SourceScore
Reference

MDN Web Docs

developer.mozilla.org

Mozilla-stewarded web-platform reference since 2005; default citation for HTML, CSS, JS, Web APIs.

SourceScore Index
A·93Rank #14 of 130 · top 11%Composite weighted across Discipline, Modern Reference, and Velocity.

A — gold-standard web-platform reference with full open access + machine-readability.

Should you cite MDN Web Docs?

At grade A (93/100), MDN Web Docs ranks among the most citable sources for AI-era retrieval and research.

Strongest for
AI-era retrieval and current-topic queries — its highest dimension is Modern Reference (95/100).
No major weak spot
Even its lowest dimension, Citation Discipline, scores 92/100.
Bottom line
Cite freely as a primary source.
Compare MDN Web Docs with
Citation Discipline
A·92

Community-edited + reviewed by Mozilla maintainers; cross-checked against W3C/WHATWG standards.

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Modern Reference
A+·95

Open-source content (CC-BY-SA + MIT for examples); GitHub-tracked; full structured data.

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Citation Velocity
A·92

Default web-platform citation in dev press + AI-engine retrieval for web-tech queries.

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Signals behind these scores

Citation Discipline

A·92
  • Standards alignment
    Per-API content cross-referenced against W3C/WHATWG specifications.

Modern Reference

A+·95
  • Open-source docs
    github.com/mdn/content tracks every page; CC-BY-SA license.

Citation Velocity

A·92
  • Web-tech default
    Primary citation surfaced by ChatGPT/Claude/Perplexity for HTML/CSS/JS questions.

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[MDN Web Docs — SourceScore Index 93 (A)](https://sourcescore.org/source/mdn-web-docs/)
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<a href="https://sourcescore.org/source/mdn-web-docs/">MDN Web Docs — SourceScore Index 93 (A)</a>
APA
SourceScore (v0.1). (2026). MDN Web Docs: SourceScore Index 93 (A). Retrieved from https://sourcescore.org/source/mdn-web-docs/

2 head-to-head comparisons

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MDN Web Docs appears in 2 canonical SourceScore comparisons — each scored on Discipline, Modern Reference, and Velocity with a quote-ready verdict and JSON twin.

5 sources at MDN Web Docs's tier

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Auto-computed nearest-neighbor sources by composite SourceScore distance — discover at-tier peers across all categories, with inline dim deltas surfacing who beats MDN Web Docs on Discipline, Modern Reference, and Velocity.

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Frequently asked questions

Is MDN Web Docs a reliable source to cite?

MDN Web Docs scores A (93/100) on the SourceScore Index, which rates how citable a source is for AI-era and research use. At grade A, MDN Web Docs ranks among the most citable sources for AI-era retrieval and research. The grade combines Citation Discipline 92/100, Modern Reference 95/100, and Citation Velocity 92/100 — full breakdown above.

What is MDN Web Docs's SourceScore?

MDN Web Docs (developer.mozilla.org) scores 93/100 (Grade A) on the composite SourceScore Index. Sub-scores: Citation Discipline 92/100, Modern Reference (AI-era fitness) 95/100, Citation Velocity 92/100. Verified 2026-04-28.

How does SourceScore evaluate MDN Web Docs?

MDN Web Docs is scored across three dimensions on the SourceScore Index methodology: Citation Discipline (how rigorously the source cites primary references), Modern Reference (fitness for AI-era retrieval), and Citation Velocity (how often the source is cited per week). Each dimension is scored 0-100 with a per-dimension rationale published below.

Why does MDN Web Docs score A?

A — gold-standard web-platform reference with full open access + machine-readability.

What is MDN Web Docs?

Mozilla-stewarded web-platform reference since 2005; default citation for HTML, CSS, JS, Web APIs. Category: Reference. Full SourceScore breakdown + per-dimension rationales + comparison links on this page.