Practical examples of endnote formatting examples for journal articles

Before we talk rules, it helps to see real examples of endnote formatting examples for journal articles in action. Imagine you’re writing a psychology paper and your target journal uses endnotes instead of in‑text citations.

In the body of the article, you might write:

Sleep restriction has been consistently linked to impaired decision‑making in adults.¹

Then, in the endnotes section at the end of the article, note 1 could look like this (APA‑style endnote):

1. Killgore, W. D. S. (2010). Effects of sleep deprivation on cognition. Progress in Brain Research, 185, 105–129. https://doi.org/10.1016/B978-0-444-53702-7.00007-5

That’s a simple, clean example of endnote formatting for a journal article: superscript number in the text, full reference in the endnote.

Now let’s walk through more examples of endnote formatting examples for journal articles across different styles and situations you’re likely to face in 2024–2025.

APA-style examples of endnote formatting for journal articles

APA (7th edition) is usually associated with in‑text citations and a reference list, but some journals adapt APA details for endnote systems, especially in interdisciplinary publications.

Here’s how a basic APA‑inspired endnote for a journal article might look in your endnotes section:

2. Smith, J. A., & Lee, R. M. (2024). Remote work and employee well‑being: A longitudinal analysis. Journal of Occupational Health Psychology, 29(2), 145–160. https://doi.org/10.1037/ocp0000356

If you mention the same article again later in the article, many journals using an APA‑like endnote system will tell you to repeat the full citation or use a shortened version. Always check the journal’s author guidelines, but examples include these two patterns:

• Repeat the full citation in a new note number
• Use a short form like: Smith & Lee, 2024 (see note 2)

A slightly more complex example of endnote formatting in an APA‑style journal might involve an online‑first article:

3. Patel, N. K., & Huang, L. (2025). AI‑assisted diagnostics in primary care: Patient and clinician perspectives. Journal of Medical Internet Research. Advance online publication. https://doi.org/10.2196/56789

Notice the “Advance online publication” line. In 2024–2025, many journals are publishing online first, so your best examples will almost always include a DOI.

Chicago-style examples of endnote formatting examples for journal articles

If you’re in history, theology, or parts of the humanities, Chicago’s notes‑and‑bibliography system is your daily bread. This is where examples of endnote formatting examples for journal articles really shine, because Chicago was built for footnotes and endnotes.

A first full note in Chicago (17th edition) for a journal article looks like this:

4. Anne Case and Angus Deaton, “Mortality and Morbidity in the 21st Century,” Brookings Papers on Economic Activity 2017, no. 1 (2017): 397–476, https://doi.org/10.1353/eca.2017.0005.

If you cite the same article later, Chicago wants a shortened note:

5. Case and Deaton, “Mortality and Morbidity,” 410.

Those two lines are some of the best examples of endnote formatting that students can memorize: full note first, then a short note with author’s last name, a shortened title, and the page.

Another Chicago‑style example of endnote formatting for a journal article with many authors:

6. David R. Williams et al., “Racism and Health: Evidence and Needed Research,” Annual Review of Public Health 40 (2019): 105–125, https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev-publhealth-040218-043750.

Shortened note later in the article:

7. Williams et al., “Racism and Health,” 110.

The pattern is consistent: full information the first time, then a trimmed version. Once you internalize a few real examples like these, Chicago endnotes stop feeling intimidating.

For official Chicago guidance, you can compare your notes with the online Chicago Manual of Style quick guide at the University of Chicago Press: https://www.chicagomanualofstyle.org/tools_citationguide/citation-guide-1.html

Discipline-specific examples of endnote formatting for journal articles

Different fields tweak the rules. Here are several examples of endnote formatting examples for journal articles tailored to specific disciplines.

Medical and health journals (AMA‑inspired)

Medical journals often follow AMA style with numbered references. Some use endnotes instead of a separate reference list, but the format stays similar.

A typical AMA‑style endnote for a journal article:

8. Fauci AS, Lane HC, Redfield RR. Covid‑19 — Navigating the Uncharted. New England Journal of Medicine. 2020;382(13):1268–1269. doi:10.1056/NEJMe2002387

If you’re citing a clinical guideline, your example of endnote formatting might look like this:

9. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Interim Clinical Considerations for Use of COVID‑19 Vaccines. CDC. Updated October 18, 2024. Accessed November 10, 2024. https://www.cdc.gov/vaccines/covid-19/clinical-considerations

Note how recent updates (2024) are included, and “Accessed” dates are still common when there is no DOI.

For more AMA guidance, see the AMA Manual of Style resources: https://www.amamanualofstyle.com/

Legal and policy journals (Bluebook‑inspired)

Law reviews love notes. A real example of endnote formatting for a law journal article might look like this:

10. Richard H. Fallon, Jr., Fact and Fiction about Originalism, 99 Calif. L. Rev. 915 (2011).

Later citation in short form:

11. Fallon, supra note 10, at 930.

Legal writing has its own vocabulary—“supra,” “id.,” and so on—but the core idea is the same: number in the text, full information in the endnote.

Humanities journals (MLA‑inspired but using endnotes)

MLA is typically parenthetical, but some journals adapt MLA details into an endnote system. A humanities‑style example of endnote formatting might be:

12. Toni Morrison, “The Site of Memory,” in Inventing the Truth: The Art and Craft of Memoir, ed. William Zinsser (Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 1995), 83.

Even if your journal uses MLA‑style works cited, they may still allow explanatory endnotes. In that case, you’d mix explanatory notes and citation notes in the same numbered list.

Mixed content: examples of endnote formatting when you cite more than articles

Modern journal articles almost never cite only other journal articles. You’re probably pulling in books, websites, preprints, and datasets. Your examples of endnote formatting examples for journal articles should anticipate that mix.

