APA 7th vs Vancouver vs IEEE: Which Citation Format Does Your Journal Use?

June 2026 · 8 min read · ScholarAI

    Quick reference: Management, Business, Education, Social Sciences → APA 7th. Health Sciences, Medicine → Vancouver. Engineering, Computer Science → IEEE. Elsevier journals → Elsevier Standard (author-date). Always check your specific journal's author guidelines — the same publisher can require different formats across journals.
  

Using the wrong citation format is one of the most common — and most avoidable — reasons for desk rejection. Editors notice immediately when a manuscript uses APA format in an IEEE journal, or Vancouver numbering in a management journal. This guide gives you a practical, field-by-field breakdown of which citation format to use.

The Four Main Citation Formats in Academic Publishing

Format	Style	Primary Fields	Used By
APA 7th Edition	Author-date (Smith, 2023)	Social Sciences, Business, Education, Psychology	Emerald, Springer, Wiley, SAGE
Vancouver	Numbered [1], [2]	Medicine, Health Sciences, Nursing	Elsevier (medical), BMJ, Lancet
IEEE	Numbered [1], [2]	Engineering, Computer Science, Electronics	IEEE journals, some Springer
Elsevier Standard	Author-date (Smith, 2023)	Sciences, Social Sciences	Most Elsevier non-medical journals

APA 7th Edition — The Business and Social Science Standard

APA 7th (published 2020) is the dominant format for management, business, education, psychology, and social science journals. Key changes from APA 6th include up to 20 authors listed before "et al." (previously 6), DOI formatted as a hyperlink, and running head no longer required for student papers.

APA 7th in-text citation examples:

    Single author: (Smith, 2023)

    Two authors: (Smith & Jones, 2023)

    Three or more: (Smith et al., 2023)

    Direct quote: (Smith, 2023, p. 45)

APA 7th reference list example:

    Smith, J. A., & Jones, B. C. (2023). Title of the article in sentence case. Journal Name in Title Case, 15(3), 112–128. https://doi.org/10.xxxx/xxxxx
  

Vancouver — The Medical and Health Sciences Standard

Vancouver uses sequential numbers in square brackets, assigned in the order citations first appear in the text. The reference list is numbered, not alphabetical. This format is used by Lancet, NEJM, BMJ, and most Elsevier medical journals.

Vancouver in-text citation:

    "Previous studies have shown that [1,2] hypertension increases risk..."

    "As Smith et al. [3] demonstrated..."

Vancouver reference list example:

    1. Smith JA, Jones BC. Title of article. J Med. 2023;15(3):112-28. doi:10.xxxx/xxxxx
  

IEEE — The Engineering and Computer Science Standard

IEEE also uses numbered citations but differs from Vancouver in reference formatting. Author initials come before surnames, journal names are abbreviated, and page ranges use em dashes. IEEE is mandatory for all IEEE Transactions and many Springer engineering journals.

IEEE in-text citation:

"The proposed algorithm [1] outperforms existing methods [2], [3]."

IEEE reference list example:

    [1] J. A. Smith and B. C. Jones, "Title of article," IEEE Trans. Eng. Manage., vol. 15, no. 3, pp. 112–128, Mar. 2023, doi: 10.xxxx/xxxxx.
  

Publisher-by-Publisher Citation Requirements

Publisher	Default Format	Exceptions
Elsevier (social/business)	Elsevier Standard (APA-like)	Medical journals use Vancouver
Emerald	APA 7th	Some engineering journals use Harvard
Springer Nature	Varies by journal	Check individual journal guidelines
Wiley	APA 7th or Vancouver	Depends on field
IEEE	IEEE format	No exceptions
Taylor & Francis	APA 7th	Some use Chicago or Harvard

The Most Common Citation Mistakes

Missing DOIs — Most journals now require DOIs for all references that have them
Inconsistent format — Mixing APA and Vancouver styles in the same reference list
Wrong edition — Using APA 6th rules in a journal that requires APA 7th
Unverified DOIs — DOIs that resolve to a different paper or a 404 error
Incorrect author order — APA uses "&" before last author; Vancouver uses commas throughout

How to Check Which Format Your Journal Requires

Go to your target journal's homepage on the publisher website
Find "Author Guidelines" or "Instructions for Authors"
Look for "References" or "Citation Style" section
If unclear, download a recent published paper from that journal and copy its reference format exactly

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