Vancouver Citation and Referencing Guide
The Vancouver style is a numbered citation system widely used in medicine, health sciences, biomedical research, and clinical disciplines.
Sources are numbered according to the order in which they first appear in the manuscript. When the same source is cited again, the original citation number is reused.
The Basic Logic of Vancouver Style
Vancouver referencing consists of two main components:
- In-text citation: a number assigned when a source first appears in the manuscript.
- Reference list: a numbered bibliographic list corresponding to the order of first citation.
Unlike author-date systems such as APA, a Vancouver reference list is not arranged alphabetically. References follow their order of appearance in the manuscript.
How Are In-Text Citations Written?
A source receives a number when it is first cited. Depending on the journal's implementation of Vancouver style, citation numbers may appear in parentheses, square brackets, or superscript.
Example: Health literacy may be associated with patterns of healthcare utilization. (1)
An alternative format is:
[1]
Whichever format is selected should be used consistently throughout the manuscript.
Citing the Same Source Again
A source that has already been cited does not receive a new number. The number assigned at first citation must be reused.
For example, if a source was first cited as (3), all later citations to that source should also use (3).
Citing Multiple Sources Together
Several sources supporting the same statement may be cited together.
Example: (2,4,7)
Where several citation numbers are consecutive, a range may be used depending on the journal's formatting convention.
Example: (3-6)
This represents references 3, 4, 5, and 6.
How Are Citation Numbers Assigned?
Numbers are not determined by author name, publication year, or source type. They are determined solely by the order in which sources first appear in the manuscript.
The first source cited becomes reference 1, the next new source becomes reference 2, and so forth.
How Is the Reference List Ordered?
The reference list follows numerical rather than alphabetical order:
1. ...
2. ...
3. ...
Each reference number in the manuscript must correspond exactly to the same number in the reference list.
How Are Author Names Written?
Vancouver references generally use the author's surname followed by initials. Periods are usually omitted between initials.
Example: Yilmaz A, Demir B, Kaya C.
The number of authors listed before the use of “et al.” may vary according to the specific Vancouver implementation or journal requirements.
Journal Article
General format:
Author(s). Article title. Abbreviated Journal Title. Year;Volume(Issue):Page range.
Example:
Yilmaz A, Demir B. Health literacy and access to health services among adults. J Public Health Res. 2024;13(2):145-152.
How Should Journal Titles Be Written?
Journal titles are commonly presented using standardized abbreviations. In biomedical publishing, abbreviations used by the NLM Catalog or MEDLINE may be used where available.
Where no standard abbreviation exists, authors should follow the convention required by the journal or the selected Vancouver implementation.
How Is a DOI Presented?
Where available, a DOI should normally be included in the reference.
Example:
Yilmaz A, Demir B. Health literacy and access to health services among adults. J Public Health Res. 2024;13(2):145-152. doi:10.0000/example.
Some Vancouver implementations may present DOIs in URL form. The selected format should be used consistently.
Articles Using an Article Number
Some electronic journals use an article number or e-location instead of conventional page ranges. In these cases, the publication identifier may be included.
Example:
Demir B. Digital health literacy among university students. BMC Public Health. 2025;25:e1245.
Book
General format:
Author(s). Book title. Edition. Place of publication: Publisher; Year.
Example:
Yilmaz A. Clinical research methods. 2nd ed. London: Academic Press; 2024.
Edited Book
Where a book is edited rather than authored, the editors may appear in the author position.
Example:
Demir B, Kaya C, editors. Contemporary health research. New York: Academic Press; 2024.
Book Chapter
General format:
Chapter author. Chapter title. In: Editor(s), editor(s). Book title. Place of publication: Publisher; Year. p. xx-xx.
Example:
Yilmaz A. Patient-centered communication. In: Demir B, Kaya C, editors. Contemporary health research. London: Academic Press; 2024. p. 45-62.
Thesis or Dissertation
General format:
Author. Title [type of thesis]. City: University; Year.
Example:
Demir B. Health literacy among older adults [doctoral dissertation]. Ankara: Example University; 2024.
Website
Online references may include the author or responsible organization, page title, Internet designation, publication or update information, citation date, and URL.
General format:
Author or Organization. Title [Internet]. Place: Publisher; date [cited Year Month Day]. Available from: URL
Example:
World Health Organization. Universal health coverage [Internet]. Geneva: World Health Organization; 2024 [cited 2026 Sep 10]. Available from: https://www.who.int/
Institutional Report
General format:
Organization. Title of report. Place: Publisher; Year.
For online reports, access information and a URL may also be included where appropriate.
Guidelines and Clinical Practice Guidelines
For clinical practice guidelines, the responsible organization, committee, or expert group may serve as the author.
The reference may include the guideline title, place of publication, publisher, year, and DOI or access information where relevant.
Conference Papers
The format for conference papers depends on whether they have been formally published. Papers published in conference proceedings may include the author, paper title, proceedings title, conference details, publisher, and page range.
Newspaper and News Sources
Peer-reviewed scholarly literature and primary sources should generally be preferred for supporting scientific and clinical claims.
News sources should be cited only where they are genuinely relevant to the research question and should follow an appropriate Vancouver format.
Databases and Data Sets
Databases and independently published data sets used as scholarly sources may be included in the reference list when appropriate bibliographic information is available.
Author or organization, data set title, version, year, repository, and DOI or URL may be included where relevant.
Can Software Be Cited?
Where software is an important component of the scientific method, authors may follow the citation format recommended by the software developer.
Version number, developer, year, place of publication, and access information may be included where appropriate.
Direct Quotations
When a direct quotation is used, the relevant Vancouver citation number should be provided. A page number may also be included where appropriate.
In scientific and medical articles, extensive direct quotations are generally less common than accurate paraphrasing and synthesis.
Secondary Sources
Authors should consult and cite the original publication whenever reasonably possible. A work encountered only through another publication should not be cited as though the original source had been directly reviewed.
Reference Management Software and Vancouver Style
Zotero, Mendeley, EndNote, and similar tools can generate Vancouver citations and reference lists.
However, authors should ensure that the Vancouver style file selected in the software matches the required implementation. Particular attention should be given to:
- Author names and order
- Journal abbreviations
- Publication year
- Volume and issue
- Page range or article number
- DOI
- Numerical citation order
Common Vancouver Style Mistakes
- Arranging the reference list alphabetically
- Assigning a new number when citing the same source again
- Failing to match in-text numbers with the reference list
- Using incorrect journal abbreviations
- Formatting author names incorrectly
- Omitting year, volume, or page information
- Providing an incorrect DOI
- Mixing different numerical citation formats in the same manuscript
- Failing to verify software-generated references
- Citing an original publication as though it had been read when only a secondary source was consulted
A Practical Vancouver Example
Assume that three sources appear for the first time in the following order:
First source (1), second source (2), and third source (3).
If the first source is cited again later in the manuscript, it remains reference (1).
The reference list therefore appears as:
1. Full bibliographic details of the first source cited.
2. Full bibliographic details of the second source cited.
3. Full bibliographic details of the third source cited.
Vancouver Pre-Submission Checklist
- Are sources numbered according to their first appearance?
- Is the same number reused whenever the same source is cited again?
- Do all in-text citation numbers correspond exactly to the reference list?
- Is the reference list arranged numerically rather than alphabetically?
- Are author names formatted correctly?
- Have standardized journal abbreviations been checked?
- Are year, volume, issue, and page details accurate?
- Have DOI and online access details been verified?
- Do Internet sources include a citation date where required?
- Is one citation-number format used consistently throughout the manuscript?
