How to Cite an Ebook in MLA
Citing an ebook in MLA 9 works like citing a print book, with two extras: the file format (Kindle, EPUB, PDF) and, when there are no fixed page numbers, a chapter or section instead of a page. That's the whole trick.
The MLA 9 ebook template
Use this order in your Works Cited entry:
Author Last, First. Title of Book. Edition (if any), Publisher, Year of publication. Database or Platform, URL or DOI (if online). Ebook format.
Not every slot applies to every ebook. If you downloaded it to a Kindle, you won't have a URL. If you read it in a library database like OverDrive or ProQuest Ebook Central, you will. Fill what applies and skip what doesn't.
Worked example: Kindle edition
Kingsolver, Barbara. Demon Copperhead. Harper, 2022. Kindle ebook.
Nothing fancy. Author, title in italics, publisher, year, format tag at the end.
Worked example: EPUB from a library database
Zauner, Michelle. Crying in H Mart: A Memoir. Knopf, 2021. OverDrive, www.overdrive.com/media/6329182. EPUB ebook.
The database name goes in italics after the year. The URL comes next, and the format label closes the entry.
Worked example: PDF ebook
Piketty, Thomas. Capital in the Twenty-First Century. Translated by Arthur Goldhammer, Belknap Press, 2014. PDF ebook.
Translator credit sits between the title and publisher. Same format-tag rule at the end.
In-text citations for ebooks
MLA wants a page number when one exists. Kindle and other reflowable ebooks change page numbers based on font size, so those "location" numbers aren't stable and MLA no longer wants you to use them.
Here's what to do instead:
- Fixed-layout ebook (PDF, some EPUBs): use page numbers exactly like a print book. (Zauner 47)
- Reflowable ebook (most Kindle, most EPUB): use the chapter number or section title. (Kingsolver, ch. 3) or (Piketty, Introduction)
- Print page numbers shown in your ebook: if your ebook displays the original print pagination, use those page numbers.
If your instructor specifically asks for Kindle locations, follow the instructor. Otherwise, chapter numbers win.
Example paragraphs
Kingsolver frames the whole novel as a first-person confession, and Demon warns you on page one that he's about to "tell it the way it happened" (ch. 1).
For a fixed-page ebook, you'd write it the print way: (Zauner 47).
Common ebook citation mistakes
Skipping the format tag. MLA 9 wants you to note the medium. "Kindle ebook," "EPUB ebook," and "PDF ebook" are all fine. Don't just write "ebook" if you know the format.
Citing the retailer as publisher. Amazon isn't the publisher of a Kindle book. The original publisher (Harper, Knopf, Random House) is. Amazon is the platform.
Using unstable Kindle locations. Two students with different Kindle font sizes will see different location numbers for the same passage. Your professor can't verify a location the way they can verify page 47. Chapter number is the safer call.
Forgetting the italics. Book titles get italics. Database names get italics. Chapter titles get quotation marks if you're citing a single chapter.
Missing translator credit. If it's a translated ebook, the translator goes right after the title: "Translated by Arthur Goldhammer, Belknap Press, 2014."
Citing a single chapter from an ebook
Sometimes you only need one chapter. Format looks like this:
Author Last, First. "Chapter Title." Book Title, edited by Editor Name, Publisher, Year, chapter or page range. Ebook format.
Real example:
Solnit, Rebecca. "The Longest War." Men Explain Things to Me, Haymarket Books, 2014, ch. 2. Kindle ebook.
Author variations
- Two authors: Smith, Jane, and John Doe.
- Three or more: Smith, Jane, et al.
- No author (rare for ebooks): start with the title.
- Corporate author: United Nations. Report Title. Publisher, Year. EPUB ebook.
When your ebook has no year or no publisher
Self-published Kindle books sometimes lack a clear publisher. In that case, you can list the author again in the publisher slot or write "self-published." Use the copyright year shown in the ebook's front matter. If truly no year appears, write "n.d." (no date).
Woods, Marcy. Backyard Herbal Basics. Self-published, 2019. Kindle ebook.
Quick checklist before you turn it in
- Author name inverted (Last, First)
- Book title in italics
- Publisher spelled out (not the retailer)
- Year of publication
- Format tag at the end (Kindle ebook, EPUB ebook, PDF ebook)
- In-text uses page numbers for fixed layouts, chapter numbers for reflowable
- Works Cited entries alphabetized by author last name
- Hanging indent on the second and later lines of each entry
That's the whole workflow. Author, title, publisher, year, format. Chapter for Kindle, page for PDF.