Citing a letter is different from citing a book, journal article, or website. Before choosing a citation format, you need to know what kind of letter you are using.
APA, MLA, and Chicago treat a private letter sent directly to you, an unpublished letter stored in an archive, and a letter reproduced in a published book differently.
This guide explains how to cite each type correctly, with practical formats and examples. If you already have the source details and simply need help formatting them, CopyChecker's Citation Generator can create citations in APA, MLA, Chicago, and Harvard.
Before You Cite a Letter, Identify What Type It Is
First, determine whether the letter is personal, archived, or published.
| Type of Letter | What It Means | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Personal or private letter | A letter that your readers cannot independently access | A letter someone sent directly to you |
| Archived letter | An unpublished letter stored in a library, museum, university archive, or special collection | A historical letter held by a university archive |
| Published letter | A letter reproduced in a publicly available source | A letter printed in a biography or edited collection |
This distinction matters because citation styles treat retrievable and nonretrievable sources differently.
For example, APA treats a private letter as a personal communication and does not include it in the reference list. An archived letter, however, can receive a full reference because another researcher can potentially locate it.
Quick Guide to Citing Letters in APA, MLA, and Chicago
Here's the basic difference before we get into the detailed formats.
| Letter Type | APA 7 | MLA 9 | Chicago Notes-Bibliography |
|---|---|---|---|
| Personal/private | Cite in text as personal communication; no reference-list entry | Can be documented as correspondence, depending on how it was accessed | Usually cited in text or a note; rarely included in bibliography |
| Archived | Full reference with archive and collection details | Works Cited entry with collection and repository information | Usually cited in a note with detailed archival information |
| Published | Cite the published version you consulted | Cite the letter within its published container | Cite the published version in notes and bibliography |
If terms such as reference list, Works Cited, and bibliography are starting to blur together, our guide to bibliographic citations explains what each one does and how it differs from an in-text citation.
How to Cite a Personal Letter
A personal letter is correspondence that your readers cannot normally retrieve for themselves.
This could include:
- a letter sent directly to you;
- a family letter kept privately;
- correspondence held by an individual rather than a public archive.
Because readers cannot independently access these sources, the major citation styles handle them differently from archived material.
APA 7 Personal Letter Citation
APA treats an inaccessible personal letter as a personal communication.
APA Parenthetical Citation
Use:
(Initial. Last Name, personal communication, Month Day, Year)
Example:
(J. Smith, personal communication, March 15, 2019)
APA Narrative Citation
You can also incorporate the writer into your sentence:
According to J. Smith (personal communication, March 15, 2019), the organization had already considered changing its policy.
Does a Personal Letter Go in the APA Reference List?
No.
Because readers cannot retrieve a private personal communication, APA cites it only within the text.
You should not create a standard reference-list entry for a private letter simply because other source types receive one.
How to Cite a Personal Letter in MLA
MLA handles correspondence differently from APA.
If you quote or paraphrase a specific letter, you can identify the correspondence in your Works Cited entry according to how you accessed it.
MLA Format
Last Name, First Name. Letter to Recipient. Day Month Year.
Example
Smith, John. Letter to the author. 15 Mar. 2019.
If the letter belongs to another person's private collection, that information can help identify the source:
Smith, John. Letter to Mary Jones. 15 Mar. 2019. Personal collection of Robert Jones.
MLA In-Text Citation
If the writer's name does not already appear in the sentence:
(Smith)
If you mention Smith clearly in the sentence and there is no ambiguity about which source you mean, another parenthetical citation may not always be necessary.
How to Cite a Personal Letter in Chicago
Chicago's notes-and-bibliography system works especially well for correspondence because footnotes can include detailed source information.
Chicago Footnote Format
- John Smith, letter to author, March 15, 2019.
If the letter was written to someone else:
- John Smith, letter to Mary Jones, March 15, 2019.
Personal correspondence is generally cited in the text or notes rather than included in a Chicago bibliography.
However, your instructor, publisher, or institution may have additional requirements, so check any style instructions provided for your project.
How to Cite an Archived Letter
An archived letter is different because another researcher can potentially retrieve it.
