Topaz alternative
A Topaz Video AI alternative you pay for once
Topaz Video is a good tool. Since 2025 it's only sold as a subscription, and since September 2026 Topaz Labs has belonged to Adobe. If what you mostly need is to rescue old footage rather than finish commercial work, Phoenix Upscaler does that job on your own PC for $129, once, with every update included.
Updated
Side by side
| Phoenix Upscaler | Topaz Video | |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $129 once | $59 a month, or $299 a year |
| Owned by | Phoenix Labs, an independent company | Adobe, since September 2026 |
| One-time licence | Yes. Every update included, nothing renews. | No. Subscription only since 2025. |
| Runs on | Windows and Linux | Windows and Mac |
| Where the work happens | On your own PC. Nothing uploads. | On your own computer |
| Built for | Old footage: tapes, DVDs, film scans, old phone clips | A wide pro toolkit: upscaling, frame interpolation, slow motion, stabilisation |
Topaz prices from topazlabs.com, checked September 2026. Their Topaz Studio bundle, with their photo apps, is $399 a year. Adobe announced no price changes when its purchase of Topaz closed.
When Phoenix is the better pick
- You'd rather own the software than rent it.
- Your footage is old: VHS or camcorder tape, DVDs, 8mm scans, phone clips from the 2010s, old uploads.
- You're on Linux.
- You want the restore to stay faithful to what was filmed, not invent a new face.
- You don't own a gaming PC and just want a few clips done: Cloud Restore runs the same restoration on our GPUs and charges per clip.
When Topaz is the better pick
- You work on a Mac and want a desktop app. Phoenix doesn't have a macOS version yet.
- You need frame interpolation, slow motion or stabilisation alongside upscaling.
- You finish paid work and want a lot of manual control over every model.
If those are your jobs, Topaz earns its subscription. If the job is making old video watchable again, paying $299 every year for it is a lot of rent.
The honest test
Run the same short clip through both. Phoenix's free download restores 60-second clips, so pick a section with a face, some motion and a dark corner, and compare them full screen. That tells you more than any comparison page, this one included.
Questions
Is Topaz Video AI still a one-time purchase?
No. Topaz moved to subscriptions in 2025. Topaz Video is $59 a month or $299 a year, and the Topaz Studio bundle is $399 a year (topazlabs.com, September 2026). Older perpetual licences keep working but no longer get new models.
Did Adobe buy Topaz Labs?
Yes. Adobe completed its purchase of Topaz Labs on 23 September 2026. Adobe says Topaz stays its own brand with its own apps, and Topaz models also show up inside Adobe products such as Firefly and Photoshop. No price changes were announced when the deal closed.
Is Phoenix Upscaler a subscription?
No. It's $129 once, every future update is included, and you can install it on up to three of your own computers.
Does Phoenix run on a Mac?
Not yet. On a Mac, use Cloud Restore: upload a clip, see the price in dollars, pay for that one clip, and download the result.
Is Phoenix as good as Topaz?
On old, low-resolution footage, judge it on your own clip. The free download is there so you can compare the two side by side before paying anything. Phoenix aims for a clean, faithful picture rather than invented detail.
Related: How to restore old video · VHS restoration software · Old phone videos · AI upscaling on AMD
Compare on your own clip
The right test is your footage. Restore a minute of it for free and decide from what you see.
Download Phoenix