How to Cite PubMed in Chicago 17 Format

PubMed is the primary database for biomedical and life sciences literature, maintained by the National Library of Medicine (NLM). While PubMed itself is a search engine and database rather than a publisher, researchers frequently access journal articles through PubMed and need to cite them properly. The key principle in Chicago 17th edition is that you cite the article itself, not PubMed as a platform — but PubMed provides unique identifiers (PMIDs and PMCIDs) and access URLs that may be included in your citation. This guide explains exactly when and how to incorporate PubMed-specific information into your Chicago-style citations.

For general Chicago formatting rules, see our Chicago 17th Edition Guide. For citing other academic databases, see our academic database citation guide.

Where to Find Citation Information on PubMed

PubMed article pages contain all the bibliographic data you need, but it can be scattered across different parts of the page. Here is exactly where to find each element:

• Article title: Displayed as the main heading at the top of the abstract page.
• Authors: Listed directly below the title. Click on an author's name to see their full name if only initials are displayed. PubMed often lists authors in "Last Name Initials" format (e.g., "Smith JA"), so you may need to expand or look up full first names for Chicago style.
• Journal title: Shown in abbreviated form just below the authors (e.g., "J Biol Chem"). The full journal title appears when you hover over the abbreviation or check the journal's NLM Catalog entry. Chicago requires the full journal title.
• Volume, issue, and pages: Displayed in the citation line beneath the authors, typically formatted as "2024 Mar 15;29(3):145-158."
• Publication date: Found in the same citation line. Use the year only for most citations.
• DOI: Listed in the article details, usually at the bottom of the citation block. Begins with "10." and is the preferred URL form for Chicago citations.
• PMID: Displayed prominently on the page, labeled "PMID:" followed by a numeric string (e.g., PMID: 35265432). This generates the PubMed URL.
• PMCID: If the article is available in PubMed Central (free full text), the PMCID appears next to the PMID.

Tip: Click the "Cite" button on any PubMed abstract page to see a preformatted citation. While PubMed does not offer Chicago format natively, the NLM format provides all data points you need to construct your citation.

Detailed Examples

Example 1: Standard Journal Article Accessed via PubMed

A typical research article with a DOI, accessed through PubMed.

First Footnote:
1. Sarah J. Mitchell and Rafael de Cabo, "Caloric Restriction, Aging, and Cancer: Mechanisms and Future Directions," Nature Reviews Cancer 22, no. 8 (2022): 457–73, https://doi.org/10.1038/s41568-022-00478-3.

Shortened Footnote:
2. Mitchell and de Cabo, "Caloric Restriction," 461.

Bibliography:
Mitchell, Sarah J., and Rafael de Cabo. "Caloric Restriction, Aging, and Cancer: Mechanisms and Future Directions." Nature Reviews Cancer 22, no. 8 (2022): 457–73. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41568-022-00478-3.

Note: When a DOI is available, use it as the URL. Do not add the PubMed URL alongside the DOI — one stable link is sufficient per Chicago guidelines.

Example 2: Article Without a DOI (Using PubMed URL)

Older articles or those from certain journals may lack a DOI. In this case, use the PubMed stable URL.

First Footnote:
3. Robert H. Fletcher and Suzanne W. Fletcher, "Clinical Epidemiology: The Essentials Revisited," Annals of Internal Medicine 133, no. 7 (2000): 568–72, https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/11015171/.

Shortened Footnote:
4. Fletcher and Fletcher, "Clinical Epidemiology," 570.

Bibliography:
Fletcher, Robert H., and Suzanne W. Fletcher. "Clinical Epidemiology: The Essentials Revisited." Annals of Internal Medicine 133, no. 7 (2000): 568–72. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/11015171/.

Example 3: Article with Many Authors

Biomedical articles frequently have large author lists. Chicago's notes-bibliography style lists up to ten authors in the bibliography; for eleven or more, list the first seven followed by "et al."

