How to Cite a Dataset in APA 7th edition

Research data, databases, and data repositories.

Example in APA 7th edition

Menne, M. J., Durre, I., Korzeniewski, B., McNeill, S., Thomas, K., Yin, X., Anthony, S., Ray, R., Vose, R. S., Gleason, B. E., & Houston, T. G. (2012). Global historical climatology network - Daily (GHCN-Daily) (Version 3) [Dataset]. NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information. https://doi.org/10.7289/V5D21VHZ
In-text (Menne et al., 2012)

What APA 7th edition includes

These are the details of the example above that the style prints, so they are the ones to collect for your own source.

  • Dataset Title
  • Author(s)/Creator(s)
  • Publisher/Repository
  • Version
  • Publication Date
  • DOI

Look for a DOI or persistent identifier in the repository metadata. Note the version number and your access date, as datasets may be updated.

The formatting comes from the style's own file, so check the finer points against your guide. What to check by hand in APA 7th edition.

A Dataset in other styles

MLA 9th edition Chicago 18th edition (notes and bibliography) Harvard (Cite Them Right 12th edition) IEEE Vancouver

Other sources in APA 7th edition

Website Book Journal Article Newspaper Article Book Chapter Thesis/Dissertation Report Video Podcast/Broadcast Magazine Article Software Patent Legal Case Legislation Bill Regulation Hearing Standard Treaty Conference Paper Manuscript Review Book Review Classic Work Reference Entry Dictionary Entry Encyclopedia Entry Periodical Collection Interview Speech Song Musical Score Graphic Figure Map Performance Event Pamphlet Preprint Document Post Blog Post Personal Communication Generative AI