PERRLA/Guides/APA 7/Book with an edition number

How to Cite a Book With an Edition in APA 7

In an APA 7 reference, the edition goes in parentheses right after the book title, in plain type, with the period after the parentheses: Title of the book (7th ed.). Write numbered editions as a numeral with its ordinal ending and ed., and shorten named editions the way APA does, as in (Rev. ed.) for a revised edition. The edition never appears in the in-text citation, which stays author and year: (Watson, 2008).

The format

Author, A. A. (Year). Title of the book: Subtitle (#th ed.). Publisher. https://doi.org/xxxx

PERRLA APA Experts · Updated October 21, 2026
Checked against the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association, 7th edition. Every example is formatted by PERRLA's reference engine.

First, the easy way: PERRLA

Paste the book's DOI into PERRLA's reference search, or search by its ISBN or title. PERRLA fills in the authors, title, edition, and publisher. Before you add the reference, hold it up against the book's title page and copyright page. Book catalogs sometimes leave the edition out or tuck it into the title, add a middle initial the book doesn't show, get the publisher's name wrong, or drop the original publication date of a reissued book. Check the Edition field, the authors, the title, the year, and the publisher.

Adding one by hand? Choose Book, then Book, e-book, or audiobook and All or part of a book. In Edition, type the number (7 or 7th) and PERRLA writes (7th ed.) in the right spot, outside the italics. For a named edition, type the name the way APA shortens it, like Rev. or Commemorative, and PERRLA adds ed.

Look up
Paste a DOI, get the reference

10.1037/0000165-000

American Psychological Association. (2020). Publication manual of the American Psychological Association (7th ed.). https://doi.org/10.1037/0000165-000

Not using PERRLA yet? Here is how to build the same reference by hand.

The parts of the reference

1. Where the edition goes

The edition comes right after the title, inside parentheses. There's no period between the title and the parentheses, the parentheses aren't italic, and the period that ends the title element comes after them.

Publication manual of the American Psychological Association (7th ed.).

When the book has a DOI or URL, the edition still sits after the title. The DOI goes at the very end, after the publisher.

2. Numbered editions

Use a numeral with its ordinal ending, then ed. in lowercase: 2nd ed., 3rd ed., 15th ed., 21st ed. Don't spell the number out (Seventh edition) and don't write the word edition in full.

(15th ed.)

A first edition gets no edition note. Start with the 2nd edition, or with a named edition like a revised one.

3. Named editions

Some editions have a name instead of a number, or along with one. Write the name the way the book gives it and shorten edition to ed. A revised edition is (Rev. ed.). Anniversary and commemorative editions keep their names: (Commemorative ed.), (50th anniversary ed.).

(Rev. ed.)

Watch the capital letter: Ed. means editor, and the edition is always a lowercase ed.

4. Edition with volume or pages

When the parentheses hold more than the edition, the edition comes first and a comma separates the parts. A volume follows the edition, and in a chapter reference the page range follows it.

(2nd ed., Vol. 1) or (16th ed., pp. 45–67)

5. Year

Each edition has its own year: the copyright year of the edition you used. A new edition is a new book as far as the reference is concerned, with its own year, its own pages, and sometimes its own authors.

(2022).

6. What isn't an edition

A new printing, a reprint with corrections, or a format isn't an edition. Leave out Kindle edition, e-book edition, paperback, and 3rd printing. If the book is a classic reissued in a new edition, add the original year at the end of the reference: (Original work published 1984).

Examples

A numbered edition with a group author and a DOI

The APA's own manual is the 7th edition. The American Psychological Association is both the author and the publisher, so its name appears once, and the DOI goes at the end. Its copyright year is 2020, though it came out in October 2019.

  • Parenthetical citation(American Psychological Association [APA], 2020)
  • Narrative citationAmerican Psychological Association (APA, 2020)
  • Later citations(APA, 2020)

An older edition with several authors

The 15th edition of Brunner & Suddarth's Textbook of Medical-Surgical Nursing (2022) has three authors. The 16th edition came out with a 2026 copyright and a fourth author. If your course still uses the 15th, cite the 15th, with its own year and author list.

