Your Simple Guide: How To Cite A Textbook In APA, MLA, And Chicago Styles

Helmer Raynor 18 Aug 2025

Putting together a research paper or an essay often means using information from different places, and textbooks are, like, a really common one. Knowing how to cite a textbook is, you know, a big deal for your academic work. It shows where your ideas come from and helps others find the original source, which is pretty important for school papers.

When you're writing for school, teachers want to see that you've done your homework, literally. Citing a textbook correctly helps you give credit to the authors whose thoughts and facts you're using, and that's just a good thing to do. It also helps you avoid problems like plagiarism, which is something you definitely want to steer clear of, so anyway, it's a skill worth picking up.

Textbooks are written works that have been put out for everyone to read, and they've actually changed a lot over time. They aren't just paper books anymore; you find them online a lot now, too it's almost. This guide is going to walk you through the ways to cite them, whether they're print or digital, using the main citation styles you'll probably meet in your studies, like APA, MLA, and Chicago.

How to Cite a Textbook: The Basics
What Information Do You Need to Cite a Textbook?
Citing a Textbook in APA Style

APA 7th Edition for Print Textbooks
APA 7th Edition for Ebook Textbooks

Citing a Textbook in MLA Style

MLA 9th Edition for Print Textbooks
MLA 9th Edition for Ebook Textbooks

Citing a Textbook in Chicago Style

Chicago Notes-Bibliography Style for Print Textbooks
Chicago Author-Date Style for Print Textbooks
Chicago Style for Ebook Textbooks

Common Questions About Citing Textbooks
Why Proper Citation Matters
Tools to Help You Cite

How to Cite a Textbook: The Basics

When you're putting together a list of sources, a book will, odds are, show up on it, and that includes textbooks. Textbooks are a published medium, and they're a very credible source to use, which is good. The way you put together the information for a textbook citation usually involves the author, the year it was put out, its title, and the name of the publisher, you know.

The core idea for any book citation is pretty similar across different styles, but the exact order and how you format that information really change depending on which citation style you are using. This could be APA, MLA, or Chicago style, for instance. We're going to show you how to use all three, so you'll be ready for pretty much any assignment.

What Information Do You Need to Cite a Textbook?

To make a good citation for a textbook, you'll need to gather a few key pieces of information. This is true for both print books and ebooks, which is interesting. You'll want to get the author or editor, the year the book was put out, the title of the book, and the publisher, that is that.

Sometimes, you might also need the edition of the book, especially if it's a newer version, and the place where it was published. The copyright date you see on the book’s copyright page is what you should use for the publication date, too it's almost. Getting all this ready before you start writing your citations can really save you some time.

Citing a Textbook in APA Style

Citing a textbook in APA is, actually, pretty simple once you get the hang of it. We're going to be citing a textbook in APA 7th style here, which is the most recent version. The structure for a textbook in APA is quite straightforward, focusing on the main details about the book, you know.

For APA, you always want to give the author, the year of publication, the title of the book, and the publisher. That basic form stays the same for both print books and ebooks, which is good to know. The method for citing them is, more or less, consistent.

APA 7th Edition for Print Textbooks

When you cite a print textbook in APA 7th edition, you start with the author's last name, then their first initial. After that, you put the year of publication in parentheses, followed by a period. The title of the book comes next, and it should be in italics, with only the first word of the title and subtitle capitalized, plus any proper nouns, that is that.

After the title, you put a period, and then you add the publisher's name. You don't usually need the city of publication for APA 7th edition, unless the publisher has offices in many cities and it's not clear which one to use, which is pretty rare. Use the copyright date shown on the book’s copyright page as the publication year, you know.

Example for a print textbook:

Author, A. A. (Year). Title of book. Publisher.

For instance, if you had a book by J. Smith, published in 2020, titled "The Science of Learning," and put out by Academic Press, it would look like this: Smith, J. (2020). The science of learning. Academic Press. This is a very common way to see it.

APA 7th Edition for Ebook Textbooks

Citing an ebook textbook in APA 7th edition is, actually, very similar to citing a print book. The basic information you need is the same: author, year, title, and publisher. The format is also the same, which makes things a little easier, you know.

