Word has a built-in citation manager on the References tab. Add each source once, insert citations where needed, and Word can build a bibliography, references list, or works cited page from those sources.
Does this affect you?
Use this for Word for Microsoft 365, Word 2021, and Word 2019 on Windows or Mac when writing a paper, report, or document that needs formatted citations and an automatically generated source list.
Insert citations and add sources
Choose the citation style before adding many sources.
- Click where the citation should appear.
- Open the References tab.
- In Citations & Bibliography, choose the required Style, such as APA, MLA, or Chicago.
- Click Insert Citation > Add New Source.
- Choose the source type, such as book, journal article, website, or report.
- Fill in author, title, year, publisher, URL, and any other available fields.
- Click OK.
To cite the same source again, use Insert Citation and choose it from the list instead of entering it again.
Generate the bibliography or works cited page
Word builds the list from sources cited in the document.
- Click at the end of the document where the source list should go.
- Press Ctrl+Enter first if it should start on a new page.
- Open References > Bibliography.
- Choose Bibliography, References, or Works Cited depending on the required style.
- If you add citations later, click inside the source list and choose Update Citations and Bibliography.
Switch citation style after the fact
You do not have to rebuild everything if the required format changes.
- Open References > Style.
- Choose the correct citation style.
- Word reformats inserted citations automatically.
- Click inside the bibliography and update it so the source list matches the new style.
More control
Reuse sources across documents
Open References > Manage Sources. The Master List stores sources on that computer, and the Current List contains sources in this document. Copy sources between the two lists as needed.
Edit a source once
In Manage Sources, select the source and click Edit. After correcting details, update the bibliography so every citation and list entry uses the correction.
Update manually before submitting
The bibliography does not always refresh the moment you add a citation. Click inside it and use Update Citations and Bibliography before sharing the final file.
Finish placeholders
If you used Add New Placeholder, return to Manage Sources later and fill in the real source details before submission.
Sources
- Microsoft Support – Add citations in a Word document (2025)
- Microsoft Support – Create a bibliography, citations, and references (2025)
- Microsoft Support – Choose a citation style (2025)