The licences explained
A practical guide to each licence, its permissions, its conditions and the differences between them.
Yes, you can use a CC BY 4.0 photo from a designer's portfolio in your paid presentation. Do three things before you publish. Credit the creator exactly as specified, link to the licence, and note any changes you made. Skip any of those and your right to use the work terminates automatically. This page maps the permissions and conditions for every current Creative Commons license, one allowed and one disallowed use per license, and the route to the guide that answers what you are trying to do. The ten guides beneath it each start at a specific question: share, adapt, sell, or combine CC-licensed work.
- License Suite: Six 4.0 International licences. All require attribution (BY). Ranked the six are: BY, BY-SA, BY-ND, BY-NC, BY-NC-SA, BY-NC-ND.
- CC0: Public-domain dedication with a waiver, fallback licence, and non-assertion promise limited to remaining Copyright and Related Rights. Not one of the six licences.
- Public Domain Mark: Labels material believed free of known copyright restrictions worldwide. Changes no rights. Also not a licence.
- BY, Attribution: Under 4.0, reuser must retain creator, copyright notice, licence reference, warranty disclaimer, and URI. Indicate changes. Link to the exact licence.
- SA, ShareAlike: Triggered only when Adapted Material is shared, not when unchanged works appear beside others. Adapter must use the SA licence or an officially compatible licence.
- NC, NonCommercial: Not primarily intended for commercial advantage or monetary compensation. Identity of user does not decide. Advertising, fundraising, internal business use need context.
- ND, NoDerivatives: Sharing Adapted Material is not permitted. Translation is normally an adaptation. Format-shifting alone is not. Music synchronisation is expressly Adapted Material under 4.0.
How to Read the Permissions Table
Each license grants a set of permissions subject to conditions. The table below lists what you may do with a work under each license and what you may not do. Read the rows in order: the most permissive license, CC BY, is at the top, and the most restrictive, CC BY-NC-ND, is at the bottom. Check a license in this sequence: first, what sharing is allowed; second, whether you may adapt the work; third, whether commercial use is permitted; fourth, what the ShareAlike condition requires if you share a derivative. After the table, two scenarios show one allowed and one disallowed use per license, drawn from the official terms. Test your own planned activity against these before you move to the specific guide for your situation.
The License Table: Permissions and Conditions at a Glance
CC BY 4.0
Allowed: share unchanged, adapt, use commercially. Condition: attribute the creator as specified. Example: a blogger republishes a CC BY photograph in a paid article, credits the photographer, and links to the license. Disallowed: omit attribution. Example: the same blogger uses the photo without naming the photographer.
CC BY-SA 4.0
Allowed: share unchanged, adapt, use commercially. Condition: attribute and share adaptations under BY-SA 4.0 or a Creative Commons-designated compatible license. Example: a filmmaker incorporates a CC BY-SA song into a documentary and licenses the documentary under BY-SA 4.0. Disallowed: release the documentary under a commercial license that restricts further sharing. Example: the filmmaker uses the song but releases the film under an all-rights-reserved copyright.
CC BY-ND 4.0
Allowed: share unchanged, including commercial sharing. Condition: attribute. Example: a company distributes a CC BY-ND training video to employees. Disallowed: share an adapted version. Example: the company edits the video to add a new intro and posts it online.
CC BY-NC 4.0
Allowed: share unchanged, adapt, use for noncommercial purposes. Condition: attribute. Example: a student uses a CC BY-NC diagram in a noncommercial academic poster. Disallowed: use the diagram in a paid advertisement. Example: a marketing agency uses the same diagram in a client's print ad.
CC BY-NC-SA 4.0
Allowed: share unchanged, adapt, use for noncommercial purposes. Condition: attribute and share adaptations under the same or a compatible noncommercial share-alike license. Example: a nonprofit creates a derivative of a CC BY-NC-SA lesson plan and shares it under BY-NC-SA. Disallowed: adapt the lesson plan and license the derivative under a commercial share-alike license that allows commercial use. Example: a for-profit training company remixes the lesson plan and offers it for sale.
CC BY-NC-ND 4.0
Allowed: share unchanged for noncommercial purposes. Condition: attribute. Example: a personal blog reposts a CC BY-NC-ND essay verbatim. Disallowed: share a translated version. Example: a translator converts the essay into another language and publishes it online under the same license.
| Licence | Share Unchanged | Adapt and Share | Commercial Use | ShareAlike Required | Attribution Required |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CC BY 4.0 | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | Yes |
| CC BY-SA 4.0 | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| CC BY-ND 4.0 | Yes | No | Yes | No | Yes |
| CC BY-NC 4.0 | Yes | Yes | No | No | Yes |
| CC BY-NC-SA 4.0 | Yes | Yes | No | Yes | Yes |
| CC BY-NC-ND 4.0 | Yes | No | No | No | Yes |
| CC0 | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | No |
The One Question This Page Answers
Creative Commons licenses grant specific permissions for sharing and reusing creative work, but each license has exact conditions, a decisive exception, and a safest next step. The exact condition: every license except CC0 and PDM requires attribution. The decisive exception: no Creative Commons license permits a use that violates an applicable copyright exception or limitation, such as fair use or fair dealing, and the scope of those exceptions varies by jurisdiction. The safest next step: confirm the exact license version on the source page, record the creator and attribution information, check that your intended activity does not trigger a blocked condition like ND or NC, and consult the specific guide for your scenario before you publish.
What to Do Next
Start with the guide that matches what you are trying to do. Sharing your own work? The guide on choosing and applying a CC license walks you through version 4.0 selection and the exact notice format. Reusing someone else's work? The reuse workflow guide covers the steps from opening the source page to preserving evidence. Combining multiple CC-licensed works? The compatibility guide explains the difference between a collection and an adaptation and lists the official compatible licenses. Need to share a derivative of a ShareAlike work? The SA guide shows how to choose the correct adapter's license. Every guide starts from the specific question you have. Go there rather than hunting through general advice. Write down the exact license version, the creator name, the source URL, and the date before you act.
More in The licences explained
- Can I combine material under different Creative Commons licences?
- What does CC BY 4.0 allow?
- What does CC BY-NC 4.0 allow?
- What does CC BY-NC-ND 4.0 allow?
- What does CC BY-NC-SA 4.0 allow?
- What does CC BY-ND 4.0 allow?
- What does CC BY-SA 4.0 allow?
- Which Creative Commons licences allow adaptations?
- Which Creative Commons licences allow commercial use?
- Which Creative Commons licences are considered free-culture licences?
Common Questions
What is the difference between CC0 and the Public Domain Mark?
CC0 is a legal tool that a rights holder uses to dedicate a work to the public domain, waiving copyright and related rights as far as possible. The Public Domain Mark is a label for works already believed to be free of copyright restrictions worldwide. CC0 is a tool you use; PDM is a tag you apply.
Can I upgrade a work from an older licence to 4.0?
No. The licence is set by the creator. A reuser cannot unilaterally upgrade the licence on someone else's work. Use the version stated on the source page.
Which licence should I use for software code?
None. Creative Commons licences are not suited for software code. Use a recognised free/open-source software licence instead. Non-code assets that accompany software may use a separate CC licence if clearly marked.
What happens if I breach a CC licence?
Under 4.0, rights terminate automatically. They are reinstated if the violation is cured within 30 days of discovery. Older versions lack this automatic cure mechanism. Liability for the violation period may still apply.