AMA Citation Format
Superscript numbered citations (¹, ², ³) in citation order. Standard for JAMA, Annals of Internal Medicine, and most US medical journals.
The basic formula
In-text: superscript number after the relevant statement.
Reference list: numbered in citation order with full bibliographic details.
In-text examples
Recent trials¹ have shown a 30% reduction.
Smith and colleagues² reported a similar result.
Multiple sources³⁻⁵ support this finding.
Non-consecutive: ¹,⁴,⁷.
Same source twice: ¹ (use the same number throughout).Reference list examples
Smith JA, Jones BR, Brown CD. A study of treatment outcomes. JAMA. 2024;331(15):1234-1245. doi:10.1001/jama.2024.123
Smith JA, Jones BR, Brown CD, et al. Large multi-center trial. N Engl J Med. 2024;390(5):432-445. doi:10.1056/NEJMoa2024.5
Smith JA. Medical Statistics for Clinicians. 3rd ed. Wiley; 2024.
Smith JA. Statistical methods. In: Jones AB, ed. Clinical Research Handbook. Wiley; 2024:50-75.
World Health Organization. Climate change and health. WHO website. Updated April 1, 2024. Accessed May 1, 2024. https://who.int/climate
US Centers for Disease Control. Annual surveillance report 2024. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention website. Published 2024. Accessed May 1, 2024. https://cdc.gov/report
Smith JA. Trial outcomes. Paper presented at: International Cardiology Conference; May 1-3, 2024; Boston, MA.
Smith JA, Jones BR. Novel treatment trial. medRxiv. Preprint posted online April 30, 2024. doi:10.1101/2024.04.30.24306
Reference list rules
- Numbered in citation order (NOT alphabetical).
- Each entry starts with the citation number.
- Up to 6 authors listed; 7+ uses 'et al.' after the first 3 (some publishers want first 6).
- Author format: last name + initials, no periods between initials.
- Journal names abbreviated per AMA-approved list.
- Article title in sentence case (capitalize only first word).
- Pages: full range, no abbreviation (1234-1245, not 1234-45).
- Include DOI when available.
AMA vs Vancouver vs IEEE
- AMA: medicine. Superscript numbers in text. AMA-specific journal abbreviations.
- Vancouver: medicine (international). Bracket numbers [1]. NLM journal abbreviations.
- IEEE: engineering. Bracket numbers [1]. Different reference format with year often last.
If your journal says "numbered citations" without specifying — they probably want AMA in US, Vancouver internationally, IEEE in engineering.
TypeTeX's citation generator handles AMA style — paste a PubMed ID, DOI, or URL and get a properly formatted reference. Free.
Frequently Asked Questions
AMA (American Medical Association) is a numbered citation style used by JAMA, Annals of Internal Medicine, and many US medical and scientific journals. In-text citations use superscript numbers in citation order. The reference list at the end is numbered in the same order, with full bibliographic details. Currently in its 11th edition (AMA Manual of Style).
Use superscript numbers: 'Recent trials¹ have shown a 30% reduction.' The number goes after the relevant statement, outside punctuation: 'reduction.¹'. Multiple consecutive: '¹⁻³'. Multiple non-consecutive: '¹,⁴,⁷'. The number doesn't change — once a source is [1], it's always [1].
Both are numbered citation styles for medicine. Differences: (1) AMA uses superscript numbers (¹), Vancouver typically uses brackets ([1]); (2) AMA has its own journal title abbreviation list; Vancouver uses NLM abbreviations; (3) AMA places citations OUTSIDE punctuation, Vancouver style varies; (4) AMA's reference format has subtle layout differences. Most journals accept either or specify which to use.
Up to 6 authors: list all. 7+ authors: list the first 3 then 'et al.' (some publishers want first 6 — check journal). Format: last name + initials, no periods between initials. 'Smith JA, Jones BR, Brown CD, et al.' Authors separated by commas.
Author(s). Article title. Abbreviated J Title. Year;Volume(Issue):Pages. doi. Example: Smith JA, Jones BR, Brown CD. A study of treatment outcomes. JAMA. 2024;331(15):1234-1245. doi:10.1001/jama.2024.123. Note: title in sentence case (capitalize only first word), journal abbreviated, year before semicolon.
Author/Organization. Page Title. Site Name. Updated Date. Accessed Date. URL. Example: World Health Organization. Climate change and health. WHO website. Updated April 1, 2024. Accessed May 1, 2024. https://who.int/climate. The 'Accessed' date is required.
Author. Book Title. Edition. Publisher; Year. Example: Smith JA. Medical Statistics for Clinicians. 3rd ed. Wiley; 2024. For chapters: Smith JA. Chapter title. In: Editor AB, ed. Book Title. Publisher; Year:Page-range. Note no comma between publisher and year — semicolon.
Consecutive: '¹⁻³' (using a hyphen). Non-consecutive: '¹,⁴,⁷' (commas, no spaces). The numbers go in numerical order regardless of how you wrote them.
Yes — AMA has its own list of approved journal abbreviations in the AMA Manual of Style. Common ones: JAMA (Journal of the American Medical Association — already abbreviated), N Engl J Med (NEJM), Ann Intern Med (Annals of Internal Medicine). Get the full list from AMAManualOfStyle.com or use a citation manager.