In this article, you’ll learn about the Chicago format guidelines that apply to academic writing.
This will help you ensure that your college or university essays meet standards in terms of style, grammar, and formatting.
Inhaltsverzeichnis
Chicago Format – In a Nutshell
This article will show you the current Chicago format guidelines regarding:
- Font type and size
- Page margins
- Formatting numbers and acronyms
- In-text citation styles
Definition: Chicago format
Chicago format is a set of guidelines that you’ll need to follow when using the Chicago style in academic work.
Chicago format guidelines are published in the Chicago Manual of Style, and cover topics like font selection, text spacing, heading formatting, citation styles, use of numerals and acronyms, etc.
Adjusting the format according to your university’s requirements is typically the final step. After several times of proofreading, many become blinkered to their own work and miss formatting mistakes. A preview-function representing the real-life version that can be edited virtually creates a fresh eye for formatting mistakes and helps you to detect them again.
The general Chicago format
Chicago format states some guidelines regarding the general formatting of a page. These include:
- Using a readable font in a standard size (e.g. Times New Roman 12 pt.)
- Leaving a one-inch margin around all four sides of a page.
- The text must be set to double-spacing.
- The text must be left aligned. Avoid justified text.
- The first word in each paragraph is indented by ½ inch.
- Page numbers can be placed in the top right, leaving ½ inch from the edge of the page or bottom center.
Chicago format: Title page
In Chicago format, it’s not mandatory to add a title page, since the essay title only needs to be inserted once, at the top of the first page.
If coursework requirements include a title page, the correct Chicago format is:
- Place the title one-third down the page.
- If applicable, the subtitle goes in a new line, underneath the title. In this case, add a colon to the title.
- Your/your instructor’s name, student, and course ID, date submitted, and other essay details are placed below the title and subtitle, approximately two-thirds down the page.
- All text on the title page should be centered and double-spaced.
- All text should use the same font type and size.
Attention!
- Only use bold font for the title and subtitle.
- Use headline capitalization for the title and subtitle.
Chicago format: Headings
To follow the Chicago format, headings must use headline-style capitalization, where only main words are capitalized (nouns, verbs, adjectives, pronouns, and adverbs).1
✓ Selection of Participants
✘ Selection of participants
There are five different heading levels in Chicago format, which help structure the essay by following a clear hierarchy.
Example:
- Level 1 headings: Are used in the main sections of a paper
- Level 2 headings: Are used to signal sections within a Level 1 heading
- Level 3 headings: Signal sections within a Level 2 heading, and so on.
Level 1 headings should be formatted to highlight their hierarchy, for example by using bold or italics font and keeping Level 2 headings in regular font.2
Chicago format: Block quotes
Certain quotations, such as multi-line poetry quotes, those with 100+ words, and those that extend over 5+ lines, must follow the Chicago format for block quotes.
- Use single spacing throughout the quote
- Indent it by ½ inch
Chicago format: Numbers and acronyms
In Chicago format, numbers from zero to one hundred are spelled out, instead of written as numerals.
Attention!
The exception is when referring to measurements or decimals.
✓ Only fifteen patients completed the trial
✓ The temperature increased by 1.5 degrees
✘ Only 15 patients completed the trial
✘ The temperature increased by one and a half degrees
Chicago format, acronyms only need to be spelled out the first time they appear in the text, followed by the actual acronym in parentheses.
Example:
First mention:
- The America Psychological Association (APA) was founded in …
Subsequent mentions:
- According to the APA, …
To improve readability, you should avoid placing numbers and acronyms at the beginning of a sentence.
You can either spell them out or if the number/acronym is too long, rephrase the sentence.3
✓ Seventy-five percent of students took the test
✓ The study included 3,891 participants
✘ 75% of students took the test
✘ 3,891 participants took part in this longitudinal study
✘ Three thousand eight hundred and ninety-one participants took part in this longitudinal study
Chicago format: In-text citations
Chicago formatting guidelines can be used with two citation styles:
1. Author-date style, where citations are integrated into the text using parentheses, either in-line or at the end of the sentence/paragraph.
Examples:
- Anderson (2019) concludes that more research is needed to establish causality.
OR
- Researchers concluded that more research is needed to establish causality (Anderson, 2019).
2. Notes and bibliography style, where citations are listed as footnotes or endnotes, which are referenced throughout the text with superscript numerals.
Footnotes appear at the bottom of the page where the citation is made, under a short rule or line that separates them from the main text, whereas endnotes are placed in a dedicated section at the end of the essay and before the bibliography.
Chicago format: Bibliography and reference list
A bibliography is an alphabetically ordered list of all the sources referenced in an essay and is used whenever you choose a notes and bibliography citation style. A reference list serves the same purpose but must be used if you choose the author-date style.
Formatting guidelines for both bibliographies and reference lists include:
- Use single spacing
- Leave an additional blank line between each entry
- Entries that extend for more than one line must have a ½ inch indent in the second and subsequent lines4
Point deductions can also be caused when citing passages that are not written in your own words. Don’t take a risk and run your paper through our online plagiarism checker. You will receive the results in only 10 minutes and can submit your paper with confidence.
FAQs
Chicago and Turabian.
These formats are essentially identical, but whereas the former is used in published research and academia, the latter is used in college or university essays, which are not meant to be published.
Yes, except for:
- Page header (bibliography vs. references)
- Entry publication date format (placed at the end of the entry in bibliographies, and after the author/s name in reference lists)
No, you can use other standard fonts as long as they’re easy to read. For example, Arial font is also common in the Chicago style.
No, for the sake of consistency and clarity, choose one or the other. Remember that both footnotes and endnotes require the addition of a bibliography.
Sources
1 Enago Academy. “Best Practices for Using Headline Case.” July 19, 2019. https://www.enago.com/academy/best-practices-for-using-headline-case/.
2 Xavier, Andy. “Chicago Headings and Subheadings.” Scientific Editing. August 2, 2021. https://www.scientific-editing.info/blog/chicago-headings-and-subheadings/.
3 Western Oregon University. “Chicago Style Guide, for 17th Edition.” Accessed February 21, 2023. https://research.wou.edu/c.php?g=551307.
4 The Chicago Manual of Style Online. “The Chicago Manual of Style, 17th Edition.” Accessed February 21, 2023. https://www.chicagomanualofstyle.org/tools_citationguide/citation-guide-1.html.