# Upscayl review (2026): is the free plan enough? > Free desktop image upscaler with a paid credit-based cloud Checked Nov 12, 2026 ยท graded Nov 12, 2026 by ToolGPA. Upscayl enlarges and sharpens low-resolution images with AI models. The desktop app for Linux, macOS and Windows is free and open source and processes images on your own machine. A separate paid cloud service, Upscayl Cloud, adds credit-based upscaling, image editing and AI image generation in the browser. - **Category:** AI Image & Video Generators - **Made by:** Upscayl - **Website:** https://upscayl.org - **Runs on:** Web, macOS, Windows, Linux - **Who should skip it:** Skip it if you need editing or image generation, as those are in the paid cloud only. - **Facts last checked:** Nov 12, 2026 ## Pricing As of Nov 12, 2026, Upscayl has a free plan, and paid plans start at $24.99 per month for 300 credits, billed monthly. - **Pricing model:** Free plan - **Free plan:** 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:** Upscayl Cloud: 10 free credits after signing up and filling in a trial application. | Plan | Price | What you get | | --- | --- | --- | | 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. | Read from https://upscayl.org/pricing on Nov 12, 2026. Prices change, so confirm with Upscayl before buying. ## Ways to pay less - **Up to 40% off with annual billing** (Annual discount): The pricing page shows an Annual option labelled up to 40% off for Upscayl Cloud subscriptions. The annual prices were not displayed. Source: https://upscayl.org/pricing ## Key features - **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. ## Good for - People who want to upscale photos for free without uploading them anywhere - Users on Linux, macOS or Windows who like open-source tools - Occasional cloud use for very large images or AI generation ## Worth knowing - 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. ## ToolGPA grades **GPA: 3.0 out of 4**, graded Nov 12, 2026. Upscayl is a free, open-source desktop app for Linux, macOS and Windows that enlarges images on your own machine with no stated limits. It only upscales, and the paid cloud service, with editing and image generation, starts at $24.99 a month for 300 credits. - **Value for money: A.** The 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: A.** Free 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: C.** Does 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: B.** No store rating on record. You download it, drop in an image and pick a model, with nothing to set up. - **Platforms and integrations: C.** Desktop for Linux, macOS and Windows plus a cloud web app. No phone apps, no API on the listing and no integrations. These are ToolGPA's own grades. Graded from this listing, whose facts were read from Upscayl's own pages on 12 November 2026. Not based on using the product, and shorter than our full reviews. ## Where it stands among AI image and video generators - Upscayl's GPA of 3.0 is higher than 82 of the 89 other AI image and video generators we grade, and level with 6. - It stands best on free plan and trial (A, above 86 of 89) and worst on features (C, above 2). - Its paid plans start at $24.99 a month, against a middle price of $10 for the category: 61 of the 65 others that charge start lower. - On features, ease of use and platforms it scores 2.3 out of 4. 32 tools score higher and cost less. The category's chart of price against score: https://toolgpa.com/charts/ai-images ## Keep it, or make your own? **Keep it.** To replace Upscayl you would be making an image model, which you can rent by the picture but not make. That is not a weekend's work, with an AI app builder or without one. It is one of the better ones too: its GPA of 3.0 is higher than 82 of the 89 other AI image and video generators we grade. It costs $299.88 a year. Upscayl is open source, so there is a third way: take its code and run it yourself. - You could not: An image model, which you can rent by the picture but not make. - You could not: Apps for macOS, Windows and Linux that stay in step with each other. - You could not: AI features, unless you pay a model provider for each request yourself. A judgement by ToolGPA from this listing, by rules that are the same for every tool. Nothing was built to test it. **Tags:** Open source, Works offline, AI features, Image generation ## Alternatives - [Topaz Labs](https://toolgpa.com/tools/topaz-labs): AI upscaling and enhancement apps for photos and video. [Compare](https://toolgpa.com/compare/topaz-labs-vs-upscayl) - [Let's Enhance](https://toolgpa.com/tools/lets-enhance): Browser image enhancer and upscaler sold by monthly credits. [Compare](https://toolgpa.com/compare/lets-enhance-vs-upscayl) - [VanceAI](https://toolgpa.com/tools/vance-ai): Credit-based image and video enhancer with a Windows desktop app. [Compare](https://toolgpa.com/compare/upscayl-vs-vance-ai) - [Remini](https://toolgpa.com/tools/remini): AI photo enhancer that sharpens old and blurry pictures. [Compare](https://toolgpa.com/compare/remini-vs-upscayl) ## Sources The prices, plans, platforms and features above were read from these pages on Nov 12, 2026: - https://upscayl.org/ - https://upscayl.org/pricing - https://upscayl.org/download Page: https://toolgpa.com/tools/upscayl Listed by ToolGPA (toolgpa.com).