Human-made labels compared

Several labels now tell audiences that a work was made by a person. They answer different needs and check different things. Here is how they compare, based on what each one publishes.

Before you read: this page is published by Verumano, one of the labels compared. Every statement about another label links to that label’s own website or to press coverage. Information checked on 3 October 2026. Where a source doesn’t say something, we write “not described” rather than guess. Spotted an error? Tell us and we’ll correct it.

Criteria	Not By AI	Authors Guild Human Authored	Officially Human Art	Humanmade	HUMA Certificate	Verumano
For	All content formats (websites, art, film, writing, music, podcasts…)¹	Books; US-published titles (UK titles through the Society of Authors)^4,8	Artists, writers and musicians⁹	Images, video, stories and essays¹²	Art, media and software¹⁵	Writing, illustration, photography, music and video
AI rule	At least 90% human-created, estimated by the creator; AI allowed for inspiration, typos, non-user-facing content²	Text written by humans, except a de minimis amount such as spell and grammar checks⁶	Made without generative AI¹¹	Pledge not to use generative AI¹²	Four categories, from “no AI used” to “AI origin, human curated”¹⁵	Creator Charter per discipline: correction tools allowed, generated content not
Who checks	Badges for personal use can be downloaded without a Project Page. For members, Not By AI reviews content and project details, while stating there is no bulletproof detection and that creators remain responsible^1,3	Identity verification for non-members and a signed license; manuscripts are not vetted for AI content^4,7	The creator submits evidence (photos, sketches, drafts, notes, video) with a signed declaration; the certification tier depends on how much evidence is provided¹⁰	Humanmade reviews works in progress, previous work (including art posted before 2022) and other details^12,14	Experts and automated forensic tools analyse the submission¹⁵	A reviewer examines the creative process, live on video or through a screen recording containing a one-time code
Creators’ files	Supporting assets can be uploaded to a public Project Page³	Book details are submitted, not the manuscript⁶	Evidence is uploaded to the platform¹⁰	Not described in the sources consulted	Not described in the sources consulted	Source files are never collected; screen recordings are deleted within 7 days of the decision
Public verification	Project Page for members³	Public database searchable by title, author or registration number⁴	Verification page and QR code per certificate^9,11	Public gallery or profile page¹³	Permanent verification link and QR code¹⁵	Numbered verification page per creator, listing certified works
Certifies an individual work	Per Project Page (3 submissions per month on paid plans)³	Per title, with a registration number^4,5	Per work, with a certificate ID^9,11	Per image, or as an artist¹³	Per certificate (artist, work or product)¹⁵	Per creator, and per work by the SHA-256 fingerprint of its original file
Checks that a given file is the certified work	Not described in the sources consulted	Not described in the sources consulted	Not described in the sources consulted	Not described in the sources consulted	Not described in the sources consulted	Yes: anyone can drop a file and compare its fingerprint, computed in the browser
Badge if certification is withdrawn	Badges are downloaded as PNG, SVG and EPS files³; withdrawal not described	Not described in the sources consulted	Verification page shows a status and certificate history¹¹; effect on badges not described	Not described in the sources consulted	Advertises a “dynamic” seal¹⁵; behaviour on withdrawal not described	Badges served by Verumano turn red wherever they are displayed; the verification page stays public as revoked
Validity	Not described in the sources consulted	Not described in the sources consulted	Certificates stay active if a subscription is cancelled⁹	Not described in the sources consulted	Validation period shown on certificates (one year in the example)¹⁵	No fixed period yet; periodic re-review is planned
Price	Personal use: pay what you wish. Commercial: $5 to $12 per month depending on revenue, or $99 one-time for badges only³	Free for Authors Guild members; $10 per title otherwise⁴	Free for 3 works, then £2 per certificate or £5 per month⁹	Free profile and pledge; $1 per image; $3.99 per month to certify as an artist^13,14	On request, by email¹⁵	Free during the pilot
Open specification and API	Not described in the sources consulted	Public search database⁴	Not described in the sources consulted	Not described in the sources consulted	Not described in the sources consulted	Public specification (CC BY 4.0) and free read-only API

What each label does best

Not By AI

The easiest to adopt, with badges in more than 40 languages and a simple, published 90% rule.^2,3

Authors Guild Human Authored

The reference for books, backed by major authors’ organisations in the US and the UK, with a public database of certified titles.^4,8

Officially Human Art

Certificates for individual works with QR codes, a free start and low prices, and tiers that reward more evidence.^9,10

Humanmade

A review of an artist’s portfolio and earlier work, plus a free pledge for those who only want to state their commitment.^12,14

HUMA Certificate

Categories that describe AI involvement honestly, including AI-assisted and collaborative work, and certification for software too.¹⁵

Verumano

A review of the creative process without collecting files, certification of each work by its file fingerprint, badges that turn red if withdrawn, and an open specification and API. It is new: a pilot with one reviewer and a small registry.

Which one fits you?

You publish books in the US: Human Authored is the mark readers and booksellers are most likely to recognise.
You want a quick public statement: a declarative badge such as Not By AI’s does the job, as long as it isn’t presented as a check.
You need to prove that a specific file is your work, for a competition, a client or a sale: look for certification tied to the exact file and a public, current status.
Your work involves some AI and you want to say so honestly: a label with graded categories, such as HUMA’s, describes that better than a yes or no.

These labels aren’t exclusive: a self-declared statement and a reviewed certification answer different questions.

Other initiatives

The field is growing fast. Other projects include specialised registries for music and audio, peer-reviewed registries for writing, and graded human-AI standards. This comparison covers the labels most often cited for creative work in general; it doesn’t claim to be exhaustive.

Sources

Verumano information reflects the live service and its specification. Next scheduled review of this page: April 2027.