What to know 

  • Midjourney offers two new upscaling options – Upscale (2x) and Upscale (4x), that can increase the size of the original image beyond 1024 x 1024 pixels.
  • You can access them by first generating an image, selecting any one of the upscale options (U1-U4) and then selecting either Upscale (2x) or Upscale (4x) to increase the size of the original image.
  • Upscale (2x) doubles the size of your image from 1024 x 1024 pixels to 2048 x 2048 pixels.
  • Upscale (4x) lets you increase the size by four times, from 1024 x 1024 pixels to 4096 x 4096 pixels.
  • Check out the guide below with screenshots to learn more.

What is 2x and 4x upscale on Midjourney?

Midjourney has had an Upscale option ever since its image generation tool was available for use to the public. This option allowed users to generate a 1024 x 1024 pixel version of the selected image from the image grid (of 4 images) that you create using a prompt. 

With the latest update, Midjourney has upgraded the Upscale option to offer you more ways to increase the size of your image. The update offers two new options – Upscale (2x) and Upscale (4x).

  • Upscale (2x) lets you double the size of your image from 1024 x 1024 pixels to 2048 x 2048 pixels. 
  • Upscale (4x) lets you increase the size of your image by four times, from 1024 x 1024 pixels to 4096 x 4096 pixels. 

Like the regular Upscale option, the new Upscale (2x) and Upscale (4x) tools will also consume your Midjourney account’s GPU minutes. The amount of GPU minutes consumed will be different depending on the size you choose, but we’ll discuss more on that further below.

Related: Midjourney Transparent Background: Step-by-step Guide and Tips

How to increase the size of your Midjourney image with 2x and 4x Upscale

The process of upscaling an image to 2x and 4x scales is pretty straightforward. All you need to get started is an existing image generation, i.e., the image grid that has already been generated by a prompt you entered inside Midjourney. Once you find the image you want to upscale, you need to upscale it using the existing Upscale option and then use the new Upscale (2x) and Upscale (4x) on the upscaled image. To make things easy, you can follow the steps in the order that we’ve listed below to successfully update images to 2x and 4x scales on Midjourney. 

Step 1: Find an image you want to upscale

To get started, open the Midjourney server, Bot, or your Discord DM where you created the existing set of images and locate the images you previously generated.

You can skip the next set of instructions if you’ve already generated images you want to upscale and move to Step 2 of this guide.

In case you want to start from scratch and generate new images, open any of Midjourney’s servers or the Midjourney Bot on your server or Discord DM. Regardless of where you access Midjourney, click on the text box at the bottom. Here, type /imagine and select the /imagine option from the menu.

Now, enter your desired prompt inside the “prompt” box to request Midjourney to create the original images, and then press the Enter key on your keyboard.

Midjourney will now process your input prompt and create a set of 4 images based on your prompt. 

Once you’ve located the image or created an image that you want to regenerate using Midjourney’s inpainting tool, you can proceed to the next step to upscale your desired image in step 2 below. 

Related: What is the Raw Mode in Midjourney

Step 2: Upscale the preferred image in 1x scale

Once you’ve generated a set of images or located an existing one, you need to first upscale one of the images from the selected image grid to the original 1024 x 1024 pixel size before you can upscale it further. To do this, click on the corresponding upscale option, any one of U1 – U4 underneath the image grid that Midjourney generated. For better understanding, selecting U1 will upscale the first image from the grid, U2 will do the second image, and so on. 

When you choose an image for upscaling, Midjourney will instantly process your request and show you the upscaled version (1024 x 1024 pixels) of the selected image. You can then move on to the next step to upscale the selected image to a larger size. 

Related: 7 Ways to Make Photorealistic Images on Midjourney

Step 3: Use Upscale 2x and Upscale 4x on the upscaled image 

When the image you selected above is upscaled once, you’ll be able to upscale it to 2x and 4x sizes using the options that show up underneath the original upscaled image. 

To upscale the original image to double its size to 2048 x 2048 pixels, click on Upscale (2x) below the generated image. 

To upscale the original image to four times its original size to 4096 x 4096 pixels, click on Upscale (4x) below the generated image. 

Regardless of the upscale option you choose, Midjourney will now process your request and start upscaling the image. 

Once upscaling is complete, you should be able to see the upscaled image on the screen.

To expand this image, click on it and then click on Open in Browser. 

The upscaled image will now open in a new tab where you can zoom in to check for details or flaws in the image. You can also download the upscaled image by right-clicking here and selecting Save Image. 

If you’re not satisfied with the upscaled image, you can redo the upscaling in the same scale or a different scale by going back to the main Midjourney tab on your browser. From the options underneath the upscaled image, you can select any of these two options – Redo Upscale (2x) or Redo Upscale (4x) to request Midjourney to slightly tweak the upscaled image. 

