Unsplash no longer uses the CC0 license

The Unsplash logo
The Unsplash logo

Unsplash have changed the license they apply to their content.

The change in license seemed to happen around June 2017. Previously, Unsplash used the Creative Commons license “CC0” which dedicates works to the public domain.

The CC0 license does this by enabling owners of copyright or database-protected content to waive those interests in their works, thereby allowing anyone to build upon, enhance and reuse said works for any purposes without restriction under copyright or database law.

Read the official CC0 license here: https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/

Unsplash now use their own license called the “Unsplash License”. Although this new license may be similar to the CC0 license, it has now added a minor restriction for how you may use Unsplash’s content, which was not previously present with the CC0 license. So make sure you read up on this new license before using Unsplash’s content.

It is also worth noting that Unsplash appears to have applied this license change to content which was already under the CC0 license.

Read the official Unsplash License here: https://unsplash.com/license

Before and after Unsplash’s license change - On the left, screenshots of Unsplash’s Terms and Conditions and License pages with CC0 and on the right, screenshots of Unsplash’s Terms and Conditions page with the new Unsplash License.
Before and after Unsplash’s license change – On the left, screenshots of Unsplash’s Terms and Conditions and License pages with CC0 and on the right, screenshots of Unsplash’s Terms and Conditions page with the new Unsplash License.

For those who don’t know what Unsplash is – Unsplash is a free stock photography website, whose content is uploaded by its global community of contributors. Whether for personal or commercial use, anyone can download and use Unsplash’s content for free without obtaining permission or giving credit to the photographer or Unsplash itself.