Topaz Video AI Review, Pricing & Alternatives (2026)

Topaz Video is a Windows and macOS desktop application from Topaz Labs for improving existing footage rather than replacing a general video editor. Its predecessor, Video AI, became a discontinued legacy product in September 2025, when Topaz introduced the new application through Topaz Studio. The change affects branding and licensing. Existing Video AI customers retain their purchased version, while the current application requires a subscription. Topaz does not publish a founding year, funding total, or user count on the cited product pages. The software targets restoration and finishing work, including footage needing enlargement, denoising, stabilization, or frame-rate conversion. It is best treated as a specialist processor before editing, color, sound, and delivery.

A typical workflow starts with importing a clip, choosing an enhancement model, setting the output resolution or frame rate, previewing a section, and rendering the result. Topaz lists workflows for upscaling, denoising, deinterlacing, stabilization, slow motion, frame interpolation, and SDR to HDR conversion. Available models include Proteus, Iris, Nyx, Rhea, Artemis, Gaia, Theia, Apollo, Chronos, Aion, Themis, and Starlight variants. Local rendering keeps source media on the computer, although diffusion models can take a long time with demanding footage. Cloud rendering is available through monthly video credits on listed plans. Editors will usually send rendered clips to Premiere Pro, DaVinci Resolve, or another non-linear editor for cutting, color, sound, and final delivery.

Topaz Video 1.0.0 launched in September 2025 with Nyx XL denoising, Starlight Sharp, a general enhancement preset, and live frame preview. Later documentation describes Starlight Precise 2.6, which replaced 2.5 in release 1.7.0 with three selectable sharpness levels, improved temporal consistency, and claimed local speed improvements of up to 15 percent. The current product page lists Starlight Precise, Starlight Mini, Proteus, Iris, Nyx, Rhea, Rhea XL, Artemis, Gaia, Theia, Apollo, Chronos, Aion, Themis, SDR to HDR, and stabilization. Topaz Video AI 7.1.5 is frozen and receives no new models. Topaz Video requires monthly authentication and one active computer, while the legacy license supports two computers and six months of offline use.

Topaz Video costs $59 per month, and the pricing page also presents a $299 annual payment option. The individual plan includes unlimited local rendering and 25 monthly video cloud credits, giving users a choice between local processing and metered cloud work. Credits expire at the end of each month and do not roll over, so cloud-heavy workflows need regular planning. Personal licensing permits commercial use for organizations below $1 million in annual revenue, while larger organizations require a Professional license. Topaz Studio costs $69 per month after its introductory period and includes all listed Topaz applications, unlimited local rendering, and 300 monthly video cloud credits. The pricing page does not list a free tier for Topaz Video, and legacy Video AI is no longer sold.

Topaz Video is narrower than DaVinci Resolve, Adobe Premiere Pro, or CyberLink PowerDirector because it concentrates on enhancement instead of timeline editing, color, audio, and delivery. It also needs capable hardware for demanding local models, while cloud credits add a separate usage constraint. Subscription access ends when the paid term expires, unlike a qualifying legacy Video AI license, which remains usable at its owned version. Starlight Precise has resolution, hardware, and render-time limits, and diffusion models are unsuitable for every damaged clip. Choose Topaz Video for dedicated restoration and new models, DaVinci Resolve for integrated editing and finishing, Premiere Pro for a broader professional timeline workflow, or PowerDirector for an all-in-one consumer suite.