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Created October 28, 2025 13:35
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Where can I find the canonical list of OSS licenses?
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gpt-5.md

Short answer:

  • Open Source Initiative (OSI) Approved Licenses – the authoritative list of licenses that meet the Open Source Definition: https://opensource.org/licenses/
  • SPDX License List – the canonical, machine-readable catalog of license texts and identifiers used by tooling: https://spdx.org/licenses/

Related, but not “the” canonical OSS list:

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grok-4.md

The most authoritative and canonical source for a list of approved open-source software (OSS) licenses is the Open Source Initiative (OSI), which reviews and certifies licenses that meet the Open Source Definition.

  • OSI's License List: You can find it at opensource.org/licenses. This includes popular licenses like the MIT License, GNU GPL (various versions), Apache License 2.0, and many others, categorized by type (e.g., permissive, copyleft).

Another widely used and comprehensive resource is the SPDX License List (maintained by the Linux Foundation's SPDX project), which catalogs over 400 licenses and identifiers for use in software compliance and tooling:

  • SPDX License List: Available at spdx.org/licenses. This is often referenced in package managers and legal contexts for its standardized identifiers.

If you're looking for something specific (e.g., a particular license or comparison), tools like ChooseALicense.com (from GitHub) provide a user-friendly overview, though it's not exhaustive or "canonical" in the same way as OSI.

Always verify the latest versions directly from these sources, as licenses can evolve or new ones may be approved. If you have more details about what you're seeking, I can refine this!

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