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Overview

Cap uses a dual licensing model to balance open source principles with the needs of different components:

AGPLv3

Most of Cap is licensed under AGPLv3

MIT

Camera and screen capture crates use MIT license

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License Structure

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AGPLv3 (Most of Cap)

The majority of Cap’s codebase is licensed under the GNU Affero General Public License v3.0 (AGPLv3). This includes:
  • Desktop app (apps/desktop)
  • Web app (apps/web)
  • Most Rust crates
  • Shared packages (ui, database, utils, etc.)
  • Documentation
  • Scripts and tooling
AGPLv3 is a strong copyleft license that:Allows you to:
  • Use Cap for any purpose
  • Study and modify the source code
  • Distribute copies of Cap
  • Distribute modified versions
Requires you to:
  • Provide source code when you distribute Cap
  • License your modifications under AGPLv3
  • Provide source code when running Cap as a network service (this is the key difference from GPL)
  • Include the license and copyright notices
The AGPL “network” clause means if you run a modified version of Cap as a web service, you must make your source code available to users of that service.

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MIT (Camera & Screen Capture Crates)

Specific low-level components are licensed under the MIT License for maximum compatibility: MIT Licensed Components:
  • All cap-camera* family of crates
  • All scap-* family of crates
MIT is a permissive license that:Allows you to:
  • Use the code for any purpose (commercial or non-commercial)
  • Modify the code
  • Distribute original or modified copies
  • Sublicense (use in projects with different licenses)
  • Use in proprietary software
Requires you to:
  • Include the MIT license and copyright notice
That’s it! MIT is very permissive and allows these camera/screen capture components to be used in other projects regardless of their license.

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Third-Party Components

Cap includes third-party libraries and components that are licensed under their original licenses:
  • Check individual package package.json files for dependencies
  • Rust crate dependencies in Cargo.toml files
  • All third-party licenses are preserved and respected

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Full License Text

AGPLv3 License

Read the full AGPLv3 license text

MIT License

Read the full MIT license text

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Use Cases

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Using Cap

Yes! Cap is free and open source. You can:
  • Download and use the desktop app
  • Use the hosted service at cap.so (free tier available)
  • Self-host Cap on your own infrastructure
Yes! You can use Cap for commercial purposes:
  • Record videos for your business
  • Self-host for your company
  • Use in commercial workflows
The AGPLv3 license allows commercial use.
If you’re just using Cap (desktop app or self-hosted), you don’t need to share anything.You only need to share source code if you:
  • Modify Cap’s code AND
  • Distribute the modified version OR
  • Run it as a network service for others

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Modifying Cap

Yes! You can modify Cap for internal company use. As long as you’re only using it internally (not as a service for external users), you don’t need to share your modifications.However, if you run modified Cap as a web service that external users access, you must provide the source code.
You can sell modified versions of Cap, but:
  • You must license it under AGPLv3
  • You must provide source code to your customers
  • Your customers have the same rights (can redistribute, modify, etc.)
This makes selling modified AGPLv3 software challenging but not impossible.
Yes, but the AGPL network clause applies:
  • You can run Cap as a service
  • If you modify the code, you must make your modifications available to users
  • Include a link to download the source code in your service
This ensures users can run their own instance with your improvements.

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Using Cap Components

Yes! The cap-camera* and scap-* crates are MIT licensed, so you can:
  • Use them in any project (even proprietary)
  • Modify them as needed
  • Not required to share your modifications
  • Just include the MIT license text
The UI components are part of Cap’s AGPLv3 licensed code. If you use them:
  • Your project must also be licensed under AGPLv3 (or compatible)
  • You must share your source code if you distribute or run as a service
For permissive licensing, use only the MIT licensed camera/screen capture crates.

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Why These Licenses?

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AGPLv3 for Core App

The AGPLv3 ensures:
  • Open Source Forever: Modifications stay open source
  • Network Clause: Even hosted services must share code
  • Community Benefits: Improvements benefit everyone
  • Prevents Lock-in: No one can create a proprietary fork

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MIT for Media Crates

The camera and screen capture crates use MIT because:
  • Maximum Compatibility: Can be used in any project
  • Adoption: Encourages use of Cap’s capture technology
  • Ecosystem: Benefits the broader developer community
  • Technical Foundation: Low-level primitives should be accessible

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Compliance

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For Users

If you’re just using Cap, you’re automatically in compliance. No action needed!

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For Self-Hosters

1

Using Unmodified Cap

No additional obligations. You’re in compliance!
2

Making Modifications

If you modify Cap and run it as a service:
  1. Keep the source code available
  2. Link to your source code from the web interface
  3. Include the AGPLv3 license
  4. Document your changes

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For Developers

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Questions?

For commercial licensing inquiries or if AGPLv3 doesn’t work for your use case, reach out to the Cap team on Discord or GitHub.
When in doubt:
  1. Ask on Discord
  2. Consult with a lawyer familiar with open source licensing
  3. Consider just sharing your modifications - that’s the spirit of open source!
Contributions to Cap must be licensed under:
  • AGPLv3 for core components
  • MIT for camera/screen capture crates
By contributing, you agree to license your code under the same license as the component you’re modifying.
Copyright (c) 2023-present Cap Software, Inc.
Contributions are copyright their respective authors but licensed to the project.

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Additional Resources

AGPL FAQ

Official AGPL FAQ from GNU

Choose a License

AGPL explained simply

MIT License

MIT license explained

GitHub License

View license in repository
This page provides a general overview and should not be considered legal advice. For specific legal questions, consult with a qualified attorney.

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