Citation styles can take many forms, like author-date, author-page, footnotes, numeric, etc. In this post, we discuss the most frequently used citation formats with numbers and provide examples of references in each style.
#1 Vancouver
Vancouver style is a numeric citation system used in biomedical, health and other sciences. This style consists of in-text citations that use either superscript or bracketed numbers.
The same number is used throughout the paper to refer to the same source. The reference list at the end of the paper lists the full bibliographic citations for each source. This list is ordered sequentially, not alphabetically.
Vancouver style resources
🌐 Official Vancouver style guidelines
📝 Vancouver citation generator
🗂 Estilo Vancouver (in Spanish)
Vancouver style examples
Here is an example of an in-text citation in Vancouver style:
A similar study was carried out in 2015¹.
Here is a reference list entry in Vancouver style:
1. Aprile A, Gulino A, Storto M, Villa I, Beretta S, Merelli I, et al. Hematopoietic stem cell function in β-thalassemia is impaired and is rescued by targeting the bone marrow niche. Blood [Internet]. 2020; Available from: http://dx.doi.org/10.1182/blood.2019002721
#2 AMA
The American Medical Association (AMA) style is a numeric citation format used in many medical fields. This style features in-text references with superscript numbers and a reference list that includes full bibliographic references for each source.
AMA style resources
🌐 Official AMA style guidelines
AMA style examples
Here is an example of an in-text citation in AMA style:
The rising hospitalizations and deaths across New York City boroughs ¹.
Here is a reference list entry in AMA style:
1. Wadhera RK, Wadhera P, Gaba P, et al. Variation in COVID-19 hospitalizations and deaths across New York City boroughs. JAMA. 2020. doi:10.1001/jama.2020.7197
#3 Nature
Nature is one of the most renowned science journals in the world and they have their own numeric referencing style. Its system requires in-text citations with numbers in superscript, which are referenced in full in a sequential list at the end of the paper.
Nature style resources
🌐 Official Nature style guidelines
Nature style examples
Here is an example of an in-text citation in Nature style:
A great revelation in the genomes field¹.
Here is a reference list entry in Nature style:
1. Skov, L. et al. The nature of Neanderthal introgression revealed by 27,566 Icelandic genomes. Nature (2020) doi:10.1038/s41586-020-2225-9.
#4 CSE
CSE (Council of Science Editors) style is the standard format used in the physical and life sciences. This style features three types of citation systems: citation-sequence, name-year, and citation-name.
• Name-Year: In-text citations of this type feature the author’s last name and the year of publication in brackets. A bibliography at the end lists all references in full.
• Citation-Sequence: Every source is assigned a superscript number that is used as an in-text reference. The bibliography at the end lists all numbers with their references in the order in which they appeared in the text.
• Citation-Name: The reference list is organized alphabetically by authors’ last names; each name is assigned a number which can be placed in superscript as an in-text reference.
CSE style resources
🌐 Official CSE style guidelines
CSE style examples
Here is an example of an in-text citation in CSE citation-sequence style:
Therefore, the translocation of wild plants was tracked ¹.
Here is a bibliography entry in CSE citation-sequence style:
1. Hofman CA, Rick TC. 2018. Ancient Biological Invasions and Island Ecosystems: Tracking Translocations of Wild Plants and Animals. J. Archaeol. [accessed 2019 Mar 11]; 26(1): 65–11. doi.org/10.1007/s10814-017-9105-3.
#5 Science
Science is a peer-reviewed journal published by the American Association for the Advancement of Science. This journal features a numeric citation style that consists of in-text references and notes with an italicized number in parentheses. Each reference is given a unique number that is later added to a reference list.
Science style resources
🌐 Official Science style guidelines
Science style examples
Here is an example of an in-text citation in Science style:
This clearly contrasts with the single-donor gene transfers associated with endosymbiosis (22).
Here is a reference list entry in Science style:
22. X. Fan, H. Qiu, W. Han, Y. Wang, D. Xu, X. Zhang, D. Bhattacharya, N. Ye, Phytoplankton pangenome reveals extensive prokaryotic horizontal gene transfer of diverse functions. Sci. Adv. 6, eaba0111 (2020).
#6 IEEE
IEEE (Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers) style is used for engineering and science papers. This style uses a numeric, in-text citation format, with a number in square brackets. This number corresponds to a reference list entry at the end of the paper.
IEEE style resources
🌐 Official IEEE style guidelines
IEEE style examples
Here is an example of an in-text citation in IEEE style:
As seen in a multi-camera study [1]...
Here is a bibliography entry in IEEE style:
[1] E. Nuger and B. Benhabib, “Multi-Camera Active-Vision for Markerless Shape Recovery of Unknown Deforming Objects,” J. Intell. Rob. Syst., vol. 92, no. 2, pp. 223–264, Oct. 2018.
Frequently Asked Questions about citation styles with numbers
🥇 What is a numbered citation style?
A numbered, or numeric, citation style uses superscripted numbers or numbers in brackets for in-text citations. The numbers correspond to a reference list at the end of the paper that features full bibliographic citations for each source.
💬 What is IEEE citation style?
IEEE (Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers) style is used for engineering and science papers. This style uses a numeric, in-text citation format, with a number in square brackets. This number corresponds to a reference list entry at the end of the paper.
🤼 Is a numeric style better than an author-date style?
A numeric style is not necessarily better or worse than an author-date style. The decision to use either one will depend on the topic you’re writing about, the field you’re studying, or your instructor’s preferences for the assignment.
🔢 Which numbers can be used in numeric citations styles?
Numeric citation styles use Arabic numerals (1, 2, 3, etc.).
