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The IEEE reference format is a numbered citation system. You cite a source in the text with its number in square brackets, such as [1], and the reference list carries the matching numbers. This guide sets out the in-text rules, the list rules and a template for each common source type, as stated in the IEEE Reference Guide (IEEE Publication Operations, version dated 3.28.2025) and the IEEE Editorial Style Manual for Authors (updated 29 July 2024). A journal’s or conference’s own instructions to authors take precedence over both documents.
What the IEEE reference format is
IEEE publishes its reference rules in two documents. The Reference Guide covers the pattern for each type of source. The Editorial Style Manual for Authors covers wider house style, including how the references section is set. In both, references are numbered, and each number stands for one source. The manual states that using one reference number to designate a group of references is not permitted, and the Reference Guide says the same: do not combine references, and give each number only one reference.
Citing references in the text
Reference numbers appear on the line, in square brackets, inside the punctuation. The Reference Guide says they may be treated grammatically like nouns or footnote numbers. Its examples include:
- According to [1]; as demonstrated in [2]
- as shown by Brown [4], [5]
- Smith [4] and Brown and Jones [5]
- Wood et al. [7]
Rules that catch authors most often:
- Write every number out. The 2025 Reference Guide says reference ranges in text do not use an en dash, so [1]-[4] becomes [1], [2], [3], [4]. An older 2018 edition of the guide still showed ranges such as [4]-[7], so check which edition a template or style file follows.
- Use et al. for three or more names when a cited reference with three or more authors is named in the text.
- Do not write “in reference [1]”. The Style Manual says to write “in [1]”. Use the author’s name only where it matters to the sentence, as in “Smith [1] reduced calculated time…”.
- Drop ibid. and op. cit. Cite the earlier reference number again instead.
- Put the specific part inside the bracket. The guide’s forms are [3, Thm. 1], [3, Lemma 2], [3, pp. 5–10], [3, eq. (2)], [3, Fig. 1], [3, Appendix I], [3, Sect. 4.5], [3, Ch. 2, pp. 5–10] and [3, Algorithm 5]. If you cite several pages of one source, make one reference and give the pages in the text, rather than creating several list entries for the same source.
Building the reference list
- Reference numbers are set flush left in square brackets, in a column of their own, and the entry hangs beside them. The Style Manual says the References heading is never enumerated.
- Give the author’s or editor’s given name as an initial only, placed before the last name: J. K. Author.
- List all authors up to six. With more than six, give the first author followed by et al. Non-IEEE publications may use et al. where the additional names are not provided.
- Every reference ends with a period, except one that ends with a URL. If an entry has a DOI or access date as well as a URL, the DOI or access date comes first, followed by a period, then the URL.
- Where an issue spans two months, separate them with a slash, as in Jul./Aug.
- Do not put footnotes or phrases such as “For example” in the list. Move them into the text: “For example, see [5].”
Templates by source type
Each row gives the Reference Guide’s pattern. Journal and publisher names use the standard abbreviations in Part IV of the guide (for example, Applied becomes Appl.).
| Source | Pattern and guide example |
|---|---|
| Journal article with DOI | J. K. Author, “Name of paper,” Abbrev. Title of Periodical, vol. x, no. x, pp. xxx–xxx, Abbrev. month, year, doi: xxx. Example: M. M. Chiampi and L. L. Zilberti, “Induction of electric field in human bodies moving near MRI: An efficient BEM computational procedure,” IEEE Trans. Biomed. Eng., vol. 58, no. 10, pp. 2787–2793, Oct. 2011, doi: 10.1109/TBME.2011.2158315. |
| Book | J. K. Author, Title of Book. City of Publisher, (only U.S. State), Country: Publisher, year. Example: B. Klaus and P. Horn, Robot Vision. Cambridge, MA, USA: MIT Press, 1986. |
| Chapter in an edited book | J. K. Author, “Title of chapter,” in Title of Published Book, X. Editor, Ed., City of Publisher, (only U.S. State), Country: Publisher, year, pp. xxx–xxx. Example: L. Stein, “Random patterns,” in Computers and You, J. S. Brake, Ed., New York, NY, USA: Wiley, 1994, pp. 55–70. |
| Conference paper in proceedings, with DOI | J. K. Author, “Title of paper,” in Abbreviated Name of Conf., (location is optional), year, pp. xxx–xxx, doi: xxx. Example: G. Veruggio, “The EURON roboethics roadmap,” in Proc. Humanoids ’06: 6th IEEE-RAS Int. Conf. Humanoid Robots, 2006, pp. 612–617, doi: 10.1109/ICHR.2006.321337. |
| Conference paper presented, not in proceedings | J. K. Author, “Title of paper,” presented at the Abbreviated Name of Conf., City of Conf., Abbrev. State, Country, Month and day(s), year, Paper number. |