First Footnote:
5. Fernando P. Polack et al., "Safety and Efficacy of the BNT162b2 mRNA Covid-19 Vaccine," New England Journal of Medicine 383, no. 27 (2020): 2603–15, https://doi.org/10.1056/NEJMoa2034577.

Shortened Footnote:
6. Polack et al., "Safety and Efficacy," 2608.

Bibliography:
Polack, Fernando P., Stephen J. Thomas, Nicholas Kitchin, Judith Absalon, Alejandra Gurtman, Stephen Lockhart, John L. Perez, et al. "Safety and Efficacy of the BNT162b2 mRNA Covid-19 Vaccine." New England Journal of Medicine 383, no. 27 (2020): 2603–15. https://doi.org/10.1056/NEJMoa2034577.

Note: In footnotes, use "et al." after the first author when there are four or more authors. In the bibliography, list up to ten; if there are eleven or more, list seven then "et al."

Example 4: Epub Ahead of Print (No Volume/Issue Yet)

PubMed frequently lists articles that are published online before they appear in a print issue.

First Footnote:
7. Yuki Tanaka and Hiroshi Yamamoto, "Gut Microbiome Alterations in Pediatric Inflammatory Bowel Disease," Gastroenterology, published ahead of print, March 12, 2025, https://doi.org/10.1053/j.gastro.2025.02.041.

Shortened Footnote:
8. Tanaka and Yamamoto, "Gut Microbiome Alterations."

Bibliography:
Tanaka, Yuki, and Hiroshi Yamamoto. "Gut Microbiome Alterations in Pediatric Inflammatory Bowel Disease." Gastroenterology. Published ahead of print, March 12, 2025. https://doi.org/10.1053/j.gastro.2025.02.041.

Step-by-Step Instructions

Step 1: Locate the Article on PubMed

Search PubMed at pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov. Open the article's abstract page, where all citation data is collected in one place.

Step 2: Identify All Authors' Full Names

PubMed displays authors with initials (e.g., "Smith JA"). For Chicago style, you need full first names. Click on author names to check for full versions, or consult the original article's PDF. If full first names are truly unavailable, initials are acceptable.

Step 3: Get the Full Journal Title

PubMed uses NLM abbreviations (e.g., "J Clin Invest" for Journal of Clinical Investigation). Chicago requires the full title, capitalized in headline style. Hover over the journal abbreviation on PubMed or search the NLM Catalog to find the full title.

Step 4: Record Volume, Issue, Pages, and Year

These appear in the citation line on PubMed (e.g., "2023 Jun;187(6):1234-1245"). Convert this to Chicago format: Volume, no. Issue (Year): Pages. Use an en dash (–), not a hyphen (-), for page ranges.

Step 5: Choose the Right URL

Apply this decision hierarchy:

1. DOI available? Use https://doi.org/10.xxxx/xxxxx — this is always preferred.
2. No DOI? Use the PubMed stable link: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/PMID/.
3. Full text in PMC? You may alternatively use https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMCID/ if you accessed the free full text through PubMed Central.

Step 6: Format According to Your Chicago Style

Choose notes-bibliography or author-date style based on your discipline or instructor's requirements. Biomedical fields typically use author-date, while humanities-leaning health fields may use notes-bibliography.

Common Mistakes When Citing PubMed

1. Citing PubMed as the Author or Publisher

Wrong: PubMed. "Caloric Restriction, Aging, and Cancer." Accessed March 5, 2026.
Right: Mitchell, Sarah J., and Rafael de Cabo. "Caloric Restriction, Aging, and Cancer." Nature Reviews Cancer 22, no. 8 (2022): 457–73.

PubMed is a database, not a publisher. Always cite the journal article with its original authors and publication information.

2. Using Abbreviated Journal Titles

Wrong: N Engl J Med
Right: New England Journal of Medicine

Chicago style requires full journal titles. PubMed's default NLM abbreviations must be expanded.

