Upscale images on your Mac: make small pictures big again

Upscale your first image

1. Open Model Manager and download SeedVR2 3B. It is about 7.3 GB.
2. Choose Upscale in the sidebar, next to Create and Edit.
3. Add an image. You can also choose Upscale image on any picture in the Gallery or the image viewer.
4. Pick an output size and leave Softness at 0.5 to start.
5. Run it, then open Before / After to compare the two versions. Drag the divider, zoom to 100%, or show both side by side.

Choose the output size

The size is the long edge of the finished image. The short edge follows your image, so a portrait stays a portrait. The app shows the final width and height and the scale factor before you start.

• 1536 or 2048 pixels: a quick step up for sharing, wallpapers on smaller screens, or a cleaner crop.
• 2560 or 3072 pixels: a good fit for large displays and for prints up to about letter or A4 size.
• 4096 pixels: the largest option, wide enough for a 4K display (3840 pixels). It needs a Mac with at least 24 GB of unified memory.

If you pick a size that is not larger than your image, the app tells you so and asks you to choose a bigger one.

How big can you print?

Print size depends on pixels per inch. At 300 pixels per inch, which suits photos you hold in your hand, a 4096-pixel edge prints at about 13.7 inches (34.7 cm). At 150 pixels per inch, which is usually fine for posters seen from a few steps away, the same edge covers about 27.3 inches (69.4 cm). A 1024-pixel original covers a quarter of each of those lengths.

Generate at 1024, keep the images you like, and upscale only the ones you want to print or use large.

Softness: a simple guide

Softness blurs the image a little before SeedVR2 upscales it. That sounds backwards, but it helps. On a damaged image, the model would otherwise sharpen the noise and JPEG blocks along with the real detail. With some softness, it rebuilds the fine texture itself.

• 0: clean, sharp images, such as fresh generations from Radiant Canvas or good camera photos.
• 0.5: the recommended starting point for most images.
• 0.75 to 1: small, noisy, or heavily compressed images, such as old phone photos, screenshots, or pictures saved from messaging apps.

If the result loses detail, lower the softness. If you see strange patterns or artifacts, raise it.

Ideas to try

• Turn your favorite 1024-pixel generation into a desktop wallpaper or a framed print.
• Give an old, small photo of a pet or a place more resolution before printing it.
• Enlarge a product shot or illustration for a slide, a banner, or a printed flyer.
• Upscale concept art and textures for a game or a mood board.
• Build a Studio workflow that generates and upscales in one run.

Upscaling in Studio

With PRO, the SeedVR2 Upscale node adds upscaling to any Studio workflow. Set the size as 2×, 3×, or 4× the input, or as a pixel value on the long edge, and choose a softness from 0 to 1. The Generate and Upscale sample creates an image with FLUX.2 Klein, upscales it, and saves it, so you can see the whole chain on one board. Upscaling in the Upscale mode stays free.

Mac requirements

SeedVR2 runs on Apple silicon Macs with macOS 26.2 or later and at least 16 GB of unified memory. Macs with 16 GB can upscale up to 3072 pixels; 4096 pixels needs 24 GB or more. The model is a separate download of about 7.3 GB. After that, upscaling works offline and your images stay on your Mac.

What an AI upscaler cannot do

SeedVR2 adds detail that it predicts, not detail that was recorded. That makes it good for textures and surfaces, but it can change small things: a face can look slightly different, small text can turn into shapes that only look like letters, and a pattern can become more regular than the original. Check those areas in Before / After before you print or publish.

It also does not change what is in the picture. To remove an object, change the light, or try another style, use Edit with FLUX.2 Klein or Qwen Image Edit 2511 first, then upscale the result.