A paper written, cited, and turned in, in four steps.

Pick the format, write, cite as you go, click I'm Finished. PERRLA handles every rule in between, in APA, MLA, and Turabian, and the formatting never comes up because it's already done.

Try PERRLA free for 7 days Join PERRLA 101 live

Works in PERRLA Online, Microsoft Word, and Google Docs. One account, one library.

Title page, body, references: one paper, formatted as it is written.

Four steps, start to submitted.

The same four steps in PERRLA Online, Word, and Google Docs.

  1. The Create Research Paper form in PERRLA Online with the Student tab selected, Paper Format set to APA 7, Title Bigfoot: The Truth Revealed, Author Serena Sparkles, and Institution Department of Anthropology, Northfield State University.
    A real Create Research Paper form: APA 7, a student paper, and the title page fields.

    Before you write:
    create the paper

    Pick APA, MLA, or Turabian and the paper type: research paper, discussion post, reference list, or annotated bibliography. Fill in the title page fields once. The document opens with margins, spacing, page numbers, and the title page already set.

  2. PERRLA's reference form after a DOI lookup, with the Article Title, Journal Name, and Publication Year already filled in: Genetic analysis of hair samples attributed to yeti, bigfoot and other anomalous primates, Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences, 2014.
    Sykes et al. (2014), looked up by its DOI. The title, journal, and year came from the published record.

    While you research:
    add your sources

    Paste a DOI, an ISBN, or a link and PERRLA fills the reference from the published record. For anything else, a guided form asks for the fields that source type needs, 47 types in all. On PubMed, Google Scholar, or the CDC, click Add to PERRLA in the Chrome extension.

  3. A paragraph in PERRLA Online that stops at an opening parenthesis after the words the black bear’s, with the citation picker open at the cursor listing Federal Bureau of Investigation [FBI], n.d.; Lozier et al., 2009, highlighted; and Sykes et al., 2014.
    One opening parenthesis, mid-sentence, and the citation picker lists the paper's sources.

    Mid-sentence:
    cite as you write

    Type an opening parenthesis in an APA or MLA paper, or a # in Turabian, and the citation picker opens at your cursor. Pick the source, add a page number for a quote, and the citation lands in the right form. The references page builds and alphabetizes itself from what you cited.

  4. The I'm Finished panel in PERRLA Online with the Download as PDF button above Suggested Fixes, which lists one quote missing its page number and one contraction, can’t to cannot, with a Fix button.
    I'm Finished on the same paper: a quote missing its page number, and a contraction with a one-click Fix.

    Before you submit:
    click I'm Finished

    PERRLA reads the whole paper against the format's rules and offers a one-click fix for most of what it finds: a citation after the period, a quote missing its page number, a reference never cited. Then download a Word document or PDF, or keep writing in the Google Doc.

Two of those steps, at work on one real article.

Each one is a job you would otherwise do by hand, with the manual open in another tab.

Look up
Paste a DOI, get the source

10.1098/rspb.2014.0161

Sykes, B. C., Mullis, R. A., Hagenmuller, C., Melton, T. W., & Sartori, M. (2014). Genetic analysis of hair samples attributed to yeti, bigfoot and other anomalous primates. Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences, 281(1789), Article 20140161. https://doi.org/10.1098/rspb.2014.0161

Paste a DOI, an ISBN, or a link and PERRLA fills the reference from the published record.

Check
Suggested Fixes before you submit

Citation after the periodMove period

Quote missing its page numberGo to

Reference never citedRemove

PERRLA reads the whole paper against the format's rules and offers a one-click fix for most of what it finds.

What you turn in.

An ordinary Word document or PDF, formatted the way the manual says and checked before you turn it in.

  • Title page with the title in bold, then your name, school, course, instructor, and due date on the lines the format expects
  • Page numbers top right, every page, from the title page on
  • Headings at the right level, in the right case, with the right spacing
  • Citations in the right order inside the sentence, and a group author spelled out in the reference with the abbreviation ready for your citations
  • Block quotes for quotes of 40 words or more, with the citation after the final period
  • The references page built from the sources you actually cited, alphabetized, double spaced, hanging indents, DOIs as links
  • In Turabian, real same-page footnotes, shortened notes, and the bibliography. In MLA, the Works Cited page and author-page citations.

