Check the actual terms
Missing or unfamiliar license, in plain English.
TL;DR
We haven’t established reuse permission. Public code on GitHub doesn’t by itself give you permission to copy, change or sell it. Read the actual terms or ask the maintainer before reusing the code.
Source: GitHub Choose a License · repositories without a license ↗What can I do with it?
- Self-host, change or sell it
- Permission is not established by this catalog.
- An unfamiliar or custom license is shown
- Read its exact terms; this guide doesn’t classify it.
- No license file is present
- Ask the copyright holder for permission.
What do I need to do?
- Look for the repository’s LICENSE file and any file-specific notices.
- Do not substitute a generic MIT explanation for custom, combined or missing terms.
A missing license and an unfamiliar license are different. Either way, the catalog can’t promise reuse rights from the label alone.
A real-world example
A repository is public but has no reuse license. A download button or an “open source” label alone doesn’t establish permission to build a product from its code.
The code license and the hosting bill are separate.
A license tells you what you can do with the code. It doesn’t make Cloudflare, domains, email delivery or other services free. Check the project’s hosting notes as well.
This is a general explanation. The repository’s exact license, version, exceptions and package-specific terms govern. Other packages, dependencies and images can have different licenses.
Read about repositories without a license ↗