Harvard Citation Generator
Generate Harvard-style references with "Available at" URLs, accessed dates and author-date in-text citations for six source types.
Results
The 7ESL Harvard Citation Generator produces author-date references in the widely taught "Cite Them Right" form of Harvard style — the default at many UK, Irish and Australian universities. Enter the source and it builds the reference with the year in brackets straight after the author, italic titles, "edn." for editions, "Available at:" before URLs, and the "(Accessed: 5 March 2024)" note that web sources require — plus the in-text citation in both parenthetical and narrative form.
Harvard rules the tool applies for you
Authors are inverted with initials — "Nguyen, T." — and up to three authors are written out in full, joined by "and"; four or more shorten to the first author plus "et al." both in the reference list and in-text. Article and chapter titles sit in single quotation marks while the journal or book title takes italics, in the pattern 'Article title', Journal Name, 12(3), pp. 45-67. Dates are written day-month-year with the month in full, and web sources end with "Available at:" plus the URL and an accessed date in brackets.
One Harvard, many versions
Unlike APA or MLA, "Harvard" is not governed by a single official manual — universities publish their own variants that differ in small details such as punctuation after the year or whether the accessed date is required. This tool follows the most widely taught version (Cite Them Right, as used by many university libraries). Always skim your department's referencing guide and adjust details if yours differs; the structure and order of elements will almost always match what this tool produces.
Frequently asked questions
Which version of Harvard does this follow?
The widely taught "Cite Them Right" form used by many university libraries in the UK, Ireland and Australia. Harvard has no single official manual, so check your department's guide for small local differences.
How are in-text citations written in Harvard?
Author and year in brackets — (Nguyen, 2024) — or the narrative form, Nguyen (2024), when the author is part of your sentence. Add a page for direct quotes: (Nguyen, 2024, p. 23).
How many authors before "et al."?
Up to three authors are written out in full. Four or more shorten to the first author plus "et al." in both the reference list and the in-text citation.
Do web sources need an accessed date?
Yes — Harvard web references end with "Available at:" plus the URL and "(Accessed: 5 March 2024)". Fill in the accessed-date field and the generator formats it for you.
Is Harvard the same as APA?
They are both author-date systems and look similar, but details differ: Harvard uses "Available at:", single quotes around article titles, "edn." for editions and full month names, while APA 7 has its own rules. Use the style your course names.