APA 7 Tables, Figures, and Appendices – ENG Composition II
Source: APA 7 Professional Sample Paper (Purdue University)
Tags: APA 7 tables, APA figures, APA appendix, table notes, figure notes, APA table formatting, APA figure formatting, APA 7 appendices
Difficulty: Intermediate
Prerequisites: Familiarity with APA 7 paper structure and basic citation rules (see companion notes).
Tables, figures, and appendices are where your data, diagrams, and supplementary material live in an APA 7 paper. They follow a consistent labelling and formatting convention that differs from how most students present visual material in high school or in other citation styles. Getting these right matters because they are the first thing many readers look at when scanning a paper, and because rubrics frequently include specific marks for correct table/figure formatting.
Tables and figures each have their own sequential numbering (Table 1, Table 2; Figure 1, Figure 2). Each gets a bold label, an italic title, and optional notes preceded by italic "Note." below. Appendices go after the reference list, each on a new page, labelled with capital letters if there are more than one. Tables or figures inside appendices carry the appendix letter in their label (Table A1, Figure B1).
Table (APA context)
A display of data arranged in rows and columns. In APA 7, tables are labelled with a bold heading ("Table 1") and an italic descriptive title on the line below. Tables and figures use separate numbering sequences.
In simple terms, if you have data in a grid, APA calls it a table and it needs a number and a title.
Figure (APA context)
Any visual display that is not a table: graphs, charts, diagrams, photographs, drawings. Figures follow the same labelling convention as tables (bold "Figure 1" + italic title) but use their own numbering sequence.
Think of it as "if it is visual and it is not a grid of data, it is a figure."
Table/figure note
An optional note placed below a table or figure, preceded by the italicised label Note. General notes (applying to the whole table) come first; specific notes (indicated by superscript lowercase letters keyed to locations in the table) come second.
In simple terms, the note is where you explain anything about the table that is not obvious from the numbers alone.
Appendix
Supplementary material placed after the reference list. Each appendix starts on a new page with a centred, bold heading. A single appendix is labelled "Appendix." Multiple appendices are labelled with capital letters: Appendix A, Appendix B, Appendix C.
Think of it as the "bonus content" section for material that would clutter the main paper but that readers might still want to see.
Label: Bold, flush left, title case. Example: Table 1
Title: Italic, flush left, on the line below the label. Briefly describes the table's content. Example: HET Question Suites
Body: Use horizontal lines (borders) sparingly. APA style typically uses lines only at the top, below the header row, and at the bottom of the table. Avoid vertical lines and excessive gridlines.
Notes: Optional. Placed below the table. Start with Note. in italics. General notes come first. Specific notes (using superscript lowercase letters) come second.
Multi-page tables: Repeat column labels on each new page. Most word processors can do this automatically.
Numbering: Tables use their own sequential numbering, separate from figures. Table 1, Table 2, Table 3, and so on, regardless of how many figures appear between them.
Label: Bold, flush left, title case. Example: Figure 1
Title: Italic, flush left, on the line below the label. Briefly describes the figure. Example: Illustration of HET's Branching Structure
Notes: Same convention as table notes. Note. in italics, followed by the general note text.
Numbering: Figures use their own sequential numbering, separate from tables. Figure 1, Figure 2, and so on.
In-text references: Refer to figures and tables by their number in the text. Example: "A visualization of this structure is presented in Table 1."
Appendices appear after the reference list.
Each appendix starts on a new page.
The word "Appendix" is centred and bold at the top of the page.
Single appendix: Labelled simply "Appendix" (no letter).
Multiple appendices: Labelled with capital letters: Appendix A, Appendix B, Appendix C.
Paragraphs in appendices are indented normally, as in the body.
Appendix with only a table or figure: The centred, bold "Appendix" label replaces the table/figure label that would normally appear (so you do not write both "Appendix" and "Table 1" for the same item).
Appendix with text and tables/figures: Label the tables and figures with the appendix letter. If Appendix A contains two tables and one figure, they are labelled Table A1, Table A2, and Figure A1. A table in Appendix B would be Table B1. If there is only one appendix, use the letter "A" in all table/figure labels: Table A1, Table A2.
You can direct readers to appendices with simple in-text references: "See Appendix for additional sample items."
Students often use the same numbering sequence for tables and figures. They are numbered separately. You can have Table 1 and Figure 1 in the same paper without conflict.
Students sometimes put the table title above the label number. The label ("Table 1") always comes first, bold and flush left. The italic title goes on the next line.
Students often add full grid borders to tables. APA style prefers minimal lines: top border, a line below the header row, and a bottom border. No vertical lines.
Students forget that a single-table appendix replaces the table label. If your appendix contains only one table, the "Appendix" heading replaces where "Table X" would go. You do not write both.
⚠️ The table/figure labelling convention (bold label on one line, italic title on the next) is a standard rubric item. Know the format cold.
⚠️ Appendix labelling with capital letters, and the rule about table/figure labels inside appendices carrying the appendix letter (Table A1, Figure B1), comes up in longer research papers and in formatting exams.
⚠️ The note format (Note. in italics) is easy to forget. Examiners notice.
True or False: Tables and figures share a single numbering sequence in APA 7. (False – they are numbered separately.)
Fill in the blank: Table and figure notes begin with the italicised word ______. (Note.)
True or False: If there are multiple appendices, they are labelled with Roman numerals. (False – they use capital letters: Appendix A, Appendix B.)
Fill in the blank: A table inside Appendix B should be labelled ______. (Table B1)
True or False: APA tables should have full grid borders around every cell. (False – APA prefers minimal horizontal lines and no vertical lines.)
Q: Your paper has two figures and one table. The first figure appears on page 5, the table on page 7, and the second figure on page 9. How are they labelled?
A: Figure 1 (page 5), Table 1 (page 7), Figure 2 (page 9). Tables and figures each maintain their own numbering sequence.
Q: You have a single appendix that contains only a table showing sample survey items. How do you label it?
A: The centred, bold "Appendix" heading at the top of the page replaces the table label. Below it, place the italic title (e.g., Sample ICALT Items Rephrased for HET). You do not also write "Table 1" or "Table A1."
Q: Your paper has Appendix A (containing text, one table, and one figure) and Appendix B (containing one table). How are the tables and figure labelled?
A: Appendix A's table is Table A1, its figure is Figure A1. Appendix B's table is Table B1.
Q: A table spans two pages. What must you do on the second page?
A: Repeat the column header labels at the top of the table on the second page.
Table and figure formatting connects to the reference list rules in the companion citation notes, because table notes sometimes cite sources. The appendix rules tie into the overall paper structure covered in the first set of notes. If you are writing a research methods paper, you will likely need all three sets of notes together.
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