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ACS

ACS (American Chemical Society) is a numbered referencing style requiring an in-text citation within the text of your document and a related entry in a reference list at the end of your document.

General information

ACS (American Chemical Society) Guide to Scholarly Communication is a numbered referencing style.

Manual

Information for this guide was from Part 4.3 References and Part 4.3.3. ACS Style Quick Guide of The ACS guide to scholarly communication (2020-). Latest update 8 April 2025.  Consult the manual for more comprehensive information.

ACS style requirements

In-text citations

In ACS, you reference by providing a citation within the text of the document (in-text citation) using a superscript or parenthetical number.

Reference list

You then add the related entry to the references list at the end of your document. The reference list entry (author, title, source and date) provides the full details of the reference.

Example

In-text citations

When the bell rang, the children knew that it was time for tea.1

Reference list

1. Jones, B. Surviving teatime. Bloomsday Books: Wellington, New Zealand, 2023.