About Copyright-Friendly Works
Copyright-friendly works typically fall under one of the following categories, which determine the extent to which they may be used, reused or modified.
Public Domain: Includes works that are no longer under copyright, so no permission is required. Learn more about the public domain.
Not sure if a work is in the public domain? See the Canadian Copyright Term and Public Domain Flowchart.
Creative Commons: Flexible copyright licenses that allow copyright holders to decide for themselves who can share, reuse and build upon their creative works. There are six creative commons licenses:
These licenses are comprised of a combination of four features:
BY = Attribution
You may distribute, remix, tweak, and build upon your work but must credit the author
NC = Non-Commercial
You may only use the work for non-commercial purposes
SA = Share-Alike
You must license your revised or remixed work under the identical terms
ND = No Derivatives
You are free to use and distribute the work but may not revise or remix it
Read more about Creative Commons Licenses.
Find Copyright-Friendly Images, Videos, & Music
These collections provide copyright-friendly images you can use freely as long as you abide by any terms of use provided by the owner of the content.
- PexelsAn inclusive library of stock photos & videos that can be downloaded and used for free.
- PixabayCopyright-free images and videos, usable under Creative Commons CC0 (no need to ask permission or give credit).
- UnsplashCopyright-free images for commercial and noncommercial uses. No need to ask permission or give credit.
- The Noun ProjectA collections of icons and symbols usable under a Creative Commons license.
- TinEye Reverse Image SearchFind out how and where an image is used online using this search engine. Useful for determining need for attribution.
- Creative Commons SearchCreative Commons Search "will help you find photos, music, text, books, educational material, and more that is free to share or build upon."
- Google Advanced Image SearchSearch by colour! Can filter by 'usage rights" but verify copyright before using images.
- Artstor This link opens in a new window
This link opens in a new window
This cross-disciplinary collection of rights-cleared images includes digital images of art, architecture, and design from books, museums, archives, and slide collections.
Copyright: When an original literary, dramatic, musical, or artistic work is created, copyright automatically applies. Learn more about using copyrighted materials at RDC on our Copyright Guide.
Copyright-friendly works typically fall under one of the following categories, which determine the extent to which they may be used, reused or modified.
Public Domain Includes works that are no longer under copyright, so no permission is required.
Creative Commons: Flexible copyright licenses that allow copyright holders to decide for themselves who can share, reuse and build upon their creative works. There are six creative commons licenses:
These licenses are comprised of a combination of four features:
BY = Attribution
You may distribute, remix, tweak, and build upon your work but must credit the author
NC = Non-Commercial
You may only use the work for non-commercial purposes
SA = Share-Alike
You must license your revised or remixed work under the identical terms
ND = No Derivatives
You are free to use and distribute the work but may not revise or remix it
Read more about Creative Commons Licenses.
These websites provide copyright-friendly music you can use freely as long as you abide by any terms of use provided by the owner of the content.
- Legal Music for Remixing and SamplingInformation about remixing and sampling music for your projects, including list of sites with creative commons music samples.
- Legal Music for VideosIncludes sites that offer music published under Creative Commons’ flexible copyright licenses.
- Free Music Archive"Free access to open licensed, original music by independent artists around the world."
- Pixabay MusicRoyalty-free music for videos, background music, films, podcasts, etc.
- ccMixterA community music site featuring remixes licensed under Creative Commons.
- JamendoAll music on Jamendo is free to download and can be shared or modified depending on how each specific piece of music has been licensed.
- BensoundDownload royalty free stock music for YouTube and your multimedia projects.
- IMSLP/Petrucci Music LibraryA virtual library of public domain music scores in wiki format. Download scores; upload your own.
- Creative Commons SearchCreative Commons Search "will help you find photos, music, text, books, educational material, and more that is free to share or build upon."
- Google Advanced SearchSet “usage rights” parameters to be “Free to use, share, or modify."
Copyright: When an original literary, dramatic, musical, or artistic work is created, copyright automatically applies. Learn more about using copyrighted materials at RDC on our Copyright Guide.
