Proper MLA Works Cited Page Example | Clean Entries That Match MLA 9

You can write a strong paper and still lose points if your Works Cited page is messy. Teachers spot mistakes fast: missing dates, swapped commas, a URL shoved in the wrong spot, titles styled the wrong way.

This walkthrough shows you what the page should look like, how to build each entry, and how to sanity-check the final list before you submit.

What A Works Cited Page Needs To Do

Your Works Cited page has one job: let a reader trace your sources without guessing. MLA style gets there by using a repeatable pattern, then applying that pattern across books, articles, sites, videos, and more.

When your list is consistent, your reader can scan it like a map. When it’s inconsistent, your credibility takes a hit.

Core Page Rules

• New page at the end: Put the Works Cited list after your last paragraph.
• Same header as the paper: Keep your last name and page number header if your instructor wants the MLA header on each page.
• Centered title: Type Works Cited at the top, centered. No bold, no quotes, no italics on the heading.
• Double spacing: Double-space the title and every entry. Don’t add extra blank lines between entries.
• Hanging indent: The first line starts at the left margin; lines after that indent 0.5 inches.
• Alphabetical order: Sort by the first element of each entry, most often the author’s last name.

Quick Visual: Hanging Indent

If your word processor doesn’t have a “hanging indent” button, set the paragraph indent like this: first line at 0, left indent at 0.5, then set a first-line indent of -0.5. That creates the classic MLA look.

Build Each Entry With MLA Core Elements

MLA entries are built from a set of core elements that repeat across source types: author, title, container, publisher, date, and location (page range, DOI, or URL). You gather what exists for your source, then place it in the standard order.

When you get stuck, check the MLA Style Center’s list of core elements and ordering. It’s a clean reference for how entries are assembled. MLA Works Cited: A Quick Guide

Start With These Three Questions

1. Who made it? Author, editor, group, or username.
2. What is it called? Title of the source (article title, video title, chapter title).
3. Where did you find it? Container (site name, journal title, book title, streaming platform) plus the location details.

When A Source Has No Clear Author

Begin the entry with the title instead of forcing “Anonymous.” Then alphabetize by that title. If a group clearly owns the page (a government agency, a university, a company), you can use the group name as the author when it is credited as such on the source itself.

Proper MLA Works Cited Page Example

Below is a full, mixed-source Works Cited list. It uses common source types a student paper tends to cite: a book, a chapter in an edited book, a journal article, and a web page.

Use it as a model for punctuation, italics, quotation marks, and where dates and URLs land. Swap in your own details, then keep the pattern steady across the full list.

What To Notice In The Example

• Article titles: Inside quotation marks.
• Standalone works: Book and journal titles in italics.
• Edited collections: “edited by” appears before the editor’s name in a chapter citation.
• Page range: “pp.” plus an en dash range for chapters and articles.
• Web sources: The page title is in quotes, the site name is italicized, and the URL closes the entry.

Source Details To Collect Before You Write

Most Works Cited mistakes come from missing details. Save yourself the scramble by collecting fields while you research, not at 2 a.m. on deadline night.

Source Type	Details To Grab While Researching	Placement Notes In MLA Entries
Book (one author)	Author, title, publisher, year	Title italicized; year near the end
Chapter in edited book	Chapter title, book title, editor, edition, pages, publisher, year	Chapter in quotes; book title italicized; “edited by” before editor
Journal article (database or PDF)	Author, article title, journal, vol./no., year, pages, DOI or stable URL	Journal italicized; DOI preferred when available
Web page	Page title, site name, publisher (if shown), date, URL	Page title in quotes; site name italicized; URL closes the entry
Online video	Video title, platform, uploader, date, URL	Video title in quotes; platform italicized; uploader may appear after platform
Podcast episode	Episode title, show title, host, season/episode, date, URL	Episode in quotes; show title italicized; use stable episode URL
Interview (published)	Interview title, interviewer, container, date, URL or pages	Start with the interviewee; then title and container details
Government report	Agency as author, report title, publisher, date, URL	Agency can serve as author; report title italicized

MLA Works Cited Page Format That Matches MLA 9

Formatting rules feel fussy until you see what they fix. The goal is a list that reads the same way from top to bottom.

