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Citing Tables and Figures in APA Style | Format & Examples

Published on November 6, 2020 by Jack Caulfield . Revised on December 27, 2023.

When you reprint or adapt a table or figure from another source, the source should be acknowledged in an in-text citation and in your reference list . Follow the format for the source type you took the table or figure from.

You also have to include a copyright statement in a note beneath the table or figure. The example below shows how to cite a figure from a journal article .

Table of contents

Citing tables and figures, including a copyright note, examples from different source types, frequently asked questions about apa style citations.

Tables and figures taken from other sources are numbered and presented in the same format as your other tables and figures . Refer to them as Table 1, Figure 3, etc., but include an in-text citation after you mention them to acknowledge the source.

You should also include the source in the reference list. Follow the standard format for the source type you took the table or figure from.

Prevent plagiarism. Run a free check.

As well as a citation and reference, when you reproduce a table or figure in your own work, you also need to acknowledge the source in a note directly below it.

The image below shows an example of a table with a copyright note.

If you’ve reproduced a table or figure exactly, start the note with “From …” If you’ve adapted it in some way for your own purposes (e.g. incorporating part of a table or figure into a new table or figure in your paper), write “Adapted from …”

This is followed by information about the source (title, author, year, publisher, and location), and then copyright information at the end.

Types of copyright and permission

A source will either be under standard copyright, under a Creative Commons license, or in the public domain. You need to state which of these is the case.

Under standard copyright, you sometimes also need permission from the publisher to reprint or adapt materials. If you sought and obtained permission, mention this at the end of the note.

Look for information on copyright and permissions from the publisher. If you’re having trouble finding this information, consult your supervisor for advice.

• From a journal article
• From a website
• From a book

Copyright information can usually be found wherever the table or figure was published. For example, for a diagram in a journal article , look on the journal’s website or the database where you found the article. Images found on sites like Flickr are listed with clear copyright information.

If you find that permission is required to reproduce the material, be sure to contact the author or publisher and ask for it.

APA doesn’t require you to include a list of tables or a list of figures . However, it is advisable to do so if your text is long enough to feature a table of contents and it includes a lot of tables and/or figures .

A list of tables and list of figures appear (in that order) after your table of contents, and are presented in a similar way.

If you adapt or reproduce a table or figure from another source, you should include that source in your APA reference list . You should also include copyright information in the note for the table or figure, and include an APA in-text citation when you refer to it.

Tables and figures you created yourself, based on your own data, are not included in the reference list.

In most styles, the title page is used purely to provide information and doesn’t include any images. Ask your supervisor if you are allowed to include an image on the title page before doing so. If you do decide to include one, make sure to check whether you need permission from the creator of the image.

Include a note directly beneath the image acknowledging where it comes from, beginning with the word “ Note .” (italicized and followed by a period). Include a citation and copyright attribution . Don’t title, number, or label the image as a figure , since it doesn’t appear in your main text.

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Caulfield, J. (2023, December 27). Citing Tables and Figures in APA Style | Format & Examples. Scribbr. Retrieved April 2, 2024, from https://www.scribbr.com/apa-examples/citing-tables-figures/

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Citing tables, figures & images: APA (7th ed.) citation guide

On this page, introduction, general guidelines, examples for citing figures & images, examples for citing tables.

This guide is based on the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association, 7th ed. It provides selected citation examples for common types of sources. For more detailed information consult directly a  print copy  of the style manual.

Check out APA's Guide to what's new for APA 7 .

Keep track of your document references/citations and format your reference lists easily with Citation management software .

Tables and figures (includes images) follow similar set up and formatting. The guidelines below focus on common examples used by students for academic papers . For details on creating tables or figures for submission to journals or graduate theses, see APA's Tables and figures or consult the guide directly (Section 7, pp. 195–250).

Wondering if you can use that image you found online? Refer to SFU's Copyright and your coursework or the FAQ What is fair dealing? for guidelines on use.

• All figures and tables must be mentioned in the text (a "callout") by their number. Do not refer to the table/figure using either "the table above" or "the figure below."
• Assign table/figure # in the order as it appears, numbered consecutively, in your paper - not the figure # assigned to it in its original resource.
• A note is added when further description, for example, definitions or copyright attribution, is necessary to explain the figure or table. Most student papers will require a general note for copyright attribution and acknowledgement whether it is reprinted or adapted from another source. Consult the guide directly for detailed instructions on formatting notes (Section 7.14, pp. 203–205).
• For copyright attribution templates , consult Table 12.1 on page 390 of the guide (Section 12.18, pp. 389-390).
• If permission is required for reprinting or adapting, at the end of the citation place: Reprinted with permission or  Adapted with permission followed by a period.
• All the sources must have a full bibliographic entry in your Reference List .
• Review your figure/table against the appropriate checklist found only in the guide (Sections 7.20, Table, p. 206 and 7.35, Figure, p. 232).

Order of components

Above the figure/table.

• Write " Figure " or " Table " in bold font, flush left, followed by the number, for example, Figure 1 .
• Write the figure/table title using italic case below the figure/table number,
• Double-space the figure/table number and title,
• Embed image.

Below the figure/table

• On a new line below the figure/table, flush left, place Note. Provide further details/explanation about the information in the figure/table only if necessary. State if material is reprinted or adapted —use " From " if reprinted or " Adapted from " if adapted. Followed directly by the copyright attribution —this is basically the same information as found in the reference list entry but in a different order.
• Separate figure/table from the text with one blank double-spaced line.

Placement in paper

• embed in the text after it is first mentioned or,
• place on a separate page after the reference list (an appendix).
• When embedding all figures and tables are aligned with the left margin .
• All examples in this guide show embedded figures and tables.

