01
URL formatting
MLA 8
URLs preceded by "Web." and a date accessed were required on most sources.
MLA 9
"Accessed" date is now optional for most sources. URL format is cleaner — no trailing period after the URL.
Edition comparison
MLA 8 vs MLA 9.
What actually changed between the 8th and 9th editions of the MLA Handbook, and what it means for your citations.
Published 2021Current edition: MLA 9
TL;DR
MLA 9 is a refinement, not a reinvention.
MLA 8 introduced the "Core Elements" framework in 2016 — a universal list of nine elements that apply to every source type. MLA 9 kept that framework intact and refined the details: cleaner URL formatting, new guidance for AI-generated content, clarified punctuation, and better examples throughout.
If you wrote citations in MLA 8, most of them are still correct in MLA 9. The changes are targeted, not sweeping.
What changed
Six things that actually changed.
02
AI-generated content
MLA 8
No guidance — AI citation tools did not exist when MLA 8 was published.
MLA 9
New dedicated guidance. Cite the prompt, tool name, version, company, and date of generation.
03
Inclusive language guidance
MLA 8
Limited guidance on describing individuals.
MLA 9
Expanded guidance on respecting individuals' chosen names, pronouns, and identity labels in text.
04
Punctuation after titles
MLA 8
Comma after title in most containers.
MLA 9
Comma placement clarified, especially for titles ending in punctuation marks like ? and !.
05
Annotated bibliographies
MLA 8
Brief mention with no dedicated chapter.
MLA 9
New dedicated chapter with formatting guidelines for annotated Works Cited pages.
06
Examples throughout
MLA 8
Examples in MLA 8 occasionally used outdated or academic sources.
MLA 9
Hundreds of new examples added covering modern source types including social media, streaming, and podcasts.
Side-by-side example
A website citation in both editions.
MLA 8
Luscombe, Belinda. "Why We Need More Sleep." Time, Time Inc., 5 Nov. 2018, time.com/5441376/sleep-why-we-need-more. Accessed 12 Jan. 2019.
MLA 9 (current)
Luscombe, Belinda. "Why We Need More Sleep." Time, 5 Nov. 2018, time.com/5441376/sleep-why-we-need-more.
The MLA 9 version drops the "Accessed" date (now optional for most sources) and removes the publisher name when it matches the website title. The result is a cleaner citation that still contains all the information a reader needs.
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