Can You Legally Use That Song, Font, or Image on Your Product?

You found the perfect song for your product video, a beautiful photo for your packaging, or a striking font for your logo. Before any of it goes on something you sell, there is one question that matters: are you allowed to use it? The honest answer for most creators and small businesses is that you need permission far more often than you think. Below is how the rules actually work — and where the popular myths get people sued.

The default rule: assume it’s protected

Start from this baseline: if a person created it, assume it is protected. Under US law, copyright attaches automatically the moment an original work is “fixed” in a tangible form — a song recorded, a photo taken, an illustration drawn. No copyright notice, no registration, and no © symbol is required for the work to be protected. The absence of a notice does not mean the work is free to use.

That means a song on the radio, a photo you found on Google Images, a meme template, and a clip from a TV show are all presumptively owned by someone. Using something commercially — on a product, in packaging, in an ad, on merchandise — is exactly the kind of use the owner controls. So the safe default is: you need permission, usually in the form of a license, unless you can affirmatively show the work is free to use (it is in the public domain, or a license clearly covers your use).

For a refresher on how copyright fits alongside trademarks and patents, see trademark vs. copyright vs. patent.

Music: remember there are two copyrights

Music trips people up because a single song almost always involves two separate copyrights, and you may need to clear both.

• The musical work (composition): the underlying song — the melody, chords, and lyrics. This is typically owned by the songwriter(s) and their publisher.
• The sound recording (master): the specific recorded performance you actually hear — the “master.” This is typically owned by the performer and/or the record label.

These are owned and licensed separately, often by different people. Licensing a cover band’s recording does not give you rights to the famous original recording, and getting the songwriter’s blessing does not clear the label’s master.

Because of this split, music licenses have specific names:

• A synchronization (“sync”) license covers using the composition in time with visuals — video, a product demo, a commercial, a social post, a game.
• A master use license covers using a specific sound recording in that same audiovisual project. To use a particular recording in a video, you generally need both a sync license (composition) and a master license (recording).
• A mechanical license covers reproducing and distributing a composition — for example, pressing it onto physical copies or distributing it digitally.

The practical takeaway: a hit song on your product video is one of the most expensive and complicated things to clear, because two owners can each say no. Many businesses sidestep this entirely by buying production music (“stock” or “library” music) licensed specifically for commercial use — but even then, read the license for what it actually allows.

Images and stock: “royalty-free” is not “free”

The same default applies to photos and illustrations: assume they are owned. Pulling an image off a search engine, a competitor’s site, or social media is not a license.

Stock libraries exist to solve this — but their terms matter, and the language confuses people:

• “Royalty-free” does not mean free of charge or free of rules. It means that after you pay (or accept the terms) for the license, you typically do not owe ongoing per-use royalties. You still have to obtain the license, and that license has limits.
• License scope varies. A standard license may cover a website or social post but exclude merchandise, products for resale, or print runs above a certain number. Putting a stock image on a T-shirt or product you sell often requires an extended or enhanced license. Always read what your specific license permits.
• Editorial-only images cannot be used commercially. Many photos of people, brands, events, or recognizable products are licensed “editorial use only” — fine for news or commentary, not for selling a product.
• Releases matter. Even a properly licensed photo can raise separate issues if it shows an identifiable person, private property, or another company’s trademark or artwork. Licensing the photo is not the same as clearing those rights of publicity or third-party IP.

A quick word on AI-generated images. The US Copyright Office has taken the position that material produced entirely by AI, without meaningful human authorship, is not eligible for copyright protection — which means you may not be able to stop others from copying an AI image you “made.” Separately, your use is governed by the AI tool’s own terms of service, and there is ongoing legal uncertainty about images that resemble copyrighted or trademarked material. “I made it with AI” is not a guarantee that it is safe to put on a product.

Fonts: the typeface vs. the font file

Fonts are the genuine special case, and the rule surprises almost everyone.

