diff --git a/Cargo.toml b/Cargo.toml
index 2dfa33a71..908c340e6 100644
--- a/Cargo.toml
+++ b/Cargo.toml
@@ -17,6 +17,7 @@ edition.workspace = true
 rust-version.workspace = true
 default-run = "fish"
 # see doc_src/license.rst for details
+# don't forget to update COPYING and debian/copyright too
 license = "GPL-2.0-only AND LGPL-2.0-or-later AND MIT AND PSF-2.0"
 repository = "https://github.com/fish-shell/fish-shell"
 homepage = "https://fishshell.com"
diff --git a/doc_src/license.rst b/doc_src/license.rst
index a25d36f05..43e2ad871 100644
--- a/doc_src/license.rst
+++ b/doc_src/license.rst
@@ -1,6 +1,8 @@
 License
 ========
 
+.. Updates to this file should also be reflected in Cargo.toml, COPYING and debian/copyright
+
 License for fish
 ----------------