Refer directly to the guide for more detailed notes on placement (Section 7.6, p. 198).

Figures include: images found online, maps , graphs , charts, drawings, and photographs, or any other illustration or non-textual depiction in printed or electronic resources.

See APA's Figure set up for detailed information on the basic components of a figure, principles of creation, and placement in papers with formatting requirements, or consult the guide directly (Section 7.22–7.36, pp. 225–250).

Review APA's guide for Accessible use of colour in table/figures for best practices.

Exact copy from a single source (aka reprinted)

The following example is when it is reproduced in your paper exactly as it appears in another source : Same format or state, no reconfiguration or new analysis.

Compiled from variety of sources

The following example is for citing a figure that you have created by compiling information from a variety of sources. For example, if you combined data from a database, a website , and a government report to create a new chart. Each source requires a copyright attribution in a general note and full bibliographic entry in the Reference List.

See APA's Clip art or stock image references ,  Image with no attribution required ,  Image requires an attribution , or consult the guide directly (Section 12.14–12.18, pp. 384–390 ).

Citing but not reproducing the image? See Visual: Artwork in museum, PowerPoint slides, photographs, clipart/stock image, maps retrieved online in this guide for examples or consult the guide directly (Section 10.14, pp. 346–347).

Image with attribution

Reference list examples

Beletsky, Y. (2013).  Three planets dance over La Silla [Photograph]. European Southern Observatory. https://www.eso.org/public/images/potw1322a/

Euromonitor International. (2020). [Statistical data on market sizes of fresh food]. Passport . Retrieved January 21, 2021, from https://go.euromonitor.com/passport.html

FranceAgriMer. (2020, September). Consommation des produits carnes en 2019 . https://www.franceagrimer.fr/content/download/64994/document/STA-VIA-Consommation%20des%20produits%20carn%C3%A9s%20en%202019.pdf

Natural Resources Institute Finland. (2020). Consumption of food commodities per capita by year and commodity [Statistics database]. http://statdb.luke.fi/PXWeb/sq/d1b368d7-9c07-4efd-b727-13e57db90ee6

Okemasim–Sicotte, D. R., Gingell, S., & Bouvier, R. (2018). Iskwewuk E–wichiwitochik. In K. Anderson, M. Campbell, & C. Belcourt (Eds.), Keetsahnak /Our missing and murdered Indigenous sisters (pp. 243–269). University of Alberta Press.

Irish, J. (2019).  Sequoia National Park.  [Photograph]. National Geographic. https://www.nationalgeographic.com/travel/destinations/north-america/united-states/61-national-parks-photos/#/giant-tree-trail-sequoia-national-park.jpg

Drewes, W. (n.d.).  Frog and insects (no.200) . [Painting]. The Smithsonian Institution. https://www.si.edu/object/saam_1968.9.50

• See the General Notes in this guide for help with creating citations with missing information , e.g. using a description if no title—see Euromonitor International in the reference list above.
• For figures compiled from multiple sources, identify individual source information using the following format in the "From" statement: Note . The data for Country Name are from [copyright attribution according to source]. End each copyright attribution with a period.
• Use author-date in-text citation when the data is transformed (reconfigured or reanalyzed) to produce different numbers. (Section 12.15 Data subsection, p. 385).
• If work is published or read online, use live links—check with your instructor for their preference.

Tables are characterized by a row-column structure. See APA's Table set up for detailed information on the basic components of a table, principles of creation, and placement in papers with formatting requirements, or consult the guide directly (Section 7.8–7.21, pp. 199–224).

Exact copy from a single source (aka reprint)

If you have compiled data from a variety of different sources and put it together to form your own table, you still need to cite where you got the information from. Each source requires a copyright attribution in a general note and full bibliographic entry in the Reference List.

British Columbia Ministry of Health. (2019). Baby’s most chosen names in British Columbia, 2019 . https://connect.health.gov.bc.ca/babynames?year=2019

eHealth Saskatchewan. (2019). Most popular baby names for 2019 . https://www.ehealthsask.ca/health-data/babynames/Pages/mostpopular2019.aspx

Government of Alberta. (2019). Alberta’s top baby names . https://www.alberta.ca/top-baby-names.aspx

Manitoba Vital Statistics Agency . (2020). Annual report 2019-2020 . https://vitalstats.gov.mb.ca/pdf/2020_vs_annual_report_en.pdf

Williams, C. L. (1992). The glass escalator: Hidden advantages for men in the "female" professions. Social Problems , 39 (3), 253-267. https://doi.org/10.2307/3096961

• For tables compiled from multiple sources, in the "From" statement, identify each individual source information. e.g.: Note . The data for Country Name are from [copyright attribution according to source]. End each copyright attribution with a period.
• ​If you have multiple kinds of data (population figures, consumer information, etc...) in one table you would describe each set of data. e.g.: Note.  Population figures for XYZ are from [ copyright attribution according to source ] and for ABC are from [ copyright attribution according to source ]. Data for pet ownership for XYZ are from [ copyright attribution according to source ] and for ABC are from [ copyright attribution according to source ]. End each copyright attribution with a period.
• Use an author-date in-text citation when the data is transformed (reconfigured or reanalyzed) to produce different numbers. (Section 12.15 Data subsection, p. 385).
• All the sources must have a full bibliographic entry in your Reference List even though the information in the Note  field uses a lot of the same information.
• If work is published or read online, APA recommends using live links— check with your instructor for their preference.

• AUT Library
• Library Guides
• Referencing styles and applications

APA 7th Referencing Style Guide

• Figures (graphs and images)
• Referencing & APA style
• In-text citation
• Elements of a reference
• Format & examples of a reference list
• Conferences
• Reports & grey literature

General guidelines

From a book, from an article, from a library database, from a website, citing your own work.

