Chicago offers two citation systems: notes and bibliography, and author–date. Confirm which your course requires before drafting. Choosing one system at the start avoids mixing footnotes, parenthetical citations and incompatible reference entries.
Notes and bibliography
This system uses numbered notes linked to cited material. Notes may appear as footnotes or endnotes according to the assignment requirements. A bibliography provides publication details in a separate list. A note and a bibliography entry serve different functions and are formatted differently.
Author–date citations
Author–date uses an author and year citation within the text, paired with a reference-list entry. Include a locator when needed for a quotation or specific passage. Do not assume an author–date entry can be pasted unchanged into a notes-and-bibliography assignment.
Choose the example that matches the source
Books, chapters, journal articles and web pages require different information. Collect the details from the source itself, including a DOI where available. Use the appropriate official example and follow your course’s specified edition and adaptations.
Review notes and repeated citations
Keep note numbering in sequence and check references after moving text. Use the short-note format your guide prescribes for later citations. Avoid manually typing note numbers when your word processor can create and maintain them.
Check against the official guide
The Chicago citation quick guide separates both systems and links to source-specific examples. Verify punctuation, ordering and missing publication details against the relevant system rather than relying only on a citation generator.
Related study guides
Continue with paragraph planning, referencing guidance or the study knowledgebase. For feedback on your own draft, contact Assignment Writer with the brief and your specific question.
