License Generator

One input per line. Output is numbered to match the input order.
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Permissions
✓ Commercial use
✓ Distribution
✓ Modification
✓ Private use
Conditions
⚠ License and copyright notice
Limitations
✗ Liability
✗ Warranty
Ctrl+Enter Run  · Ctrl+Shift+C Copy  · Esc Clear

Understand License Generator

Produces the full text of an open source license — MIT, Apache-2.0, GPL-3.0, BSD-2-Clause, BSD-3-Clause, ISC, MPL-2.0, LGPL-3.0, Unlicense, or CC0-1.0 — with your name and year filled in.

How it works

Each license is stored as its canonical text with placeholders for the copyright holder and the year; picking one substitutes your values and returns the file to save as LICENSE in the repository root. The differences that matter are structural rather than stylistic: MIT and ISC are permissive and ask only for attribution, Apache-2.0 adds an explicit patent grant that terminates if you sue over patents, MPL-2.0 is copyleft file by file, and GPL-3.0 and LGPL-3.0 require derivative works to carry the same license.

When to use it

  • Adding a LICENSE file to a new repository so hosts detect and display the license.
  • Replacing a license inherited from a project template with one you actually chose.
  • Reading the real clauses of two candidates side by side before committing to one.
  • Filling in the correct year and copyright holder on a license you have already picked.

Watch out for

  • Code with no license is all rights reserved by default. Publishing it in a public repository grants nobody permission to use, copy, or modify it — the absence of a license is the most restrictive state, not the most open.
  • Relicensing later needs every copyright holder to agree. Once outside contributors have merged work, you cannot change the license unilaterally without their consent or a contributor license agreement signed up front.
  • Your license says nothing about your dependencies. A copyleft dependency can constrain how the combined work may be distributed no matter what your own LICENSE file permits.
  • The copyright holder is whoever owns the work, which is often an employer when the code was written on their time or equipment rather than the individual author.

Not the right tool for: Legal advice. This emits standard license text; when the choice carries commercial or patent consequences for your project, have a lawyer review it.

Frequently Asked Questions

How to choose an open source license?

Start with your goals: MIT if you want maximum adoption and simplicity; Apache 2.0 if patent protection matters; GPL-3.0 if you want to ensure derivatives stay open. choosealicense.com is the canonical guide. This generator outputs the full license text once you pick one.

What is the difference between MIT, Apache 2.0, and GPL?

MIT is the most permissive: use, modify, redistribute with attribution only. Apache 2.0 adds explicit patent grants — better for business use. GPL-3.0 is copyleft — any derivative work must also be GPL. MIT/Apache are recommended for libraries; GPL for tools you want to keep permanently open.

Do I need a license file?

Without an explicit license, code is "all rights reserved" by default — no one can legally use, copy, or modify it. Adding a recognized open source license file is required for your project to be genuinely open source and qualify for GitHub's open source detection.

How to Use License Generator

  1. Paste or type your input in the input area above.
  2. The tool processes your input automatically or click Run.
  3. Copy or download the result using the action buttons.
  4. Use Ctrl+Enter to run quickly from the keyboard.