HSA 3111 APA Support: Headings

Levels of heading

There are five levels of heading in APA Style.

• Level 1 is the highest or main level of heading,
• Level 2 is a subheading of Level 1,
• Level 3 is a subheading of Level 2, and so on through Levels 4 and 5.

The number of headings to use in a paper depends on the length and complexity of the work.

• If only one level of heading is needed, use Level 1.
• If two levels of heading are needed, use Levels 1 and 2.
• If three levels of heading are needed, use Levels 1, 2, and 3 (and so on).

Use only the number of headings necessary to differentiate distinct sections in your paper; short student papers may not require any headings.