The only time an ebook citation might look a little different is if it's from a specific database that requires a DOI (Digital Object Identifier) or a URL, but usually, for textbooks, you just treat them like a print book. So, you use the same format for both print books and ebooks, which is pretty handy. The method for citing them is, more or less, the same.

Example for an ebook textbook (no DOI/URL needed for common ebooks):

Author, A. A. (Year). Title of book. Publisher.

For example, if you're using an ebook version of the same "The Science of Learning" by J. Smith, from 2020, published by Academic Press, it would still be: Smith, J. (2020). The science of learning. Academic Press. It's really that simple, you know.

Citing a Textbook in MLA Style

MLA style is another very common way to cite sources, especially in the humanities. When you're learning how to cite a textbook using MLA, you'll notice it puts a bit more emphasis on the author and the title, and it generally leaves out the publication city, that is that. We're going to look at MLA 9th edition, which is the current one.

The core idea is to give enough information for your reader to find the book themselves. MLA citations are usually pretty clean and straightforward. You'll typically list the author, the title of the book, the publisher, and the year it was put out, you know.

MLA 9th Edition for Print Textbooks

For a print textbook in MLA 9th edition, you start with the author's last name, followed by their first name. Then comes the title of the book, in italics, with all major words capitalized. After the title, you put the publisher's name, then the year of publication, and finally a period, you know.

MLA doesn't usually ask for the city of publication for books, which is a bit different from some older styles or Chicago. Just the publisher and the year are usually enough for a print book. The copyright date shown on the book’s copyright page is the one to use, so anyway, that's what you look for.

Example for a print textbook:

Author, First Name. Title of Book. Publisher, Year.

So, for our example book, "The Science of Learning" by J. Smith, published by Academic Press in 2020, it would look like this: Smith, John. The Science of Learning. Academic Press, 2020. It's a pretty clean format, you know.

MLA 9th Edition for Ebook Textbooks

Citing an ebook textbook in MLA 9th edition is, in a way, very similar to citing a print book. You'll use the same basic elements: author, title, publisher, and year. MLA tries to keep things consistent across different formats when the information is essentially the same, you know.

If the ebook is from a specific platform or has a DOI, you might add that information, but for a standard ebook version of a textbook, the core citation remains the same as the print version. So, the method for citing them is, more or less, the same. This makes it easier to remember, you know.

Example for an ebook textbook:

Author, First Name. Title of Book. Publisher, Year.

Using our example, the ebook version of "The Science of Learning" by John Smith, published by Academic Press in 2020, would be cited as: Smith, John. The Science of Learning. Academic Press, 2020. This is a pretty common way to do it.

Citing a Textbook in Chicago Style

Chicago style offers two main ways to cite sources: Notes-Bibliography style and Author-Date style. You'll use one or the other depending on what your instructor asks for, you know. Both styles need similar information about the textbook, but they arrange it differently and use it in different parts of your paper, that is that.

Chicago style citations can feel a bit more detailed, especially with the Notes-Bibliography system. It often includes the city of publication, which is a piece of information that APA and MLA usually leave out these days. We'll teach you how to use both Chicago approaches, so anyway, you'll be prepared.

Chicago Notes-Bibliography Style for Print Textbooks

The Notes-Bibliography style is often used in the humanities, like history or literature. It involves using footnotes or endnotes in your paper for citations, and then a full bibliography at the end, you know. For a print textbook in the bibliography, you'll list the author, title, city of publication, publisher, and year.

The basic form for a book citation here is: Last Name, First Name. Title of Book. City of Publication: Publisher, Year. The city of publication should only be used if the book was published before 1900, or if the publisher has many locations and it's important to specify, which is pretty rare these days. For most modern books, you can leave out the city, you know.

Example for a print textbook (Bibliography Entry):

Author, First Name. Title of Book. City of Publication: Publisher, Year.

For instance, for "The Science of Learning" by John Smith, published by Academic Press in 2020, it might look like this in your bibliography: Smith, John. The Science of Learning. New York: Academic Press, 2020. If no city is needed, it would be: Smith, John. The Science of Learning. Academic Press, 2020. This is how it typically looks.

For a footnote (first mention), it would be: First Name Last Name, Title of Book (City of Publication: Publisher, Year), page number. So, for our example: John Smith, The Science of Learning (New York: Academic Press, 2020), 45. It's a bit more detailed, you know.

