Can You Use Memes for Business? Copyright, Fair Use and Safer Options
By Tayyab, Founder · Published
Updated . Not legal advice: for a specific post, ask a lawyer where you do business.
You can use a meme format for business, but not someone else’s picture without permission. The picture inside most memes belongs to whoever made it, a business post is commercial use, and in the Success Kid case a US court found a commercial meme was not fair use. The safer routes are your own picture, a text-only format, a licensed picture or a recreation.
Who owns a meme
A meme has two parts, and the law treats them differently. The picture is a photo or drawing that someone made, and they own it. Captions on top do not change who owns it. The format is the joke shape: two panels where one option is rejected and the other preferred, a person looking away from what they have, levels of a brain. The US Copyright Office says copyright does not protect ideas, names or short phrases, and a joke shape is an idea.
So the risk sits almost entirely in the picture. That is why the safe routes below all keep the format and change the picture.
What happened when meme owners went to court
Success Kid
2020 ad, 2024 appealA congressional campaign used the photo in a fundraising ad ("FUND OUR MEMES!!!") without asking the photographer, the boy’s mother.
The jury found the ad was not fair use and awarded $750, the statutory minimum. The Eighth Circuit upheld the verdict in June 2024. The photo’s owner had licensed it to brands such as Coca-Cola and Microsoft before.
Grumpy Cat
2018A drinks company licensed the cat for one iced coffee line, then put the image on a ground coffee line and its social posts that the license did not cover.
A federal jury in California awarded $710,000: $230,000 for copyright and $480,000 for trademark.
Nyan Cat and Keyboard Cat
2013The creators of both memes sued Warner Bros. and the developer of the Scribblenauts games for putting the characters in the games and their promotion without permission.
Filed for copyright and trademark infringement. We found no public ruling, so we do not report an outcome.
Each fact above is read from the source listed at the end of this page. These are US cases; the rules elsewhere differ in detail but not in the main point, that the picture belongs to whoever made it.
Is a meme fair use?
Fair use is the US rule that allows some uses of a work without permission. The US Copyright Office lists four factors and says courts weigh them case by case, with no formula. Here is how each one tends to land for a business posting a meme.
| Factor (US Copyright Office) | For a business meme |
|---|---|
| Purpose and character of the use, including whether the use is of a commercial nature | A post that sells, promotes or raises money is commercial. In the Success Kid appeal this weighed against the user. |
| Nature of the copyrighted work | Most meme pictures are creative photos or drawings, which get more protection than facts. |
| Amount and substantiality of the portion used | A meme uses the whole picture, or its "heart": the face or the pose everyone recognises. |
| Effect of the use upon the potential market for or value of the copyrighted work | Owners of famous meme photos license them to brands, so free commercial use can stand in for a sale. |
Five safer ways for a business to post memes
- 01
Use the format with a picture you own
The two-panel choice, the expectation versus reality split, the brain levels: a layout and a joke shape are ideas, and the US Copyright Office says ideas are not protected. Put your own photo, product or team in it.
- 02
Use a text-only format
"Nobody: / Me:", POV, starter packs, tier lists and chart memes need no one else’s picture at all.
- 03
Use a picture with a clear license
Public domain art, or a stock photo whose license allows commercial use. Keep a note of where it came from.
- 04
License the original
Owners of famous meme photos do license them to brands. If one exact picture is the joke, ask.
- 05
Keep real people out of ads
A recognisable person in an ad raises a second question, their right to their own likeness, on top of copyright. Avoid celebrities and private people alike.
How Content Drifter handles it
Every picture in our meme templates library is our own recreation: the same layout, pose and joke shape, drawn with generic people, never the original photo and never a celebrity’s face. Some formats are text only. When we name a format by its nickname, such as Drake or Distracted Boyfriend, it is to help you find it, not because the picture is that person.
The free meme generator uses the same pictures, so what you download from it carries no one else’s photo. That takes the biggest risk off the table. It does not make every caption safe: a caption can still name a competitor, make a claim you cannot back or mention a real person, so read it before you post.
For more on when a meme helps a brand at all, read the meme marketing guide.
Frequently asked questions
Can you use memes for business?
You can use meme formats, but not someone else’s picture without permission. A business post is commercial use, and in the Success Kid case a court found a commercial meme was not fair use. The safer routes are a picture you own, a text-only format, a licensed picture or a recreation. This is not legal advice.
Are memes copyrighted?
The picture inside most memes is. The photo or drawing belongs to whoever made it, and adding a caption does not change that. The joke shape, such as a two-panel choice, is an idea, and the US Copyright Office says copyright does not protect ideas.
Is using a meme fair use?
Sometimes, and courts decide it case by case. The US Copyright Office lists four factors, and the first asks whether the use is commercial. A personal meme among friends is a different case from a brand’s post, and the brand’s post is the harder one to defend.
Can I get sued for posting a meme on my business page?
It has happened. The owner of the Success Kid photo won in court against a campaign that used it in a fundraising ad, and the owners of Grumpy Cat won $710,000 against a drinks company that used the image beyond its license. Far more often the first step is a takedown request or a letter asking you to stop.
Are Content Drifter’s meme templates safe to post?
We draw every meme format as our own picture with generic people, never the original photo and never a celebrity’s face, and some formats are text only. That removes the original photo from the question. It is not a legal guarantee, so keep your captions honest and leave real people out of them.
Can I use a meme in a paid ad?
Treat a paid ad as the most commercial use there is. Use a picture you own or have licensed, and check the ad platform’s own policy on intellectual property before you run it.
Where these facts come from
Every case fact and rule on this page, and where we read it. Outcomes we could not find are left out rather than guessed.
- U.S. Copyright Office Fair Use Index, U.S. Copyright Office. Read . The four fair use factors, quoted above, and that courts decide fair use case by case.
- What does copyright protect?, U.S. Copyright Office. Read . That copyright does not protect ideas, names, titles or short phrases.
- Success Kid, Copyright, Fair Use and Memes, Plagiarism Today (published ). Read . The Success Kid verdict, the $750 award and the Eighth Circuit appeal.
- Grumpy Cat Wins $710,000 Verdict for Copyright, Trademark Infringement Against Beverage Maker, IPWatchdog (published ). Read . The Grumpy Cat award and how it splits between copyright and trademark.
- Keyboard Cat, Nyan Cat creators file lawsuit over Scribblenauts cameos, Engadget (published ). Read . Who sued whom over Nyan Cat and Keyboard Cat, and on what claims.
Make memes about your business, on our own pictures
Type what the joke is about and Content Drifter writes three memes for your brand on formats we redrew ourselves. Edit a word, then post or schedule it.
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