# How to insert a citation in Word on Mac: step by step in Microsoft 365 > How to insert a citation in Word on Mac: pick a style, click Insert Citation, add the source, and reuse it later with the References tab. URL: https://www.lazur.app/how-to/insert-a-citation-in-word Updated: 2026-11-07 To insert a citation in Word on Mac, open the References tab, click where the citation belongs, then choose Insert Citation and Add New Source. Word keeps each source on your Mac, so you can reuse it in any document. ## Quick answer - Choose your style first from the Style arrow in the Citations & Bibliography group on the References tab. - Click where the citation goes, then choose Insert Citation, Add New Source, and fill in Create Source. - Use Add New Placeholder when you lack details, then finish it in Manage Sources before you submit. - To reuse a source, click Citations on the References tab and double-click it in the Citations pane. - Word for the web cannot add citations, so do this in the Word app on your Mac. Applies to: Word for Mac (Microsoft 365 and Word 2019 for Mac). Time: 10 min. Difficulty: Easy. ## What you need - Word for Mac with the References tab, such as Microsoft 365 or Word 2019 for Mac - The Word app on your Mac, not Word for the web - The citation style your course, journal, or editor requires - A source with an author, a title, and a date, or a placeholder to finish later ## How to Insert a citation in Word on Mac in Word on a Mac 1. **Open the References tab.** (References) Open your document in the Word app on your Mac. Click the References tab in the ribbon at the top of the window. The Citations & Bibliography group holds the citation tools. Tip: Work in the Word app. Word for the web shows citations but cannot add them. 2. **Choose a citation style.** (References > Citations & Bibliography > Style) In the Citations & Bibliography group, click the Style arrow. Pick APA, MLA, or the style your course, journal, or editor requires. Tip: Pick the style before you cite, so each new citation follows the same format. 3. **Click at the end of the phrase.** Click in your text at the end of the sentence or phrase you want to support. Check your style guide for whether the citation goes before or after the final period. 4. **Open Insert Citation.** (References > Insert Citation) On the References tab, click Insert Citation. The menu lists sources you have already added, plus the option to add a new source. Tip: If you see a Citations button instead, it opens the Citations pane, where you reuse sources. 5. **Choose Add New Source.** (References > Insert Citation > Add New Source) Select Add New Source. Word opens the Create Source box. If you do not have the details yet, choose Add New Placeholder instead. 6. **Pick the Type of Source.** (Create Source > Type of Source) In Create Source, open Type of Source and choose the type that fits, such as a book or a journal article. Then fill in the fields the box shows. Tip: Select Show All Bibliography Fields if the fields you need do not appear. 7. **Click OK.** (Create Source > OK) Click OK. Word places the citation at your cursor and saves the source on your Mac for use in later documents. Tip: Read the citation text in your document before you move on. 8. **Add the bibliography.** (References > Bibliography > Bibliography or Works Cited) Click where the list should go, usually after a page break. Click the arrow next to Bibliography on the References tab, then choose Bibliography or Works Cited. Tip: Choose Works Cited if your style uses that name for the list. 9. **Reuse a source later.** (References > Citations) Click at the new spot in your text. Click Citations on the References tab, then double-click the source in the Citations pane. Word inserts the citation again. ## Before you start: choose a citation style Start with the style, because Word uses it for every citation you add. Choose it before you cite anything. Open the References tab and find the Citations & Bibliography group. Click the Style arrow and pick APA, MLA, or the style your course, journal, or editor asks for. If you are not sure, ask before you write. Changing the style later means checking every citation again. > **Button names differ:** Microsoft's Mac page calls the button Citations. Its general pages say Citations & Bibliography. Both labels point at the same group on the References tab. ## Insert a citation for the first time in Word on Mac Click at the end of the sentence or phrase you want to support. Your style guide decides whether the citation goes before or after the final period, so check it first. Then click Insert Citation on the References tab and choose Add New Source. Word opens the Create Source box. Pick a Type of Source, such as a book or a journal article, and fill in the details. Click OK. Word places the citation at your cursor and keeps the source for later use. - Type of Source comes first. It decides which fields the box shows. - Author, title, and date appear in almost every style, so fill those in first. - Select Show All Bibliography Fields when the field you need does not appear. - Check the spelling of names and titles. A typo there carries into every later citation of that source. ![Person at a MacBook learning how to insert a citation in Word on Mac](https://images.lazur.app/content-images/howto/insert-a-citation-in-word/how-to-insert-a-citation-in-word-1-96b9f9.jpg) ## Add a placeholder when you do not have the details