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Journals by publishing licence

The licence sets what readers may legally do with an article. If you are funded, check which licences your funder accepts before you submit — CC BY is the most widely accepted.

Summary and key facts

The licence determines what readers may do with an article. CC BY allows any reuse with attribution and is required by many funders including Plan S signatories. CC BY-SA adds a share-alike condition, CC BY-NC restricts commercial reuse, and CC BY-ND prohibits derivatives. Check your funder's requirements before choosing a journal.

CC BY 5,762 CC BY-NC 2,668 CC BY-NC-ND 2,636 CC BY-NC-SA 1,640 CC BY-SA 1,126 CC BY-ND 203 CC BY, CC BY-NC-ND 166 Publisher's own license 131 CC BY, CC BY-NC 92 CC BY, CC BY-NC, CC BY-NC-ND 46 CC BY, CC BY-ND, CC BY-NC-ND 23 CC BY, CC BY-SA, CC BY-ND, CC BY-NC, CC BY-NC-SA, CC BY-NC-ND 21 CC BY, CC0 14 CC BY, CC BY-ND 8 CC BY, CC BY-NC-SA 7 CC BY, CC BY-SA 4 CC BY-NC, CC BY-NC-ND 4 CC BY, Publisher's own license 3 Public domain 3 CC BY, CC BY-ND, CC BY-NC 2 CC BY, CC BY-SA, CC BY-NC, CC BY-NC-SA 2 CC BY, CC BY-SA, CC BY-ND, CC0, Public domain 2 CC BY-NC, CC BY-NC-SA, CC BY-NC-ND 2 CC BY-NC, Publisher's own license 2 CC BY-NC-SA, CC BY-NC-ND 2 CC BY-ND, CC BY-NC-ND 2 CC BY-SA, CC BY-NC-ND 2 CC BY-SA, CC BY-ND 2 CC BY, CC BY-NC, CC BY-NC-SA, CC BY-NC-ND 1 CC BY, CC BY-NC-ND, CC BY-NC 1 CC BY, CC BY-NC-SA, CC BY-NC-ND 1 CC BY, CC BY-NC-SA, Public domain 1 CC BY, CC BY-ND, CC BY-NC, CC BY-NC-ND 1 CC BY, CC BY-SA, CC BY-NC 1 CC BY, CC BY-SA, CC BY-NC-SA 1 CC BY, CC BY-SA, CC BY-ND, CC BY-NC, CC BY-NC-ND 1 CC BY, CC BY-SA, CC BY-ND, CC BY-NC, CC BY-NC-SA, CC BY-NC-ND, CC0 1 CC BY, CC BY-SA, CC0 1 CC BY, CC0, CC BY-NC-ND 1 CC BY-NC, CC BY, CC BY-NC-ND 1 CC BY-NC, CC0 1 CC BY-NC-ND, Publisher's own license 1 CC BY-SA, CC BY-NC-SA 1

Frequently asked questions

Which Creative Commons licence do funders require?

Many major funders, including Plan S signatories, require CC BY for the version of record. Some accept CC BY-SA or CC BY-ND. Licences with a non-commercial (NC) clause are frequently not compliant. Check your specific funder's policy.