How to Harvard Reference a Website: UK Guide

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Ever found a brilliant website for your essay, used its information, and then panicked when you realised you had to reference it? You’re not alone. It can feel like a secret code only librarians and your tutors understand. But don’t worry. Learning how to Harvard reference a website is much easier than it looks.

Think of referencing as giving credit where it’s due. It’s like shouting out your mate who helped you with your homework. It shows you’ve done your research properly and tells your reader where you found your facts. It’s a core skill at college and university, and mastering it makes your work look professional and trustworthy.

This guide will walk you through everything, step-by-step. We’ll break down the rules for citing websites in the Harvard style, which is one of the most common systems used in UK universities. By the end, you’ll be able to reference any webpage with confidence, from a BBC news article to a blog post or an official government report. Let’s get started.

What is Harvard Referencing and Why Does It Matter?

Before we dive into the nitty-gritty of websites, let’s quickly cover what Harvard referencing is.

Unlike some styles that use footnotes at the bottom of the page, the Harvard style uses citations right there in your text. These are short, snappy references that sit inside brackets. Then, at the end of your essay, you have a full list of all the sources you used, called a reference list.

It’s a two-part system:

In-text Citations: A brief nod to your source in the middle of your sentence. For a website, this usually includes the author’s last name and the year the page was published. For example: (Smith, 2023).
The Reference List: A detailed list at the end of your document. This gives your reader all the information they need to find the exact source for themselves.

So, why bother?

It stops you from plagiarising. Plagiarism is using someone else’s work without giving them credit, and it’s a huge no-no in academia. Universities take it very seriously. Proper referencing is your best defence.
It shows your research. A well-referenced essay proves to your marker that you’ve read widely and engaged with expert sources. It backs up your arguments with evidence.
It helps your reader. Your citations act as a map, allowing anyone reading your work to find the original sources to learn more.

One tricky thing about Harvard is that it’s not one single, rigid set of rules. It’s more of a style, and different universities often have their own slight variations. The golden rule is to always check your university’s specific style guide. This guide gives you the most common format, but your department’s handbook is the final word.

The Core Building Blocks of a Website Reference

Okay, let’s build a website reference from the ground up. To reference any webpage correctly, you need to find a few key pieces of information. Think of yourself as a detective looking for clues on the page.

Here are the essential ingredients you’ll need for your final reference list entry:

Author(s): Who wrote the content? This could be an individual, a group of people, or an organisation.
Year of Publication: When was the webpage last published or updated?
Title of the Webpage: What is the specific page you are looking at called?
URL: The web address (the bit that starts with ‘http’ or ‘www’).
Date Accessed: The day you looked at the website.

Let’s break down where to find each of these.

Finding the Author

The author isn’t always obvious. Sometimes it’s a person’s name, clearly displayed at the top or bottom of an article. For example, a news article on The Guardian website will have a journalist’s name.

What if there’s no person? Look for an organisation. This is often the case for corporate or government websites. For example, if you’re looking at a page on the National Health Service (NHS) website, the author is the NHS. If it’s a page on the BBC News site without a specific journalist’s name, the author is the BBC.

Format: Use the author’s surname followed by their initial(s).

One author: Smith, J.
Two authors: Jones, A. and Williams, B.
Three authors: Patel, K., Begum, S. and Davies, L.
Four or more authors: Use the first author’s name followed by et al. (which is Latin for ‘and others’). For example: Wilson, P. et al.
An organisation: National Health Service.

Finding the Year of Publication

This can be the trickiest bit. Websites are not like books with a clear publication date on the inside cover. You might need to hunt for it.

Look for:

A date at the top or bottom of the article.
A ‘last updated’ or ‘last modified’ date.
A copyright date at the very bottom of the website (e.g., © 2024).

What if there’s no date at all? If you’ve searched everywhere and can’t find a date, don’t just guess. Instead, you use the phrase ‘no date’.

Format: (2023) or (no date).

Finding the Title of the Webpage

This is usually the easiest piece of information to find. It’s the main heading at the top of the page you are reading.

Format: Put the title in italics. Capitalise the first word and any proper nouns (names of people, places, or organisations), but not the other words.

