Question 1

What is Topaz Image Upscale?

Accepted Answer

Topaz Image Upscale is a professional AI upscaling API by Topaz Labs, a company founded in 2005 that has processed over 2 billion images. It offers 10 specialized AI models for different content types — from general photos to CGI art to scanned documents. Trusted by Apple, Netflix, NASA, and 20 of the top 50 global companies.

Question 2

How much does Topaz Image Upscale cost on Runflow?

Accepted Answer

Topaz pricing is tiered by output resolution: $0.08 per image for up to 24 MP, $0.16 for up to 48 MP, $0.32 for up to 96 MP, and up to $1.36 for 512 MP output. A 2x upscale of a 1024×1024 image (producing ~4 MP) costs $0.08. Cold start time is not billed.

Question 3

Which Topaz model should I use?

Accepted Answer

Standard V2 (default) works well for most photos. Use CGI for digital art/illustrations, Text Refine for scanned documents, Recovery V2 for damaged/degraded images, Redefine for prompt-guided generative detail, High Fidelity V2 to preserve detail in already high-res images, and Wonder for an all-in-one upscale+sharpen+denoise pass.

Question 4

Does Topaz have face enhancement?

Accepted Answer

Yes. Face enhancement is enabled by default (strength 0.8). It automatically detects faces and enhances them with adjustable strength (0–1) and creativity (0–1). Works with Standard V2 and Recovery V2 models. No separate face restoration model needed.

Question 5

What is generative upscaling (Redefine)?

Accepted Answer

The Redefine model uses diffusion-like generative enhancement to rebuild image structure, not just interpolate pixels. You can guide it with a text prompt (up to 1024 chars), control creativity (1–6) and texture detail (1–5), or enable autoprompt for automatic guidance.

Question 6

How does Topaz compare to ESRGAN?

Accepted Answer

Topaz offers an integrated pipeline (denoise + sharpen + upscale + face enhance in one call) with 10 specialized models and subject-aware processing. ESRGAN is open-source and free, better at preserving original texture character (film grain, fabric weave). Topaz produces smoother, more polished results; ESRGAN preserves more raw detail.

Question 7

Do I need to manage GPUs?

Accepted Answer

No. Runflow handles all infrastructure, including GPU provisioning, scaling, and failover. You call our API and receive results — no DevOps required.

Use Case	Assessment	Notes
Photo Upscale	Pending	Photo upscaling quality
AI Art Upscale	Pending	AI-generated image upscaling
Face Enhancement	Pending	Face restoration and enhancement
Document/Text	Pending	Scanned text clarity

Output resolution	Price per image
Up to 24 MP	$0.08
Up to 48 MP	$0.16
Up to 96 MP	$0.32
Up to 512 MP	$1.36

Parameter	Type	Required	Description
image_url	string	required	URL of the image to upscale. Accepts JPEG, PNG, WebP, GIF, AVIF.
model	string	optional	AI model for enhancement. Options: Standard V2 (default), Low Resolution V2, CGI, High Fidelity V2, Text Refine, Recovery, Redefine, Recovery V2, Standard MAX, Wonder.
upscale_factor	number	optional	Upscale factor from 1x to 4x (continuous float). Default: 2.
face_enhancement	boolean	optional	Enable automatic face detection and enhancement. Default: true.
face_enhancement_strength	number	optional	Face enhancement intensity (0–1). Default: 0.8.
face_enhancement_creativity	number	optional	Face generation creativity (0–1). Higher values hallucinate more detail. Default: 0.
subject_detection	string	optional	Target enhancement region. Options: All (default), Foreground, Background.
sharpen	number	optional	Sharpening level (0–1). Works with Standard V2, Low Resolution V2, CGI, High Fidelity V2, Text Refine, Redefine.
denoise	number	optional	Noise reduction level (0–1). Works with Standard V2, Low Resolution V2, CGI, High Fidelity V2, Text Refine, Redefine.
fix_compression	number	optional	JPEG artifact removal (0–1). Works with Standard V2, Low Resolution V2, High Fidelity V2, Text Refine.
detail	number	optional	Detail recovery level (0–1). Recovery V2 model only.
creativity	integer	optional	Generative upscaling creativity (1–6). Redefine model only.
texture	integer	optional	Texture detail level (1–5). Redefine model only.
prompt	string	optional	Text prompt to guide generative upscaling (max 1024 chars). Redefine model only.
autoprompt	boolean	optional	Auto-generate a prompt for generative upscaling. Redefine model only.
output_format	string	optional	Output image format. Options: "jpeg", "png". Default: "jpeg".
crop_to_fill	boolean	optional	Crop the output image to fill target dimensions. Default: false.

Topaz Image Upscale API

Topaz model family by Topaz Labs