Free · No sign up for your first image

AI Old Photo Restorer: Fix and Colorize Family Photos
Change what you want. Keep what matters.

Upload a scan or a phone photo of an old print. The AI removes scratches, creases, stains and fading, rebuilds torn corners and can add natural color — while faces stay the same people. First restoration free, no account.

No sign up No added visible watermark Auto-delete in 24h Never used for training

What does your photo need?

1Upload image

2Choose change

3Generate

Step 1 · Add your image

Drop your image here

Drag & drop, paste, or choose from your device

Upload image

JPGPNGWebP≤ 10 MB

Private · auto-deleted in 24h

No photo handy? Try a sample

What do you want to change?

Pick one direction. Hold Frame will protect the important parts automatically.

We’ll detect what matters after you upload, then protect it automatically.

2 Choose one you can refine it below

Advanced settings Optional

Detected mode after upload

Keep protected recommended for this image

Change strength

Balanced — clear change, identity and layout stay stable.

Aspect ratio

✦ 1 free result as a guest · failed generations never count

Real before & after

Real before-and-after restorations made with this tool

The damaged originals are AI-generated old photos of fictional people; each result is this tool's actual output with the matching picker option. Compare the faces between the original and the result.

The control other tools hide

You don't pick a model. You pick what survives.

Most img2img tools give you one abstract “strength” slider. We turn it into decisions a human actually makes.

Keep — hard constraints

Locked items become explicit model instructions — and a region mask when you paint one. The AI regenerates the whole image using your photo as the reference, so compare locked details with the original before you publish.

Face — it's still the same person. Identity reference plus face-region protection.
Subject — the product, pet or object keeps its shape, logo and key details.
Composition — pose and layout stay put via structure and depth control.
Text & Logo — the model is told to keep lettering and logos as they are; fine print can still change, so check it.

Change — creative freedom

One tap per intent. Each chip compiles into a structured instruction with the right negative constraints.

Style — anime, watercolor, film, 3D, oil paint and 40+ more.
Background — a new scene behind an untouched subject.
Outfit — swap clothing while the person stays the person.
Lighting — golden hour, studio, neon night, overcast.

Subtle

Light touch: tone, light, small edits. Routed to precise editing models.

Balanced

The default. Obvious change with stable identity and layout.

Creative

Big reimagining. Structure loosens — fine details may drift, on purpose.

Three steps

From photo to finished image in under a minute

Upload & auto-detect

Drop any JPG, PNG or WebP. We recognize portraits, products, sketches and interiors, and pre-lock what usually matters for that kind of image.

Lock, describe, set strength

Toggle what to keep, tap what to change, pick Subtle, Balanced or Creative. No denoising values, no seed numbers, no model menus.

Compare, download, iterate

Slide before/after, download free with no added visible watermark, then keep editing the result with plain language — no re-upload needed.

One-tap starts

Prompt templates that fill the tool for you

Tap any template — it configures keep, change and strength, then scrolls you back to the studio.

Complete guide

How to restore an old photo with AI

Upload one old photo — a flatbed scan or a straight-on phone photo of the print — and tap what it needs: a clean black-and-white restore, restore plus color, faded-color correction, tear repair or sharper faces. The AI redraws the photo with the damage removed while Face lock keeps the people, expressions and pose as the reference. The first restoration is free with no sign-up.

In short

Hold Frame's AI old photo restorer repairs a scanned or phone-photographed old print in about 20 seconds: it removes scratches, dust, creases, cracks and stains, fixes faded or color-cast prints, rebuilds torn-off corners and can colorize black-and-white photos with natural colors. Face lock tells the model to keep every face, expression and pose the same, but this is generative restoration (Google Gemini 3.1 Flash Image redraws the photo with yours as the reference), so small facial details can shift — keep the original scan and compare. Your first restoration is free with no sign-up and no added watermark; after that it costs 5 credits per image ($2.99 buys 3, $6 buys 10), one-time. People also search for it as old photo restoration, restore old photos, old photo restoration AI, fix old photos, colorize old photos, repair damaged photos, photo restoration AI free.

Facts checked October 10, 2026.

AI Old Photo Restorer: what you get

Free to try	First standard (about 1K) result free as a guest — no sign-up, no credit card, no app download. Failed generations don't count.
After the free result	5 credits per standard image. One-time packs: $6 for 50 credits (10 images) or $12 for 125. Plans: $9/month for 100, $19/month for 250; credits carry over.
Watermark	No visible watermark is added. The model provider's invisible provenance mark (SynthID) is not removed.
Original pixels kept?	For background changes, yes: with "Keep subject pixels exactly" (on by default for product photos, one tick for people) the original product or person is cut out in your browser and pasted back pixel-for-pixel; only the background is AI — same price. Other edits are regenerated by the image model (Google Gemini 3.1 Flash Image) with your photo as the reference, so compare locked details.
Best for	Quick, controlled edits from one photo when you want to try several directions before committing.
Not the right tool for	Pixel-exact compositing (use layer masks in Photoshop) or editing dozens of images in one batch.

What you can make

Family albums

Clean up grandparents' portraits, weddings and childhood snapshots before printing or sharing them with relatives.

Genealogy and memorials

Prepare a clearer copy of an ancestor's photo for a family tree, a funeral slideshow or an anniversary card.

