APA 6th Edition Paper Template for Apple Pages (iWork)

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This entry was published at least two years ago (originally posted on October 28, 2010). Since that time the information may have become outdated or my beliefs may have changed (in general, assume a more open and liberal current viewpoint). A fuller disclaimer is available.

As I’ve been writing papers for my class assignments, I’ve been working on fine-tuning an APA 6th Edition template for Apple’s Pages. I based my template on a Microsoft Word template provided by Dr. Paul Rose of Southern Illinois University Edwardsville.

For Pages ’09 (v.4.0–4.3)

Feel free to download and use the template (314k .template file) for your own papers. Just download, decompress, and then (for easiest use), place in your ~Library/Application Support/iWork/Pages/Templates/My Templates folder.

For Pages ’13 (v.5.0+)

An initial cursory check seems to indicate that the template works just fine under Pages 5.0, so feel free to download and use the same template file. If anyone does note any problems with the template under Pages 5, please leave a comment here and I’ll look into making corrections.

The easiest way to add the template to Pages 5, according to Apple, is to open the template file, then click Add to Template Chooser.

For the more technically-inclined, Apple has changed where template files are stored. If you want to dig down to add or remove them manually, the new location is ~Library/Containers/com.apple.iWork.Pages/Data/Library/Application Support/User Templates. Note that com.apple.iWork.Pages is a package, not a directory; to continue along the path you’ll need to right-click on the package and choose the “Show Package Contents” item.

For Microsoft Word

I’ve also created versions of the template file for Microsoft Word in both .dotx (for Word 2007 or later) and .dot (for earlier versions of Word). Feel free to download both in one .zip file (35k .zip file) or individually (.dotx for Word 2007+ (36k) or .dot for Word 2003 (55k)).

For easiest use: On a PC, place the templates in your C:\Documents and Settings\(user name)\Application Data\Microsoft\Templates folder; on a Mac, place the templates in your ~/Library/Application Support/Microsoft/Office/User Templates/My Templates folder.

Version History

  • 2010.10.28: First upload.
  • 2010.10.29: Corrected double-spacing of reference page, added appendix, table, and figure pages. Added Word versions.
  • 2010.11.9: Corrected third-, fourth-, and fifth-level headings to use standard sentence capitalization and to be paragraph-level headings.
  • 2010.11.29: Corrected first-level headings to be truly centered.
  • 2013.10.25: No change to the template; updated blog post to include Pages 5 information.

159 thoughts on “APA 6th Edition Paper Template for Apple Pages (iWork)”

  5. I am attempting to download the APA template on my ipad and I am getting error messages. Any suggestions? Thank you:)

  6. THANK YOU! THANK YOU! THANK YOU!!!!!!! I’ve been getting points deducted from my work because when I post my pages paper on blackboard everything shifts! I thought I had to buy Windows and I had no money for that right now. You are a life safe! Thanks for sharing this! You’re awesome, God bless!!!!! :)

  7. Dear Michael Hans,

    Since my Word-programme started to go Very slow, I just started using Pages (v. 5.2.2), and downloaded your 6th edition template (for OSX Maverick v. 10.9.5), which was suggested to me in a Danish Mac-forum (macnyt.dk).

    But somwhow, for me it only appears as a regular template, which does’t seem to be able to function as a reference-tool.

    I know very little about software-stuff, and I’ve been trying for 3,5 hours now, to find out how to do it – without success. However, it’s a criteria at my university, to use either APA og Chicago Style.

    Is it possible to use the APA-template like the APA-reference (and bibliography-)style functions in Word?

    What might I be doing wrong?

    BG
    Maria,

  11. THANK YOU! And I say it in capitals letters because I’m beyond excited, grateful and relieved!! You my dear Sir are amazing and so caring, many blessings!!!

  12. THANK YOU! I was just about to create my own template when I stumbled across yours. Similar to giving credit where credit is due, is this something that I need to add to my references pages?

  15. Thank you for this template! Do you have a solution for how to create a table of content including third and forth level headings? As now I get the whole paragraph in my table and not the first sentence. Any suggestions?

  17. I really do appreciate you making the effort to create this template. I did find a few things that are not correct though and thought you might want to correct them going forward.

    Note, from the APA manual: If the quotation comprises 40 or more words, display it in a freestanding block of text and omit the quotation marks. Start such a block quotation on a new line and indent the block about a half inch from the left margin (in the same position as a new para­graph). If there are additional paragraphs within the quotation, indent the first line of
    each an additional half inch. Double-space the entire quotation. At the end of a block
    quotation, cite the quoted source and the page or paragraph number in parentheses
    after the final punctuation mark.

    American Psychological Association (2013-05-14). Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association, Sixth Edition (Page 171). American Psychological Association. Kindle Edition.

    In your template, you have the long quote indented a full inch and single-spaced. Also, there is no format for a second paragraph of a long quote if it is needed, which should have the first line indented half an inch. Finally, it would help if you added a format for body text that follows a long quote because if you are still in the same paragraph then that text should not be indented.

    Second, the preferred typeface is 12-point Times New Roman and your template uses Hoefler.

    Third, the headers should be 12-point also and they are 10-point in your template.

    Let me know if you have any questions or would like me to share my updated version of your template. I am extremely appreciative of this template and am only sending these suggestions because I saw that you had updated it several other times so I thought you would be interested.

  20. Hi, I have just tried importing the template to pages on my ipad & it says “an error occurred while reading the custom template.” Is the link no longer working properly/something wrong with the file? Sorry, but this is all new to me & I desperately need to find a template for APA.
    I hope someone can assist me?!

  22. Great template! Definitely helps us Mac users :) I’m not sure why it did this but it imported some funky texts. I had to change them all back to Times New Roman. Nevertheless you are amazing for making this readily available and FREE! My online schooling provides step by step details on how to do APA, but take a guess which software they used… YEP, Microsoft Word. Once again THANKS for South Dakota.

  25. Thank you! This is 2016, and the template chooser opened as soon as I downloaded your template! Can you believe that there still isn’t APA software or apps for Pages?

  26. Does anyone know how to create heading 3 in pages, Mac, like in the template and still only have the actual heading in the TOC?

    I have not been able to separate the style between the heading and the rest of the paragraph and there seem to be no “inline heading” option. An alternative solution would be to be able to edit/delete text from the TOC. Any help is greatly appreciated.

    Thank you so much for a great template.

  27. Thank you thank you Thank you very much!!!
    I’m running Pages 5.6.2… the template is compatible too, but I don’t know if it was change in the time.

    Once again.. thank you very much, from Lima – Peru.

  30. I have no words. I love you. how can you be so amazing? wow. just wow. May God always bless you, just like you blessed me.

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