Upscale an Image by 2x or 4x with AI
What AI upscaling does to a small image
Increase the pixel dimensions of a photo, product image, graphic or illustration by 2x or 4x. For example, a 1200x800px source becomes 2400x1600px at 2x or 4800x3200px at 4x. Choose a general, sharp, balanced, denoise or anime-oriented model and check the projected size before processing. Exports are limited to 16384px per side and 120 megapixels. AI can create a cleaner enlarged result, but it estimates detail rather than recovering information that was never present in the source.
Cost: Free options are available. Pro options or use beyond the free allowance may require credits; see the guide below.
How to upscale an image
Add one image
Click Upload, drop a file onto the preview, or open Files to reuse an image you uploaded or created with another tool. JPG, PNG, WebP, BMP, TIFF, AVIF, HEIC and HEIF files up to 200 MB are accepted. One image is upscaled per job.
Choose 2x or 4x
Pick the factor in the AI Upscale panel. Projected output shows the source and result size, for example
1280x720px → 5120x2880pxat 4x. If the note turns red, the result would exceed the size limit and Upscale Image stays disabled.Pick a model
Standard 4x is preselected and is a safe first try. The model overview below shows when another model fits better.
Choose the file format
Under Output, keep PNG or switch to WebP. Both are saved without loss and keep transparent areas. JPG is lossy and has no transparency.
Upscale, compare, download
Click Upscale Image. If other upscales are running, the progress label shows your place in the queue. Drag the slider across the preview to compare Original with the result, then click Download. The result also appears under Files, so you can open it in another image tool.
Which model to choose
All models enlarge by 4x and run in the open-source Upscayl engine. The notes below come from our own test images, so treat them as tendencies. Ultrasharp 4x, RealESRGAN General, RealESRGAN Denoise and Anime / Illustration are credit models: each day includes a few free runs per account or browser session. After that, every run needs an account and costs 1 credit, which is only deducted when the job succeeds. The other four models never use credits.
Standard 4x (default)
Smooths noise and compression artifacts and gives a clean, even look. A good first try for photos, screenshots and product images.
Ultrasharp 4x
Stresses edges and fine texture. Works best on clean sources; on grainy or heavily compressed images it sharpens the noise as well.
Balanced 4x
Kept about as much texture as Ultrasharp 4x in our tests, without using credits. Try it when Standard 4x looks too smooth.
Remacri 4x
Keeps the most grain and texture of all models, which suits detailed photos of skin, fabric or foliage. On noisy or blocky sources it makes the defects stronger.
Lite 4x and RealESRGAN General
Fast models with strong noise removal. Good for quick results and noisy sources, but fine texture can turn flat.
RealESRGAN Denoise
Keeps clearly more of the original grain and texture than RealESRGAN General, which smooths noise away. Use it when the general model makes surfaces look waxy.
Anime / Illustration
Made for anime and cartoon art. Keeps outlines crisp and flat colour areas clean, which also helps logos, icons and simple graphics. Photos can look painted.
Settings explained
- 2x / 4x
- Multiplies width and height, so the pixel count grows 4 times at 2x and 16 times at 4x. 2x is selected by default. Choose 2x when you only need the smaller size or when 4x would exceed the limit.
- Tile size
- The engine processes the image in square tiles of this size. The slider runs from 0 to 512 px in 64 px steps and starts at 256 px;
0pxlets the engine choose the tile size itself. Smaller tiles need less memory, larger ones need fewer passes. In our tests the setting made no visible difference to the image, so you can leave it at 256 px. - Output
- PNG (default) and WebP are both saved losslessly here and keep transparent areas. Their file sizes depend on the image, so compare the actual PNG and WebP files. JPG uses lossy compression and cannot store transparency, so transparent areas turn black.
- Quality
- Sets the JPG quality from 1 to 100 %, default 90 %. Higher values keep more detail, lower values give smaller files. PNG and WebP are always saved losslessly, so the slider applies to JPG exports.
How large can the result be?
The upscaled image may be at most 16384 px on each side and 120 megapixels in total. Projected output checks this as soon as you pick a scale, and the server checks it again. Your upload is never shrunk automatically: if the result would be too large, the job is refused.
In practice, the source can be up to 4096 px per side and 7.5 megapixels for 4x, or up to 8192 px per side and 30 megapixels for 2x. A 1920x1080 px frame becomes 7680x4320 px, about 33 megapixels, at 4x. A 12-megapixel phone photo of 4000x3000 px works at 2x (8000x6000 px), but 4x would give 16000x12000 px, or 192 megapixels, so only 2x is possible.
If you need 4x from a large photo, shrink it first with Resize Image. At 3000x2250 px the same photo upscales to 12000x9000 px, which is 108 megapixels and within the limit. For a 4K UHD result of 3840x2160 px, start from 960x540 px at 4x or 1920x1080 px at 2x.
Formats and limits
- Input formats
- JPG, PNG, WebP, BMP, TIFF, AVIF, HEIC, HEIF. GIF is not accepted.
- Animated images
- Only the first frame of an animated WebP or AVIF is upscaled; the result is a still image.
- Output formats
- PNG or WebP (both lossless), or JPG
- Scale
- 2x or 4x
- Maximum result size
- 16384 px per side and 120 megapixels
- Maximum file size
- 200 MB
- Files per job
- 1
- Metadata
- EXIF data such as camera model and GPS location is not copied to the result.
- Processing
- On our servers with the open-source Upscayl engine and ESRGAN-type models. Your image is not sent to an external AI service. A job can run for up to 15 minutes.
- Watermark
- None
- Storage
- Uploads and results are deleted automatically after 48 hours for guests and after 30 days for free accounts. Paid plans can keep files longer.
Frequently asked questions
Can I upscale a GIF with AI?
Not with this tool: GIF files are not accepted, and animated WebP or AVIF files keep only their first frame. To enlarge an animated GIF, use Resize GIF. It keeps the animation and allows up to 4096 px per side, enough for a 3840 px wide 4K GIF, but it uses conventional scaling (Lanczos by default), not AI. For a single-frame GIF such as a logo, convert it to PNG with Convert Image first and upscale the PNG.
Why is the upscaled file so much larger than the original?
2x creates 4 times as many pixels and 4x creates 16 times as many, and PNG and WebP are saved without loss. A small, heavily compressed JPG can therefore turn into a PNG many times its size. If you need a smaller file, open the result from Files in Compress Image.
Can AI upscaling make blurry text readable?
Only partly. The models sharpen letter edges that are already legible, which helps screenshots, scanned labels and pattern graphics. Letters that are too small or too blurred to read can turn into invented shapes, because the model predicts plausible detail instead of recovering it. Check small text at 100 % zoom before you use the result. As a rule of thumb, Anime / Illustration and Ultrasharp 4x keep hard edges crisper than Standard 4x.
Why does my upscaled photo look painted or plastic?
Models with strong noise removal, such as Standard 4x, Lite 4x and RealESRGAN General, also flatten fine texture like skin pores or fabric. Try Balanced 4x, RealESRGAN Denoise or Remacri 4x, which keep more grain. The smaller the source, the more detail every model has to invent, so start from the largest version of the image you have.
Is my image sent to an AI service?
No. The models run on our own servers with the open-source Upscayl engine; no third-party AI service receives your file. Uploads and results are deleted automatically on the schedule listed under Formats and limits.