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Your photo

For the best result
  • A black-and-white or sepia photo
  • Tell us colors you know in the box, e.g. "her dress was red"
  • JPG, PNG or WebP, up to 10 MB

Colors

0/500

Free to try, no sign-up

Colorize Photo

Colorize photo scans from black-and-white or sepia with AI. Your first image is free, no sign-up.

Original: Black-and-white photo of a man in his early 40s: NaturalBefore
Colorize Photo result: Black-and-white photo of a man in his early 40s: NaturalAfter

Example result. Upload your photo to make yours.

Colorize Photo result

Colorize Photo Prints, Starting From the Colors You Know

Upload a black-and-white or sepia photo and get a full-color version back.

This tool redraws a grayscale or sepia photo in color. It guesses the colors of skin, hair, sky and clothing from what the picture shows, then paints them in.

A guess is all any tool can make, because the original colors are not stored in a black-and-white photo. That is why the page has a box for the colors you already know, like a red dress or a light blue car. Whatever you leave out, the AI fills in.

The people in the photo are meant to stay as they are: same faces, expressions and clothing style. The result appears next to your original so you can compare the two.

Good inputs are family portraits, wedding photos, school pictures, street scenes and sepia prints. Each run gives you one color image to download, at about 1024 pixels on the long side.

Made for

  • Family photos
  • Grandparents' portraits
  • Old school pictures
  • Wedding photos
  • Street scenes
  • Sepia prints

Pick a Palette, Then Correct the Colors You Know

Three palettes set the overall look. Natural aims for true-to-life skin, hair, sky and surroundings, as the scene would really have looked. Vivid gives richer color, like a modern color photo. Vintage Film goes soft and slightly faded, like a period color film.

When you colorize a photo, the box under the presets is added to your request. Write what you remember, such as "her dress was red and the car was light blue", up to 500 characters. A note about a color can change the palette's default for that item, so write only what you are sure of.

The colors are a believable interpretation, not a record. If a dress color matters to the family, put it in the box and compare the result with what you know.

Prepare the Scan Before You Colorize a Photo

Because your first image is free and counts for the whole site, spend it on the best file you have. A flat, well-lit scan of the print gives the AI the most to work from: faces, fabric and background should all be readable.

Scratches, tears and heavy fading are not repaired by this tool. For a badly damaged print, use the Photo Restoration tool and choose Colorize B&W to repair and colorize it in one run.

If a corner of the photo is cut off or a face is turned away, tell the AI what is there in the box instead of leaving it to guess.

How to Colorize a Photo in Three Steps

  1. 1

    Upload the black-and-white photo

    Drop in a JPG, PNG or WebP up to 10 MB. Sepia photos work too. One photo per run.

  2. 2

    Choose a palette and name the colors you know

    Pick Natural, Vivid or Vintage Film. In the box, add colors you remember, like "her dress was red".

  3. 3

    Colorize, compare and download

    Press Colorize Photo. The result shows next to the original, so you can check faces, clothing and sky before you download it. The free image is one run, so check the colors you typed before you press the button.

Frequently asked questions

Your first image is free, no sign-up needed (one per visitor). After that there is no paid plan yet, and a dialog lets you leave an email for when more images are available.

It looks at what the photo shows, such as faces, clothing, sky and plants, and paints colors that fit those things. The colors are a plausible guess, since a black-and-white photo does not record the original ones. Treat the result as one believable version of the scene.

Not necessarily. The AI cannot know the true color of a dress or a car. If you know it, write it in the box (for example "the car was light blue") and check the result against your memory or other records.

Yes, by describing it before you run. The box under the presets takes up to 500 characters and is added to your request. Because the free image is one run, there is no second pass to fix a color afterward, so describe the dress, car or sky color you know up front.

The tool aims to keep the same faces, expressions, age and clothing style. It is an AI redraw, so look at the original beside the result and check faces before you save it.

Yes. Sepia and black-and-white photos are both accepted, and the result aims to leave no grey or sepia areas behind.

No, it is built to add color, not to repair a damaged print. For scratches, tears and heavy fading, use Photo Restoration and choose Colorize B&W to repair and colorize it in one run. A clean, flat scan gives the best colors.

JPG, PNG or WebP, up to 10 MB, one photo at a time. The result is one image at about 1024 pixels on the long side.

Your photo is only used to create your images and is never used to train AI models. The photo goes to the AI model provider, which keeps the result for a limited time so you can download it.

Choose Natural for family and portrait photos, where skin tones and clothing should look true to life. Vivid suits street scenes and landscapes that should feel like a modern photo. Vintage Film gives a soft, faded look. Only one palette applies per run.

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