These above options will only output images at 2048 x 2048 pixels and 4096 x 4096 pixels respectively, not beyond that. Redoing upscale on the same image doesn’t increase its image size, the action will only upscale the image all over again. 

Related: 3 Ways to Upload an Image to Midjourney

How much time does Midjourney take to upscale images to 2x and 4x scales?

Midjourney will consume GPU minutes from your subscription when you generate an image grid using prompts and upscale the generated image. Regular upscaling, i.e., creating a 1024 x 1024 pixel version of an image, may roughly take a minute of the GPU time from your Midjourney account.

The time taken for further upscaling will be significantly more, so you need to keep in mind that your subscription has sufficient GPU minutes left to use the Upscale (2x) or Upscale (4x) option. 

Midjourney explains that the Upscale (2x) option should take roughly twice as long as generating an initial image grid, which is at least 2 minutes of GPU time. The Upscale (4x) option, on the other hand, would take roughly six times as long as generating an initial image grid, i.e., at least 6 GPU minutes. 

The above calculation is to be taken into account when you use the Upscale option with Fast Mode enabled. Midjourney’s documentation states that the new Upscale (2x) and Upscale (4x) options are currently only available while in Fast Mode.

However, the company has enabled the use of these upscale options on Relax mode as well, but for a limited period as shared in this Discord message. These options will only be available temporarily as long as Midjourney’s servers can handle the load but this may change soon. 

As of October 21, 2023, you can use the Upscale (2x) and Upscale (4x) options without consuming GPU minutes by enabling Relax mode. You can enable Relax Mode on your Midjourney account by typing /relax and clicking on the /relax option inside Midjourney’s Discord server. To learn more about Relax mode, check out the post below.

▶︎ Midjourney Modes Explained: What Are Fast, Relax, and Turbo Modes on Midjourney?

What happens when you use 2x and 4x upscale inside Midjourney (Comparisons)?

When you use the new Upscale options, Midjourney will try to keep the details on the new images as close as possible to the original image. The upscaling is very subtle and it wouldn’t fix glitches or issues with the original image.

When you use Upscale (2x), the size of the image will change from 1024 x 1024 pixels to 2048 x 2048 pixels. Similarly, when using the Upscale (4x) option, the size of the original image will be modified from 1024 x 1024 pixels to 4096 x 4096 pixels. 

Case 1: A modern house

Original prompt: A modern house sitting on an island in a pond surrounded by mountains

  • Original image (1024 x 1024 pixels)
  • Upscale 2x (2048 x 2048 pixels)
  • Upscale 4x (4096 x 4096 pixels)

In this example, Midjourney does a good job of preserving the details of the original image when generating the 2x and 4x upscaled versions. The overall detailing of the house, its reflections on the water surface, and the mountains in the background have been enhanced in the upscaled images. 

Case 2: A glass jar terrarium

Original prompt: A glass jar terrarium filled with many flowering plants –no artificial lighting

  • Original image (1024 x 1024 pixels)
  • Upscale 2x (2048 x 2048 pixels)
  • Upscale 4x (4096 x 4096 pixels)

All the aspects of the original image have been well preserved in the upscaled versions. You may notice some weird artifacts when you zoom in on the glass jar but the surrounding details remain intact. 

Related: How to Use Negative Prompts on Midjourney

Case 3: An intricate Mughal architecture

Original prompt: Karen Knorr’s photograph of a room inside a Mughal architecture with intricate details –no birds

  • Original image (1024 x 1024 pixels)
  • Upscale 2x (2048 x 2048 pixels)
  • Upscale 4x (4096 x 4096 pixels)

For the most part, the upscaled versions of the original image have been resized identically. You may, however, see some differences in the tiny intricate designs that are inscribed on the walls above when comparing the 2x and 4x versions. 

Case 4: The Grand Canal

Original prompt: a vivid painting of the grand canal at venice

  • Original image (1024 x 1024 pixels)
  • Upscale 2x (2048 x 2048 pixels)
  • Upscale 4x (4096 x 4096 pixels)

Upscale 2x and 4x do the best job when reproducing images that aren’t realistic like in this case. Being a painting, Midjourney has increased the details of various elements of the Grand Canal, the gondolas, and surrounding buildings. 

Case 5: A mosaic artwork

Original prompt: mosaic::5 estuary::2

  • Original image (1024 x 1024 pixels)
  • Upscale 2x (2048 x 2048 pixels)
  • Upscale 4x (4096 x 4096 pixels)

The upscaled versions of this mosaic-made art enhance the details on individual tiles and also define the outline of the horse and the woman significantly. 

That’s all you need to know about using the 2x and 4x upscale options inside Midjourney.