• Theses and dissertations
• Audio works
• Films, TV & video
• Visual works
• Computer software, games & apps
• Lecture notes & Intranet resources
• Legal resources
• Personal communications
• PowerPoint slides
• Social media
• Specific health examples
• Standards & patents
• Websites & webpages
• Footnotes and appendices
• Frequently asked questions

A figure may be a chart, a graph, a photograph, a drawing, or any other illustration or nontextual depiction. Any type of illustration or image other than a table is referred to as a figure.

Figure Components

• Number:  The figure number (e.g., Figure 1 ) appears above the figure in bold (no period finishing).
• Title: The figure title appears one double-spaced line below the figure number in Italic Title Case  (no period finishing).
• Image: The image portion of the figure is the chart, graph, photograph, drawing, or illustration itself.
• Legend: A figure legend, or key, if present, should be positioned within the borders of the figure and explain any symbols used in the figure image.
• Note: A note may appear below the figure to describe contents of the figure that cannot be understood from the figure title, image, and/or legend alone (e.g., definitions of abbreviations, copyright attribution). Not all figures include notes. Notes are flush left, non-italicised. If present they begin with Note. (italicised, period ending). The notes area will include reference information if not an original figure, and copyright information as required.

General rules

• In the text, refer to every figure by its number, no italics, but with a capital "F" for "Figure". For example, "As shown in Figure 1, ..." 
• There are two options for the placement of figures in a paper. The first option is to place all figures on separate pages after the reference list. The second option is to embed each figure within the text.
• If you reproduce or adapt a figure from another source (e.g., an image you found on the internet), you should include a copyright attribution in the figure note, indicating the origin of the reproduced or adapted material, in addition to a reference list entry for the work. Include a permission statement (Reprinted or Adapted with permission) only if you have sought and obtained permission to reproduce or adapt material in your figure. A permission statement is not required for material in the public domain or openly licensed material. For student course work, AUT assignments and internal assessments, a permission statement is also not needed, but copyright attribution is still required.
• Important note for postgraduate students and researchers: If you wish to reproduce or adapt figures that you did not create yourself in your thesis, dissertation, exegesis, or other published work, you must obtain permission from the copyright holder/s, unless the figure is in the public domain (copyright free), or licensed for use with a Creative Commons or other open license. Works under a  Creative Commons licence  should be cited accordingly. See Using works created by others for more information. 

Please check the APA style website for an illustration of the basic figure component & placement of figure in a text.

More information & examples from the   APA Style Manual , s. 7.22-7.36,    pp. 225–250

Figure reproduced in your text

Note format - for notes below the figure

In-text citation:

Reference list entry:

Referring to a figure in a book

If you refer to a figure included in a book but do not include it in your text, format the in-text citation and the reference list entry in the usual way, citing the page number where the figure appears.

Note format -  for notes below the figure

Referring to a figure in an article

If you refer to a figure in an article but do not include it in your text, format the in-text citation and the reference list entry in the usual way for an article, citing the page number where the figure appears.

Note format - for notes below the figure

Reference list:

Referring to a figure on a webpage

If you refer to a figure on a webpage and do not include it in your text, format the in-text citation and the reference list entry in the usual way for a webpage,

Not every reference to an artwork needs a reference list entry. For example, if you refer to a famous painting, as below, it would not need a reference.

Finding image details for your figure caption or reference

• clicking on or hovering your mouse over the image
• looking at the bottom of the image
• looking at the URL
• If there is no title, create a short descriptive one yourself and put it in square brackets e.g. [...]
• For more guidance, see Visual works

If it has been formally published reference your work as you would any other published work.

If the work is available on a website reference it as a webpage (see examples in the webpage section ).

Citing your own figures, graphs or images in an assignment:

• Include the title
• Add a note explaining the content. No copyright attribution is required.
• You can, if you wish, add a statement that it is your own work
• You do not need an in-text citation or add it to your reference list
• See example in APA manual p.247, Figure 7.17 Sample photograph

Great Barrier Island 

Note. Photo of Great Barrier Island taken from Orewa at sunrise. Own work.

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• URL: https://aut.ac.nz.libguides.com/APA7th

University Libraries      University of Nevada, Reno

• Skill Guides
• Subject Guides

APA Citation Guide (7th Edition): Figures and Tables

• Audiovisual Media
• Books and eBooks
• Dictionaries, Thesauruses and Encyclopedias
• Figures and Tables
• Government Documents
• Journal, Magazine and Newspaper Articles
• Personal Communications
• Presentations and Class Notes
• Social Media
• Websites and Webpages
• Generative AI
• In-Text Citation
• Reference List and Sample Papers
• Annotated Bibliography
• Citation Software

General Rules

Figures and tables enable authors to present a large amount of information efficiently and to make their data more understandable.

• There are two options for the placement of figures   and tables in a paper. The first option is to place all figures/tables on separate pages after the reference list. The second option is to embed each figure/table within the text.
• As shown in Figure 1 ....
• ... the results of the experiment (see Table 1).
• Each figure and table needs to be numbered in the order in which they appear in the document, e.g., Table 1, Table 2.
• Figures and tables may not have a set title . If this is the case, give a description of the figure or table where you would normally put the title.

Figures and Tables are covered in Chapter 7 of the APA Publication Manual , Seventh Edition.

Copyright Issues

Reproducing figures & tables.

Reproducing happens when you copy or recreate a figure or table that is not your original creation. If you reproduce one of these works in your assignment, you must create a note underneath the figure or table to show where you found it. You do not include this information in a Reference list.

