Writing & research
Citations and references
Once a source is in the essay library, EssayGenius can format citations and references automatically. The important part is that the citation system stays tied to source metadata, not to manually typed reference text.
Insert a citation from the editor
Place the cursor where the citation belongs or select the text you want to support. Then use the floating toolbar or the citation shortcut to pick one of the sources already attached to the essay.
Choose the citation style for the essay
EssayGenius currently supports APA 7, MLA 9, Chicago 17, Chicago 17 Notes, Harvard, and IEEE. Change the style in essay settings and existing citations will reformat automatically.
Let the references build from what you actually cited
Bibliographies and reference lists are generated from cited sources only, not from every source sitting in the sidebar. If a source was added but never cited, it does not appear in the final list. MLA uses a Works Cited heading, while most other styles use References.
Know the Chicago Notes difference
If the essay uses Chicago 17 Notes, citations are inserted as footnotes rather than inline parenthetical citations. EssayGenius keeps the note numbers in the text and builds the note list at the bottom of the essay for you.
Fix the source, not the output. If a reference looks wrong, edit the source metadata in the sidebar. That keeps inline citations, footnotes, and the final bibliography consistent everywhere.