Sometimes an author says something so clearly that it's better to quote them directly. If that quote is 40 words or more, it becomes a block quote.
Block quotes are formatted differently from regular quotes in a sentence, and APA has specific rules for how they look.
When to use a block quote
If the quote you want to use is 40 words or longer, APA asks you to format it as a block quote. Anything shorter goes inside your paragraph, in quotation marks.
Use block quotes sparingly. Most of the time it's better to paraphrase the source in your own words. But when the original wording really matters, a block quote is the right choice.
How to format a block quote
Block quotes follow a few rules of their own:
- Start the block quote on a new line.
- Leave off the quotation marks. The formatting itself shows it's a quote.
- Indent the whole quote half an inch from the left margin, the same distance as the first line of a paragraph.
- If the quote runs to a second paragraph, indent the first line of each later paragraph another half inch.
- Keep the quote double-spaced, like the rest of your paper.
- Put the citation after the final punctuation of the quote, which is the reverse of a regular in-text citation, where it comes before the period.
An example
Here's how that works, quoting page 42 of the made-up article from the journal article lesson:
Long quotations come with a cost:
Researchers caution that long quotations can overshadow a writer's own analysis; however, there are moments when the original language communicates a nuance that paraphrasing would dilute. In those cases, present the passage as a block quote, maintain the source's exact wording, and then explain why it matters to your claim. (Strange & Weber, 2020, p. 42)
- A new line, indented half an inchThe whole quote moves in from the left margin, every line of it.
- No quotation marksThe indent already tells the reader it's a quote. Still double-spaced.
- The citation after the final periodAuthor, year, and page, with no period after the closing parenthesis.
That's it. Block quotes look a little odd at first, but once you've seen one, they're easy to set up.
Block quotes in PERRLA
If you're using PERRLA, the block quote style is one click. In PERRLA Online, select the quote, choose Text & Heading Style on the ribbon, and pick Block Quote. PERRLA handles the indent, the spacing, and the rest. And if a quote in your paper runs long enough to be a block quote, PERRLA's last check before you submit points it out and offers to fix it.
Long quotesMake block quote
…"Researchers caution that long quotations can overshadow…"
Click I'm Finished and PERRLA reads the whole paper. A quote of 40 words or more in a paragraph gets a one-click fix.