Citation Style Vancouver

Vancouver citation style is the style commonly required in medicine, nursing, and the biomedical sciences. Family: Numbered, in order of first citation.

Input required

• The sources to cite, with author, title, date, publisher or journal, volume, issue, pages, and DOI or URL.
• The edition, institution, or journal whose rules apply.

Questions to ask first

1. Which edition or institutional variant must the work follow?
2. Is the output in-text citations, reference-list entries, or both?
3. What type is each source (book, article, web page, report, legal authority)?
4. Is any information missing, such as the date, pages, or DOI?

In-text citations

• Number each source in the order it is first cited, and reuse that number for every later citation.
• Numbers appear in square brackets [1], parentheses (1), or superscript, depending on the journal or institution.
• Several sources: [1,3] or [2–4].

Reference format

A numbered References list in order of first citation, not alphabetical. Author names are surname plus initials with no periods or commas between initials; journal titles use the National Library of Medicine abbreviations. Long author lists are cut to a set number followed by et al., and the number varies by journal.

Example pattern

The names, title, and numbers below are placeholders showing the pattern, not a real source.

1. Smith JA, Lee K. Title of the article in sentence case. J Abbrev. 2020;12(3):45-67. doi:xx.xxxx/xxxxx

Ground rules

• Use only the details the user supplied or that can be checked. Never invent authors, dates, DOIs, page numbers, or sources.
• If a detail is missing, leave a clear placeholder and say so.
• Apply one style consistently throughout the document.
• When the user's institution or journal differs from this guide, follow theirs.

Self-check before answering

• Does every in-text citation have a matching reference entry, and the reverse?
• Are the ordering, capitalization, punctuation, and italics consistent with this style?
• Were any details guessed? Remove or flag them.

Common pitfalls

• Alphabetizing the list — order is by first appearance in the text.
• Renumbering errors — adding or removing a citation shifts every later number; recheck them all.
• Unabbreviated journal names — use the NLM abbreviation.
• Ignoring the journal's own rules — brackets versus superscript and author-count limits vary.

Learn more

• Compare with the other styles: Citation Style Apa, Citation Style Mla, Citation Style Chicago, Citation Style Harvard, Citation Style Ieee, Citation Style Ama, Citation Style Oscola.
• Official guidance: Citing Medicine (National Library of Medicine).