Can I use Creative Commons material in an app or game?
You can use Creative Commons material in an app or game. But only if you follow the exact license condition the creator chose. And only if the store or service you publish through does not impose conflicting legal terms or DRM that blocks downstream rights. The decisive exception is ShareAlike. A work under BY-SA, BY-NC-SA or any SA license forces your entire app or game to adopt a compatible open license if the work is adapted and shared inside the product. Open the source of every asset. Record its exact license and version. Map each asset's conditions against your store's publishing fields and your own monetisation model before you write a line of code.
What A Creative Commons License Actually Allows In A Digital Product
A Creative Commons 4.0 license operates on top of copyright. The creator keeps copyright and grants you a worldwide, royalty-free, non-sublicensable, non-exclusive, irrevocable permission to use the work, subject to conditions. The four conditions are BY (attribution), SA (ShareAlike), NC (NonCommercial) and ND (NoDerivatives). Every current license requires BY. The six 4.0 International licenses run from CC BY 4.0, which allows commercial use and adaptations, down to CC BY-NC-ND 4.0, which only allows noncommercial sharing of the unmodified work.
Assets You Can Put Into A Paid App
A commercial app that charges money, runs ads, or sells in-app purchases can use CC BY 4.0, CC BY-SA 4.0, CC BY-ND 4.0 and CC0 material. The NC (NonCommercial) licenses, CC BY-NC 4.0, CC BY-NC-SA 4.0 and CC BY-NC-ND 4.0, restrict the use to noncommercial purposes. Version 4.0 defines noncommercial as not primarily intended for commercial advantage or monetary compensation. Running ads in a free app is likely commercial. Charging a download fee is clearly commercial. If your planned use carries material commercial risk, get separate permission or local legal advice.
When ND And SA Block Your Game
ND (NoDerivatives) means you cannot share an adapted version of the work under the license. Putting a CC BY-ND image into a character sprite that you crop, recolor and composite into a scene creates an adaptation. If the result is adapted material and you share the app, you have violated the ND condition. SA (ShareAlike) requires that any adapted material you share must use BY-SA 4.0 or a license Creative Commons has officially named as compatible. A game that uses one BY-SA 2.0 sound effect and one BY-SA 3.0 texture inside the same executable has an adaptation problem: the two SA licenses may be incompatible; there is no general rule that the supposedly more restrictive one controls. Check the official compatibility list, not your own assumptions.
Attribution: Where To Put The Credits And What To Write
Under 4.0, the attribution you must include is: the creator's name and any designated attribution parties; the copyright notice, if supplied; a notice referring to the license; a warranty disclaimer, if supplied; and a URI or hyperlink to the source, where reasonably practicable. You must also link or refer to the exact license and indicate modifications, retaining any earlier modification notices. The TASL mnemonic, title, author, source, license, is a useful shorthand, but it is not the complete legal text.
Credits Screen Versus In-Game Overlay
App stores often provide a single credits page. That is reasonable for many works, as long as the mapping from each asset to its attribution is clear and the credits remain readily accessible. Do not bury the credits behind a login wall or inside a settings menu that requires three taps. Some asset creators specify exactly where the credit must appear; follow that request where reasonably practicable. If the licensor later asks you to remove attribution information, you must do so where reasonably practicable.
What Not To Do With The Credit
Attribution must not imply endorsement. Do not place the credit next to a product endorsement statement or suggest the creator recommends your app. Do not use the creator's name as a brand element. A credit is a legal condition, not a testimonial.
| License Feature | App Publishing Field | Conflict Warning |
|---|---|---|
| Attribution (BY) | Credits screen, settings > about page, splash screen | Stores that do not allow a credits field or that limit text length force you to break the condition |
| ShareAlike (SA) | App's overall license selection on Steam, App Store, Google Play | Requires your entire app or game to adopt a compatible open license if the adapted work is shared. Incompatible with proprietary EULAs |
| NonCommercial (NC) | Monetisation model: paid download, ads, in-app purchases | Ads, donations above cost recovery, or any pay-to-access likely violates NC. Freeware with no ads is safe |
| NoDerivatives (ND) | Asset editing pipeline: cropping, compositing, recolouring | Cropping and compositing may or may not create an adaptation under copyright law. Translation and music synchronisation are always adaptations under 4.0. Format shifting alone is not |
| DRM / Technological Protection | Store DRM, encrypted archives, server-side checks | 4.0 license forbids effective technological measures that restrict another recipient's licensed rights. Steam's DRM, console signing or server-gating can create a conflict |
How DRM, Exclusive Sublicensing And Store Terms Break Your Compliance
Version 4.0 of all Creative Commons licenses states that a recipient may not impose additional legal terms or effective technological measures that restrict another recipient's exercise of the licensed rights. This clause directly affects apps and games that use DRM. Steam's DRM, console signatures, or server-gating that requires a login to access the assets can be an effective technological measure that blocks downstream exercise of the license rights. The same problem applies to store terms that require you to grant an exclusive sublicense to the store operator. A CC license is non-sublicensable: you cannot authorise a store to sublicense the CC material, and the store's terms that claim that right create a direct conflict.
Before You Sign A Store Agreement
Read the store's current terms for asset reuse, sublicensing and DRM requirements. If the terms say you grant the store a license to distribute your app's content, and if that content includes CC-licensed material that you have no right to sublicense, you are in breach of the CC license. The cure mechanism in 4.0 gives you 30 days to correct the violation from the date you become aware of it, but it does not erase liability for the period of violation. Older versions do not have that 30-day mechanism.
The Only Safe Path
Use only CC0 material or material under a license that permits sublicensing for any asset that will be distributed through a store whose terms claim sublicensing rights. For assets under BY, BY-SA, or any other CC license that does not grant sublicensing, negotiate a separate license from the creator that explicitly permits sublicensing to the store. Do not assume a CC badge on the store resolves this conflict.
Common Questions
Can I use a CC-licensed soundtrack in a game I sell for money?
Yes, if the license is CC BY, CC BY-SA, CC BY-ND or CC0. If the license has NC, you cannot. The definition of commercial use in 4.0 is about the primary purpose, not your identity. A sold game is commercial.
What happens if I violate the attribution requirement in an app?
Your rights under the 4.0 license terminate automatically. If you cure the violation within 30 days of discovering it, the rights are reinstated from the cure date. You may still face liability for the period of violation. Older version licenses do not have this cure window.
Can I put a CC-licensed image behind a paywall inside the app?
A paywall that restricts access to the asset alone is likely an effective technological measure that violates the license. The license allows you to charge for the app as a whole, but you cannot restrict the asset itself behind a login or payment gate that blocks downstream exercise of the rights.
Does CC0 let me do anything I want in a game, including trademark use?
No. CC0 waives copyright and similar rights only. It does not license patent, trademark, privacy, publicity, or moral rights. Using a CC0 photo of a person in a game still requires that person's consent for commercial use. CC0 does not guarantee freedom from other legal claims.