How to cite the online version of a journal in APA format?

Citing an online journal article in APA format requires including the article's author(s), publication year, title, journal name, volume and issue, page range (if available), and a Digital Object Identifier (DOI) or URL. Always prioritize the DOI when one exists for the article. Locate the required elements: author, year, article title in sentence case, journal name in title case and italics, volume number in italics, issue number in parentheses not italicized, page range, and DOI/URL. Key principles include italicizing the journal name and volume number; place the issue number in parentheses after the volume without italics. Provide the article's DOI formatted as a persistent link (e.g., `https://doi.org/10.xxxx/xxxxxx`) whenever available; if no DOI exists, use the full URL of the journal's homepage or the article itself (avoid databases). Include a retrieval date only if the content is designed to change or lacks archival location (e.g., social media, unarchived webpages), which is less common for standard journal articles. Accurate online citations are essential for scholarly integrity, enabling readers to directly access the source and verify claims. Modern research heavily relies on digital journals. Proper formatting adheres to APA standards and prevents plagiarism. A correctly formatted reference looks like this: Author, A. A. (Year). Article title. *Journal Title*, *Volume*(Issue), Pages. `https://doi.org/10.xxxx/xxxxxx`.