Published February 12, 2021. Updated August 10, 2021.

To cite in the American Medical Association (AMA) style, it is helpful to know basic information about your source, including author name(s), the title of the source and/or article, date published, and page numbers (if applicable).

This guide will show you in-text citations and full reference examples in the AMA style for the following source types:

• Website

• Book

• Journal article

• Online image

If you wish to easily cite in AMA, check out the Chegg Writing citation generator.

Formatting citations in AMA style

The AMA citation style has two parts:

1. In-text citation numbers.

2. Reference list.

In-text citation numbers

When you cite information from a source in your work, place a superscript number at the end of the sentence or phrase. The superscript numbers are placed outside periods and commas, but inside colons and semicolons:

• Colons: Example sentence¹;

• Commas: Example sentence,¹

• Periods: Example sentence.¹

• Semicolons: Example sentence;¹

You can also cite more than one source at a time. Use hyphens to join the first and last numbers of a closed series; use commas without spaces to separate other parts of a multiple citation:

• Example sentence ^1,2

• Example sentence ^2–4

• Example sentence ^1,3–5

The number corresponds to the source’s number in the reference list.

Reference list

Place the list at the end of your paper and title it “References.” References are listed in the order the sources are mentioned in your paper; they are not in alphabetical order. The page should be single-spaced.

Example:

1. Davis RH. Aloe Vera—A Scientific Approach, New York: Vantage Press; 1997.

2. Cyranoski D. Arab nations first to approve Chinese COVID vaccine — despite lack of public data. Nature. 2000;588(7839):548.

3. ISTOCKPHOTO. A baby tyrannosaur from the Cretaceous Period of North America [image]. ABC Health & Wellbeing website. Accessed January 29, 2021.

4. Shet A. COVID-19 vaccines for children: aspiring towards a safer world. Johns Hopkins University & Medicine Coronavirus Resource Center. December 15, 2020. Accessed February 1, 2021. https://coronavirus.jhu.edu/vaccines/report/covid-19-vaccines-for-children-aspiring-towards-a-safer-world.

Citing a website page in AMA style

Include as much information as you can, and omit information that doesn’t exist.

In-text citation basic format and example:

Example sentence#: …

The results demonstrate the effectiveness of the treatment1: …

Reference list basic format and example:

If the website organization is also the author, use the organization name instead of the author name.

Example:

1. 1. World Health Organization. How do vaccines work? Accessed February 1, 2021. https://www.who.int/news-room/feature-stories/detail/how-do-vaccines-work.

Citing a book in AMA style

In-text citation basic format and example:

Example sentence.#

Side effects began appearing about 2 weeks after the trial began.1

Reference list basic format and example:

Citing a journal article in AMA style

The title of journals should be abbreviated according to the standards put out by the U.S. National Library of Medicine (NLM).

In-text citation basic format and example:

Example sentence,# …

Despite repeated and comprehensive efforts by the researchers,1 …

Reference list basic format and example:

Citing an online image in AMA style

In-text citation basic format and example:

Example sentence.#

There are several approaches to washing hands, including the one shown in this image.1

Reference list basic format and example:

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