How to upscale an image
- Choose a picture, drop it on the box, or paste a screenshot with Ctrl+V (⌘+V on a Mac). Small, blurry, old or heavily compressed pictures gain the most.
- Pick the picture type. Photo for real camera pictures, Drawing / anime for cartoons, logos and flat graphics.
- Pick 2× or 4×. A 500 × 500 picture becomes 1000 × 1000 or 2000 × 2000 pixels.
- Press Upscale, then slide across the before-and-after view. Tick Actual pixels to check the detail up close, then download.
The first time, your browser downloads the AI model (about 4 MB) and keeps it. An 800 × 600 picture usually takes from a few seconds on a recent laptop to about a minute on an older phone, because the AI works through it tile by tile on your own graphics chip.
AI upscaling vs. a normal resize
| Normal resize | AI upscale (this tool) | |
|---|---|---|
| Edges and lines | Soft or blocky | Crisp, without halos |
| JPEG blocks and noise | Enlarged with the picture | Mostly cleaned away |
| Speed | Instant | Seconds to a minute |
| Best for | Making a sharp photo a bit bigger | Small, blurry or old pictures, logos, anime, product shots |
Just need an exact pixel size, or a smaller file? Use the image resizer or compress image. To cut out the subject after enlarging, use remove background.
Frequently asked questions
Is my picture uploaded?
No. The AI model (Real-ESRGAN) is downloaded to your browser once, about 4 MB, and runs on your own graphics chip. Your picture never leaves your phone or computer, and there is no watermark or sign-up.
Photo or Drawing / anime: which should I pick?
Photo is for camera pictures, products, people and scans; it keeps texture and removes JPEG blocks and noise. Drawing / anime is for cartoons, illustrations, logos and screenshots with flat colour; it gives very clean lines but smooths fine texture, so it can make real photos look painted.
How big can the picture be?
The result can be up to 16.7 megapixels (4096 × 4096), the largest picture every phone browser can hold. So 4× works for pictures up to about 1024 × 1024 and 2× up to about 2048 × 2048. Bigger photos rarely need upscaling; crop them first or resize them instead.
Can it restore a face or read blurry text?
It sharpens what is there but does not invent a new face or guess missing letters, which keeps it honest for ID photos and documents. Very small or very blurry faces stay soft. If text is unreadable in the original, upscaling will not make it readable.