CC-BY vs. CC-BY-SA vs. CC-BY-ND: A Practical Guide to Creative Commons License Types

CC-BY vs. CC-BY-SA vs. CC-BY-ND

A Practical Guide to Creative Commons License Types

10-minute read time.

Disclaimer: This article is for general informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. Creative Commons licensing can be nuanced, and specific situations may require professional legal guidance. If you have questions about how these licenses apply to your work or your organization, please consult a qualified legal professional.

I am not affiliated with Creative Commons, and this article is based on publicly available information from the CC website and related documentation.

Creative Commons licenses are a cornerstone of open education, open publishing, and digital sharing, but choosing the right license for your work can easily become confusing or overwhelming.

For authors, educators, and creators, choosing the right license determines how others can use, adapt, and share your work. Among the most widely used licenses are the CC-BY family: a set of licenses that all require attribution but differ in how permissive or restrictive they are.

This guide breaks down each CC-BY‑based license, explains when you might choose one over another, and provides ready‑to‑use copy/paste templates you can include in your own OER, websites, or digital projects.

If you’re using Pressbooks, you’ll also find a recommendation for where to place your license so adopters and adapters can easily find it.

What is a CC-BY License?

A CC‑BY (Creative Commons Attribution) license allows people to use your work openly and for almost any purpose, including remixing, adapting, and even commercial use, as long as they give you proper credit.

To meet the attribution requirement, anyone using your work must:

Give appropriate credit to the original creator(s)
Provide a link to the license
Indicate whether any changes were made

Beyond that, the freedoms and restrictions depend on the specific type of CC-BY license. Some licenses allow remixing and commercial use; others limit derivatives or restrict commercial activity.

From my experience working in OER publishing, CC‑BY-based licenses have consistently been the most widely used license type because they offer the greatest flexibility for reuse, remixing, and access to information.

How Do Creative Commons Naming Conventions Work?

Creative Commons licenses use a simple shorthand made of two parts:

The “CC” prefix
- This prefix means Creative Commons, the organization that created the licenses.
A series of two‑letter codes
- Each code represents a specific condition you must follow when using the work:
  - BY → Attribution
    - You must credit the original creator. This appears in every CC license.
  - SA → ShareAlike
    - If you adapt the work, you must release your version under the same license.
  - ND → NoDerivatives
    - You can share the work, but you cannot modify or remix it.
  - NC → NonCommercial
    - You can use the work, but not for commercial purposes.

Put together, the codes tell you exactly what you can and can’t do. For example:

CC‑BY → You only need to credit the creator.
CC‑BY‑SA → Credit the creator and use the same license if you adapt the resource.
CC‑BY‑ND → Credit the creator, but don’t change the work.

The CC BY License Family at a Glance

Let’s look at a quick overview of how the six CC BY‑based licenses differ:

License	Allows	Restrictions
CC-BY	Share, adapt, remix, commercial use	Must attribute
CCY-BY-SA	Same as CC BY	Derivatives must use the same license
CC-BY-ND	Share only	No derivatives allowed
CC-BY-NC	Share, adapt, remix	No commercial use
CC-BY-NC-SA	Same as NC	Derivatives must use the same license
CC-BY-NC-ND	Share only	No derivatives, no commercial use

Table comparing all six CC BY license types, showing what each one allows and restricts.

Choosing the Right CC-BY License

Choosing your license depends on how you want your work to be used:

Choose CC BY if you want maximum reuse and remixing.
Choose CC BY-SA if you want improvements to stay open.
Choose CC BY-ND if you want your work shared unchanged.
Choose CC BY-NC if you want to reuse, but not for commercial purposes.
Choose CC BY-NC-SA if you want noncommercial reuse and open derivatives.
Choose CC BY-NC-ND if you want the most restrictive option while still allowing sharing.

CC-BY Works Attribution

The TASL method is a simple framework for creating clear and complete attributions when you reuse Creative Commons–licensed materials. It helps ensure you include all the information required by CC licenses in a simple and consistent format.

A simple way to remember attribution requirements is the TASL method:

Title – Name of the work
Author – Who created it
Source – Where it came from (with a link)
License – The CC license used (with a link)

If you’d like a deeper walkthrough of how to build clear, consistent attributions, including examples, formatting tips, and guidance for applying attribution in real‑world OER projects, you can also read my article “How to Cite Open Resources: A Simple Guide.”

Where to Place License Information?

As a Pressbooks user, I have found the clearest and most consistent approach for including detailed licensing information is to:

Create a Back Matter page titled Creative Commons License
Paste the full license text (using one of the templates below)
Optionally, when editing your book information, include a short license statement in the book’s copyright section
- Example: “Except where otherwise noted, this work is licensed under a [CC BY, CC BY-SA, etc.] 4.0 International License. To view a copy of this license, visit [license URL].”

Using a clear formatting structure makes it easy for adopters, adapters, and remixers to find and reference your licensing terms.

Copy/Paste CC-BY License Templates

The following section includes the complete text for each license template, grouped by license type. Choose the license you want to use and copy/paste it into your own project.

CC-BY License

This work is licensed under a CC-BY license.

You are free to:

Share — copy and redistribute the material in any medium or format
Adapt — remix, transform, and build upon the material for any purpose, even commercially.

