelson Mandela, who fought for racial equality and became South Africa’s 1st black president, was born #OTD in 1918.” Twitter, 18 Jul. 2017, 11:45 a.m., twitter.com/Britannica/status/887382776747630594.
In-text citation example:
(@Britannica)
INSTAGRAM citation structure:
Account holder’s Last name, First name or Username. “Photo Title or Description.”* Instagram, Other contributors, Date photo was published, URL (without https:// or https://).
*If no title is available, create a simple description and do not place it in italics or quotation marks.
Example of citing Instagram in MLA 8:
National Geographic. Photo of Bering Sea. Instagram, photographed by Corey Arnold, 2 Apr. 2017, www.instagram.com/p/BSaisVuDk7S/?taken-by=natgeo.
In-text citation example:
(National Geographic)
FACEBOOK citation structure:
Author Last Name, First Name or Account Name. Description of Post. Facebook, Day Month Year of Post, Time of Post, URL. Accessed Day Month Year post was viewed.
Example of citing Facebook in MLA 8:
Rick Mercer Report. Spread the Net Challenge Winners 2016. Facebook, 23 Mar. 2016, 9:00 a.m., www.facebook.com/rickmercerreport. Accessed 26 June 2016.
In-text citation example:
(Rick Mercer Report)
Citing COMMENTS on social media posts in MLA 8:
List the username as the author. Use the phrase, Comment on, before the title. Use quotation marks around the article title. Name the publisher, date, time (listed near the comment), and the URL.
Not Omniscient Enough. Comment on “Flight Attendant Tells Passenger to ‘Shut Up’ After Argument After Pasta.” ABC News, 9 Jun 2016, 4:00 p.m., abcnews.go.com/US/flight-attendant-tells-passenger-shut-argument-pasta/story?id=39704050.
In-text citation example:
(Not Omniscient)
Work Cited
MLA Handbook. 8th ed., Modern Language Association of America, 2016.
Published August 4, 2016. Updated April 16, 2020.
Written and edited by Michele Kirschenbaum and Elise Barbeau. Michele Kirschenbaum is a school library media specialist and the in-house librarian at EasyBib.com. Elise Barbeau is the Citation Specialist at Chegg. She has worked in digital marketing, libraries, and publishing.