Upscale.media vs Upscayl (2026): which should you pick?
As of Nov 13, 2026, Upscayl grades higher than Upscale.media: 3.0 against 2.6 out of 4.0.
Checked Nov 12, 2026 and Nov 13, 2026 · graded Nov 12, 2026 and Nov 13, 2026 by ToolGPA
Upscale.media grades higher on platforms. Upscayl grades higher on value for money and the free plan. They get the same grade on features and ease of use.
Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.
Upscale.media
AI image and video upscaler sold by credit, with a free allowance
Upscayl
Free desktop image upscaler with a paid credit-based cloud
Which one is for you
Pick Upscale.media if
- Fits if you need a few photos enlarged without installing anything
- Works for people who'll buy credits by the year
Look elsewhere if
- Tight if you stay free: 3 credits and 3 downloads a month
- Watch out: unused monthly credits expire at the end of the billing cycle
- Skip it if you want a refund option, as the page says there are none
- Watch out: the monthly credit counts show only on the monthly view
- Not for you if you want a phone or desktop app, as it's browser only
Pick Upscayl if
- Fits if you want to enlarge photos for free, on your own machine
- Works for people who batch-process images and would rather not upload them
Look elsewhere if
- Skip it if you need editing or image generation, as those are in the paid cloud only
- Tight if you try the cloud: the trial is 10 credits once, and it needs a trial application
- Pricey if you want cloud credits, at $24.99 a month for 300, and unused ones are lost when you cancel
- Not for you if you want it on a phone, since only desktop and web versions are listed
How we grade them
| 2.6GPAUpscale.mediaGood | 3.0GPAUpscaylVery good | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | B$49.99 a year buys 3,000 credits, about $4.17 a month, while month-to-month plans start at $11.99. Credits expire, and refunds aren't offered. | AThe desktop app is free and open source, with no stated limit on images or formats. The cloud service is $24.99 a month for 300 credits, but you don't need it. |
| Free plan and trial | C3 credits and 3 downloads a month, plus one upscale a day with no account. Enough to test, not to work from. | AFree outright for the desktop app, with no account, and it works offline. The cloud's only free offer is 10 credits once, after a trial application. |
| Features | CUpscaling to 8x, video upscaling, sharpening, deblurring, restoration and colorizing. It does the upscaling job fully, which is a smaller job. | CDoes one job completely: several models, batch upscaling and your own custom models, up to 16x. It's a smaller job, and editing and generation exist only in the paid cloud. |
| Ease of use | BNo rating on record. Upload a picture, pick a size and download, with nothing to set up. | BNo store rating on record. You download it, drop in an image and pick a model, with nothing to set up. |
| Platforms and integrations | BWeb, with bulk processing and an API. The Google Play link on the site is for the sister product Pixelbin. | CDesktop for Linux, macOS and Windows plus a cloud web app. No phone apps, no API on the listing and no integrations. |
| Best for | enlarging photos in the browser | a free image upscaler that runs on your own computer |
The GPA is the average of the five grades: an A is 4 points, an F is none. The full reasons are on each tool's page: Upscale.media and Upscayl. How we grade
Price against what you get
Upscale.media starts at $11.99 a month and scores 2.7 out of 4 on features, ease of use and platforms. Upscayl starts at $24.99 a month and scores 2.3.
Upscale.media scores higher and starts $13 a month lower. Of the other AI image and video generators on the chart, 9 score higher than Upscale.media for less, and 45 score higher than Upscayl for less.
Features, ease of use and platforms, averaged
What paid plans start at, a month (each step along is roughly double) →
- The best score at each price
- Has a free plan
- No free plan
Where they differ
- Upscayl is open source, according to its own site.
- Upscayl also covers image generation.
At a glance
| Upscale.media | Upscayl | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free plan | Free plan |
| Starts at | $11.99 per month, billed monthly ($49.99 per year on yearly billing) | $24.99 per month for 300 credits, billed monthly |
| Free plan | 3 free credits and 3 free downloads every month; one image a day can also be upscaled without signing up. | Upscayl Desktop is free and open source with no stated limits on images or formats. Upscayl Cloud gives a one-time 10-credit trial. |
| Free trial | None listed | Upscayl Cloud: 10 free credits after signing up and filling in a trial application. |
| Web | ||
| macOS | ||
| Windows | ||
| Linux | ||
| Made by | Shopsense Retail Technologies Limited | Upscayl |
| Price read from | upscale.media | upscayl.org |
| Checked | Nov 13, 2026 | Nov 12, 2026 |
Worth knowing
Upscale.media
- Each image upscale generally uses 1 credit, and unused monthly credits expire at the end of the billing cycle.
- The pricing page says there are no refunds because of AI costs and recommends trying the free plan first.
- The yearly tiers are shown as yearly totals; the monthly credit counts are not shown on the default view.
