IEEE Citation Format

IEEEcitationformat, like MLA, APA, and Chicago, is used to cite sources in our paper. IEEE stands for Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers, which publishes papers in engineering, computer science, and electronics. Students in these fields also need to cite their academic papers in IEEE format.

It helps students and researchers properly cite articles, books, websites, and other sources in a consistent format. IEEE citation in text and a separate reference page at the end of the paper are two ways to cite sources in IEEE, which we explore in this guide, along with relevant IEEE citation example.

Basic IEEE Citation Format Rules

The IEEE citation style uses numerical citations within the text and in the reference list at the end of the paper. Here’s a breakdown of some common rules to follow in IEEE format citation.

1. Citations are numbered in order of their appearance, such as the first source uses [1], the second [2], and so on.
2. The exact number is reused if the same source appears multiple times in your paper.
3. The IEEE reference style list appears numerically (not alphabetically) at the end of the paper.
4. Use brackets [ ] to indicate numbers in text and reference page entries.
5. Each reference entry follows a unique structure depending on the source type used (Article, book, website).

IEEE in text Citation

In IEEE single author citation, a source number in brackets is used, which indicates a relevant reference to the reader. However, the same number would be repeated in the entire text if one source appears multiple times. You may also use the author’s name in the format of IEEE in-text citation, but it’s optional. Additionally, an IEEE in text citation format refers to using source numbering at the relevant point in the sentence, but before the punctuation. It could be at the start of a sentence, as a part of a sentence, or after a direct quote.

In academic writing, it’s common to use IEEE multiple authors citation within a single line. In such a situation, IEEE allows you to separate individual citations using commas. But if indicating a range of sources, use a hyphen. This way, the author keeps the text clean and your references organized.

IEEE Reference Page

The IEEE reference citation list provides complete details of sources so the reader can locate them easily. Each IEEE reference entry has its own set of specific elements that differentiate it from others. But usually, the reference entries include the author’s name, the source’s title, the publication date, information about the publisher, and sometimes a DOI. Furthermore, there are three parts to format an ieee reference citation entry, which include

• The author’s name should be listed as the first name initial, followed by the full last name.
• Title of the article, conference paper, or patent within quotation marks.
• The journal or book name in italics.
• For multiple author citations, include the first name initial, then full last name for the first 6 authors, separated by commas. After that, use et al.

IEEE Website Citation

Format Style: Author(s), “Webpage title,” Website name, Publication date. [Online]. Available: URL. Accessed date.

Example: K. Jacob, “Future of climate change,” ClimateTalk, Mar. 20, 2024. [Online]. Available: https://techtalk.com/climate-future. [Accessed: Apr. 5, 2025].

IEEE Image Citation

Format Style: Author(s), “Image title/caption,” Source/website, Date published. [Online]. Available: URL. Access date.

Example: M. Clark, “Neural Network Diagram,” Neuralgraphics, Feb. 10, 2023. [Online]. Available: https://neuralgraphics.com/diagram. [Accessed: Apr. 5, 2025].

IEEE Book Citation

Format style: Author(s), Book name, Edition, Publisher, Year.

Example: T. Brown, Introduction to electronics, 3rd ed., Pearson, 2020.

IEEE journal citation

Format Style: Author(s), “Title of paper,” Journal name, vol. x, no. x, pp. xx–xx, Month Year.Example: L. Chen and R. Patel, “Advances in Wireless Technology,” IEEE Trans. Commun., vol. 68, no. 4, pp. 123–130, Apr. 2021.

IEEE Reference Format

The ieee reference style page appears at the end when writing a research paper with the title “References”. The title text appears in bold and can be left or centre-aligned. Afterwards, include the actual references, which will be numbered in the order they appear in the body text of the paper.  Once you set up the ieee citation reference page title, do these four things.

• Place the references flush left.
• There is a 1-space limit between reference entries and a 2-space limit between two references.
• Numbering the references in the left margin within enclosed brackets.
• Ensure the text is indented within each entry.

Below is a well-equipped and formatted IEEE reference example to follow for your paper.

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