How to Harvard reference a website
The history of the NHS

The URL and Date Accessed

The URL (Uniform Resource Locator) is the unique web address for the page. Simply copy it from the address bar in your browser.

The Date Accessed is important because websites can change or disappear overnight. Including the date you viewed it shows your reader what the page looked like at that specific time.

Format:

URL: Available at: https://www.google.com/search?q=https://www.thewebsite.co.uk/the-page
Date Accessed: (Accessed: 10 September 2025).

Putting It All Together: The In-Text Citation and Reference List

Now we have our building blocks, let’s assemble them. Remember, Harvard has two parts: the citation in your text and the full entry in your reference list.

How to Create an In-Text Citation for a Website

The in-text citation is short and sweet. It sits inside your sentence, usually at the end, just before the full stop.

The standard format is (Author’s Surname, Year).

Let’s imagine you’re writing about the history of the NHS and you get some information from a page on their website written in 2022. The author is the National Health Service.

Your sentence would look something like this:

The National Health Service was founded to provide healthcare that was free at the point of delivery (National Health Service, 2022).

What if you mention the author’s name in your sentence? If you do this, you only need to put the year in brackets directly after their name. This is often called a ‘narrative’ citation and can make your writing flow better.

According to the National Health Service (2022), the founding principle was to provide healthcare that was free at the point of delivery.

Simple as that!

How to Create the Full Reference List Entry

This is where you use all the pieces of information you gathered. Your reference list goes at the very end of your work, in alphabetical order by the author’s surname.

The standard format for a website is:

Author’s Surname, Initial(s). (Year of publication) Title of webpage. Available at: URL (Accessed: Day Month Year).

Let’s use our NHS example again.

Author: National Health Service
Year: 2022
Title: The history of the NHS
URL: https://www.google.com/search?q=https://www.england.nhs.uk/about/history/
Date Accessed: 10 September 2025

The final reference list entry would be:

National Health Service. (2022) The history of the NHS. Available at: https://www.google.com/search?q=https://www.england.nhs.uk/about/history/ (Accessed: 10 September 2025).

Notice the punctuation: full stops after the author, year, and title.

Dealing with Tricky Situations: Common Website Referencing Problems

Websites are messy. Unlike books, they don’t always follow a neat format. Here’s a guide to handling some of the most common problems you’ll encounter.

What If There Is No Author?

Sometimes a webpage has no clear individual or corporate author. It’s rare for a good quality academic source, but it can happen with smaller blogs or websites.

If you can’t find an author, you use the title of the webpage in its place, both in your in-text citation and in your reference list.

In-text Citation: Let’s say you’re using a webpage called A Guide to British Butterflies, published in 2021, with no author.

The Red Admiral is a common migrant butterfly in the UK (A Guide to British Butterflies, 2021).

Reference List Entry: The title moves to the author’s position. You also don’t need to repeat it in the title slot.

A Guide to British Butterflies. (2021) Available at: [URL] (Accessed: 10 September 2025).

A word of warning: If you can’t find an author or an organisation responsible for the content, question whether it’s a reliable source for academic work. Trustworthy sites almost always state who is behind them.

What If There Is No Date?

As we mentioned earlier, if you’ve searched high and low and there is no publication or update date, you use the words ‘no date’.

In-text Citation:

(Smith, no date).

Reference List Entry:

Smith, J. (no date) Title of webpage. Available at: [URL] (Accessed: 10 September 2025).

The ‘Accessed’ date becomes even more important here, as it’s the only time anchor your reader has.

Referencing Different Types of Websites: Examples

The basic formula works for most webpages, but let’s look at some specific examples you’ll come across a lot.

How to Reference an Online News Article

Online newspapers like The Guardian, The Times, or the BBC News website are common sources.

Author: The journalist.
Year: The year the article was published.
Title of article: The headline of the story.
Title of newspaper: The name of the publication (e.g., BBC News).

The format is slightly different. You add the title of the newspaper (in italics) after the article title.

Reference List Example: Let’s take an article by journalist Patrick Wintour for The Guardian.

