How to Cite a Book in Harvard

• Tomas Elliott (Ph.D.)
• Published on 05/14/2025

It is important to cite books in academic writing properly to prevent plagiarism, acknowledge sources, and enable readers to locate the original works. The Harvard system of referencing is commonly used in most fields. This article presents a step-by-step and detailed guide to citing books using the Harvard system. Examples and description of the structure of citations are included in every section.

Book with One Author

• Include the surname first, followed by initials.
• The year is placed in round brackets.
• The book title is in italics.
• Do not include edition information if it is the first edition.
• State the place of publication, followed by the publisher.

Citation	Harari, Y. (2014) Sapiens: A brief history of humankind. London: Harvill Secker.
Structure	Author Surname, Initial. (Year) Title. Place of Publication: Publisher.

Book with Two Authors

• List both authors with “and” between them.
• Include edition details if the book is not a first edition.
• All other formatting remains the same as for a single author.

Citation	Levitt, D. and Dubner, S.J. (2005) Freakonomics: A rogue economist explores the hidden side of everything. New York, NY: William Morrow.
Structure	Author 1 Surname, Initial. and Author 2 Surname, Initial. (Year) Title. Place of Publication: Publisher.

Book with Three Authors

• Separate the first and second authors with a comma.
• Use “and” before the final author.
• Include initials after each surname.

Citation	Harris, P., Tuckwell, K. and Watt, A. (2022) Marketing: A practical approach. 5th edn. Melbourne: Cengage Learning.
Structure	Author 1 Surname, Initial., Author 2 Surname, Initial. and Author 3 Surname, Initial. (Year) Title. Edition. Place of Publication: Publisher.

Book with Four or More Authors

• Only the first author is listed by name.
• “et al.” (in italics) is used to indicate multiple authors.
• Follow the same rules for edition, place, and publisher.

Citation	Slavin, R.E. et al. (2021) Educational psychology: Theory and practice. 13th edn. Harlow: Pearson Education.
Structure	Author 1 Surname, Initial. et al. (Year) Title. Edition. Place of Publication: Publisher.

Book with No Author

• Start the citation with the title in italics.
• Omit the author section.
• Proceed with year, place of publication, and publisher as usual.

Citation	APA dictionary of psychology (2015) 2nd edn. Washington, DC: American Psychological Association.
Structure	Title (Year) Edition. Place of Publication: Publisher.

Book with Both Author and Editor

• The author is listed first.
• The editors are acknowledged after the title, starting with “Edited by”.
• Follow the standard structure for the remaining elements.

Citation	Benjamin, W. (2008) The work of art in the age of mechanical reproduction. Edited by H. Arendt. London: Penguin Books.
Structure	Author Surname, Initial. (Year) Title. Edited by Editor Initial. Editor Surname. Place of Publication: Publisher.

Use Sentence Case for Book Titles: Book titles in Harvard style must be in sentence case — only proper nouns and the first word are capitalized. Use Consistent Punctuation and Spacing: All the elements (commas, full stops, colons, brackets) must follow Harvard punctuation guidelines consistently. A small mistake, like a missing comma or incorrect spacing, can make a citation useless or confusing. Quote the Year of the Edition You Used: In all citations, use the year of publication of the edition you used, even if the book was originally published earlier. List Authors According to How They Appear on the Book: In Harvard style, authors must be listed exactly as they appear on the title page of the book and not alphabetically or in order of seniority.