How to Determine Usage Rights on Google

If you are searching for images on Google, after your search, click the Images tab > Tools > Usage Rights > Creative Commons Licenses

For more information on copyright, please visit our guide Copyright 101 .

Figures Defined

Any type of illustration or image other than a table is referred to as a figure. A figure may be a chart, a graph, a photograph, a drawing, an infographic, etc.

Figure Components

• Number:  The figure number (e.g., Figure 1) appears above the figure in bold font.
• Title:  The figure title appears below the figure number in italic title case. There should be one double-spaced line between the figure number and the figure title.
• Image:  The image part of the figure is the photograph, chart , graph, drawing, illustration, etc.
• Legend:  The figure legend, if present, explains any symbols used in the figure image.
• Note:  There are three types of figure notes: general, specific, and probability. They appear below the figure and explain parts of the figure that cannot be explained from the figure title, image, or legend. For example, figure notes can be definitions of abbreviations, copyright attributions, etc. A figure may not require notes.

Figure Examples

The American Psychological Association created a helpful website called APA Style. On this website, there are several figure samples which illustrate how to set up figures in APA Style.

Tables Defined

Tables are visual displays composed of columns and rows in which numbers, text, or a combination of numbers and text are presented.

Table Components

• Number : The table number (e.g., Table 1) appears above the table title in bold font. 
• Title : The table title appears below the table number in italic title case. There should be one double-spaced line between the table number and the table title.
• Headings : All tables should include column headings, including a stub heading (heading for the leftmost, or stub, column). Center column headings and capitalize them in sentence case.
• Body : The table body includes the rows and columns of a table. It may be single, 1.5, or double-spaced.
• Note : There are three types of table notes: general, specific, and probability. Table notes appear below the table as needed to describe table content that can't be understood from the title, table body, or legend. Not all tables include notes.

Table Examples

The American Psychological Association created a helpful website called APA Style. On this website, there are table samples which illustrate how to set up tables in APA Style.

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Tips for Citing Figures and Tables in a Manuscript

During the preparation of your research article or thesis, you may choose to include figures and tables to illustrate key points. Similar to using information from a journal or other source, it is important that these items are correctly cited and listed in the references. If you created the table or image yourself, you would not include it in the reference list. You need to refer to the table or image two times. First, there should be, a brief mention of the table or figure in the text preceding its placement in your document. This should explain why the table or image was included or what major point the table or image is helping you to make. Just above the table or image, there should be an appropriate, descriptive title. The title should help the reader make sense of the information in the table or image.

If you are writing a thesis and there are many tables or figures, you would create a List of Figures and a List of Tables with their associated page numbers. Tables and scientific figures you have created would be included in these lists but excluded from your reference list. If you create a table based on data from other sources, the accompanying caption should detail the sources used. It may be appropriate, to use superscript numbers or letters to allow your readers to identify exactly which article or book each item in your table was first presented in, especially if this table was created using data from many sources. Again, depending on the format , you may be able to use the first column in your table to list the reference associated with data in each row.

Citing Others’ Tables

You may also choose to include scientific tables in your writing that have been obtained from other sources. In this case, in addition to mentioning the diagram in the text and giving it a descriptive caption, it would also need to be cited in the reference list. There are many variations in the way this is done so it is best to consult the style guide prescribed by the journal for which you are writing. This will help you to conform exactly to their preferences.

In general, the descriptive title will be placed near the table (either immediately above or below it, depending on the style used). The tables should be numbered sequentially. There should be an indication of the source of the table which may be included below the table. The information concerning the source should be enough to allow the reader to find the original source of the diagram. The author(s), year of publication, and the journal or book in which it was published should be included. If the scholarly article being written is made publicly available, then you should obtain permission from the original authors to reprint their data. The fact that you have permission to use the diagram should be included in the note below the table.

Note . Reprinted from “Title of Article,” by A. Surname, Year,  Journal Title, Volume (issue), page number. Copyright (year) by title of publisher.

Note.  Reprinted from  Title of Book  (p. xx), by A. Surname, Year, Place of Publication: Publisher. Copyright (year) by title of publisher.

If the diagram was obtained online, similar details will need to be provided along with the website from which the diagram was retrieved.

Note . A. Surname. (Year). Title of Webpage . [Table] Retrieved from http://www.sourceofdata.com .

The third place where the table should be mentioned is in the reference list. Much like the note below the table, as much detail as possible should be presented in the reference list. The only difference is that the phrase “reprinted from” would be excluded.

For example:

Surname, A. A., (year). Title of article.  Title of Journal, volume (issue) ,  page(s). Retrieved from URL (if the article was obtained online. Otherwise, this section would be omitted).

Citing Images

The purpose of citing an image, similar to citing a table, is to give credit to the original author for their work and allow your readers to find the original image. Like tables, images should be mentioned three times. The descriptive title and presentation in the reference list are similar to what is required for tables. The caption revealing the source is still placed below the image but the information in the caption can vary depending on your style guide.

Figure 1:   Questions the Literature Review can Answer (The Learning Centre 2007)  

Figure X . Descriptive title for figure. Reprinted from “Title of Article,” by A. Author, B. Author, and C. D. Author, Year,  Journal Title, Volume (issue), page number. Copyright (year) by title of publisher.

Figure X.  Descriptive title for figure. Reprinted from  Title of Book  (p. xx), by E. F. Author, Year, Place of Publication: Publisher. Copyright (year) by title of publisher.

Figure X.  Title of Image. Reprinted [or adapted] from  Title of Website,  by A. A. Author and B. B. Author, Year, Retrieved from URL. Copyright (year) by title of publisher.

