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Harvard citation generator

Format references in Harvard style — the author–date convention required across UK, Irish and Australian universities. Enter the details once or paste BibTeX/RIS, and copy the finished reference.

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Who uses Harvard style

Harvard is not one published manual but a family of closely related author–date conventions maintained by individual universities (Cite Them Right is the most common baseline in the UK). It is the default referencing style across most UK and Australian institutions, especially in business, health and social science programs.

Harvard style at a glance

Reference-list example

Chen, M. and Okafor, J. (2023) ‘Sleep deprivation and working memory’, Cognitive Science, 47(2), pp. 112–139.

In-text citation

(Chen and Okafor, 2023) — or: Chen and Okafor (2023) argue that…

The rules that trip people up

  • Authors as surname + initials joined with "and" (no ampersand in most variants); the year in parentheses after the authors.
  • Article titles in single quotation marks and sentence case; journal titles in italics and Title Case.
  • Volume(issue) followed by "pp." and the page range: 47(2), pp. 112–139.
  • In-text: (Author, Year) with page numbers for quotes: (Chen and Okafor, 2023, p. 120).
  • Because Harvard varies by institution, always check your university’s guide for details like capitalization and "Available at:" wording for URLs.

Frequently asked questions

Why do Harvard examples differ between universities?
Because "Harvard" is a convention, not a governed standard — each university publishes its own variant (many follow Cite Them Right). The differences are small: quotation marks, "and" vs "&", URL wording. This generator follows the most common UK pattern; check your institution’s guide for local details.
Is Harvard the same as APA?
They are siblings: both author–date, and in-text citations look nearly identical. Reference lists differ — Harvard uses single quotes around article titles, "and" between authors, "pp." before pages, and no DOI requirement in many variants — enough that you should not mix them in one list.
How do I reference a website in Harvard style?
Author or organization, year, page title in italics, "Available at:" plus the URL, and "(Accessed: date)". Choose "Web page" as the source type and the generator produces the pattern; add the access date your university expects.

Other citation styles

APAMLAChicagoIEEEVancouverAll styles

Related free tools

Citation styles explained (guide)BibTeX ⇄ RIS converterFind a paper’s PDF

Citing while you write?

Inside Kahubi the AI cites papers from your own library as it drafts — in Harvard or any other style, with the bibliography always in sync.

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Citations that manage themselves

In Kahubi, your library carries the metadata: the agent cites papers as it writes in Harvard style, and the bibliography always matches the in-text citations — in LaTeX or rich text.

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