{
  "question": "Can I use BUSL 1.1 commercially?",
  "slug": "can-i-use-busl-1-1-commercially",
  "url": "https://www.rightshold.com/answers/can-i-use-busl-1-1-commercially",
  "short_answer": "Commercial use: Needs review. Commercial use, modified and redistributed: Needs review.",
  "framing": "Business Source License 1.1 (BUSL-1.1): Copy, modify and redistribute the software for any purpose other than production use; production use is allowed only as the licensor's Additional Use Grant says. Each version converts to an open source Change License on its Change Date.",
  "checks": [
    {
      "label": "Commercial use",
      "license": "BUSL-1.1",
      "license_name": "Business Source License 1.1",
      "intended_use": {
        "commercial_use": true
      },
      "verdict": "needs_review",
      "answer": "Needs review",
      "findings": [
        "Production use depends on the Additional Use Grant this licensor wrote into its copy of the license, which differs from project to project. A reviewer should read that grant."
      ],
      "duties": [
        "license_notice",
        "keep_change_terms"
      ],
      "curation": "curated",
      "official_text": "https://mariadb.com/bsl11/"
    },
    {
      "label": "Commercial use, modified and redistributed",
      "license": "BUSL-1.1",
      "license_name": "Business Source License 1.1",
      "intended_use": {
        "commercial_use": true,
        "modification": true,
        "redistribution": true
      },
      "verdict": "needs_review",
      "answer": "Needs review",
      "findings": [
        "Production use depends on the Additional Use Grant this licensor wrote into its copy of the license, which differs from project to project. A reviewer should read that grant."
      ],
      "duties": [
        "license_notice",
        "keep_change_terms"
      ],
      "curation": "curated",
      "official_text": "https://mariadb.com/bsl11/"
    }
  ],
  "context": [
    "After the Change Date the version is available under the Change License the licensor named (often GPL-2.0-or-later or Apache-2.0).",
    "Not an open source license until the Change Date."
  ],
  "sources": [
    {
      "title": "Business Source License 1.1: official text",
      "url": "https://mariadb.com/bsl11/"
    },
    {
      "title": "BUSL-1.1 on the SPDX License List",
      "url": "https://spdx.org/licenses/BUSL-1.1.html"
    }
  ],
  "check_it_yourself": {
    "mcp": {
      "tool": "check_license",
      "arguments": {
        "license": "BUSL-1.1",
        "intended_use": {
          "commercial_use": true
        }
      }
    },
    "rest": "POST https://www.rightshold.com/v1/licenses/check"
  },
  "computed_from": "Rightshold license profiles at render time; not legal advice",
  "updated": "2026-10-19"
}