Title page, body, references: the pages you turn in, in APA 7, the way PERRLA formats them.

Works where you already write.

One account. The same library of references, notes, and PDFs in PERRLA Online, Word, Google Docs, and the Chrome extension.

PERRLA Online

The full editor in your browser, with a paged view that matches the printout. The most complete PERRLA, and the one to start with.

PERRLA for Word

An add-in for Word on desktop and the web. Start the paper from the PERRLA tab and cite from the side panel.

PERRLA for Google Docs

You write in Google Docs as usual, with references, citations, and headings set from the PERRLA sidebar.

Chrome Extension

Add to PERRLA on 85+ research databases. One click captures the source, formats the reference, and saves the PDF to your library.

PERRLA 101, live, four times a week.

A free walkthrough of PERRLA with our support team, then your questions. No signup. Show up, and bring the paper you're working on.

MonSupport 10 AM to 10 PM Central
TueSupport 10 AM to 10 PM Central
WedSupport 10 AM to 10 PM CentralPERRLA 101, live7 PM Central
ThuSupport 10 AM to 10 PM CentralPERRLA 101, live7 PM Central
FriSupport 10 AM to 10 PM Central
SatSupport 1 PM to 10 PM CentralPERRLA 101, live4 PM Central
SunSupport 1 PM to 10 PM CentralPERRLA 101, live4 PM Central

A demo, then your questions

Each session runs 30 to 45 minutes: a demo of PERRLA, then Q&A for as long as the questions last. First paper or dissertation, it's the fastest way to see PERRLA used well.

Join PERRLA 101 on Zoom

Reminders: perrla.myflodesk.com/perrla101

If you can't make it live

PERRLA 101: Getting Started with PERRLA, on YouTube

Advanced Papers (PERRLA 201), a recorded session for dissertations and theses

Support every day until 10 PM Central

A US-based team that answers PERRLA questions, writing questions, and formatting questions. Email them any day of the week.

[email protected], or the Help Center: Guides, walkthroughs, and setup steps

Priority Support: skip the line and weekly Office Hours, included with PERRLA Pro and PERRLA Unlimited

Questions about using PERRLA

Do I need to install anything?
It depends on where you write. PERRLA Online runs in your browser with nothing to install. For Microsoft Word, add the free PERRLA add-in and it appears as a tab in the ribbon. For Google Docs, add the free PERRLA add-on from the Google Workspace Marketplace. The Chrome extension is optional, for capturing sources while you research.
Does PERRLA write any of my paper for me?
No. PERRLA formats the paper, builds the references, and inserts the citations. The ideas and sentences are yours. The one place AI is used is reading the first pages of a PDF you upload to help fill in its reference, and your paper is never sent to it.
How long does it take to learn?
Most students are writing in PERRLA by the end of their first paper. The buttons are named for the things you do: create a paper, add a reference, insert a citation. If you'd like a guided walkthrough, PERRLA 101 runs live four times a week and is free.
Do I still need to know the APA, MLA, or Turabian rules?
You'll pick a lot up by using it. PERRLA includes guidance that explains the rule as you write, so you learn the rules in context instead of memorizing them first. If your program tests on APA knowledge, the free APA 101 guide covers the rules in eighteen short lessons.
Can I reuse references across papers and formats?
Yes. Every reference you create is saved in your PERRLA library and can be used in any future paper, in APA 7, MLA 9, or Turabian 9, in PERRLA Online, Word, or Google Docs. Build the library once.
What do I actually turn in?
An ordinary Word document or PDF. In PERRLA Online, download it when you're finished. In Word, open I'm Finished, click Check my paper, use Go to and Fix on anything it finds, then turn in the paper itself. In Google Docs, turn in the Doc itself, or download it as a Word file or PDF.

Every step on this page is in the free trial, seven days with no credit card.

Try PERRLA free for 7 days