Many authors are familiar with citing the ideas of others using a preferred citation style such as American Psychological Association’s style guide (APA) or the Chicago Manual of Style (CMOS). It is important to remember that photographs, diagrams, comic strips, and tables also represent intellectual property and need to be cited. The key to proper citation is to determine which reference citation style is preferred by the academic journal or university that you are writing for. Following that citation style guide closely will ensure that your diagrams are cited with the same level of precision as other ideas in your text.

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APA Citation Style, 7th edition: Figures

• General Style Guidelines
• One Author or Editor
• Two Authors or Editors
• Three to Five Authors or Editors
• Article or Chapter in an Edited Book
• Article in a Reference Book
• Edition other than the First
• Translation
• Government Publication
• Journal Article with 1 Author
• Journal Article with 2 Authors
• Journal Article with 3–20 Authors
• Journal Article 21 or more Authors
• Magazine Article
• Newspaper Article
• Basic Web Page
• Web page from a University site
• Web Page with No Author
• Entry in a Reference Work
• Government Document
• Film and Television
• Youtube Video
• Audio Podcast
• Electronic Image
• Twitter/Instagram
• Lecture/PPT
• Conferences
• Secondary Sources
• Citation Support
• Avoiding Plagiarism
• Formatting Your Paper

About Citing Sources

For each type of source in this guide, both the general form and an example will be provided.

The following format will be used:

In-Text Citation (Paraphrase) - entry that appears in the body of your paper when you express the ideas of a researcher or author using your own words.  For more tips on paraphrasing check out The OWL at Purdue .

In-Text Citation (Quotation) - entry that appears in the body of your paper after a direct quote.

References - entry that appears at the end of your paper.

When you use a figure in your paper that has been adapted or copied directly from another source, you need to reference the original source.  This reference appears as a caption underneath the figure that you copied or adapted for your paper.

Any image that is reproduced from another source also needs to come with copyright permission; it is not enough just to cite the source.

• Number figures consecutively throughout your paper.
• Figures should be labeled "Figure (number)" ABOVE the figure.
• Double-space the caption that appears under a figure.

General Format 1 (Figure from a Book):

Subject Guide

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How to Cite Figures in APA

Last Updated: April 4, 2024 Fact Checked

This article was co-authored by wikiHow Staff . Our trained team of editors and researchers validate articles for accuracy and comprehensiveness. wikiHow's Content Management Team carefully monitors the work from our editorial staff to ensure that each article is backed by trusted research and meets our high quality standards. There are 7 references cited in this article, which can be found at the bottom of the page. This article has been fact-checked, ensuring the accuracy of any cited facts and confirming the authority of its sources. This article has been viewed 191,310 times. Learn more...

Figures like a chart, graph, or image are great sources when you want to support your ideas in an essay or paper. You may need to cite figures in APA for an essay or paper for a class. Whether you are citing a figure from a book, an article, or a website, you can create a citation and format it properly in APA in just a few simple steps.

Creating the Citation

• For example, if the figure is the first figure to appear in the paper, you would start the citation with, “ Figure 1 .” If the figure is the fourth figure to appear in the paper, the citation would start with, “ Figure 4 .”

• For example, if you are citing a graph with statistics, you may write, “Graph of statistics on household income in Canada in 2010.” Or if you are citing an image, you may write, “Black and white photograph of Martha Graham in the Vienna Performance Hall.”

• For example, you may write in a citation for a book, “Reprinted from The Life of Martha Graham (p 84).”
• For a citation for an article, you may write, “Adapted from ‘Statistics Canada Reveals Shift in Census.’”
• If you are citing a figure from a website, you may write, “Reprinted from The Huffington Post.”

• For example, you may write, “...by K.L. Lee” or “...by B. Lork and M. Casper.”

• If you are using an article reference, include the year the article was published as well as the name of the journal and the number of the volume where the article appears in italics. List the page number where you found the figure in the article as well.
• For example, you may write, “2017, Statistics Canada , 56 , p. 103” or “2002, Children Today , 14 , p. 90.”
• If the reference is a website, note the year the figure was published on the website, if available. If it is not available, use “n.d.” for “no date.” Then, note, “Retrieved from” and the URL of the website.
• For example, you may write, “2008, Retrieved from http://www.statisticscanada.com” or “n.d., Retrieved from http://www.childrentoday.org.”

• For example, you may write, “Copyright 217 by the Statistics Canada Bureau” or “Copyright 2012 by the Children Choice Organization.”
• If you cannot find copyright information for the figure, you can leave this information out.

• A complete citation for a figure from a book would be: “ Figure 1 . Black and white photograph of Martha Graham in the Vienna Performance Hall. Reprinted from The Life of Martha Graham (p 84), by K.L. Lee, 2008, New York, NY: Homer Press. Copyright 2008 by the Modern Dance School.”
• A complete citation for a figure from an article would be: “ Figure 4 . Graph of statistics on household income in Canada in 2010. Adapted from ‘Statistics Canada Reveals Shift in Census,’ by B.Lork and M.Casper, 2017, Statistics Canada , 56 , p. 103. Copyright 217 by the Statistics Canada Bureau.”
• A complete citation for a figure from a website would be: “ Figure 6 . Drawing of a child playing with plastic toys. Reprinted from Children Today, n.d., Retrieved from https://www.childrentoday.org/ . Copyright 2008 by Joan Lee.”

Formatting the Citation

• For example, you may write, “ Figure 4 . Graph of statistics on household income in Canada in 2010. Adapted from ‘Statistics Canada Reveals Shift in Census,’ by B.Lork and M.Casper, 2017, Statistics Canada , 56 , p. 103. Copyright 217 by the Statistics Canada Bureau. Reprinted with permission.”

