ClearlyDefined

6.9easy start · #9 of 28
in Open Source License Compliance Software

Free to practise onyes
Free trialnot on record
Well documentedyes
Runs where you worknot on record

Runs on api, self-hosted, Web.

ClearlyDefined is ranked #9 of 28 in open source license compliance software on The Geeks Club. It runs on API, Self-hosted, Web. There is a free plan.

ClearlyDefined plans and pricing

All plans

ClearlyDefined Free All data is available for everyone to see and use docs.clearlydefined.io · 4 Oct 2026

Compared on open source license compliance software

Obligation tracking: No
Deployment options: both
Source scan methods: multiple

Best ClearlyDefined alternatives

See all 12

FOSSA 0 of 4 in the starter kit Lesson 17.6 FOSSology 0 of 4 in the starter kit Lesson 27.2 ScanCode Toolkit 0 of 4 in the starter kit Lesson 37.2 DejaCode 0 of 4 in the starter kit Lesson 47.1 Double Open Compliance 0 of 4 in the starter kit Lesson 57.1 REUSE Tool 0 of 4 in the starter kit Lesson 67.1

The record

Purpose: ClearlyDefined is an open source project that crowdsources the gathering, curation, and upstreaming of licensing, security, and other data about free and open source projects.
Data: The project manages harvested data, curated data, and a merge of both, relating data to source code or packages.
License information: Definitions can include declared and discovered licenses, attribution parties, file details, and source information.
Harvesting: ClearlyDefined can harvest component data using tools such as ScanCode and FOSSology.
Curation: Contributors can submit curation changes through the API, where they ultimately surface as pull requests in the configured curation repository.
Access: Users can browse the data in a web UI or connect their systems through the REST API.
Integrations: The documented provider list includes GitHub, Maven Central, NpmJS, NuGet, GitLab, crates.io, and other package providers.
API limits: On the production API, POST requests to definitions, curations, and notices are limited to 250 per minute, while other endpoints allow up to 2,000 requests per minute.
Open source terms: The source code is licensed under MIT and the data is distributed under CC0.
Governance: The FAQ says ClearlyDefined is managed by the Open Source Initiative.
Scope limit: ClearlyDefined assigns unique coordinates to components and allows links between them, but says it is not attempting to solve the identity problem.
Community support: The project invites participation through its GitHub community and Discord forum.
Price from: Free

Where it ranks on The Geeks Club

Best Open Source License Compliance Software in 2026#9 of 28

Is ClearlyDefined yours?

Claim it for free: prove the domain, then correct facts, plans and screenshots. An editor reviews every change.

Claim it free Promote ClearlyDefined

Sources

docs.clearlydefined.io/docs/resources/faq· checked 4 Oct 2026
docs.clearlydefined.io/docs/get-involved/using-data· checked 4 Oct 2026
docs.clearlydefined.io/docs/get-involved/intro· checked 4 Oct 2026
docs.clearlydefined.io/docs/resources/providers· checked 4 Oct 2026