Midjourney Terms of Service Commercial Use 2026: Full Rights Guide

I've been creating product mockups and marketing materials using Midjourney. A client wants to buy some of these designs for their actual product packaging.

Do I actually own the copyright to images I generate in Midjourney? Can I sell them commercially? What if someone else used the same prompt and got a similar image?

The TOS is confusing and I don't want to get sued or have my client get sued later.

Quick question - does this apply if I'm using Midjourney images for my YouTube thumbnails? I'm a gaming channel with about 50k subs and starting to get some sponsorship offers. Do I need the corporate plan?

My annual revenue is nowhere near $1M but the sponsorships are technically commercial use right?

@Chris_D_2 raises a fair point. Let me clarify the legal standard here:

Under 17 U.S.C. Section 103, a derivative work only gets copyright protection for the "material contributed by the author" - meaning only your original additions are protected, not the underlying AI-generated material.

The bar for "sufficient human authorship" hasn't been clearly defined by courts yet for AI-assisted works. The Copyright Office has indicated that:

• Selection and arrangement CAN be copyrightable (choosing which outputs to use, how to combine them)
• Mechanical changes (filters, basic color adjustment) likely aren't enough
• Creative modifications (painting over portions, adding original elements, significant compositing) have a stronger claim

The honest answer is: we won't know exactly where the line is until we get more court decisions. Being conservative is wise.

UPDATE: 6 weeks later and I wanted to share how it went!

Client loved the final designs. We used 5 Midjourney-generated base images, all heavily modified in Photoshop (compositing, custom color grading, added original illustrations on top). Product launched last week.

Things I learned from this project:

• Disclosed AI use upfront in the contract - client was fine with it
• Saved all prompts and generation history in a project folder
• The heavy modifications actually improved the designs anyway - raw MJ outputs rarely work as-is for professional packaging

Revenue from this project: $3,800. No legal issues. Client already asking about phase 2. Thanks again to everyone in this thread!

Been lurking this thread for months. finally have somethign to contribute

I do book cover design. Started incorporating MJ into my workflow about 8 months ago. Heres how it works for publishing specifically:

Self-published authors (Amazon KDP etc): They usually don't care if you use AI. Budget conscious, just want something that looks good. I disclose it if that makes sense, they're fine with it. 90% of my business.

Small/indie publishers: Mixed bag. Some are cool with it, some have policies against AI art. Always ask first. Lost one client who found out I'd used MJ and hadn't disclosed - my fault for not being upfront just saying.

Traditional "Big 5" publishers: Hard no. They have strict contracts requiring original artwork and are terrified of copyright issues. Don't even try.

My process: MJ for initial concepts and background elements, then I paint over the main figures/characters traditionally in Procreate. Publishers are happy because the final work has significant hand-painted elements.

Avg book cover price: $400-800 for indie authors. Do about 6-8 per month. Good side income!

Wanted to share some resources/tools I've found helpful for anyone doing this commercially:

For upscaling (essential for print):

• Topaz Gigapixel AI - best quality, $99 one-time
• Magnific.ai - amazing for adding detail, subscription based
• MJ's built-in upscaler has improved a lot in v6 but still not print-ready for large formats

For record keeping:

• Notion template for tracking prompts/generations
• Google Drive with dated folders (free and automatic timestamps)
• Screenshot your MJ generations in Discord - includes timestamps

For contracts:

• Hello Bonsai has good freelance contract templates
• Docracy has free creative services agreements
• The AIGA design contract is solid but needs AI clauses added

For insurance:

• Hiscox - popular for creatives
• Next Insurance - good for small business
• Make sure policy doesn't exclude "AI-generated content" - some do now

@your_honor_please_9 - Fair question. The honest answer is that there's no bright line yet. But here's my framework based on Copyright Office guidance and general copyright principles:

Probably NOT substantial:

• Color adjustment/filters (mechanical, no creativity)
• Cropping/resizing (no new creative elements)
• Simple text overlays (minimal creativity)

Getting warmer:

• Combining multiple AI images thoughtfully (selection/arrangement)
• Adding original graphic elements you created
• Significant compositing with stock/original photos

Likely substantial:

• Painting over significant portions (adding human artistic expression)
• Using AI as rough base, then essentially re-creating in your style
• Complex compositions where AI is one element among many original elements

The question to ask yourself: "Could a reasonable person look at this and recognize significant human creative expression beyond what the AI produced?" If yes, you're probably fine. If it's basically the AI image with minor tweaks, you're in the gray zone.

@jurys_out_15 - This is exactly what we do at my agency. It's probably the lowest-risk commercial use case actually.

Why it's relatively safe:

• Marketing materials aren't being "sold" - they're part of a service
• Images are typically used in context (with text, branding, other elements)
• Low incentive for anyone to copy website hero images
• Easy to replace later if needed

What I recommend:

• Disclose to clients that you use AI in your workflow
• Modify images - at minimum composite with their branding elements
• Include clause in your contract about AI-assisted design
• Keep records in case questions come up later

Been doing this for 2 years, dozens of clients, zero issues. It's honestly transformed my business - I can offer custom imagery at a fraction of what photoshoots or stock licenses would cost.

UPDATE from the original poster (new account because I forgot my password lol)

It's been 6+ months since I started this thread and wanted to give a final update:

Total revenue from AI-assisted design work since June 2024: $47,000

Breakdown:

• Original client project (packaging): $3,800
• Follow-up projects from same client: $12,000
• New clients from referrals: $18,200
• POD sales (started in Sept): $8,500
• Custom commissions: $4,500

Zero legal issues. Zero client complaints about AI use. One awkward conversation when a client's legal team asked questions, but @officelife's advice about contracts and disclosure saved me.

This thread literally changed my career trajectory. I went from worrying about getting sued to building a legitimate business. Thank you to everyone who contributed.

For anyone lurking and scared to start - just do it. Follow the advice here (paid plan, modifications, disclosure, documentation) and you'll be fine.

Great to see this thread still helping people! Since we're in 2024 now, here's my legal update:

What's settled:

• Pure AI output = no copyright (Thaler still controlling)
• Human modifications can enable partial copyright
• Disclosure requirements are expanding globally
• Midjourney TOS commercial rights still valid for paid users under $1M

What's still pending:

• Getty v. Stability AI - could reshape training data liability
• Several Congressional bills on AI copyright
• State-level regulations continuing to develop

Best practices remain unchanged:

1. Use paid plans for commercial work
2. Add substantial human creativity
3. Document your process
4. Disclose AI use to clients and in ToS
5. Avoid prompts referencing protected IP

The sky hasn't fallen. Responsible AI art commerce is viable and growing. Keep following best practices and you'll be positioned well regardless of how the law evolves.

For comprehensive guidance, our AI Commercial Use FAQ is kept updated with the latest developments.