- Browser only on the pages read; the Google Play link on the site is for Pixelbin.
Upscayl
- The cloud service is sold by monthly credits, and the pricing page shows only one price at a time as the slider moves.
- If a cloud subscription is cancelled, unused subscription credits are lost and history is deleted after 1 month.
- The cloud trial is only 10 credits and requires a trial application.
- The desktop app has no cloud editing or image generation features.
Key features
Upscale.media
- Image upscaling to 8x
- Enlarges images at 1x, 2x, 4x or 8x. Signed-in users can upload up to 20,000 x 20,000 px at 1x; guests get smaller limits.
- Video upscaling
- A video upscaler handles clips up to 1 minute in mp4, mov or webm.
- Enhancement tools
- Sharpen, deblur, dehaze, remove motion blur, restore old photos, colorize and restore faces, from the same site.
- Bulk processing and API
- The site lists bulk transformation and API integration; the pricing page says all plans include API access to add-on credits.
- Pay-as-you-go packs
- One-time credit packs run from 60 credits for $7.99 to 1,200 credits for $54.99, valid for one year.
Upscayl
- Local desktop upscaling
- The desktop app does all processing on your machine and needs no internet connection.
- Several AI models
- Choose between different models for different kinds of images, add your own custom models, and run a double upscale for better quality.
- Batch processing
- Upscale several images in one go. The site advertises enlargement of up to 16x.
- Upscayl Cloud editing
- The cloud service lists face enhancement, detail recovery and smart editing, with batch processing.
- AI image generation
- Upscayl Cloud can generate images from a text description in several styles. It is included on the paid cloud plans.
- Large output sizes
- Cloud Pro upscales up to 256 megapixels and the Business tier up to 512 megapixels.
Plans
Upscale.media
Free Plan$0
3 credits and 3 downloads a month, plus one upscale a day without an account.
Monthly subscription$11.99
per month and up, billed monthly
Monthly plans start at $11.99; credit counts for each tier show only on the page's monthly view.
Yearly, 3,000 credits$49.99
per year, billed annually
3,000 credits, auto-renews yearly. The page shows a Mega Offer of doubled credits at the same price.
Yearly, 7,500 credits$69.99
per year, billed annually
7,500 credits, auto-renews yearly; the page's default subscription tier.
Yearly, 15,000 credits$99.99
per year, billed annually
15,000 credits, auto-renews yearly.
Yearly, 30,000 credits$119.99
per year, billed annually
30,000 credits, auto-renews yearly.
Upscayl
Upscayl Desktop$0
Free, open-source app for Linux, macOS and Windows. Runs on your own computer, with several AI models and batch upscaling.
Free Trial (Cloud)$0
10 credits for Upscayl Cloud, one time. Needs a login and a trial application.
Pro (Cloud)$24.99
per month for 300 credits, billed monthly
Unused credits roll over, 6 months of storage, upscaling up to 256 MP, AI image generation and priority support. The price follows the credit amount chosen on a slider.
Business (Cloud)Custom
Offered for larger credit amounts on the slider, with upscaling up to 512 MP and 6 months of storage. No price was shown for it.
Ways to pay less
Upscale.media
- Annual discount
Yearly plans marked 70% off
The pricing page tags its Yearly toggle 70% off, with 3,000 credits at $49.99 a year up to 30,000 credits at $119.99.
Upscayl
- Annual discount
Up to 40% off with annual billing
The pricing page shows an Annual option labelled up to 40% off for Upscayl Cloud subscriptions. The annual prices were not displayed.
Common questions
Which is cheaper, Upscale.media or Upscayl?
As of Nov 13, 2026, Upscale.media is cheaper to start with: $11.99 a month, against $24.99 a month for Upscayl. Upscale.media starts at $11.99 per month, billed monthly ($49.99 per year on yearly billing), and Upscayl starts at $24.99 per month for 300 credits, billed monthly.
Which has a free plan, Upscale.media or Upscayl?
As of Nov 13, 2026, both Upscale.media and Upscayl have a free plan.
Which platforms do Upscale.media and Upscayl run on?
As of Nov 13, 2026, only Upscayl lists macOS, Windows and Linux apps. Both list a web app. A platform missing from a listing is one its maker's pages did not mention.
More comparisons
How this page was made
- The verdict at the top follows a fixed rule. When both tools are in the same category and either is in our top three for it, the verdict follows that ranking: the higher-placed tool is our pick. The top three weigh who each tool suits as well as its grades, so a pick can go against the GPA. Otherwise the page does not pick one and says which grades higher: the higher GPA first; on a tie, the one with a free plan, then the one that starts cheaper in dollars a month, counted the same way for both; if they are still level, what the choice depends on.
- The grades are our own, from each tool’s review or report card. The GPA is their average.
- Prices, plans and platforms come from each tool’s listing. The table above says where each price was read and when.
- The differences and the answers to the questions are worked out from those listings.