ImageSmith / Image upscaler
Image upscaler
Make a small image bigger, 2× or 4×, without blocky pixels. It upscales in careful steps and sharpens the edges, all in your browser.
Your upscaled image appears here.
How upscaling fills in pixels that don't exist
Doubling an image's width and height means three out of every four pixels are new. Something has to decide their color. Compare the three classic methods on a tiny 6-pixel image:
Original: 6 × 6 px
8× → 48 × 48 px
Nearest neighbour copies each original pixel into a block. Nothing is invented, so you get hard, blocky stair-steps. Good for pixel art, bad for photos.
None of these add real detail; they only guess the pixels in between. AI "super-resolution" goes further by inventing plausible texture, which is great for artwork and risky for faces or product labels.
How big do I need?
| Use | Pixels needed |
|---|---|
| Print, 4 × 6 in at 300 ppi | 1200 × 1800 |
| Print, 8 × 10 in at 300 ppi | 2400 × 3000 |
| Full-width website hero | 2400 wide (for sharp retina screens) |
| Shop product zoom | ≥ 2000 long side |
| YouTube thumbnail | 1280 × 720 |
Questions people ask
How does this image upscaler work?
It enlarges your image in steps of 2× using high-quality bicubic resampling in your browser, then applies an edge-aware unsharp mask so the result looks crisp rather than soft. Nothing is uploaded.
Is it AI upscaling?
No. AI super-resolution invents texture that was never in the photo, which can change faces, text and product details. This tool only interpolates, so it is truthful. For logos and flat graphics, the best "upscale" is a vector version from the logo generator.
What is the maximum size?
Output is capped at 8000 pixels on the long side (and around 40 megapixels) so your browser does not run out of memory. On phones, 4× of a large photo may hit that cap.
When should I upscale?
When a small image needs to fill a bigger slot: an old logo for a banner, a thumbnail for print, a product photo for a zoom view. For print, aim for 300 pixels per inch at the final size.