If you want a second authority to cross-check page setup, Purdue OWL lays out the page-level rules in plain language. Purdue OWL Works Cited page basics

Spacing And Indentation In Word And Google Docs

Word: Select your citations, open Paragraph settings, set line spacing to Double, then set Special Indentation to Hanging by 0.5 inches.

Google Docs: Select your citations, go to Format → Align & indent → Indentation options, then set Special indent to Hanging and choose 0.5 inches.

Alphabetizing Rules That Trip People Up

• Same author, multiple works: Alphabetize by title after the author name.
• Two authors: Alphabetize by the first author’s last name; list names in the order shown on the source.
• Group author: Alphabetize by the group name, not by “The.”
• No author: Alphabetize by title; ignore “A,” “An,” and “The” when sorting.

Dates, URLs, And Access Dates

Use the date shown on the source when it exists. For web pages, that may be a “published” or “last updated” date. If no date is listed, you can leave it out and let the rest of the entry carry the identification.

For online sources, include a DOI when one exists. If not, use a URL. MLA allows access dates in certain cases, like sources that change over time or sources without a clear publication date.

Entry Templates For Common Sources

When you’re building citations under pressure, a clean template helps more than a long rule list. The patterns below follow MLA’s core-element order. Replace each bracketed part with your own details, then keep the punctuation.

Book

Template: Lastname, Firstname. Title of Book. Publisher, Year.

Tip: If the book has an edition number, place it after the title: Title. 2nd ed., Publisher, Year.

Chapter In An Edited Book

Template: Lastname, Firstname. “Chapter Title.” Book Title, edited by Editor Firstname Lastname, Edition, Publisher, Year, pp. xx-xx.

Tip: If you cite a chapter from an ebook, use page numbers if your version has stable pages; if not, skip the page range and lean on the rest of the details.

Journal Article

Template: Lastname, Firstname. “Article Title.” Journal Title, vol. x, no. x, Year, pp. xx-xx. DOI or URL.

Tip: A DOI is built for long-term access. Use it when the article provides one.

Web Page

Template: “Page Title.” Website Name, Publisher (if shown), Day Mon. Year, URL.

Tip: If the publisher and website name are the same, list it once.

YouTube Or Streaming Video

Template: “Video Title.” Platform, uploaded by Channel Name, Day Mon. Year, URL.

Tip: If you refer to a specific moment, note the time stamp in your in-text citation, not in Works Cited.

Podcast Episode

Template: “Episode Title.” Podcast Name, hosted by Host Name, Season x, Episode x, Publisher, Day Mon. Year, URL.

Social Media Post

Template: Account Name. “Post text up to the first full sentence.” Platform, Day Mon. Year, URL.

Tip: Keep the quote short. If the post has no real text, use a brief description like “Photo of …” as the title.

Interview Published Online

Template: Interviewee Lastname, Firstname. “Interview Title.” Interview by Interviewer Name. Site Name, Day Mon. Year, URL.

Common Mistakes And Fast Fixes

This list is built for last-minute proofreading. Read each entry once for content, then once for style: commas, periods, italics, quotes, and spacing.

Mistake	What It Causes	Fix
Entry not double-spaced	Page looks off; grader assumes sloppy formatting	Set line spacing to Double for the full list
No hanging indent	Hard to scan; entries blur together	Apply a 0.5-inch hanging indent to all citations
Wrong title styling	Readers can’t tell article vs. book at a glance	Quotes for parts; italics for standalone works
Author name in first-name order	Alphabetizing breaks	Flip the first author: Last, First
Missing container	Source can’t be located easily	Add the site, journal, or book title in italics
URL pasted mid-entry	Punctuation gets scrambled	Place the URL at the end of the entry
Extra blank lines between entries	List looks padded	Remove extra spacing; keep consistent double spacing
Inconsistent abbreviations (p. vs pp.)	Style looks mixed	Use “p.” for one page and “pp.” for a range

Quick Checklist Before You Submit

• Every in-text citation has a matching entry in Works Cited.
• Every Works Cited entry is actually used in the paper.
• The title “Works Cited” is centered and plain.
• All entries are double-spaced with a hanging indent.
• Entries are alphabetized by the first element.
• Titles use quotes or italics in the right places.
• URLs or DOIs sit at the end of entries.

If you build your list as you research, the final polish takes minutes. If you leave it until the end, you’ll spend your last hour hunting for missing page ranges and dates.