How to Cite a Website in Harvard Referencing

This guide explains how to format a website citation in Harvard Referencing. Follow the format template below, refer to the real example, and use the step-by-step instructions to build your citation correctly.

Format Template

The general pattern for citing a website in Harvard Referencing:

Template

Author or Organisation (Year) Title of web page. Available at: URL (Accessed: Day Month Year).

In-Text Citation Example

How the citation appears within the body of your paper:

In-text citation

(World Health Organization, 2023)

Reference List Entry Example

The full citation as it appears in your reference list:

Reference list entry

World Health Organization (2023) Mental health in the workplace. Available at: https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/mental-health-at-work (Accessed: 28 March 2026).

Step-by-Step Guide

1
Identify the author
Use the individual or organisational author. If no author is listed, begin with the title of the page.
2
Add the year
Place the year of publication in parentheses. If no date is available, write '(no date)' or '(n.d.)'.
3
Write the page title
Italicise the title of the web page. Use sentence case.
4
Include the URL
Write 'Available at:' followed by the full URL (including https://).
5
Add the access date
In parentheses, write 'Accessed:' followed by the date you accessed the page in Day Month Year format. End with a full stop.

Common Mistakes to Avoid

Omitting the 'Accessed' date, which is required in Harvard style for web pages.
Forgetting to italicise the title of the web page.
Not including 'Available at:' before the URL.
Using 'Retrieved from' instead of 'Available at:' (which is the Harvard convention).
Placing the access date before the URL instead of after it in parentheses.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is the access date always required in Harvard style for websites?

Yes. Harvard style requires an access date for all web-based sources. Format it as '(Accessed: 28 March 2026).' after the URL.

What if there is no author for a web page in Harvard?

If no author is identifiable, begin the reference with the title of the page (italicised) followed by the year.

Do I use 'Available at:' or 'Retrieved from' in Harvard?

Harvard style conventionally uses 'Available at:' before the URL. 'Retrieved from' is an APA convention and is not used in Harvard referencing.

Information You Will Need

Before creating your citation, gather the following information from your website:

Author(s) or Organization
Date of publication or last update
Title of page or article
Website name
URL
Date accessed (if no publication date)

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Step-by-Step Guide

Identify the author

Use the individual or organisational author. If no author is listed, begin with the title of the page.

Add the year

Place the year of publication in parentheses. If no date is available, write '(no date)' or '(n.d.)'.

Write the page title

Italicise the title of the web page. Use sentence case.

Include the URL

Write 'Available at:' followed by the full URL (including https://).

Add the access date

In parentheses, write 'Accessed:' followed by the date you accessed the page in Day Month Year format. End with a full stop.

Common Mistakes to Avoid

Omitting the 'Accessed' date, which is required in Harvard style for web pages.

Forgetting to italicise the title of the web page.

Not including 'Available at:' before the URL.

Using 'Retrieved from' instead of 'Available at:' (which is the Harvard convention).

Placing the access date before the URL instead of after it in parentheses.