Many students ask for a list of the main differences between MLA and APA. Please see below.
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:
– Bellevue University’s Writing Center.
Very helping stuff for students