• For example, a citation in your Reference List for a book would be, "Lee, K.L. 2008. The Life of Martha Graham. New York, NY: Homer Press."

Community Q&A

• You can also cite figures in MLA style for an essay, paper, or class. Thanks Helpful 0 Not Helpful 0

You Might Also Like

• ↑ https://www.lib.sfu.ca/help/cite-write/citation-style-guides/apa/tables-figures
• ↑ https://owl.purdue.edu/owl/research_and_citation/apa_style/apa_formatting_and_style_guide/apa_tables_and_figures.html
• ↑ https://guides.himmelfarb.gwu.edu/APA/image-figure
• ↑ https://aut.ac.nz.libguides.com/APA7th/figures
• ↑ https://guides.himmelfarb.gwu.edu/c.php?g=27779&p=170358
• ↑ http://guides.lib.monash.edu/citing-referencing/apa-tables-figures
• ↑ https://ggu.libguides.com/c.php?g=106881&p=694051

About This Article

To cite a figure in APA, start by inserting the figure into your paper and placing the citation right below it. Begin each citation with “Figure” and the number of the figure in italics. Next, include a brief explanation of what the figure refers to, such as “Graph of statistics on household income in 2010.” Then, write “Reprinted from,” followed by the source and page number where you found the figure. Additionally, include the author’s first and last name, if applicable, and the copyright information. To learn how to cite the source of a figure in your paper’s reference list, keep reading. Did this summary help you? Yes No

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APA Contents

• Introduction to APA style
• In-Text Citations
• Abbreviations
• Audio and Visual media
• Journals/periodicals
• Tables and figures
• Sample reference list

Notes: Follow these examples closely for all layout, punctuation, spacing, capitalizing and italicizing.

When including a figure or a table from another source in your work, it is important to include appropriate citations. 

• Tables are numerical values or text displayed in rows and columns.
• Figures are other illustrations such as graphs, charts, maps, drawings, photographs etc.
• All Tables and Figures must be referred to in the main body of the text.
• Number all Tables and Figures in the order they first appear in the text. 
• Refer to them in the text by their number. For example:

As shown in Table 2 ...

As illustrated in Figure 3 ...

• Each table or figure should be titled and captioned.
• For images, photos and paintings see Audio and Visual media in this guide
• For further information see Digital images  and Copyright .

Tables reproduced in your text:

• Each table should be displayed with a brief explanatory title. 
• You must include a caption beneath the table . Use the following format - this format differs from the reference list format.  See note at bottom of this page regarding copyright permissions if  publishing  a table or a figure.
• For other  examples of tables  see APA Style Central.

Figures reproduced in your text

• Each figure should be displayed with a brief explanatory title . eg. Figure 3. Complex Theoretical Formulations
• You must include a caption beneath the figure . Use the following format - references for figures are not required in your reference list.
• For examples of figures see APA Style Central

Capstone Form and Style

Tables and figures: figures.

In APA style, a figure is any representation of information that does not use rows and columns (e.g., a line graph, map, or photograph).

Keep the following in mind when including a figure in your capstone manuscript:

• The figure number, in bold text, belongs above the figure, flush left.
• The figure title belongs one double-spaced line below the figure number. The title should be in title case and italics. The title is double-spaced unless it is more than one line long (in which case, it is single-spaced).
• Color can be used in the figure if it is necessary for understanding the material. See APA 7, Section 7.26 for guidelines.
• Notes can appear below the figure to describe the contents of the figure that cannot be understood from the figure title (e.g., definitions of abbreviations, explanations of shading, and citations).
• If you are using data from a source in your figure, be sure to cite the source underneath the figure description. See our page on Citing Sources for Tables and Figures for examples.

For more on figures, see APA 7, Sections 7.22-7.36. (Note that APA 6 recommend significantly different formatting of the figure number and title.)

Examples of Figures

In this example, the writer created the figure using statistics from a journal article.

Clergy Demographics of Study Participants

Note. From “Predicting the Mental Health Literacy of Clergy: An Informational Resource for Counselors,” by J. D. Vermaas, J. Green, M. Haley, and L. Haddock, 2017,  Journal of Mental Health Counseling ,  39 (3), p. 231.

The following is an example of a figure the writer created from their own original data.

Number of Hours of Television Watched Per Week by Age Group

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Why Do We Cite Figures?

Determining ownership, guide to citing figures, citing figures infographic.

• Works Cited Page

We use images every day in all kinds of ways and the Internet, social media and smart devices make it super easy to share them. When using figures that you have not created in your work, it's important to label them and cite them, not only to avoid plagiarism and fulfill academic integrity, but also to allow your reader to easily find the item referenced within your work or from its original source.

Examples of Figures

• Images (snapshots, paintings, memes, etc)
• Frequency histograms
• Scatterplots
• Screenshots

Clarifying how and what illustrations and images you can use for your class work, senior thesis, or first publication can be a challenging process. It can often seem like a moving target, as laws and policies can differ by intended use, by country, or by type of ownership. 

Before using any image in an academic publication, you must determine its source and any use restrictions in place. Whether an image falls under copyright restriction or not, you must credit the source. If you are unsure about you can always ask your subject librarian, or your professor who can help you one-on-one.

The best option is to create or use an illustration/image that you create and therefore would own the copyright to yourself.

• Guide to Using and Citing Illustrations and Images in Your Thesis Use this guide to help walk you through how to cite figures in your work. Created by Jennifer Beamer, Scholarly Communications Librarian.

