How to Cite a Website in Harvard Style (With Examples)

The quick answer: in Harvard style, a website reference usually looks like this: Author surname, Initial. (Year) Title of web page. Available at: URL (Accessed: day month year). In your text, you cite it as (Author, Year). Harvard isn’t one single official style, so small details such as italics and punctuation can vary between universities. Always check your own uni’s guide first.

Short on time? Our free citation generator builds the reference for you and you can copy it straight into your essay.

Harvard website citation at a glance

How to cite a website in Harvard, step by step

1. Find the author. Look at the top or bottom of the page. If no person is named, use the organisation that published it, such as the NHS or BBC.
2. Find the date. Use the year the page was published or last updated. If there is no date at all, write (no date) or (n.d.), whichever your university uses.
3. Copy the page title exactly and put it in italics.
4. Add the full URL after “Available at:”.
5. Add the date you accessed it, because web pages can change or disappear.
6. Put it in your reference list in alphabetical order by author surname or organisation name.

Examples

Web page with a named author

Smith, J. (2025) How sleep affects memory. Available at: https://www.example.com/sleep-memory (Accessed: 2 November 2026).

In-text: (Smith, 2025) or “Smith (2025) argues that…”

Web page with an organisation as author

Study Buddy Tools (2026) How to calculate GPA with credit hours. Available at: https://studybuddytools.com/how-to-calculate-gpa-with-credit-hours/ (Accessed: 2 November 2026).

In-text: (Study Buddy Tools, 2026)

Web page with no date

Example Organisation (no date) Revision tips for exams. Available at: https://www.example.org/revision-tips (Accessed: 2 November 2026).

In-text: (Example Organisation, no date)

Online news article

For news sites, many Harvard guides add the full date and the name of the newspaper or site in italics: Jones, A. (2026) ‘Students turn to AI study tools’, Example News, 14 March. Available at: https://www.examplenews.com/ai-study-tools (Accessed: 2 November 2026).

Notice that here the article title goes in single quotation marks and the publication name is in italics, which is the usual pattern for articles in Harvard.

Quoting a website in your text

If you copy words directly, put them in quotation marks and add the citation straight after: “Short, regular study sessions are more effective than cramming” (Smith, 2025). If you paraphrase in your own words, you still need the citation, but no quotation marks. Paraphrasing well, with a citation, is usually better than long quotes.

Citing two or more authors

Two authors: (Smith and Khan, 2025). Three or more: many Harvard guides use the first author followed by et al., for example (Smith et al., 2025), while listing all authors in the reference list. Check how many names your guide wants written out.

Harvard vs APA vs MLA for websites

The biggest differences: Harvard and APA both put the year near the start, while MLA puts the date near the end. Harvard uses “Available at:” and an accessed date; APA 7 usually skips the accessed date. For the other styles, see our guides on citing a website in APA 7 and citing a website in MLA 9, or the full APA vs MLA vs Harvard comparison.

Common mistakes

• Using the website name as the title. Cite the specific page you used, not just the homepage.
• Forgetting the accessed date. Most Harvard guides expect it for web sources.
• Putting the URL in the in-text citation. In the text, only use the author and year.
• Mixing styles. Pick the style your course asks for and use it consistently in the whole essay.

Frequently asked questions

Is Harvard referencing the same at every university?

No. Harvard is a family of author-date styles. Many UK universities follow the Cite Them Right version, but punctuation, italics and how you write “no date” can differ. Your university’s referencing guide always wins.

What if there is no author?

Use the organisation that published the page as the author. If there is no organisation either, some guides let you start with the title instead.

Do I need page numbers for a website?

Websites usually have no page numbers, so you leave them out. If you quote directly, some guides suggest adding a paragraph number or section heading instead.

Does the word count include my references?

Usually the reference list is not included in the word count, but in-text citations often are. Check your assignment brief, and use our word counter to keep track.

Related guides

• How to Cite a Website in MLA 9 (Format and Examples)
• How to Cite a Website in APA 7th Edition (With Examples)
• APA vs MLA vs Harvard: Which Citation Style Should You Use?

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