  • Parenthetical citation(Hinkle et al., 2022)
  • Narrative citationHinkle et al. (2022)

A revised edition (Rev. ed.)

Jean Watson's book on caring science was reissued in 2008 as a revised edition with no number, so its edition is (Rev. ed.). It has a DOI, which goes at the end.

  • Parenthetical citation(Watson, 2008)
  • Narrative citationWatson (2008)

A commemorative edition of a classic

Patricia Benner's From Novice to Expert first came out in 1984. The commemorative edition from 2001 keeps the edition name and adds the original year at the end, and the in-text citation shows both years, earlier year first. APA handles anniversary editions the same way.

  • Parenthetical citation(Benner, 1984/2001)
  • Narrative citationBenner (1984/2001)

In-text citations

The edition stays in the reference. The in-text citation is the same as for any book: the author and the year of the edition you used.

  • One author: (Watson, 2008) or Watson (2008)
  • Three or more authors: the first author and et al.: (Hinkle et al., 2022)
  • A group author: the full name and abbreviation the first time, (American Psychological Association [APA], 2020), then (APA, 2020)
  • A reissued classic: both years, earlier first: (Benner, 1984/2001)
  • A quote: add the page: (Watson, 2008, p. 17)

Citing two editions of the same book in one paper? Each gets its own reference, and the years keep them apart in your citations.

Common mistakes

  • Publication manual of the American Psychological Association (7th ed.).Publication manual of the American Psychological Association (7th ed.).The edition isn't part of the title, so it stays out of the italics.
  • Publication manual of the American Psychological Association. (7th ed.).Publication manual of the American Psychological Association (7th ed.).No period between the title and the edition. One period ends the whole title element, after the parentheses.
  • (Seventh edition)(7th ed.)APA uses a numeral with its ordinal ending and the abbreviation ed.
  • (Revised ed.)(Rev. ed.)APA shortens revised edition to Rev. ed., with a capital R.
  • Nursing: The philosophy and science of caring (Kindle ed.).Nursing: The philosophy and science of caring (Rev. ed.).Kindle, e-book, and paperback are formats, not editions. Cite the book's real edition, and leave the format out.
  • (Watson, 2008, Rev. ed.)(Watson, 2008)The edition belongs in the reference only. In the text, the author and year are enough.

Quick checklist

  • Edition in parentheses right after the title, before the period
  • Parentheses and edition in plain type, not italic
  • A numeral with its ordinal: 2nd, 3rd, 7th, 15th
  • Lowercase ed.; named editions shortened, like Rev. ed.
  • No edition note for a first edition, a printing, or a format
  • The copyright year of the edition you used

Questions students ask

Where does the edition go in an APA 7 book reference?

Right after the title, in parentheses, with no period before it: Title (3rd ed.). The period comes after the closing parenthesis, and then the publisher.

Is the edition italicized in APA?

No. Only the title is italic. The parentheses and the edition inside them are in plain type.

Do I include 1st ed. for a first edition?

No. Leave the edition out for a first edition. Add it from the 2nd edition on, or when the edition has a name, like a revised or anniversary edition.

How do I write a revised edition in APA?

As (Rev. ed.) after the title. For other named editions, like a commemorative or anniversary edition, use the name the book gives and shorten edition to ed.: (Commemorative ed.), (50th anniversary ed.).

Does the edition go in the in-text citation?

No. The in-text citation is the author and the year of the edition you used. Because each edition has its own year, the year already points your reader to the right one.

Is a Kindle edition or an international edition a different edition?

A Kindle or e-book version is a format, not an edition, so leave it out and cite it like the print book. A regional version with its own title or authors, like a Canadian edition of a nursing text, is a different book, so cite the title and authors on the copy you used.

Rules checked against the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association (7th ed.), Sections 8.15, 8.17, 9.11, 9.19, 9.29, 9.34, 9.41, 9.50, and 10.2, and the APA Style website's book and reference elements pages. Example sources verified against each book's DOI, the publishers' pages, and library catalog records.

PERRLA puts the edition in the right spot, outside the italics and before the period, every time.

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