Faded 70s and 80s prints

Remove the orange or magenta cast that drugstore prints develop and bring back natural skin tones.

How to get a controlled result

A three-step workflow for AI Old Photo Restorer

Get a clean copy of the print

Scan it, or photograph it flat in daylight without flash. Crop to the photo — the less table and glare, the better the result.

Tap what it needs

Restore in black and white, restore and colorize, fix faded colors, repair tears or sharpen faces. You can edit the description before generating.

Compare faces, then save

Check eyes, mouths and hands against the original. If something drifted, lower strength to Subtle and generate again — failures are refunded.

Prompt examples

Copy one as a starting point, then change only the details that matter to your image.

Restore this old photograph: remove scratches, dust, creases, cracks, mould spots and stains, rebuild torn or missing areas so they match the surrounding print, recover contrast and sharpen gently. Keep it black and white (or sepia if it is sepia) with a fine natural film grain. Keep every face, expression, hairstyle, pose, clothing and the framing exactly the same — do not beautify, modernise, slim or change anyone's age, and do not invent new people or objects.

Common problems and fixes

Use these checks before increasing change strength or adding more instructions.

A face looks different. Lower strength to Subtle, keep Faces locked and use Restore, keep B&W before trying color.

Colors look wrong. Name the colors you know in the description, e.g. 'navy suit, white dress, red brick house'.

The table or glare is in the result. Crop to the print before uploading and photograph it without flash.

The engine declined the photo. Some photos are declined by the safety checks. Declined or failed generations don't use your free try or credits.

Continue the workflow

Related tools for the next edit

AI Image Upscaler

Enlarge the restored photo for printing.

Photo Editing Prompts

Trending photo edits you can apply in one tap.

Change Background, Keep the Person

Swap the background while the person's pixels stay exactly the same.

AI Halloween costume generator (couples too)

Try on Halloween costumes from one photo — or a couple costume from two.

Ghosts filter effect (ghost prank)

The TikTok ghost prank on any photo — your pixels stay untouched.

Add a ghost to a photo

Place a realistic ghost anywhere in a photo — the people stay untouched.

AI 80s photo trend

1980s yearbook, family album or mall studio portrait — from one selfie.

Private by default

Your images and results are never public. No gallery, no indexable links.

Auto-delete in 24h

Anonymous uploads and results are wiped within 24 hours, automatically.

Never trained on

We don't use your uploads to train models. Not opt-out — it just doesn't happen.

Delete instantly

One click removes the source and every result. Download links die with it.

Simple pricing

A free first result. Credits when you need more.

5 credits per successful standard 1K image — including background changes with "Keep subject pixels exactly". Two more takes cost up to 10 credits. Failed images are refunded. One-time packs need no account to pay; new accounts get 5 free credits once.

Compare all credit plans and usage costs

Loading prices…

Subscriptions renew monthly and add credits after each successful payment. Packs are one-time purchases, available with or without a subscription. Unused credits carry over and remain after cancellation. No automatic pack purchases.

Honest limits

What AI still gets wrong — and what we do about it

No “100% accurate” promises. Here's the truth, and the workaround.

Faces can drift at Creative strength. If it stops looking like you, drop to Balanced or Subtle — Face lock works hardest there.

Hands and fingers remain the hardest thing in AI imaging. Keep them out of the change region when you can.

Tiny text and fine logos may blur or change. Turn on Text & Logo lock and compare them against the original before publishing.

Complex textures like lace, fur or micro-patterns can simplify. Subtle strength preserves them best.

Big scene swaps can nudge edges of the composition. Lock Composition and expect minor boundary shifts, not layout changes.

Failed generations happen. Timeouts and moderation blocks are labeled clearly and never consume your free quota.

FAQ

Questions, answered straight

Is the AI old photo restorer free?

Your first restoration is free with no sign-up, no credit card and no added watermark. After that each image costs 5 credits: $2.99 buys 3 images and $6 buys 10, one-time with no subscription. Failed generations are refunded.

Can it colorize black-and-white photos?

Yes. Tap Restore + colorize. The colors are a plausible guess from the scene and the era — the AI cannot know the real color of a dress or a car — so treat colorized photos as an interpretation, not a record.

Will my grandparents still look like themselves?

Face lock tells the model to keep every face, expression and pose, and on most prints people stay clearly recognizable. But the photo is redrawn, not retouched pixel by pixel, so small details such as eyes or teeth can shift. Compare with the original and try Balanced or Subtle strength if a face changes.

How do I scan an old photo with my phone?

Lay the print flat in even daylight, avoid flash and reflections, hold the phone parallel to the photo and fill the frame. Crop off the table before uploading. A flatbed scan at 600 dpi is even better.

Can it fix torn corners and missing pieces?

Yes, tap Repair tears & folds. The model rebuilds missing paper to match the surrounding tone and grain. A missing part of a face is invented, not recovered, so check it closely.

What resolution is the result?

About 1K (roughly 1024 px on the long side) for the free and standard result. Signed-in users can regenerate at native 2K when it's available.

Is it OK to upload family photos?

Yes. Uploads are processed only to make the result and are not used to train models. Only upload photos you have the right to edit.

Are my photos used for training?

No. Uploads are processed to make the result and are not used to train models.

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Start from your exact job

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