Archived correspondence may be stored in:
- university libraries;
- museums;
- historical societies;
- manuscript collections;
- government archives;
- special collections.
Your citation should therefore include enough information for another researcher to locate the same document.
APA 7 Archived Letter Citation
For an archived letter, include the writer, date, description of the document, collection information, repository, and identifying information such as a box or folder number when available.
APA Format
Author, A. A. (Year, Month, Day). [Letter to Recipient]. Collection Name (Box number, Folder number), Archive or Repository, Location.
Example
Smith, J. (2019, March 15). [Letter to M. Jones]. Smith Family Papers (Box 2, Folder 4), State Historical Archive, Boston, MA.
Unlike a private letter, this document is retrievable, so it can receive a complete reference.
MLA 9 Archived Letter Citation
MLA archival citations identify both the correspondence and where it can be found.
MLA Format
Last Name, First Name. Letter to First Name Last Name. Day Month Year. Collection Name, Archive or Institution, Location, additional identifiers.
Example
Smith, John. Letter to Mary Jones. 15 Mar. 2019. Smith Family Papers, State Historical Archive, Boston, box 2, folder 4.
If the archive provides a manuscript number, call number, folder number, or other identifier, include it when it helps readers locate the document.
Chicago Archived Letter Citation
Chicago usually places detailed archival information in a note.
Footnote Example
- John Smith to Mary Jones, March 15, 2019, box 2, folder 4, Smith Family Papers, State Historical Archive, Boston.
Notice that a letter does not always have to appear when the sender-recipient relationship already makes the document type clear.
If your bibliography includes the archival collection as a whole, you may identify the collection separately:
Smith, John. Smith Family Papers. State Historical Archive, Boston.
The exact format may vary depending on the archive and how many documents from the same collection you use.
How to Cite a Letter Published in a Book or Collection
Sometimes a historical letter is later reproduced in a biography, anthology, scholarly edition, or published collection of correspondence.
In that situation, cite the version you actually consulted.
If you read the letter in a book, your citation should point readers to that book rather than suggesting that you personally examined the original manuscript.
Suppose John Smith's letter to Mary Jones from March 15, 2019 appears on pages 45–47 of Collected Letters of John Smith, edited by Alice Brown and published by Example Press in 2022.
APA 7 Published Letter Example
Smith, J. (2022). Letter to M. Jones, March 15, 2019. In A. Brown (Ed.), Collected letters of John Smith (pp. 45–47). Example Press.
The original date of the letter can appear in the title or description, while the publication details identify the version you actually used.
MLA 9 Published Letter Example
Smith, John. "Letter to Mary Jones, 15 Mar. 2019." Collected Letters of John Smith, edited by Alice Brown, Example Press, 2022, pp. 45–47.
Here, the book acts as the container holding the letter.
Chicago Published Letter Example
Footnote
- John Smith, "Letter to Mary Jones, March 15, 2019," in Collected Letters of John Smith, ed. Alice Brown (Example Press, 2022), 45–47.
Bibliography
Smith, John. "Letter to Mary Jones, March 15, 2019." In Collected Letters of John Smith, edited by Alice Brown, 45–47. Example Press, 2022.
If the published collection you used is available as a PDF, you may also need to account for the way that digital source was accessed. Our guide on how to cite a PDF covers those cases separately.
What Information Do You Need to Cite a Letter?
Before building the citation, collect as much source information as possible.
| Information | Why It Matters |
|---|---|
| Letter writer | Usually functions as the author |
| Recipient | Helps distinguish one piece of correspondence from another |
| Exact date | Often one of the most important ways to identify a letter |
| Title or description | Letters frequently lack formal titles |
| Collection name | Identifies the archival collection |
| Archive or institution | Shows where the document is held |
| Box, folder, or item number | Helps another researcher locate the exact document |
| Published-source details | Needed when you read the letter in a book or collection |
| Page numbers | Helps readers find a published letter within a larger work |
If some information is unavailable, do not invent it. Follow the rules of your citation style for missing dates, titles, or other source elements.