yet Sometimes you know you need a source but not its details yet. Choose Add New Placeholder instead of Add New Source. Word inserts a citation and marks the source with a question mark in Source Manager. Your sentence stays in place, so you can keep writing. Finish the source later. Open References > Citations & Bibliography > Manage Sources, select the placeholder under Current List, click Edit, enter the details, and click OK. The placeholder becomes a full source. Do not skip this step. A question mark in a submitted paper looks careless. ## Reuse a source you already cited You do not need to type a source twice. Click at the new spot in your text. Click Citations on the References tab. In the Citations pane, double-click the source you want. Word inserts it. If you prefer the ribbon, click at the end of the text, go to References > Citations & Bibliography > Insert Citations, and select the citation from the list. In a new document, Word shows sources you used before under Master List. Sources cited in this file appear under Current List. Use the Master List to find older sources, and the Current List to see what this file already uses. ## Find and edit sources in Manage Sources on Mac Open Manage Sources from the Citations pane. Click the three-dot or gear icon at the top of the pane, then choose Citation Source Manager. Guides disagree on which icon opens it, so look for the one that gives you the manager. Microsoft's Mac page calls the command Manage Sources. Inside the manager, select a source and click Edit to change its details, then click OK. You can also point to a source in the Citations pane, click its arrow, choose Edit Source, and click OK. The Mac manager has no search box, according to a 2023 answer on Microsoft's Q&A forum. Select any source in the list and type the first letter of the author's last name to jump to it. Browse imports another master list, such as one a colleague shares. ## Add the bibliography or Works Cited list A citation sits in your text. The bibliography sits at the end of the document and lists every source you cited. Click where the list should go, which is often after a page break. On the References tab, click the arrow next to Bibliography. Choose Bibliography or Works Cited. Word builds the list from your sources. Citations in Word are inline, not footnotes, so each reference sits in the text where you put it. After you change a source, check the list again so it matches your text. ![MacBook on a desk beside printed pages with references](https://images.lazur.app/content-images/howto/insert-a-citation-in-word/how-to-insert-a-citation-in-word-3-8e0c52.jpg) ## Worked example: a journal article in APA style Say you want to cite a journal article with one author. Set the style to APA first. Click at the end of the sentence that uses the idea. Choose Insert Citation, then Add New Source. In Create Source, set Type of Source to journal article. Enter the author, the article title, the journal name, and the date. Select OK, and Word places the in-text citation. Later, when you cite the same article again, use Citations and double-click the source. You will not retype the details. Check the result against your style guide, because the output depends on which fields you filled in. A missing journal name shows up in both the citation and the list. ## Common mistakes and how to avoid them - **26%** Citation error rate across pediatric orthopaedic journals, Davids et al., 2010 ([source](https://retractionwatch.com/2016/10/04/you-cited-which-paper-reference-errors-are-more-common-than-many-realize/)) - **38%** Median reference error rate in a 2008 Cochrane review of biomedical journals ([source](https://retractionwatch.com/2016/10/04/you-cited-which-paper-reference-errors-are-more-common-than-many-realize/)) Those numbers come from studies of journal articles, not from student files in Word. The 26% figure comes from Davids et al. (2010), on pediatric orthopaedic journals. The 38% median comes from a 2008 Cochrane review of biomedical journals. The two studies define errors differently, so do not compare them directly. The lesson for your own paper is simple. Enter each source once, then reuse it. - Setting the style after you add sources. Set it first, then cite. - Creating a new source for a work you already cited. Double-click the existing source in the Citations pane. - Clicking in the middle of a phrase. Click at the end, where your style guide wants the citation. - Submitting with placeholders. Search for question marks and finish each one. - Forgetting the list. Add the bibliography after your last citation, then check that it matches your text. ## Word for the web cannot add citations If you open your file in a browser, you can see existing citations, but you cannot add new ones. Microsoft's service description for Word for the web says it can view citations but not add them. In edit mode, citations and bibliographies appear as placeholders. You can delete them but not edit or update them. Open the file in the Word app on your Mac to add or change citations. You can then return to the browser to review the file. ## Version notes for current Word for Mac builds Microsoft's release notes for Office for Mac list Word for Mac version 16.114.3, build 26102720, dated October 27, 2026. That entry says quality and performance improvements. The part of the release notes we read does not mention citations. The steps here follow Microsoft's Mac citation page, which lists Word 2019 for Mac under Applies To. Menu labels can shift between builds. If a name differs, look for the same word on the References tab. ## Next steps once your citations are in With citations and the bibliography in place, the layout comes next. A table of contents helps readers move through a long paper. See [how to insert a table of contents in Word on Mac](https://www.lazur.app/how-to/insert-a-table-of-contents-in-word). Page numbers come next, in [how to add page numbers in Word on Mac](https://www.lazur.app/how-to/add-page-numbers-in-word). If an editor reviews the draft, [turn on Track Changes](https://www.lazur.app/how-to/turn-on-track-changes-in-word) before you send it. ## If it does not work - **My sources are missing from the Citations pane.