Chicago Author-Date Style for Print Textbooks

The Author-Date style is more common in the social sciences. It uses in-text citations with the author's last name and the year of publication in parentheses, and then a reference list at the end of your paper, you know. This is a bit like APA in its in-text approach.

For a print textbook in the reference list, the format is: Last Name, First Name. Year. Title of Book. City of Publication: Publisher. Again, the city of publication is often left out for modern books, unless it's really needed, which is pretty much the same as the Notes-Bibliography style. The copyright date shown on the book’s copyright page is what you use, you know.

Example for a print textbook (Reference List Entry):

Author, First Name. Year. Title of Book. City of Publication: Publisher.

So, for "The Science of Learning" by John Smith, published by Academic Press in 2020, it would look like this in your reference list: Smith, John. 2020. The Science of Learning. New York: Academic Press. If no city is needed, it would be: Smith, John. 2020. The Science of Learning. Academic Press. This is a fairly common setup.

The in-text citation would simply be (Smith 2020, 45), referring to page 45. It's a very concise way to cite, you know.

Chicago Style for Ebook Textbooks

Citing an ebook textbook in Chicago style, for both Notes-Bibliography and Author-Date, is very similar to citing a print book. You'll include the same core information: author, title, publisher, and year, you know. The city of publication rules still apply.

If the ebook was accessed online and doesn't have a print equivalent or page numbers, you might include a URL or a name of the database. However, for most standard ebook textbooks, you can treat them like a print book in your citation. Below are examples of how to do it, so anyway, you can see.

Example for an ebook textbook (Notes-Bibliography, Bibliography Entry):

Author, First Name. Title of Book. City of Publication: Publisher, Year. URL (if applicable).

Example for an ebook textbook (Author-Date, Reference List Entry):

Author, First Name. Year. Title of Book. City of Publication: Publisher. URL (if applicable).

The key thing is to provide enough information so someone else could find the exact version you used, which is pretty much the goal of all citation, you know. The method for citing them is, more or less, the same as print, with an added URL if it's purely online.

Common Questions About Citing Textbooks

People often have questions when they're trying to figure out how to cite a textbook. Here are some of the most common ones, with some simple answers, you know.

How do you cite a textbook in APA style?

To cite a textbook in APA style, you generally need the author, the year it was put out, the title of the book, and the publisher. For example, it would look something like: Author, A. A. (Year). Title of book. Publisher. This is a very common format, you know.

What information do you need to cite a textbook?

You typically need the author or editor, the year of publication, the full title of the book, and the publisher. Sometimes, you might also need the edition number or the city of publication, especially for older books or certain styles like Chicago, that is that. The copyright date shown on the book’s copyright page is the one to use for the year, so anyway, keep an eye out for that.

Is a textbook a credible source?

Yes, textbooks are generally considered very credible sources to cite from. They are written by experts in their fields and go through a review process before they are published. So, yes, they are good to use in your papers, you know, they're reliable.

Why Proper Citation Matters

Creating accurate citations, like for how to cite a textbook, has never been easier, especially with all the tools available. But why is it such a big deal? Well, proper citation shows that you respect the original authors and their hard work, which is pretty much academic honesty, you know.

It also helps your readers, whether it's your teacher or someone else looking at your work, to find the exact sources you used. This lets them check your facts or learn more about a topic you discussed. It's a way of being clear and open about your research, that is that.

Think of it as giving directions. If you tell someone where you got your information, they can go look it up themselves. This makes your own work stronger because it's built on solid ground, and it shows you know what you're doing, you know.

Tools to Help You Cite

Making sure your citations are 100% correct, especially for things like your APA textbook citation, can feel like a lot. Luckily, there are tools that can help you with this. Automatically cite a book in APA by using citation machine's free citation generator, for example, which is pretty neat.

These tools can take the information you have about a book—like the author, title, and publisher—and put it into the correct format for APA, MLA, or Chicago style. It can save you a lot of time and help you avoid little mistakes, you know. You can learn more about citation tools on our site, and you can also link to this page for more details on different citation styles.

So, whether you're working on a big research paper or just a short essay, knowing how to cite a textbook properly is a really useful skill. Using the right information and the correct style makes your work look good and helps you share your sources clearly. It’s a pretty important part of academic writing, you know, and something you'll use often.

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