Wintour, P. (2023) ‘Starmer puts fixing “broken” Britain at heart of Labour’s election offer’, The Guardian, 23 May. Available at: https://www.google.com/search?q=https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2023/may/23/starmer-puts-fixing-broken-britain-at-heart-of-labours-election-offer (Accessed: 10 September 2025).

Note: For news articles, it’s good practice to include the day and month of publication if they are available.

In-text Citation:

(Wintour, 2023).

How to Reference a Blog Post

Blogs can be useful, but make sure they are written by a credible author.

The format is the same as a standard webpage, but you should add the words ‘[web log]’ after the title to show what kind of source it is.

Reference List Example: Let’s reference a post by a fictional food blogger, Mary Berry.

Berry, M. (2024) My top tips for a perfect Victoria sponge [web log], 15 January. Available at: https://www.google.com/search?q=https://www.marysblog.co.uk/victoria-sponge (Accessed: 10 September 2025).

In-text Citation:

(Berry, 2024).

How to Reference a Government Report Published Online

Reports from government departments (like GOV.UK) are excellent academic sources. The author is the government department that produced the report.

Reference List Example: Imagine a report from the Department for Education.

Department for Education. (2022) Schools, pupils and their characteristics. Available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/schools-pupils-and-their-characteristics-january-2022 (Accessed: 10 September 2025).

In-text Citation:

(Department for Education, 2022).

How to Reference a YouTube Video

YouTube videos, especially from educational channels or universities, can also be cited.

Author: The person or organisation who uploaded the video.
Year: The year the video was uploaded.
Title: The title of the video.

You should add ‘‘ after the title.

Reference List Example: Let’s reference a lecture from the University of Oxford’s YouTube channel.

University of Oxford. (2021) A brief history of the Bodleian Libraries . Available at: https://www.google.com/search?q=https://www.youtube.com/watch%3Fv%3Dexamplevideo (Accessed: 10 September 2025).

In-text Citation:

(University of Oxford, 2021).

Using Referencing Tools and Software

Manually creating every reference can be a chore, especially if you have a long list. Luckily, there are tools that can help.

Online Citation Generators: Websites like Cite This For Me or Neil’s Toolbox can automatically generate references for you. You just paste in the URL, and it pulls out the information.

Pros: They are quick and easy to use.
Cons: They are not always 100% accurate. The software can get confused and might pull the wrong information for the author or date.

The Golden Rule: Always double-check a generated reference against the rules. Think of these tools as a helpful assistant, not a perfect robot. You are still responsible for making sure your references are correct.

Reference Management Software: Programs like Zotero, Mendeley, or EndNote are more advanced. They help you save, organise, and cite all your research sources. They often have browser plugins that can grab source details with one click. They then integrate with word processors like Microsoft Word to automatically insert your citations and build your reference list as you write.

Pros: Incredibly powerful for managing lots of sources for a big project, like a dissertation. They save a huge amount of time.
Cons: They can have a bit of a learning curve to set up and use properly.

For a first-year essay, a citation generator might be enough. For a PhD thesis, reference management software is a life-saver.

A Final Checklist for Perfect Website Referencing

Referencing is a habit. The more you do it, the easier it becomes. Before you submit your next piece of work, run through this quick checklist for every website you’ve cited.

For your In-Text Citations:

[ ] Have I included a citation every time I’ve used information or an idea from a website?
[ ] Is the format correct? (Author, Year).
[ ] Does the author’s name and year in my citation match the entry in my reference list?

For your Reference List:

[ ] Is my reference list on a separate page at the end of my essay?
[ ] Is the title ‘Reference List’ or ‘References’? (Check your university guide).
[ ] Are my references in alphabetical order by author?
[ ] Have I included every source that I cited in my text?
[ ] Does each website entry contain the Author, Year, Title, URL, and Accessed Date?
[ ] Is my formatting consistent? (e.g., italics for titles, correct punctuation).

Mastering Harvard referencing for websites is a skill that sets you up for success in your academic journey. It might seem fiddly at first, but it quickly becomes second nature. By being meticulous and giving credit to the sources that inform your work, you show respect for other researchers and add power and authority to your own arguments. So go on, cite with confidence!

The Guide to Harvard Referencing a Website: A UK Student’s Handbook

What is Harvard Referencing and Why Does It Matter?