Generate precise BibTeX, APA, MLA, IEEE, and Chicago citations instantly.
How to Use the Citation Generator
Three steps from identifier to finished citation, in any format you need.
Paste your identifier or input details
Use Auto Detect and paste a DOI like 10.1038/nature14539, an arXiv ID like 2103.00020, or use the Manual Entry tab to build a citation from scratch. The tool figures out the type automatically.
Click Generate to fetch metadata
For DOIs, the tool securely queries the official Crossref API directly in your browser. For arXiv preprints, a built-in proxy seamlessly fetches the live metadata for you instantly.
Select format, copy, or download
Toggle between BibTeX, APA 7, MLA 9, IEEE, and Chicago 17 instantly. Edit the BibTeX cite key inline, copy to your clipboard with one click, or download a ready-to-use .bib file.
Supported Citation Formats
Every format is generated from the same metadata — switch between them without re-entering anything.
BibTeX
LaTeX Bibliography
The standard format for LaTeX documents. Produces @article, @inproceedings, @book and other entry types with correct field names. Includes arXiv eprint fields when applicable.
APA 7
American Psychological Association
Used widely in social sciences, education and psychology. The 7th edition format handles up to 20 authors before switching to et al., and includes DOI as a hyperlink.
MLA 9
Modern Language Association
Preferred in humanities, literature and language studies. The 9th edition uses the container concept for journals and conference proceedings, with precise styling.
IEEE
Electrical & Electronics Engineers
The standard reference style for engineering, computer science and electronics publications. Uses numbered references and abbreviated given names.
Chicago 17
Chicago Manual of Style
Common in history, arts and some social sciences. The 17th edition author-date style places the year prominently and supports both journal articles and books cleanly.
Who Uses This Tool
Built for anyone who writes research — from students to publishing authors.
Students & Thesis Writers
Generate a complete bibliography for your thesis or dissertation in minutes. Export all citations as a single .bib file to drop straight into Overleaf or any LaTeX editor.
Researchers & Academics
Batch-lookup dozens of DOIs at once, get BibTeX with correct arXiv eprint fields, and maintain a local history of citations across browser sessions.
Science Writers & Bloggers
Quickly format a source in APA or MLA for an article or blog post without needing to memorize citation rules. Just paste a DOI and let the tool do the heavy lifting.
Engineers & CS Professionals
Generate IEEE-style references for technical reports or conference papers in seconds from arXiv preprint IDs or exact DOIs — accurately formatted every time.
Frequently Asked Questions
Common questions about the tool, its formats, and how it fetches data.
Yes, completely free. DOI lookups and arXiv fetches run directly through our built-in systems with no cost, no registration, and no account required.
Citations are pulled directly from Crossref, the official DOI registration agency — the exact same source that academic publishers use. For arXiv papers, metadata comes directly from the official arXiv API. Because we use these authoritative sources, field values like author names, journal titles, volume, and page numbers match the official record perfectly.
A DOI (Digital Object Identifier) is a permanent tracking link assigned to most academic papers, journal articles, and book chapters. It looks like 10.1038/nature14539 or as a URL: https://doi.org/10.1038/nature14539. You can find it on the paper's abstract page, at the top or bottom of the PDF, or by searching the title on the Crossref website.
The arXiv API does not include CORS headers natively, meaning web browsers block direct requests. To solve this, our tool routes arXiv requests through a secure, built-in proxy to fetch the data seamlessly. Crossref supports CORS natively, so regular DOI lookups happen directly inside your browser.
Yes. In the DOI tab, you can paste multiple DOIs — one per line — and click Generate. The tool will process all of them automatically and save them to your local history. Once finished, open the History section and click Export All (.bib) to download every citation as a single BibTeX file.
The tool auto-generates a clean cite key in the format LastName + Year + FirstContentWord — for example, vaswani2017attention. You can manually edit it directly in the "Cite Key" input field below the format tabs, and the BibTeX output will update instantly to match.
No data is stored on any server. Your citation history is saved locally in your browser's localStorage and never leaves your device. Data lookups go straight to Crossref or through our secure proxy strictly for fetching, without logging or tracking your queries.
BibTeX is the classic bibliography system used with LaTeX since the 1980s. BibLaTeX is a modern upgrade providing more flexible formatting and Unicode support. However, the .bib file structure they use is identical. Citations generated by this tool will work perfectly with both systems without modification.