Website
Website Example
1. American Society for Microbiology. 2024. ASM style guide. https://journals.asm.org/writing-your-paper. Accessed 15 March 2024.
ASM Citation Generator
ASM style is published by the American Society for Microbiology and is used primarily in microbiology journals. This citation generator follows the ASM Journals guidelines.
Microbiology
What sources can you cite in ASM format?
- Journal articles
- Books and book chapters
- Websites and databases
- Conference abstracts
- Patents
- Theses and dissertations
- Government publications
- Unpublished data
How to create ASM citations
Reference list citations
ASM references use a numbered format: Number. Authors. Year. Title. Journal Volume:Pages. For journal articles, list all authors by last name and initials (no periods): Smith JA, Doe MB. Use sentence case for titles. Abbreviate journal names according to NLM standards. Include DOI when available. For books: Number. Author(s). Year. Title, edition. Publisher, City, State. All authors must be listed in the reference—never use 'et al.' in the reference list.
In-text citations
ASM uses numbered citations in parentheses: (1), (2), (3). Numbers are assigned in order of first appearance in the text. For multiple citations, list in numerical order: (1, 3, 5) or (1-3) for consecutive numbers. You may use 'et al.' in the text when citing works with multiple authors, but the full author list must appear in the reference. References are numbered sequentially, not alphabetized.
ASM Citation Examples
See how to format different source types in ASM.
Journal Article
Journal Article Example
2. Smith JA, Doe MB, Brown CD. 2024. Microbial research methods. J Microbiol 45:123-145.
Book
Book Example
3. Brown CD. 2023. Introduction to microbiology, 3rd ed. Academic Press, New York, NY.
Quick ASM Rules
Author Format
Last name Initial(s). List all authors. Use commas between authors. No 'et al.' in reference list.
Title Format
Sentence case for article titles. Journal names are abbreviated according to standard abbreviations.
Date Format
Year after author list. Include full dates for online sources with specific publication dates.
Journal/Source
Abbreviated journal name. Volume:Page range.
In-text Citations
Use numbered citations in parentheses: (1), (2), etc. Numbers correspond to the order of first appearance in the text.
About this ASM citation generator
This citation generator formats references according to the guidelines used by American Society for Microbiology (ASM) journals. It follows the citation-sequence system where references are numbered in order of first appearance. The tool supports journal articles, books, websites, and other source types used in microbiology research. For journal-specific variations, check the target journal's author guidelines.
Expert-Verified ASM Citations You Can Trust
Incorrect citations cost you grades. Our ASM citation generator is built by formatting experts who've refined every algorithm for precision. Trusted by educators and students worldwide, we help you cite sources correctly the first time.
Tom Atkinson
Citation Expert
Garrett Becker
Style Specialist
Briggs Knight
Citation Developer
Common ASM citation mistakes
- Using 'et al.' in the reference list (list all authors instead)
- Adding periods after author initials (use JA, not J.A.)
- Using title case instead of sentence case for article titles
- Forgetting to include the accessed date for online sources
- Not using standard NLM journal abbreviations
- Alphabetizing references instead of numbering by appearance
ASM Frequently Asked Questions
What is ASM citation style?
ASM (American Society for Microbiology) style is used primarily in microbiology journals. It uses a citation-sequence numbering system where references are numbered in the order they appear in the text.
How do I cite a website in ASM?
Include the numbered reference, author/organization, year, page title, URL, and accessed date. Format: [Number]. Author. Year. Title. URL. Accessed date.
Do I use 'et al.' in ASM citations?
You can use 'et al.' in the text for citations with multiple authors, but all authors must be listed in the full reference list entry. No 'et al.' in references.
Does ASM use DOIs?
Yes, ASM style recommends including DOIs for journal articles when available. Include the DOI after the page range in the reference.
Other Citation Styles
Last updated: December 2025 — ASM formatting rules.