Common Mistakes When Citing a Letter
Letter citations become much easier once you stop treating every letter as the same type of source.
Here are some common mistakes to avoid.
Treating Every Letter as a Reference-List Source
A private APA letter does not receive a normal reference-list entry.
Archived or published letters are different because readers can retrieve them.
Forgetting the Recipient
The recipient can be essential for distinguishing between several letters written by the same person.
Leaving Out the Exact Date
Letters are often identified by their dates, particularly in historical and archival research.
Use the most complete date available.
Confusing Archived and Published Letters
A manuscript stored in an archive is not cited exactly like a reproduction of that manuscript in an edited book.
Cite the version you actually consulted.
Omitting Collection Information
For archival materials, collection names, repositories, boxes, folders, or item identifiers can be essential.
Using a Generic Citation Formula
An ordinary (Smith 42) citation or a journal-article reference does not automatically become a valid letter citation merely because the writer's name appears in it.
Always identify the source type first.
Why Proper Letter Citation Matters
Letters are often valuable primary sources because they can reveal a person's thoughts, decisions, relationships, and experiences directly.
Proper citation gives the writer appropriate credit and helps readers understand exactly where your evidence came from.
It also makes the boundary between source material and your own analysis clearer. After adding quotations, paraphrases, and citations, using a plagiarism checker can help you identify passages that still need clearer attribution, quotation marks, or additional rewriting before submission.
Frequently Asked Questions
How Do I Cite a Personal Letter in APA?
Cite an inaccessible personal letter in-text only with the writer's initials and surname, the words personal communication, and the complete date. For example: (J. Smith, personal communication, March 15, 2019).
Does a Personal Letter Go in the APA Reference List?
No. If your readers cannot retrieve the correspondence, APA treats it as personal communication and cites it only in the text.
How Do I Cite a Personal Letter in MLA?
A basic Works Cited entry can identify the writer, recipient, and date: Smith, John. Letter to the author. 15 Mar. 2019. If the letter is stored in someone's personal collection, include that information when appropriate.
How Do I Cite an Archived Letter?
Include the writer, recipient, date, collection, archive or repository, and any useful box, folder, item, manuscript, or call-number information required by your citation style. The order and punctuation differ among APA, MLA, and Chicago.
How Do I Cite a Letter Published in a Book?
Cite the version you actually read. Include information identifying the letter together with the publication details for the book, anthology, biography, or edited collection in which it appears.
Do I Need to Include the Recipient's Name?
Usually, yes, when you know it. The recipient is especially useful in MLA and Chicago because it helps identify the specific correspondence. APA archival references can include the recipient in a description such as: [Letter to M. Jones]
How Do I Cite a Letter With No Date?
Do not guess an exact date. Use the convention required by your citation style for an unknown date. If an archive provides an approximate date such as circa 1920, preserve that information rather than converting it to a precise date the historical record does not know.
What's the Difference Between Citing a Personal and an Archived Letter?
The biggest difference is whether readers can retrieve the source. A private letter is usually inaccessible to your readers. An archived letter can potentially be located through a library, museum, historical society, or other repository. That is why APA, for example, treats an inaccessible letter as personal communication but gives retrievable archival materials full references.
What Are the Main Differences Between APA, MLA, and Chicago Letter Citations?
APA treats inaccessible personal letters as personal communications cited only in the text. MLA can document specific correspondence through Works Cited entries based on how the letter was accessed. Chicago commonly places personal correspondence in footnotes or endnotes and rarely includes private correspondence in the bibliography.
Related Citation Guides
Unusual source types tend to produce unusual citation questions. If your research includes other formats, you may also find these guides useful:
Conclusion
The easiest way to cite a letter correctly is to identify the type of letter first.
A personal letter, an archived manuscript, and a letter reproduced in a published book are different sources and should not automatically receive the same citation treatment.
Once you know which type you have, apply the appropriate APA, MLA, or Chicago rules and include enough information for readers to understand or locate the source.
For ordinary retrievable sources, CopyChecker's Citation Generator can help format the citation. For archival correspondence, check the repository's source details as well, particularly collection names, box numbers, folder numbers, and manuscript identifiers.
