License
Kelp is licensed under a fair-code license. You can…
- View and modify the source code.
- Use it for free for non-commercial purposes under the Kelp Commons license (including making changes and redistributing them).
- Use it for commercial purposes with a Pro or Enterprise license.
Free for personal use. Fairly priced for commercial use. No subscriptions. Everything included (no “premium only” features). Learn more about why Kelp uses this model.
Personal, internal, and non-commercial use.
Commercial use for people and companies with annual revenue or funding of less than $1 million USD.
Commercial use with no revenue limit.
Need multiple licenses? I offer discounts on bulk licenses: 5% off 5+, 10% off 10+, and 15% off 15 or more. Email me at chris@gomakethings.com for next steps.
Frequently Asked Questions
Which license do I need?
For personal projects and websites that are only accessible internally by employees or contractors of your company, you can use the Kelp Commons license for free.
If you’re building a site that is designed to make money and is accessible by people who are not employees or contractors of your company (or your client’s company), you need to purchase a Pro or Enterprise license.
What do I get with a Pro or Enterprise license?
A Pro or Enterprise license allows you to use or modify the software for commercial purposes on a single project.
This is a one-time payment per project.
You can host Kelp yourself or use the Kelp CDN, and can use use all future releases of Kelp under the terms of the license: Pro Terms · Enterprise Terms.
Can I try Kelp first?
You can test Kelp in a production environment under the Kelp Commons License, so long as the project is not accessible by people who are not employees or contractors of your company (or your client’s company) or not used for commercial purposes.
When you’re ready to go live with the project, you must purchase a Pro or Enterprise license if its used for commercial purposes.
Why don’t you just use {open source license}?
Traditional open source licenses are very pro-capitalist. Under the Open Source Definition, open source software licenses cannot restrict use for commercial or unethical purposes.
Kelp uses a fair-code license model. This allows me to…
- Release the project for free to personal and non-commercial use.
- Restrict people from using it for unethical things.
- Profit from my labor when other people use my work to make money, without having to do things like release “pro-only features” or paid support.
You get access to the full set of features no matter what, and I’m fairly compensated for my work.
What does the revenue limit on Kelp Pro mean?
I want to make sure that small freelancers, nonprofits, and indie businesses can use Kelp at a reasonable price.
The Pro license is a discounted commercial license only available for projects of individuals, companies and organizations whose total yearly revenue or funding is below $1 million USD.
If your revenue or funding is above the limit, you need to purchase an Enterprise license at regular price. The Enterprise license does not have a revenue limit.
Revenue means all net sales or net turnover (not profit) you made through any means and not just limited to the website itself. Should you not have any sales (eg. as a foundation, association, or public authority), your ongoing funding/yearly budget is considered instead.
If you are building a website for a client (as a freelancer or agency), the revenue limit applies to your client as the end-customer, not you.
I only care about the revenue at the time of purchase. If your company becomes more successful within the next 3 years and crosses the limit, awesome! You don’t need to get a different license. If you purchase another license for another project a later time, account for your (or your client’s) current revenue when purchasing the new license.