| Thesis or dissertation | J. K. Author, “Title of dissertation,” Ph.D. dissertation, Abbrev. Dept., Abbrev. Univ., City of Univ., Abbrev. State, year. A master’s thesis uses “M.S. thesis”. Example: J. O. Williams, “Narrow-band analyzer,” Ph.D. dissertation, Dept. Elect. Eng., Harvard Univ., Cambridge, MA, USA, 1993. |
| Technical report | J. K. Author, “Title of report,” Abbrev. Name of Co., City of Co., Abbrev. State, Country, Rep. xxx, year. |
| Standard | Title of Standard, Standard number, Corporate author, location, date. Online entries add [Online]. Available: URL. Example: IEEE Criteria for Class IE Electric Systems, IEEE Standard 308, 1969. |
| Preprint on arXiv | J. K. Author, “Title of paper,” year, arXiv number. Example: S. Urazhdin, N. O. Birge, W. P. Pratt Jr., and J. Bass, “Current-driven magnetic excitations in permalloy-based multilayer nanopillars,” 2003, arXiv:0303149. |
| Dataset with DOI | Author, Date, “Title of Dataset,” Source, doi: xxx. The guide also gives a form “distributed by Publisher/Distributor” with a URL, and says to add the retrieval date if the title and locator are not specific to the exact instance of data you used. |
| Website | First Name Initial(s) Last Name. “Page Title.” Website Title. Accessed: Abbrev. month day, year. [Online]. Available: Web Address Guide example: J. Smith. “Obama inaugurated as President.” CNN.com. Accessed: Feb. 1, 2009. [Online]. Available: http://www.cnn.com/POLITICS/01/21/obama_inaugurated/index.html |
Two points on journal entries. If an article is available in early access at the publisher, the guide says to cite that version rather than the arXiv version, because the online access version is the version of record, and to include the journal title, the date of record and the DOI. For a work accepted but not yet published, the 2018 edition of the guide uses “to be published”; for one submitted but not accepted, “submitted for publication”.
Strengths and limits of the format
- One number per source. A source keeps a single number however often it is cited; the guide says to cite the earlier reference number again rather than use ibid. or op. cit.
- Numbers can shift. Adding or removing a reference can change the numbers that follow, so the guide notes that editing references can mean renumbering both the list and the in-text citations. A reference manager that handles numbered styles removes that burden; see numbered styles in Word and EndNote and reference managers that work inside Word.
- Editions differ. The Reference Guide has been revised; for example, the range-style citation changed between the 2018 and 2025 versions. Always follow the venue’s current author instructions.
Related numbered and citation styles
If a venue asks for another style, these guides cover the main options: citation styles and referencing formats compares the families, and Vancouver referencing style is the other widely used numbered style. For BibTeX users, LaTeX bibliography styles explains how style files produce numbered lists, and research paper format covers the wider layout of a manuscript.
Frequently asked questions
Do I put the author’s name in an IEEE in-text citation?
Usually not. The Style Manual says the author’s name is left out of a numeric citation, so “In Smith [1]” becomes “in [1]”. The name stays only where it is integral to understanding the sentence, as in “Smith [1] reduced calculated time”. With three or more authors, use “et al.” after the first name.
How many authors do I list in the reference list?
All of them, up to six. Beyond six, list the first author followed by et al. Non-IEEE publications may use et al. where the additional names are not provided.
How do I cite a specific page, figure or equation?
Put it inside the bracket after the reference number: [3, pp. 5–10], [3, Fig. 1], [3, eq. (2)] or [3, Sect. 4.5]. Do not write “in Fig. 2 of reference [1]”; the Style Manual’s preferred form is “in [1, Fig. 2]”.
How should I cite a website?
Give the author, the page title, the website title, the access date in the form “Accessed: Abbrev. month day, year”, then [Online]. Available: and the web address. See the website row in the table above.
Sources
- IEEE Publication Operations, IEEE Reference Guide, version 3.28.2025 (current edition): https://docs.google.com/document/d/e/2PACX-1vSBoV_hTIURPZKtQkxI6bAONJtjyDLxQIUvCHi-XPzD8NKLcxRfZrpvQLFrjWZ3M6FFR_Obau3R-t63/pub, linked from the IEEE Author Center at journals.ieeeauthorcenter.ieee.org. Date checked: 2026-10-28.
- IEEE Publishing Operations, IEEE Editorial Style Manual for Authors, updated 29 July 2024, section “References”: https://journals.ieeeauthorcenter.ieee.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/7/IEEE-Editorial-Style-Manual-for-Authors.pdf. Date checked: 2026-10-28.
- IEEE Periodicals Transactions/Journals Department, IEEE Reference Guide, version dated 11.12.2018 (earlier edition, cited for the pre-2025 range-citation and unpublished-work wording): https://journals.ieeeauthorcenter.ieee.org/wp-content/uploads/IEEE-Reference-Guide.pdf. Date checked: 2026-10-28.
