How to Cite a Website in MLA 9: No Author, No Date, In-Text Citations and Real Examples

Key facts

• MLA 9 uses author–page references for in-text citations, not APA-style author–year citations.
• The Works Cited entry for a web page usually contains an author when given, the page title, website title, relevant date and URL.
• When there is no author, begin with the page title rather than using 'Anonymous'.
• When a website has no reliable publication/update date, omit it rather than inventing a date; a clearly labeled access date can help.
• MLA generally allows URLs with or without the https:// protocol in formatted text; include a live URL when a reader can follow it.

To cite a website in MLA 9, list the web page’s author if one is credited, put the page title in quotation marks, italicize the website name, add the relevant publication or update date when available, and finish with a usable URL. If the author or date is missing, omit that element rather than inventing it. Every source cited in your writing should match an entry on your Works Cited page.

MLA 9 website citation format

For a specific page within a website, the standard starting template is:

Author Last Name, First Name. “Title of Web Page.” Name of Website, Publisher (if different and relevant), Day Mon. Year, URL.

This is a template, not a real reference to copy into an assignment. The fields depend on what your actual source provides. Websites may lack a person credited as author, use organizational authors, contain multiple publication dates, or have a stable DOI instead of a URL. Omit genuinely unavailable elements and do not add imaginary names or dates.

Real MLA 9 example: an official government web page

The U.S. National Park Service has a real page called “Weathering” on National Park Service, which displays Last updated: January 26, 2023 and does not prominently credit an individual writer.

Works Cited example using that page:

“Weathering.” National Park Service, U.S. Department of the Interior, 26 Jan. 2023, https://www.nps.gov/subjects/erosion/weathering.htm.

In-text citation: A student discussing how the mineral content of rock changes during chemical weathering could end an original paraphrase with (“Weathering”). This works because the article has no named individual author and “Weathering” is the first element of the Works Cited entry. You do not need to invent a page number for an ordinary unpaginated webpage.

This example is based on the real NPS page’s displayed title and update date as checked on November 9, 2026. Your teacher may require a variant for an institutional or corporate author; always apply the actual credit line shown on your source.

How to cite a website when there is no author

Check the article itself, its byline, organization information and footer before deciding that no author is provided. For genuinely unsigned web pages, begin with the page title rather than “Anonymous.” In an in-text citation, use the page title or a clearly identifiable shorter form.

“Page Title.” Website Name, Publication Date if available, URL.

If the author is an organization, it can sometimes be credited as a corporate author. The MLA Style Center explains the difference between a work with no author and a work created by a corporate author. It also warns against repeating an organization unnecessarily when it is both author and publisher.

How to cite a website when there is no date

Some web pages provide neither a clearly labeled publication date nor an updated date. The date in a site’s copyright footer is not always the publication date of the specific page. Do not assume the current year is the publication year.

Instead, omit the date and consider including a date of access. For example:

“Page Title.” Website Name, URL. Accessed 9 Nov. 2026.

The example is intentionally a format template with placeholder text, not a fabricated publication. The access date must match the actual day you visited the source. Purdue OWL recommends keeping an access date especially for pages that change frequently or do not list a date.

MLA in-text citations for websites

MLA in-text citations direct a reader to the correct Works Cited entry. The core reference is the author’s last name, or—when there is no author—the first meaningful element of the entry, usually the title. If a cited source has a relevant page number or another stable location identifier, add it as required. Most standard web pages do not have print page numbers, so do not make them up.

Situation	Illustrative in-text format
One named author	(LastName)
Named author and relevant printed page 12	(LastName 12)
No author, page titled “Weathering”	(“Weathering”)
Author already named in your own sentence	Do not unnecessarily repeat the name in parentheses

The Modern Language Association’s own in-text citation overview explains that the first element of the reference should point the reader to the matching Works Cited entry. MLA’s common practice is not to put the publication year in every parenthetical reference, unlike APA’s author–date system.

What is the difference between a webpage title and a website title?

The webpage title identifies the specific article or page that you read; it usually appears in quotation marks. The website title names the larger publication or site containing that page; it is usually italicized. For the government example above, “Weathering” is the specific page and National Park Service is the site.

If you cite an entire website rather than one particular page, the format changes. A detailed research argument normally points to the precise article, report or section actually used, not just a site’s homepage.

Should you include the full URL, DOI or an access date?

MLA encourages references that help readers find the precise work. A DOI is often preferable to a general URL when a published article has one; ordinary web pages typically use a stable direct URL. Purdue OWL’s electronic-source guide notes that URL formatting may vary, and the University of Nevada, Reno also shows links with the https:// prefix. Follow your teacher’s directions for your assignment and keep hyperlinks usable in online submissions.

Access dates are optional in many MLA citations but particularly useful for undated or frequently changing pages. The access date does not establish when the page was originally published.

How to set up a Works Cited page

1. At the end of your paper, create a separate section titled Works Cited.
2. Include only sources you cite in the paper; ensure each in-text reference matches a list entry.
3. Alphabetize entries by author surname, or by page title when a source has no author, ignoring initial articles where applicable.
4. Use a hanging indent for each entry—its first line begins at the margin, while subsequent lines are indented.
5. Keep the required line spacing, capitalization, punctuation and formatting consistent with your teacher’s instructions.
6. Review every link and metadata field against the original webpage instead of trusting automatically generated citations without checking.

Five common website-citation mistakes

• Inventing an author: the site’s logo or publisher name does not automatically make an individual the article’s author.
• Copying the footer copyright year: this may not be the date for that specific page.
• Using APA author–date format: MLA and APA have different in-text citation conventions.
• Citing only the homepage: a link to a precise article is more helpful than a general domain.
• Forgetting to match Works Cited and in-text entries: your reader must be able to identify the corresponding source.

Practice: choose the correct approach

1. A page credits one named writer and a clear publication date. What belongs first in Works Cited?
2. A page displays no individual or organizational author credit. What belongs first?
3. A page lacks a reliable publication date. Should you make one up?
4. A paper quotes an unsigned NPS page titled “Weathering.” What points to the correct entry?
5. A webpage has no printed page numbers. Must you invent one?

Answer key

1. The named writer, with the last name first.
2. The specific webpage title, in quotation marks.
3. No. Omit the missing date; consider an access date.
4. The page title or an unambiguous shortened form, for example (“Weathering”).
5. No. Cite the author or title without a made-up page number.

Continue learning: writing and research skills

After documenting your research, strengthen your draft using our thesis statement guide and five-paragraph essay planning guide.

Primary style references: MLA Style Center: In-Text Citations, MLA: Source with No Author, Purdue OWL: Electronic Sources and University of Nevada, Reno: Citing a Website in MLA.

Student-focused explanatory guide, checked November 9, 2026. Image: a real laptop and blank notepad on a desk, photographed by Eric Bailey in 2014; Wikimedia Commons, CC0 1.0. The photograph is illustrative of studying and writing, not an image of a completed MLA citation.