The licensor cannot revoke these freedoms as long as you follow the license terms.

Under the following terms:

Attribution — You must give appropriate credit, provide a link to the license, and indicate if changes were made. You may do so in any reasonable manner, but not in any way that suggests the licensor endorses you or your use.

No additional restrictions — You may not apply legal terms or technological measures that legally restrict others from doing anything the license permits.

CC-BY-SA License

This work is licensed under a CC-BY-SA license.

You are free to:

Share — copy and redistribute the material in any medium or format
Adapt — remix, transform, and build upon the material for any purpose, even commercially.

The licensor cannot revoke these freedoms as long as you follow the license terms.

Under the following terms:

Attribution — You must give appropriate credit, provide a link to the license, and indicate if changes were made. You may do so in any reasonable manner, but not in any way that suggests the licensor endorses you or your use.
ShareAlike — If you remix, transform, or build upon the material, you must distribute your contributions under the same license as the original.

No additional restrictions — You may not apply legal terms or technological measures that legally restrict others from doing anything the license permits.

CC-BY-ND License

This work is licensed under a CC-BY-ND license.

You are free to:

Share — copy and redistribute the material in any medium or format

The licensor cannot revoke these freedoms as long as you follow the license terms.

Under the following terms:

Attribution — You must give appropriate credit, provide a link to the license, and indicate if changes were made. You may do so in any reasonable manner, but not in any way that suggests the licensor endorses you or your use.
NoDerivatives — If you remix, transform, or build upon the material, you may not distribute the modified material.

No additional restrictions — You may not apply legal terms or technological measures that legally restrict others from doing anything the license permits.

CC-BY-NC License

This work is licensed under a CC-BY-NC license.

You are free to:

Share — copy and redistribute the material in any medium or format
Adapt — remix, transform, and build upon the material for any purpose, even commercially.

The licensor cannot revoke these freedoms as long as you follow the license terms.

Under the following terms:

Attribution — You must give appropriate credit, provide a link to the license, and indicate if changes were made. You may do so in any reasonable manner, but not in any way that suggests the licensor endorses you or your use.
NonCommercial — You may not use the material for commercial purposes.

No additional restrictions — You may not apply legal terms or technological measures that legally restrict others from doing anything the license permits.

CC-BY-NC-SA License

This work is licensed under a CC-BY-NC-SA license.

You are free to:

Share — copy and redistribute the material in any medium or format
Adapt — remix, transform, and build upon the material for any purpose, even commercially.

The licensor cannot revoke these freedoms as long as you follow the license terms.

Under the following terms:

Attribution — You must give appropriate credit, provide a link to the license, and indicate if changes were made. You may do so in any reasonable manner, but not in any way that suggests the licensor endorses you or your use.
NonCommercial — You may not use the material for commercial purposes.
ShareAlike — If you remix, transform, or build upon the material, you must distribute your contributions under the same license as the original.

No additional restrictions — You may not apply legal terms or technological measures that legally restrict others from doing anything the license permits.

CC-BY-NC-ND License

This work is licensed under a CC-BY-NC-ND license.

You are free to:

Share — copy and redistribute the material in any medium or format

The licensor cannot revoke these freedoms as long as you follow the license terms.

Under the following terms:

Attribution — You must give appropriate credit, provide a link to the license, and indicate if changes were made. You may do so in any reasonable manner, but not in any way that suggests the licensor endorses you or your use.
NonCommercial — You may not use the material for commercial purposes.
NoDerivatives — If you remix, transform, or build upon the material, you may not distribute the modified material.

No additional restrictions — You may not apply legal terms or technological measures that legally restrict others from doing anything the license permits.

Getting Help: Copyright Librarians and Licensing Support

Creative Commons licensing can still feel overwhelming, especially when you’re working with mixed‑license materials, adapting an existing OER, or trying to determine whether something is truly in the public domain. You don’t have to figure it out alone!

Many colleges and universities have copyright librarians or scholarly communications specialists who can:

Help you interpret Creative Commons licenses
Advise you on whether your intended use is permitted
Guide you in choosing the right license for your own work
Support you in finding openly licensed or public‑domain resources
Help you understand institutional policies around copyright and reuse

If your institution doesn’t have a copyright librarian, you still have options. Consider:

Reaching out to a nearby institution! Many librarians are happy to collaborate across campuses, especially within the OER community.
Connecting with provincial or regional OER networks. Manitoba, BCcampus, eCampusOntario, and others often provide copyright support or can point you to someone who does.
Hiring a freelance copyright librarian or consultant. A growing number of professionals offer independent support for creators, educators, and organizations who need help navigating copyright and licensing.

A knowledgeable copyright professional can save you hours of uncertainty and ensure your work is shared in a way that aligns with your goals and with the legal requirements of the license.

Final Thoughts

Choosing the right CC-BY license helps you communicate how your work can be used, shared, and adapted. Whether you want maximum openness or more control over derivatives and commercial use, the CC BY family offers a clear set of options, and by including a clear license statement, especially in a dedicated licensing page in your digital textbook, you make your work easier to adopt, adapt, and share across the open education community.

Supporting easy adoption, adaptation, and sharing isn’t just best practice; it’s the essence of open education and the foundation of a thriving OER community.

I am not affiliated with Creative Commons, and this article is based on publicly available information from the CC website and related documentation.