APA to RIS Converter
Free APA to RIS converter. Paste a reference to get an RIS record for Zotero or EndNote, with the details a matching registry record supplies.
APA to RIS Converter
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Each source is checked against its published record, formatted in APA Style (7th Edition), and kept in this browser. No sign-up.
Why convert an APA reference to RIS
A formatted APA reference is text for a reader, and a reference manager cannot import it. RIS is the import format that Zotero, EndNote, Mendeley, and most library databases share. When your reference holds a DOI, CiteTools fetches its registry record. Without a DOI it searches the registries by what the reference states. A matching record fills in what your reference leaves out and corrects what it gets wrong. If no record matches a complete reference, the RIS holds the fields you pasted, marked Not confirmed. Each field goes on its own tagged line.
How the APA to RIS conversion works
- Copy the reference from your list, with its DOI if it has one. The example on this page is a 1953 article from Nature that ends with its DOI.
- If the reference holds a DOI, CiteTools fetches its registry record. When that record matches, the RIS comes from it and reads Confirmed by its DOI record. If no record matches, the RIS holds the fields you pasted, marked Not confirmed.
- Copy the record, or download it as a .ris file and import it into your reference manager. Separate up to 100 references with blank lines to export a whole list.
Sample RIS record
Every record opens with TY, the type of the work, and closes with ER. Between them each line holds one tag and one value. AU names an author, TI the title, T2 the journal, DA and PY the date, and VL and IS the volume and the issue. SP and EP hold the first and last page, DO the DOI, and UR its address. A record read from the registry also carries DB, the name of the registry, and J2, the short journal name. LA holds the language and SN the ISSN. When the registry holds an abstract, AB carries it.
TY - JOUR AU - Watson, J. D. AU - Crick, F. H. C. DA - 1953/04/25/ PY - 1953 DB - Crossref DO - 10.1038/171737a0 IS - 4356 J2 - Nature LA - en SN - 0028-0836 SP - 737 EP - 738 T2 - Nature TI - Molecular Structure of Nucleic Acids: A Structure for Deoxyribose Nucleic Acid UR - https://doi.org/10.1038/171737a0 VL - 171 ER -
Frequently asked questions
What if my reference has no DOI?
CiteTools searches the registries for a published record that matches the reference. A match fills in what the reference leaves out. With no match the result reads Not confirmed, and the record holds only the fields you pasted, so check them against your source.
Does the RIS record follow APA?
No. An RIS record holds the data of the work and no citation style. Zotero, EndNote, and Mendeley apply APA, MLA, or any other style when you cite. CiteTools reads the APA reference to find the work, and takes the fields from it when no record matches.
Can I convert a whole reference list?
Yes. Paste up to 100 references separated by blank lines and CiteTools writes one RIS record for each. Keep the DOI on every reference that has one, because the DOI gives the most complete record.