The Unlicense

All licenses
Public-domain style · Dedicate broadlyUnlicense

License decision brief

The Unlicense

A public-domain dedication paired with broad permission and warranty disclaimers.

Good fit: Authors intentionally releasing code with as few retained conditions as possible.

Reciprocity

None

Patent use

Not explicit here

Bundled text

Included text

Decision signal

Dedicate broadly

Authors intentionally releasing code with as few retained conditions as possible.

Watch before choosing

Confirm that a public-domain-style approach fits the project’s legal and organisational policy.

Rights, duties, and boundaries

Permissions

  • Commercial use
  • Modification
  • Distribution
  • Private use

Conditions

  • None listed in this profile

Limitations

  • Liability
  • Warranty

Implementation identifiers

machine-readable

Source-file header

SPDX-License-Identifier: Unlicense

package.json

"license": "Unlicense"

SPDX identifiers are compact, machine-readable labels. They identify the license; they do not replace the license text or the notices your distribution must carry.

Included license text

This is free and unencumbered software released into the public domain.

Anyone is free to copy, modify, publish, use, compile, sell, or
distribute this software, either in source code form or as a compiled
binary, for any purpose, commercial or non-commercial, and by any
means.

In jurisdictions that recognize copyright laws, the author or authors
of this software dedicate any and all copyright interest in the
software to the public domain. We make this dedication for the benefit
of the public at large and to the detriment of our heirs and
successors. We intend this dedication to be an overt act of
relinquishment in perpetuity of all present and future rights to this
software under copyright law.

THE SOFTWARE IS PROVIDED "AS IS", WITHOUT WARRANTY OF ANY KIND,
EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO THE WARRANTIES OF
MERCHANTABILITY, FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE AND NONINFRINGEMENT.
IN NO EVENT SHALL THE AUTHORS BE LIABLE FOR ANY CLAIM, DAMAGES OR
OTHER LIABILITY, WHETHER IN AN ACTION OF CONTRACT, TORT OR OTHERWISE,
ARISING FROM, OUT OF OR IN CONNECTION WITH THE SOFTWARE OR THE USE OR
OTHER DEALINGS IN THE SOFTWARE.

For more information, please refer to <https://unlicense.org>

Compare this included text with the canonical SPDX record before using it in a release.

Canonical SPDX text

Compare nearby choices

4
MIT LicenseMITNoneBSD 3-Clause 'New' or 'Revised' LicenseBSD-3-ClauseNoneISC LicenseISCNoneApache License 2.0Apache-2.0None
FamilyPublic-domain style
Permissions4
Conditions0
GPL compatibleListed yes

Educational summary only—not legal advice. License compatibility depends on the exact versions, combination, distribution model, and facts of a project.