Chicago book citation format
For a basic book citation, collect the author, title, publisher and publication year. A full note puts the publication details in parentheses and can add the page you used. A short note points back with the surname, short title and page. The bibliography entry gives the book’s details in the final source list.
Chicago 18 does not require the place of publication for a book. Turabian 9 still includes it. Check the edition required by your assignment before copying an example from a different guide.
In the first example, Nella Quillmere is the author, the italic text is the book title, Mossglass Press is the publisher, and 2025 is the year. The 42 in the notes identifies a page. The bibliography entry describes the book as a whole and does not carry that single cited page.
Chicago book citation examples
All books, contributors and publishers below are fictional. Compare each full note, short note and bibliography entry. These are teaching examples, not books to use as evidence in an assignment. The example.org ebook link is a placeholder.
With two authors, both names appear in the note. With three or more, Chicago 18 uses the first author followed by et al. The bibliography lists up to six authors; with more than six, it lists the first three followed by et al. Enter every author in the order shown by the book.
Record contributors in their actual roles: an editor or translator is not automatically the author. Include a numbered edition when you used a later edition. For a chapter in an edited collection, identify the chapter author and title as well as the book and its editor. For an online book, include its URL or DOI as appropriate.
One author
- Full note
- Nella Quillmere, Lantern Maps of Bellweather Quay (Mossglass Press, 2025), 42.
- Short note
- Quillmere, Lantern Maps, 42.
- Bibliography
- Quillmere, Nella. Lantern Maps of Bellweather Quay. Mossglass Press, 2025.
Two authors
- Full note
- Oren Brindlewick and Tessa Valefern, Counting the Bridges of Fenwick Hollow (Pebble Lantern Press, 2025), 28.
- Short note
- Brindlewick and Valefern, Counting the Bridges, 28.
- Bibliography
- Brindlewick, Oren, and Tessa Valefern. Counting the Bridges of Fenwick Hollow. Pebble Lantern Press, 2025.
Three authors
- Full note
- Iona Thistledell et al., Listening Posts in Morrowfen (Copper Finch Academic, 2025), 63.
- Short note
- Thistledell et al., Listening Posts, 63.
- Bibliography
- Thistledell, Iona, Perrin Mossvale, and Zella Reedwhistle. Listening Posts in Morrowfen. Copper Finch Academic, 2025.
More than six authors
- Full note
- Iona Thistledell et al., Seven Surveys of Alderwhistle Sound (Copper Finch Academic, 2025), 71.
- Short note
- Thistledell et al., Seven Surveys, 71.
- Bibliography
- Thistledell, Iona, Perrin Mossvale, Zella Reedwhistle, et al. Seven Surveys of Alderwhistle Sound. Copper Finch Academic, 2025.
A translated book
- Full note
- Marin Wrenhollow, Letters from the Glass Orchard, trans. Edda Fernquill (Mossglass Press, 2025), 19.
- Short note
- Wrenhollow, Glass Orchard, 19.
- Bibliography
- Wrenhollow, Marin. Letters from the Glass Orchard. Translated by Edda Fernquill. Mossglass Press, 2025.
Second edition
- Full note
- Nella Quillmere, A Field Workbook for Cloudmeadow, 2nd ed. (Mossglass Press, 2025), 86.
- Short note
- Quillmere, Field Workbook, 86.
- Bibliography
- Quillmere, Nella. A Field Workbook for Cloudmeadow. 2nd ed. Mossglass Press, 2025.
A chapter in an edited book
- Full note
- Tessa Valefern, “The Night Ferries of Brackenport,” in Small Harbors of the Imagined Coast, ed. Oren Brindlewick (Pebble Lantern Press, 2025), 37.
- Short note
- Valefern, “Night Ferries,” 37.
- Bibliography
- Valefern, Tessa. “The Night Ferries of Brackenport.” In Small Harbors of the Imagined Coast, edited by Oren Brindlewick. Pebble Lantern Press, 2025.
An online book
- Full note
- Zella Reedwhistle, The Pocket Atlas of Reedwhistle Island (Copper Finch Academic, 2025), 12, https://example.org/pocket-atlas.
- Short note
- Reedwhistle, Pocket Atlas, 12.
- Bibliography
- Reedwhistle, Zella. The Pocket Atlas of Reedwhistle Island. Copper Finch Academic, 2025. https://example.org/pocket-atlas.
Textbooks
Check the exact edition of your textbook. An ISBN lookup can return a different edition, binding or digital version with a similar title. Compare the author list, year and edition with your own copy. Use Add author for each person and enter the edition in Edit all fields. Check the passage’s page number separately before copying a note.
Where to find the details
Start with the title page for the title and contributor names, then check the copyright page for the publisher, year and edition. The ISBN is often on that page and near the back-cover barcode. A retailer’s listing can help you find a book, but compare its details with the copy you read.
For an ebook, check the title and copyright screens inside the file. If the book has no fixed pages, do not copy a page number from another edition. Keep notes about the section you used. When a title’s capitalization needs to stay as you entered it, check Keep my capitalization; the tool then preserves that input.
Frequently asked questions
How do I cite a book with multiple authors in Chicago style?
Enter all authors in the order printed in the book. Chicago 18 notes use both names for two authors, or the first plus et al. for three or more. The bibliography lists up to six names, or the first three plus et al. when there are more than six.
Do I include the place of publication?
Chicago 18 does not require it. Turabian 9 book citations include it; use the Turabian page if that is your assigned style.
How do I cite a chapter in an edited book?
Choose Book chapter and enter the chapter author and title, then the book title, editor and publication details. Use the Page field for the page you cite in a note. Do not put the editor in the author field unless that person also wrote the chapter.
How do I cite an e-book?
Identify the version you actually read. For a book read online, include its URL or DOI as appropriate. If the version has no fixed page numbers, use an available section or other locator rather than inventing a page.
What if the book has no author?
Check whether an editor is responsible for the book and enter that role if so. If there is no author or editor, the citation begins with the title. Confirm No author only after checking the book.