On-device photo upscaler · iPhone, iPad & Mac
Local Photo Upscaler runs AI upscaling, noise reduction, sharpening, and face restoration on your own device. No account, no upload queue, no subscription. Pick a photo, compare the result, save a new copy.
$9.99 once. No subscription, in-app purchases, or ads. Family Sharing included. Pricing details
Four modes
Pick the mode that matches what you can see: too small, too grainy, a little soft, or a face that needs help. Each one says plainly what it cannot do.
An AI model redraws the photo at four times its width and height. Best for small photos, old downloads, and tight crops.
Limit: Output is capped at about 17 megapixels. Larger photos are scaled down first, so crop to the part you need for the full 4×.
An AI denoising model smooths sensor grain and color speckle while trying to keep edges. The photo keeps its original dimensions.
Limit: Heavy grain can come back smoother but softer. Check hair, fabric, and foliage before saving.
A conservative luminance sharpen for photos that are almost in focus. It keeps the original dimensions and colors.
Limit: Not an AI deblur. It cannot recover motion blur or a badly out-of-focus shot.
Finds faces in the photo and runs an AI face-restoration model on each one, then blends the result back in.
Limit: Needs a clear, visible face. AI may change fine facial details, so compare carefully for family archives.
Real output
These pairs were made by running sample photos through the app’s own processing code. Drag each slider. Results depend on the photo you start with.
Privacy
Cloud enhancers upload your picture, process it on their servers, and delete it later under their own policy. Local Photo Upscaler does the work locally with models that ship inside the app, which is why it still works in airplane mode.
Data Not Collected
“The developer does not collect any data from this app.” As shown on the App Store listing, checked September 25, 2026.
How it works
One photo at a time, with a before-and-after slider so you decide whether the result is actually better.
From Photos on iPhone and iPad. On Mac you can also open image files.
Upscale, Denoise, Sharpen, or Faces. The app shows the output size before you run it.
Drag the slider, zoom in on eyes, edges, and texture, and save a new copy only if it helps.
Screenshots from the current App Store listing. They were captured before version 1.1.8, where the modes are named Upscale, Denoise, Sharpen, and Faces.
Honest limits
An upscaler makes an educated guess about missing detail. These are the cases where that guess runs out.
Output tops out near 17 megapixels. A 12 MP iPhone photo gets only slightly larger; crop to the subject first.
Sharpen helps slight softness. It cannot reconstruct a shaky or badly out-of-focus shot.
Faces is AI restoration and can change fine features. Compare carefully before replacing a family photo.
If letters are not legible in the source, no mode will reliably recover them.
It works on one still photo at a time. Desktop tools like Topaz are built for batches and RAW files.
No scratch removal and no colorizing. It enlarges, cleans, and sharpens what is already there.
Price
Many upscalers are sold by the week, the month, or the credit. Here is how the listed prices compare, checked September 25, 2026.
| App | Where it processes | U.S. price |
|---|---|---|
| Local Photo Upscaler | On your device | $9.99 once, no in-app purchases |
| Remini | Cloud | Free download; Remini Pro Weekly $9.99 in-app purchase |
| Upscale.media | Online service | 3 free credits a month; $69.99 a year |
| Topaz Gigapixel | Desktop (local) or cloud | $29 a month or $149 a year |
| Pixelmator Pro | On device | $49.99 once (Mac) or $12.99 a month |
Prices from each product’s App Store listing or pricing page. Full comparison with sources, and when each alternative is the better choice →
Guides
Short, specific guides with real before-and-after examples and plain notes on limits.
What 4× really means, the 17 MP cap, and why cropping first matters.
PrintingPixel sizes and print sizes at 300 and 200 pixels per inch.
DenoiseWhen Denoise helps, what to inspect, and when to stop.
SharpenWhich kinds of blur can be improved, and which cannot.
Family photosA careful workflow for prints, inherited photos, and portraits.
CompareDifferences in privacy, price, and results, and when Remini fits better.
FAQ
No. Upscale, Denoise, Sharpen, and Faces run on your iPhone, iPad, or Mac. There is no photo-processing server, and the App Store privacy label says Data Not Collected. Enhancement works in airplane mode.
$9.99 once on the U.S. App Store. There is no subscription, no in-app purchase, and no ad. Every mode is included, and Family Sharing is supported.
Only small ones. Output is capped at about 17 megapixels, so a photo larger than about 1 megapixel is scaled down before the 4× pass. For the full enlargement, crop to the area you need first. A 640 × 480 image becomes 2560 × 1920.
Slight softness, yes. Sharpen is a conservative edge sharpen, not an AI deblur, and it cannot undo motion blur or a badly missed focus. Faces can help a soft but visible face.
Yes, on Macs with Apple silicon (M1 or later) running macOS 15.2 or later. It is the same App Store listing as the iPhone and iPad app.
No. You compare the result with a slider and then save a new copy to Photos. The original stays as it was.
Local Photo Upscaler
Enhance photos on your own iPhone, iPad, or Mac. $9.99 once on the U.S. App Store. No subscription, no in-app purchases, no ads.