Here’s how a single article might handle different sources in its endnotes.

Endnote for a journal article (Chicago‑style):

13. Michael E. Mann, “The New Climate War,” Scientific American 323, no. 3 (2020): 54–61.

Endnote for a book cited in the same article:

14. Katharine Hayhoe, Saving Us: A Climate Scientist’s Case for Hope and Healing in a Divided World (New York: Atria/One Signal Publishers, 2021).

Endnote for a government report:

15. U.S. Global Change Research Program, Fourth National Climate Assessment, Volume II: Impacts, Risks, and Adaptation in the United States (Washington, DC: U.S. Global Change Research Program, 2018), https://nca2018.globalchange.gov.

Endnote for a dataset referenced in a 2024 article:

16. National Center for Education Statistics, “National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) Data Explorer,” dataset, updated May 2024, https://www.nationsreportcard.gov.

These are all examples of endnote formatting you might see in current journal articles that are trying to be transparent about data sources and government reports.

For official data citation guidance, the National Institutes of Health offers updated recommendations: https://www.nlm.nih.gov/bsd/uniform_requirements.html

Trends in 2024–2025: DOIs, preprints, and online sources in endnotes

Journals have become more consistent about a few things in recent years, and that affects your examples of endnote formatting examples for journal articles.

1. DOIs are expected whenever available

If a DOI exists, use it. Many journals now reject references without DOIs when they’re available. A 2025‑style example of endnote formatting with DOI:

17. Garcia, M. L., & Chen, P. (2025). Social media use and adolescent mental health: A meta‑analysis. Journal of Adolescent Health, 76(1), 12–25. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jadohealth.2024.09.003

2. Preprints are now mainstream

In fields like biology, medicine, and physics, preprints on servers like medRxiv and arXiv are common. A current example of endnote formatting for a preprint might be:

18. Nguyen, T., & Morales, J. (2024). Early detection of Parkinson’s disease using wearable sensors: A machine learning approach. medRxiv. Preprint. https://doi.org/10.1101/2024.03.15.24305000

Journals often want you to label it clearly as a preprint.

3. Citing health and medical sites responsibly

If you’re writing in health or medicine, your editor will expect authoritative sources: think NIH, CDC, or major medical centers like Mayo Clinic.

A real example of endnote formatting for a web page from Mayo Clinic:

19. Mayo Clinic Staff. Depression (major depressive disorder). Mayo Clinic. Updated August 3, 2024. Accessed October 20, 2024. https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/depression/symptoms-causes/syc-20356007

Another for a WebMD article:

20. WebMD Editorial Contributors. Understanding Type 2 Diabetes. WebMD. Reviewed July 12, 2024. Accessed November 2, 2024. https://www.webmd.com/diabetes/type-2-diabetes

These examples of endnote formatting show the pattern many journals want for health information: organization or author, title, site name, last updated or reviewed date, access date, and URL.

Common mistakes and how to fix them using good examples

Seeing the best examples of endnote formatting also helps you spot what not to do.

Inconsistent author names

Wrong:

21. J. Smith and Robert M. Lee, “Remote Work and Employee Well‑Being,” Journal of Occupational Health Psychology 29, no. 2 (2024): 145–160.

Right (match the journal’s preferred style):

21. Smith, J. A., & Lee, R. M. (2024). Remote work and employee well‑being: A longitudinal analysis. Journal of Occupational Health Psychology, 29(2), 145–160. https://doi.org/10.1037/ocp0000356

Missing volume, issue, or pages

Wrong:

22. Williams, D. R. “Racism and Health.” Annual Review of Public Health (2019).

Right (a more accurate example of endnote formatting):

22. Williams, D. R., Lawrence, J. A., & Davis, B. A. “Racism and Health: Evidence and Needed Research.” Annual Review of Public Health 40 (2019): 105–125. https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev-publhealth-040218-043750

URLs without context

Wrong:

23. https://www.cdc.gov/diabetes/basics/diabetes.html

Right:

23. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Diabetes Basics. CDC. Updated May 10, 2024. Accessed October 25, 2024. https://www.cdc.gov/diabetes/basics/diabetes.html

Using strong examples of endnote formatting examples for journal articles as your model keeps you from falling into these traps.

Quick FAQ: examples of endnote formatting for journal articles

Q1. Can you give a simple example of an endnote for a journal article in Chicago style?
Yes. Here’s a straightforward example of a first full note:

1. Jane Doe, “Online Learning after the Pandemic,” Journal of Higher Education 95, no. 1 (2024): 22–40, https://doi.org/10.1080/00221546.2024.1234567.

Q2. Do I need a DOI in every endnote?
Not every source has a DOI, but if one exists, most 2024–2025 journal guidelines expect you to include it. Many publishers, including major academic presses and organizations like the National Library of Medicine, now treat DOIs as standard parts of references.

Q3. Are endnotes and a reference list both required?
It depends on the journal. Some journals want full citations in endnotes only; others use short notes plus a full reference list. Always check the author instructions for your target journal.

Q4. Can I mix explanatory comments with citation endnotes?
Yes, but do it sparingly and clearly. Many humanities and social science journals allow short explanatory notes alongside citation notes. The numbering is usually continuous; you don’t start a new sequence just for explanations.

Q5. Where can I find more official examples of endnote formatting for journal articles?
Good starting points include university writing centers and style‑guide sites. For instance, Harvard’s Writing Center explains citation practices clearly: https://writingcenter.fas.harvard.edu. You can also compare your notes to the Chicago Manual of Style’s online examples and the AMA or APA style resources linked above.

If you treat the examples of endnote formatting examples for journal articles here as templates—adjusting author names, titles, and dates—you’ll be able to format your next manuscript’s endnotes with far less stress and far more confidence.