• << Previous: Important to Know
• Next: Works Cited Page >>
• : Oct 10, 2023 10:26 AM
• URL: https://libguides.libraries.claremont.edu/mla

Home / Guides / Citation Guides / APA Format / How to Cite a Thesis or Dissertation in APA

How to Cite a Thesis or Dissertation in APA

In this citation guide, you will learn how to reference and cite an undergraduate thesis, master’s thesis, or doctoral dissertation. This guide will also review the differences between a thesis or dissertation that is published and one that has remained unpublished. The guidelines below come from the 7th edition of the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association (2020a), pages 333 and 334. Please note that the association is not affiliated with this guide.

Alternatively, you can visit EasyBib.com for helpful citation tools to cite your thesis or dissertation .

Guide Overview

Citing an unpublished thesis or dissertation, citing a published dissertation or thesis from a database, citing a thesis or dissertation published online but not from a database, citing a thesis or dissertation: reference overview, what you need.

Since unpublished theses can usually only be sourced in print form from a university library, the correct citation structure includes the university name where the publisher element usually goes.

Author’s last name, F. M. (Year published). Title in sentence case [Unpublished degree type thesis or dissertation]. Name of institution.

Ames, J. H., & Doughty, L. H. (1911). The proposed plans for the Iowa State College athletic field including the design of a reinforced concrete grandstand and wall [Unpublished bachelor’s thesis]. Iowa State University.

In-text citation example:

• Parenthetical :  (Ames & Doughty, 1911)
• Narrative :  Ames & Doughty (1911)

If a thesis or dissertation has been published and is found on a database, then follow the structure below. It’s similar to the format for an unpublished dissertation/thesis, but with a few differences:

• The institution is presented in brackets after the title
• The archive or database name is included

Author’s last name, F. M. (Year published). Title in sentence case (Publication or Document No.) [Degree type thesis or dissertation, Name of institution]. Database name.

Examples 1:

Knight, K. A. (2011). Media epidemics: Viral structures in literature and new media (Accession No. 2013420395) [Doctoral dissertation, University of California, Santa Barbara]. ProQuest Dissertations Publishing.

Trotman, J.B. (2018). New insights into the biochemistry and cell biology of RNA recapping (Document No. osu1523896565730483) [Doctoral dissertation, Ohio State University]. OhioLINK Electronic Theses & Dissertations Center.

In the example given above, the dissertation is presented with a Document Number (Document No.). Sometimes called a database number or publication number, this is the identifier that is used by the database’s indexing system. If the database you are using provides you with such a number, then include it directly after the work’s title in parentheses.

If you are interested in learning more about how to handle works that were accessed via academic research databases, see Section 9.3 of the Publication Manual.

In-text citation examples :

• Parenthetical citation : (Trotman, 2018)
• Narrative citation : Trotman (2018)

Author’s last name, F. M. (Year Published). Title in sentence case [Degree type thesis or dissertation, Name of institution]. Name of archive or collection. URL

Kim, O. (2019). Soviet tableau: cinema and history under late socialism [Doctoral dissertation, University of Pittsburgh]. Institutional Repository at the University of Pittsburgh. https://d-scholarship.pitt.edu/37669/7/Olga%20Kim%20Final%20ETD.pdf

Stiles, T. W. (2001). Doing science: Teachers’ authentic experiences at the Lone Star Dinosaur Field Institute [Master’s thesis, Texas A&M University]. OAKTrust. https://hdl.handle.net/1969.1/ETD-TAMU-2001-THESIS-S745

It is important to note that not every thesis or dissertation published online will be associated with a specific archive or collection. If the work is published on a private website, provide only the URL as the source element.

In-text citation examples:

• Parenthetical citation : (Kim, 2019)
• Narrative citation : Kim (2019)
• Parenthetical citation : (Stiles, 2001)
• Narrative citation : Stiles (2001)

We hope that the information provided here will serve as an effective guide for your research. If you’re looking for even more citation info, visit EasyBib.com for a comprehensive collection of educational materials covering multiple source types.

If you’re citing a variety of different sources, consider taking the EasyBib citation generator for a spin. It can help you cite easily and offers citation forms for several different kinds of sources.

To start things off, let’s take a look at the different types of literature that are classified under Chapter 10.6 of the Publication Manual :

• Undergraduate thesis
• Master’s thesis
• Doctoral dissertation

You will need to know which type you are citing. You’ll also need to know if it is published or unpublished .

When you decide to cite a dissertation or thesis, you’ll need to look for the following information to use in your citation:

• Author’s last name, and first and middle initials
• Year published
• Title of thesis or dissertation
• If it is unpublished
• Publication or document number (if applicable; for published work)
• Degree type (bachelor’s, master’s, doctoral)
• Thesis or dissertation
• Name of institution awarding degree
• DOI (https://doi.org/xxxxx) or URL (if applicable)

Since theses and dissertations are directly linked to educational degrees, it is necessary to list the name of the associated institution; i.e., the college, university, or school that is awarding the associated degree.

To get an idea of the proper form, take a look at the examples below. There are three outlined scenarios:

• Unpublished thesis or dissertation
• Published thesis or dissertation from a database
• Thesis or dissertation published online but not from a database

American Psychological Association. (2020a). Publication manual of the American Psychological Association (7th ed.). https://doi.org/10.1037/0000165-000

American Psychological Association. (2020b). Style-Grammar-Guidelines. https://apastyle.apa.org/style-grammar-guidelines/citations/basic-principles/parenthetical-versus-narrative

Published August 10, 2012. Updated March 24, 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.

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To cite a published thesis in APA style, it is important that you know some basic information such as the author, publication year, title of the thesis, institute name, archive name, and URL (uniform resource locator). The templates for an in-text citation and reference list entry of a thesis, along with examples, are given below:

In-text citation template and example:

Use the author surname and the publication year in the in-text citation.