In the United States, the visual design of a typeface — the actual shapes of the letters — generally cannot be protected by copyright. (This has been the rule for decades under Copyright Office regulations; some designs may instead qualify for a design patent, which is different and uncommon.)

But the font file is a different thing. The digital font you download is software — code that tells your computer how to draw those letters — and that software is generally protectable by copyright. More importantly, you almost always receive it under an End-User License Agreement (EULA), and that contract — not copyright theory — controls what you are allowed to do.

This is why “the shape isn’t copyrighted” does not get you off the hook:

• A font’s EULA may permit personal use but prohibit using it on products for sale, in a logo you commercialize, or embedded in software or an app.
• “Free for personal use” fonts are common — and personal use excludes selling products. Commercial use of those fonts usually requires buying a separate commercial license.
• Some EULAs restrict the number of users, devices, page views, or whether the font can be embedded in a digital product.

So before a font goes on merchandise, packaging, or a logo you will use commercially, read its license. The fact that you can technically download or copy the file says nothing about whether your intended use is allowed. (If a designer made the logo for you, also confirm who cleared the font and who owns the final artwork — see who owns a logo a freelancer made.)

Creative Commons and public domain: the real “free” lanes

There genuinely are works you can use, but the rules still bind you.

Public domain works are not protected by copyright at all — anyone can use them for any purpose, including commercial. Works enter the public domain when their copyright term expires or when the owner dedicates them there (for example, a CC0 dedication). The catch: age alone is not proof. A song written in 1900 may be public domain as a composition, but a 2015 recording of it is its own protected work. Verify the status of the exact version you want.

Creative Commons (CC) licenses let owners keep their copyright while granting free use under stated conditions. There are several flavors, and the conditions are not optional:

• BY requires attribution — you must credit the creator as specified.
• NC means non-commercial only — you cannot use it on a product you sell. This alone disqualifies most CC images and tracks for commercial products.
• ND means no derivatives — you cannot adapt, crop, remix, or build on it.
• SA (“share-alike”) requires you to release your adaptation under the same license — a serious problem if you are trying to own and sell the result.

So “it’s Creative Commons” does not mean “I can sell it.” Read the specific license, confirm it allows commercial use, and follow the attribution and derivative rules exactly.

The fair-use myth: there is no magic number of seconds

The single most dangerous belief out there: “I only used a few seconds, so it’s fair use.” There is no 30-second rule. No 15-second rule. No 6-second rule. None of them exist in the law.

Fair use is not a fixed quota. It is a case-by-case legal defense judged on four factors: (1) the purpose and character of the use (including whether it is commercial), (2) the nature of the work, (3) the amount and substantiality of what you used, and (4) the effect on the market for the original. The amount used is only one factor — and a small clip can still infringe if it takes the recognizable “heart” of the work, like a song’s hook or chorus.

Two more reality checks: commercial uses (selling a product) weigh against fair use under the first factor, and fair use is something you typically have to argue after you are sued — it is a defense, not a permission slip you can rely on in advance. For commercial products, fair use is rarely a safe bet. When the use matters, license it or get tailored advice.

The bottom line

For songs, images, and fonts going on something you sell, the realistic default is: someone owns it, and you need a license. Music usually means clearing two copyrights; stock images mean reading whether your license covers products and whether the image is editorial-only; fonts mean obeying the EULA even though the letter shapes are not copyrighted; and “royalty-free,” “free download,” “Creative Commons,” and “just a few seconds” are not the green lights people assume. The cheapest insurance is simple: get written permission for the exact use you have in mind, keep the license on file, and when real money or risk is involved, confirm the details with an attorney licensed in your jurisdiction.

For the bigger picture on which protections apply to your own work, start with our pillar guide on which IP protection you need, and browse more copyright topics.

This guide is general educational information about US copyright and licensing concepts, not legal advice, and it does not create an attorney-client relationship. Laws and license terms vary and change. For guidance on your specific situation, consult an attorney licensed in your jurisdiction.