Topaz Labs builds AI tools like Photo AI, Video AI, and Gigapixel AI for upscaling, denoising, and sharpening images and video. See pricing, features, and…
Topaz Labs is a Dallas-based software company that builds AI-driven image and video enhancement applications for photographers, videographers, and studios. Founded in 2005, the company built its reputation on Photoshop plugins before shifting its focus entirely to standalone desktop applications powered by neural networks trained specifically for tasks like denoising, sharpening, and upscaling visual media.
The product lineup centers on three flagship desktop apps: Topaz Photo AI for still-image cleanup and enlargement, Topaz Video AI for frame interpolation, stabilization, and footage upscaling, and Topaz Gigapixel AI for extreme resolution increases while preserving detail. Alongside these, Topaz runs cloud-based services, Astra and Bloom, that offload rendering to Topaz's own servers using a credit-based system, useful for users without powerful local GPUs.
Topaz software is widely used in post-production pipelines, from restoring archival photographs to upscaling older video footage for modern displays, and the company markets itself as being used by studios and teams at organizations such as Apple, Netflix, and NASA.
Topaz's core strength is model specialization: rather than a single general-purpose AI filter, each app ships with multiple purpose-trained models for tasks like face recovery, motion deblur, low-light denoising, and detail-preserving upscaling, letting users pick the model best suited to a given source image or clip.
The apps support batch processing so users can queue large numbers of photos or long video files for unattended rendering, and they integrate as plugins inside Adobe Lightroom, Photoshop, Premiere Pro, and DaVinci Resolve, letting editors apply Topaz's AI models without leaving their primary editing software.
Cloud products extend the same underlying AI models to lower-powered machines: Astra handles creative video upscaling and Bloom handles creative image upscaling entirely on Topaz's infrastructure, billed through monthly credit allowances rather than requiring a capable local GPU.
Topaz moved from perpetual licenses to a subscription-only model in September 2025. Individual desktop apps (Video AI, Photo AI, Gigapixel AI) are priced separately, generally starting around $19 to $39 per month on annual billing, with higher monthly-billed rates for month-to-month flexibility.
Bundled access is available through Topaz Studio (roughly $45 to $69 per month depending on billing term, or about $399 per year) and Topaz Studio Pro (roughly $79 per month or $799 per year), which include all desktop apps plus a monthly allotment of cloud video-rendering credits. Cloud-only products like Astra, Bloom, and Mosaic have their own standalone monthly plans, generally billed on a smaller-scale credit system for additional usage beyond the included allowance.
Topaz Labs is a software company that builds AI-powered applications for enhancing photos and video, including Topaz Photo AI, Topaz Video AI, and Topaz Gigapixel AI.
No, Topaz apps are paid subscription software, though most offer a free trial or demo mode with watermarked or limited output before purchase.
In September 2025, Topaz moved from perpetual one-time licenses to subscription-only pricing across its desktop apps, which some long-time customers viewed as a significant pricing shift.
The core desktop apps (Photo AI, Video AI, Gigapixel AI) process locally on your machine, so they can run without an internet connection once installed and licensed, while cloud products like Astra and Bloom require an internet connection.
Topaz apps support common photo formats like JPEG, PNG, and RAW files, and common video formats like MP4 and MOV, with export options tailored to each app.
Yes, Topaz Photo AI and Gigapixel AI are commonly used to restore and enlarge old or low-resolution photographs by reducing noise and reconstructing detail.
Yes, subscriptions can be canceled through the Topaz account portal, though access to the subscribed app typically ends at the close of the current billing period.
Topaz generally offers free trial or demo versions of its apps that let users test AI processing before committing to a paid plan.