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freesound.md

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id freesound
name Freesound
url https://freesound.org
category audio
subcategories
sfx
field-recordings
license varies
commercial varies
attribution_required unknown
formats
WAV
FLAC
OGG
tags
community
filter-required
cc0-filter
added 2026-07-19
verified 2026-10-04
status needs-review

Freesound

Huge community audio library. Per-sound licenses are CC0, CC BY, or CC BY-NC (plus legacy Sampling+). Filter to CC0 (or BY with credit) for commercial shipping — NC / Sampling+ uploads are not commercial-safe.

Notes

  • Content ID reaches sound effects, through third parties. Freesound's own FAQ (read 2026-09-23) explains it: musicians put "raw" Freesound sounds into songs and register those songs with YouTube Content ID, so any other video containing the same unedited sound gets matched. It adds that a sound "modified with plugins, stretched or slowed" is less likely to match, and that a claim can be disputed by showing the Freesound upload predates the song. For a game, process sounds before you ship them, which also protects your players' videos

  • commercial: varies (set 2026-09-26): the FAQ names three per-sound licences, and one of them (BY-NC) forbids commercial use, so this is the per-file case the catalog marks varies. Still open: credit is also per sound (CC0 none, BY required), and the schema has no per-file value for attribution_required, so the entry stays needs-review

  • Re-checked 2026-10-04: FAQ and website ToS unchanged. Still open: credit is per sound (CC0 none, BY required), which attribution_required cannot express

  • Search filters are not a legal guarantee — open each sound’s license page before packaging

  • Attribution list tool: freesound.org/home/attribution/

  • Site ToS restricts commercial use of the website portal; sound reuse still follows the per-file Creative Commons choice

  • Prefer kenney-rpg-audio / bigsoundbank when you want site-wide commercial clarity

Evidence

  • Live FAQ — Licenses (2026-07-19): uploaders choose CC0 / BY / BY-NC; FAQ summary: NC means “you can't earn any money with the piece of work you create!”
  • Live website ToS (2026-07-19): sounds/metadata licensed under the CC license the uploader selects — not a site-wide commercial grant → keep needs-review / commercial: unknown
  • Live FAQ — Licenses (2026-09-26): "freesound lets the user select one of three licenses for their sounds. And, we used to have a 4th license"; zero: "you can do pretty much what you want with the sound"; attribution: "you should always mention the original creators"; noncommercial: "you can't earn any money with the piece of work you create!"
  • Live FAQ (2026-10-04): unchanged: "freesound lets the user select one of three licenses for their sounds"; "For "attribution" you should always mention the original creators of the sounds when you use them."
  • Live website ToS (2026-10-04): "Unless otherwise agreed in writing with us, you may not use the Freesound website portal for commercial purposes."

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