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Are Table Titles Italicized?

APA table formatting gives the table number and title different treatments: the number is bold, while the title below it is italicized and written in title case. This is an APA manuscript rule, not a universal rule for every table in every publishing system.

ReviewedEvidence1 sourceSectionWriting & Style
Quick answer

Yes in APA-style manuscripts: write the table title in italicized title case below the bold table number.

Key details

Core Issuehow an APA-style manuscript formats a table title
Registeracademic, edited, citation, and style-governed writing
RulePurdue OWL’s current APA guidance places the table title below the bold table number and formats the title in italicized title case.

Important caveats

Scope Boundary

This answer is specific to APA-style tables. Other publishers, technical systems, HTML tables, or house styles may use a different caption pattern.

Further guidance

Recommendation

For an APA-style table, place the concise title below the table number and italicize the title in title case.

Sources and evidence

Sources are shown with the role they play in this guide. Historical or style-sensitive claims are kept within the evidence boundary described above.

  1. APA Tables and Figures (opens in a new tab)Purdue Online Writing Lab, Purdue University · Current Purdue OWL APA guidance for italicized table and figure titles

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A lone table on a webpage may not need a number. In content with repeated tables, number them consistently and use the same number in the table title and in-text references.

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