Upscayl at a glance
Checked 16 Oct 2026Upscayl is an Electron desktop app that enlarges images with Real-ESRGAN-style models (Standard, Lite, High Fidelity, Remacri, UltraSharp, Digital Art) and supports batch folders and custom models. It needs a Vulkan GPU; most integrated GPUs and CPUs will not work. The app is AGPL-3.0, but two bundled models (UltraSharp, Remacri) are CC-BY-NC-SA-4.0. It cannot fix out-of-focus or heavily blurred photos and has no dedicated face-recovery model. Last app release v2.15.0 (Dec 2024); commits continue.
RepoQuarry. “Upscayl.” Checked 16 Oct 2026. https://repoquarry.dev/projects/upscaylHow much of Topaz Gigapixel does it replace?
3 of 6 jobs. Upscaling and batch folders with a Digital Art model; no face recovery, generative models or Photoshop/Lightroom plugin.
For face recovery on blurry or low-res faces, recover and redefine low-quality or compressed images, Photoshop and Lightroom plugin, see other Topaz Gigapixel alternatives. You may also need to build an interface, an API server and hosting yourself.
Facts, with sources
Every answer links to where we found it. We read the documentation; we did not install it.
Upscayl uses AI models to enhance your images by guessing what the details could be. It uses Real-ESRGAN and Vulkan architecture to achieve this.github.com · upscayl#-faq ↗ today
CC-BY-NC-SA-4.0openmodeldb.info · 4x-UltraSharp ↗ today
CC-BY-NC-SA-4.0openmodeldb.info · 4x-Remacri ↗ today
NEW Upscayl Cloud is out!upscayl.org ↗ today
You'll need a Vulkan compatible GPU (Graphics Card) to upscale images. Many iGPUs (integrated graphics) do not work but, no harm in trying :)github.com · upscayl#-installation ↗ today
Upscayl should be available on the software listings of most Linux operating systems.github.com · upscayl#-installation ↗ today
Double click exe file to launch.github.com · upscayl#-windows ↗ today