3. Listing Authors with Initials Only

Wrong: Polack FP, Thomas SJ, Kitchin N.
Right: Polack, Fernando P., Stephen J. Thomas, Nicholas Kitchin.

PubMed displays names in NLM format (Last Name + Initials). Chicago requires full first names whenever they can be determined.

4. Including Both DOI and PubMed URL

Wrong: ...https://doi.org/10.1056/NEJMoa2034577. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/33301246/.
Right: ...https://doi.org/10.1056/NEJMoa2034577.

Include only one stable URL. The DOI takes priority. Adding the PubMed link alongside the DOI is redundant.

5. Omitting "Published Ahead of Print" for Epub Articles

If an article has no volume or issue assigned yet, note that it was published ahead of print and include the online publication date. Do not leave these fields blank without explanation.

6. Using Hyphens Instead of En Dashes in Page Ranges

Wrong: 457-473
Right: 457–73

Chicago uses en dashes for ranges and condenses the second number in page ranges (e.g., 457–73, not 457–473) following the Chicago number-contraction rules.

PubMed-Specific Considerations

PMID and PMCID: When to Include Them

Chicago 17 does not require PMIDs or PMCIDs in citations. However, some instructors or journals in biomedical fields request them. If required, place the PMID after the URL:

Mitchell, Sarah J., and Rafael de Cabo. "Caloric Restriction, Aging, and Cancer." Nature Reviews Cancer 22, no. 8 (2022): 457–73. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41568-022-00478-3. PMID: 35650451.

PubMed Central (PMC) Full-Text Articles

If you accessed the full text through PMC rather than the publisher's site, and no DOI is available, use the PMC URL: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC[number]/. If a DOI exists, prefer the DOI regardless of how you accessed the article.

Preprints Indexed on PubMed

Some PubMed records link to preprints (e.g., from medRxiv or bioRxiv). These are not peer-reviewed journal articles. Cite them as preprints:

1. Maria Lopez and James Chen, "Rapid Antigen Testing in Community Settings," preprint, medRxiv (2024), https://doi.org/10.1101/2024.01.15.24301234.

Notes-Bibliography vs. Author-Date for Biomedical Sources

Both Chicago styles are valid, but your choice affects formatting:

Check your course or journal guidelines. When in doubt for biomedical papers, author-date is the more common choice in the sciences.

Frequently Asked Questions

Should I cite PubMed or the journal the article was published in?

Always cite the journal. PubMed is a database that indexes articles — it is not the publisher. Your citation should include the journal title, volume, issue, and page numbers as if you accessed the article directly from the publisher. The only role PubMed plays in the citation is potentially providing the access URL if no DOI is available.

How do I find an author's full first name when PubMed only shows initials?

Try these approaches in order: (1) Click the author's name on PubMed to see if a fuller version appears. (2) Open the article's PDF or the publisher's page, which usually lists full names. (3) Search for the author on ORCID or their institutional page. If the full first name truly cannot be determined, using initials is acceptable in Chicago style.

Do I need to include an access date for PubMed articles?

No, not if you provide a DOI or stable PubMed URL. Chicago 17 only requires access dates for content that may change over time (such as social media posts or frequently updated web pages). Published journal articles are stable, so an access date is unnecessary. The one exception is if your instructor specifically requires access dates for all online sources.

How do I cite a PubMed article that has an article number instead of page numbers?

Many open-access journals (e.g., PLOS ONE, Scientific Reports) use article numbers instead of traditional page ranges. Include the article number preceded by the label used by the journal:

Kim, Soo-Yeon, and David Park. "Machine Learning for Drug Repurposing in Rare Diseases." Scientific Reports 13, no. 1 (2023): article 14582. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-023-14582-z.

For a complete overview of Chicago 17th edition formatting rules, visit our Chicago 17th Edition Guide. For guidance on citing other databases like JSTOR, EBSCO, or ProQuest, see the academic database citation guide.