APA 7 page numbers and the running head: what students actually need

In APA 7, a student paper needs one thing in its header: the page number, flush right, on every page, starting at 1 on the title page. The running head — the shortened title in capitals that older APA papers carried — is only required for professional manuscripts submitted to journals. If your instructor has not asked for one, leave it out. Upload the paper to the free APA format checker and the page number is added for you if it is missing.

The rule

• Page number in the top-right corner, in the header area, in the same font and size as the body.
• Starts at 1 on the title page and runs continuously through the reference list.
• No "Page" label, no "p.", no punctuation.
• Nothing else in the header for a student paper.

In Word

Insert → Page Number → Top of Page → Plain Number 3 (the right-aligned option). Word inserts a field that updates itself, so never type numbers by hand. If a number appears on some pages but not others, the document has section breaks with headers that are not linked; click into the header and turn on "Link to Previous".

When a running head is required

The professional version of an APA paper has a running head on every page: an abbreviated title of up to 50 characters in capital letters, left-aligned in the header, with the page number right-aligned on the same line. APA 7 removed the words "Running head:" that APA 6 put on the first page. Use this only when the assignment or the journal asks for it.

Common deductions

• A hand-typed number in the first line of the text instead of the header.
• Numbering that starts at 2 because the title page was set to hide its number. APA 7 numbers the title page.
• A running head left over from an APA 6 template on a student paper.
• Different fonts in the header and body.

Checking it automatically

Run the paper through Veermat in APA mode. If the document has no header, a page-number field is added top right on every page. If you already have a header — a running head your programme requires, a university banner — it is left exactly as it is, and the report says so.