Author Surname (Publication Year)

Cartmel (2007)

Parenthetical:

(Author Surname, Publication Year)

(Cartmel, 2007)

Reference list entry template and example:

The title of the thesis is set in sentence case and italicized. Enclose the thesis and the institute awarding the degree inside brackets following the publication year. Then add the name of the database followed by the URL.

Author Surname, F. M. (Publication Year). Title of the thesis [Master’s thesis, Institute Name]. Name of the Database. URL

Cartmel, J. (2007). Outside school hours care and schools [Master’s thesis, Queensland University of Technology]. EPrints. http://eprints.qut.edu.au/17810/1/Jennifer_Cartmel_Thesis.pdf

To cite an unpublished dissertation in APA style, it is important that you know some basic information such as the author, year, title of the dissertation, and institute name. The templates for in-text citation and reference list entry of an online thesis, along with examples, are given below:

Author Surname (Year)

Averill (2009)

(Author Surname, Year)

(Averill, 2009)

The title of the dissertation is set in sentence case and italicized. Enclose “Unpublished doctoral dissertation” inside brackets following the year. Then add the name of the institution awarding the degree.

Author Surname, F. M. (Publication Year). Title of the dissertation [Unpublished doctoral dissertation]. Name of the Institute.

Averill, R. (2009). Teacher–student relationships in diverse New Zealand year 10 mathematics classrooms: Teacher care [Unpublished doctoral dissertation]. Victoria University of Wellington.

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Tables, figures, and equations are the three categories of extra-textual items that require numbering and labelling. Each should be numbered consecutively throughout the paper – i.e., the numbering system does not start over in a new section or in an appendix, but simply continues on. For instance, if you have four figures in Section I, the first figure in Section II is simply Fig. 5, not Fig. II-1 or similar. The numbering of figures does not impact the numbering of tables or equations, but each category is numbered independently – e.g., if you have three figures and then a table, that table is still Table I, not Table IV.

Please note that tables, figures, and equations should always be introduced within the body of the paper before you show the actual table / figure / equation. If the data, or the figure itself, comes from an outside source, you should cite that source when you introduce the table / figure / equation. Moreover, you should follow the table / figure / equation with some form of explanation or connection to the broader point of your paper. In the case of equations, it is of primary importance to insure that, at some point in either the introduction or the explanation of the equation, you define the symbols used. No matter how self-explanatory an expression like φ 2 = 3*ξ  may seem, if your reader doesn’t know what φ  and ξ  signify, you may as well be typing nonsense.

In this context, “table” refers exclusively to data laid out in a grid format; if the data is rendered into a graph or other more visual format, that is a figure. In formatting tables, vertical lines are optional, and double horizontal lines may be used to signify the beginning and end of the table. Some horizontal lines may be removed if they are not necessary to understanding the table.

The table is labelled with the same format as a section or appendix heading, along with a title. Note that tables are enumerated with Roman numerals. Below the table, you may include explanatory notes as necessary; notes that apply to a specific part of the table should be marked in the same manner as a footnote, but notes that apply to the whole table are merely treated as captions.

See below for an example of what a table might look like in an IEEE paper. Note that this image (as well as the other ones on this page) have been zoomed in for clarity and detail.

Example of a table in an IEEE paper. Note the small caps formatting for the table's title and the presence of a note underneath the table in a "caption" position.

“Figure” is a broad term that covers any image, graph, diagram, etc. that is neither a “table” nor an “equation”. Please note that these should always simply be referred to as “figures” – IEEE format does not recognize labels such as “graph 1”.

Unlike tables, the label for a figure goes below the figure. It is in sentence case, rather than small caps, and does not include line breaks. The format is as follows: “Fig.”, followed by the number, then a period and an em space, followed by the title for the figure. It is recommended that figures be titled in an informative manner that includes what/where/when information. For instance, an effective title might be something like “Fig. 3. Number of citation errors in undergraduate papers at Purdue University, 2005-2015.”

If parts of the figure are labeled specifically, this should be done with a lowercase letter within parentheses. The explanation of those labels should be included in the label for the overall figure. See the following example:

Example of a figure in an IEEE paper. Note that the caption formatting differs from the formatting for a table note.

It is acceptable to use the built-in functions of your word processor to create equations, but there are a few elements of the process that require your attention. First, note that while variables and numbers should be italicized, the following elements of equations should be set in roman type: function names, units, words, and abbreviations thereof.

Equations are centered on the page and labeled with Arabic numerals, right-aligned, in parentheses, and referred to only by those numbers in the text – e.g., you should always say “as seen in (3)” rather than “as seen in Equation (3)”. The only exception to this is if the equation number would begin a sentence, in which case you can say “Equation (3) shows…” in order to avoid the awkwardness of beginning a sentence with a numeral.

Example of an equation in an IEEE paper. Note that the equation has been written using Microsoft Word's built-in "insert equation" feature.

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High Energy Physics - Theory

Title: ads_2/cft_1 at finite density and holographic aspects of 2d black holes.

Abstract: In the present thesis, we study various models of 2D dilaton gravity known as JT gravity coupled with non-trivial gauge interactions (for instance $SU(2)$ Yang-Mills, quartic interactions between $U(1)$ gauge fields and Modmax interactions etc.). In particular, we investigate the effects of the non-trivial gauge couplings on the thermal properties of black holes and wormholes in two dimensions and compute various physical observables like entropy, free energy, etc. Further, we examine the possibilities of the Hawking-Page transition and wormhole to black hole phase transition in two dimensions. In addition, we also study the transformation properties of boundary stress-energy tensor under the diffeomorphism and $U(1)$ gauge transformation and hence compute the central charge associated with the 1D boundary theory.

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