** Click Citations on the References tab to open the pane. Sources cited in this file appear under Current List. Sources from earlier files appear under Master List. - **I cannot find a source in the Citation Source Manager on Mac.** The Mac manager has no search box, according to a 2023 Microsoft Q&A answer. Select any source in the list and type the first letter of the author's last name to jump to it. - **I need to fix a source after I inserted it.** Point to the source in the Citations pane, click its arrow, choose Edit Source, change the details, and click OK. You can also use Manage Sources on the References tab. - **Insert Citation does nothing in Word for the web.** Word for the web can view existing citations but cannot add them. Open the file in the Word app on your Mac and insert the citation there. - **A placeholder with a question mark is still in my file.** Open Manage Sources, select the placeholder under Current List, click Edit, complete the details, and click OK. - **I want to bring in sources from another reference tool.** Use Browse in Manage Sources to import a shared master list. Some guides copy a Sources.xml file into Word's Application Support folder. Those steps are unverified on current builds, so back up the existing file first. ## With Lazur Lazur is a voice assistant for the Mac that lives in the notch. Hold ⌥ ⌘ and ask; it sees your screen, answers out loud, points at buttons and walks you through apps. Hold fn to dictate. Free for 3 days, then $18/month: https://www.lazur.app/download - “Where is the Insert Citation button?”: Lazur circles the Insert Citation button on screen and labels it, so you can find it and click it yourself. (Points at it) ## FAQ ### Is there a keyboard shortcut for inserting a citation in Word on Mac? Microsoft's citation pages do not list one, so these steps use the References tab and the mouse. Check Microsoft's support site for newer builds before you rely on a shortcut. ### Can I insert a citation in Word for the web? No. Word for the web can display citations that already exist, but it cannot add new ones. Open the file in the Word app on your Mac to add them. ### What is the difference between a citation and a bibliography? A citation is the short reference inside your text. The bibliography, sometimes called Works Cited, sits at the end and lists each source. Word citations are inline, not footnotes. ### Where does Word keep my sources? Word saves sources on your computer, so you can reuse them across documents. Sources you used before appear under Master List in a new document. ### Do I need Microsoft 365 to insert citations? Microsoft's Mac page lists Word 2019 for Mac under Applies To, so older versions can work too. If your menus look different, check your version under Word > About Word. ### Can I change the style after I add citations? Yes, you can pick a new style from the Style arrow. Then check each citation and the bibliography against your style guide, because the final format depends on the fields you filled in. ### What if I never finish a placeholder? Open Manage Sources, select the placeholder under Current List, click Edit, enter the details, and click OK. Search the document for question marks before you send it. ## Sources 1. [Add citations in a Word document](https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/office/add-citations-in-a-word-document-ab9322bb-a8d3-47f4-80c8-63c06779f127), Microsoft Support, checked 2026-11-07 2. [Add or change sources, citations, and bibliographies](https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/word/add-or-change-sources-citations-and-bibliographies), Microsoft Support, checked 2026-11-07 3. [Word for the web - Service Descriptions](https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/office365/servicedescriptions/office-online-service-description/word-online), Microsoft Learn, checked 2026-11-07 4. [Release notes for Office for Mac](https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/officeupdates/release-notes-office-for-mac), Microsoft Learn, checked 2026-11-07 5. [Manage sources search bar - Word on Mac](https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/answers/questions/5262411/manage-sources-search-bar-word-on-mac), Microsoft Q&A, checked 2026-11-07 6. [How to Export Citations to Word (Windows and Mac)](https://mimir-mentor.com/en/blog/literature-tool-export-to-microsoft-word/), Mimir Mentor, checked 2026-11-07 7. [You cited which paper?? Reference errors are more common than many realize](https://retractionwatch.com/2016/10/04/you-cited-which-paper-reference-errors-are-more-common-than-many-realize/), Retraction Watch, checked 2026-11-07