Colorize B&W Photo
Colorize Black and White Photos
Turn black-and-white and sepia photos into natural color with AI. The AI Photo Colorizer chooses believable skin tones, skies and clothing, and can repair scratches and fading at the same time.
- Black-and-white and sepia
- Restore and color in one pass
- Free color fine-tuning
How it works
- 1
Upload your photo
Drop a scan or photo of the print into the box above. JPG, PNG and WebP files all work.
- 2
Pick a mode
Standard lets you switch restoration and colorization on or off separately. Advanced restores detail and adds color together in one pass.
- 3
Compare and download
Check the colorized photo against the original, fine-tune colors with the free adjustment tools, and export it.
What people use it for
Family portraits
See grandparents and great-grandparents in color for the first time, and share the result with relatives.
Genealogy projects
Add color to photos in family trees, ancestry albums and printed family histories.
History lessons and research
Bring historical scenes closer to life for presentations, class projects and local history books.
Black-and-white film
Try a color version of a shot taken on monochrome film or with a black-and-white camera setting.
Gifts and prints
Print a colorized wedding or childhood photo next to the original as a then-and-now gift.
Throwback posts
Share an old photo in color on social media and let your followers compare it with the original.
Natural color, not a tint
A color filter washes the whole photo in one tone. The AI Photo Colorizer recognizes what is in the picture, such as faces, hair, sky, foliage, fabric and buildings, and gives each its own plausible color while keeping the original detail and composition.
Standard or Advanced mode
Standard mode has separate Photo Restorer and Photo Colorizer switches, so you can colorize a clean scan without changing anything else, or repair damage as well. Advanced mode restores detail and color together in a single pass, which suits faded and scratched prints. You can also choose the AI model in the panel.
Colors are an informed guess
A black-and-white photo does not record the original colors, so the AI picks the most likely ones. Skin, sky and grass usually look right, but a dress, a car or a painted door may have been a different color in real life. If you know the true color, adjust it afterwards with the free color and HSL tools in the same editor.
Tips for better results
Start from the sharpest scan you have, ideally 600 dpi or more, and crop away borders and the scanner bed. Photos with clear, well-lit faces colorize most convincingly. If the print is damaged, use Advanced mode or keep Photo Restorer switched on.
Frequently asked questions
Quick answers about pricing, privacy and how the editor works. You can also try the free tools first and decide later.
How do I colorize a black and white photo?
Upload the photo on this page, choose Standard or Advanced mode in the Colorize panel, and run it. The AI colors the whole photo, and you can compare it with the original before downloading.
Are the colors historically accurate?
Not always. The AI chooses realistic colors based on what it recognizes, but it cannot know the exact color of a specific dress or car. Treat the result as a lifelike interpretation and correct known colors with the editor's adjustment tools.
Can it colorize sepia photos?
Yes. Sepia and other toned prints are colorized the same way as black-and-white photos.
Can I fix scratches while colorizing?
Yes. Keep Photo Restorer switched on in Standard mode, or use Advanced mode to restore detail and color together in one pass.
Is the photo colorizer free?
Uploading and the editor's basic tools are free. Each colorization runs on Codia AI and uses credits from your Codia account, so you will be asked to sign in before the first one.
Are my photos uploaded?
Not when you open them. Photos pass from this page to the editor inside your browser, and free tools process them on your device. A photo is uploaded only when you run an AI tool on it or save the project to your Codia account.
Do I need an account?
No account is needed to open photos and use the free tools. You will be asked to sign in when you run an AI tool or want to keep projects in your account.
Related tools
Ready to edit?
Open the editor on its own and add photos there, or drop them into the box at the top of this page.
Open Colorize B&W Photo