Redis Announces Shift to Source‑Available Licenses for Future Versions

Redis officially announced a change to its open‑source licensing model: future releases will no longer be distributed under the BSD 3‑Clause license.

From Redis 7.4 onward, the project will use a dual‑license approach, offering the Server Side Public License (SSPL) and the Redis Source Available License (RSAL) for the same code base.

The source code will continue to be provided for free through the Redis Community Edition, available to developers, customers, and partners.

SSPL: Server Side Public License RSAL: Redis Source Available License

The new licensing terms mean that cloud service providers hosting Redis will no longer be allowed to use the source code without a commercial agreement; they must negotiate licensing terms with Redis to deliver version 7.4 to their users.

In practice, the Redis developer community will remain unchanged, retaining a permissive dual‑license arrangement, and all Redis client libraries will continue to be released under open‑source licenses. Redis will keep supporting its extensive partner ecosystem, including hosted service providers and system integrators, with exclusive access to future versions, updates, and features via its partner program. Existing Redis Enterprise customers experience no changes.

Overall, end‑users of the open‑source Redis version or the new dual‑licensed releases see no impact for internal or personal use, and integration partners building client libraries or other integrations are likewise unaffected.

Redis acknowledges that it will no longer be classified as an OSI‑approved “open source” project, but reaffirms its commitment to open‑source principles and continued maintenance of the project.