Copyright-friendly works typically fall under one of the following categories, which determine the extent to whish they may be used, reused or modified.
Public Domain: Includes works that are no longer under copyright, so no permission is required.
Creative Commons: Flexible copyright licenses that allow copyright holders to decide for themselves who can share, reuse and build upon their creative works. There are six creative commons licenses:
These licenses are comprised of a combination of four features:
BY = Attribution
You may distribute, remix, tweak, and build upon your work but must credit the author
NC = Non-Commercial
You may only use the work for non-commercial purposes
SA = Share-Alike
You must license your revised or remixed work under the identical terms
ND = No Derivatives
You are free to use and distribute the work but may not revise or remix it
Read more about Creative Commons Licenses.
These websites provide copyright-friendly videos you can use freely as long as you abide by any terms of use provided by the owner of the content.
- Pixabay VideosVideos which can be freely used and adapted, subject to the licensing terms.
- PexelsAn inclusive library of stock photos & videos that can be downloaded and used for free.
- Internet Archive Stock Footage"A collection of stock footage clips submitted by Internet Archive users. These clips are designed to be used in other videos."
- YouTubeType your search term, followed by a comma and then “creativecommons” for videos that are CC licensed,
- Creative Commons on VimeoBrowse the Creative Commons licensed videos on Vimeo.
- Creative Commons SearchCreative Commons Search "will help you find photos, music, text, books, educational material, and more that is free to share or build upon."
- Google Advanced SearchSet “usage rights” parameters to be “Free to use, share, or modify."
Copyright: When an original literary, dramatic, musical, or artistic work is created, copyright automatically applies. Learn more about using copyrighted materials at RDC on our Copyright Guide.
Copyright-friendly works typically fall under one of the following categories, which determine the extent to whish they may be used, reused or modified.
Public Domain: Includes works that are no longer under copyright, so no permission is required.
Creative Commons: Flexible copyright licenses that allow copyright holders to decide for themselves who can share, reuse and build upon their creative works. There are six creative commons licenses:
These licenses are comprised of a combination of four features:
BY = Attribution
You may distribute, remix, tweak, and build upon your work but must credit the author
NC = Non-Commercial
You may only use the work for non-commercial purposes
SA = Share-Alike
You must license your revised or remixed work under the identical terms
ND = No Derivatives
You are free to use and distribute the work but may not revise or remix it
Read more about Creative Commons Licenses.
These collections provide copyright-friendly images you can use freely as long as you abide by any terms of use provided by the owner of the content.
- UndrawOpen-source illustrations, including a variety of figures and characters. Images are free to use without asking permission or giving credit.
- Open PeepsA hand-drawn illustration library. Images are free to use without asking permission or giving credit.
- HumaaansMix-&-match illustrations of people with a design library. Images are free to use without asking for permission or giving credit.
Copyright: When an original literary, dramatic, musical, or artistic work is created, copyright automatically applies. Learn more about using copyrighted materials at RDC on our Copyright Guide.
Copyright-friendly works typically fall under one of the following categories, which determine the extent to which they may be used, reused or modified.
Public Domain Includes works that are no longer under copyright, so no permission is required.
Creative Commons: Flexible copyright licenses that allow copyright holders to decide for themselves who can share, reuse and build upon their creative works. There are six creative commons licenses:
These licenses are comprised of a combination of four features:
BY = Attribution
You may distribute, remix, tweak, and build upon your work but must credit the author
NC = Non-Commercial
You may only use the work for non-commercial purposes
SA = Share-Alike
You must license your revised or remixed work under the identical terms
ND = No Derivatives
You are free to use and distribute the work but may not revise or remix it
Read more about Creative Commons Licenses.
Citing and Attributing Works
Be sure to cite and/or attribute all works used.
Using Open Educational Resources (OER)
Open Educational Resources (OER) are a copyright-friendly option for your courses!
These are resources for which the creator has assigned an open license indicating how that work can be used. The Library can help you integrate OER into your course.
To learn more and to find OER, visit our OER Guide.
