For stores that print customer photos on mugs, badges, canvases and posters.
The photo badge after the AI upscale, ready to Process. Demo capture.
In short
What this does for your store
Effective PPI: the real pixels per inch of an image at the size it will print. A 640 px wide photo printed 2 in wide has 320 effective PPI; printed 8 in wide it has 80.
- Runs in
- The buyer's designer
- Factors
- 2x or 4x
- Engines
- Lanczos or Real-ESRGAN
- Checked against
- Plugin 2.17
The business moment
Why does a sharp photo print soft?
Screens forgive low resolution. Print does not. The same phone photo can look fine at 2 in and blurry at 8 in, and the buyer cannot tell which until the parcel arrives.
- A buyer uploads a small web image and places it on a large product.
- The file's DPI label says 300, but the pixels are too few for the print size, so the label proves nothing.
- Staff spot it late and ask for a bigger file the buyer does not have.
- Upscaling in a separate tool means another upload, another export and another delay.
How it works inside WooCommerce
How a low-resolution photo is rescued
The designer measures the image at the product's print size, then upscales only if the verdict says so.
- Buyer places a photoIn the plugin today
- Preflight reads effective PPIIn the plugin today
- Upscale 2x or 4xLanczos or Real-ESRGAN · In the plugin today
- Re-checkIn the plugin today
- Order and print fileIn the plugin today
- Batch upscale of a whole catalogueCustom development
-
Measure at print size
Print Resolution Check: 184 effective PPI against 300 DPI recommended on a 2.74 x 2.73 in print gives a caution.
-
Choose 2x or 4x
Upscale image on a mug: 2x or 4x for a 640 x 360 px photo, with the low-resolution notice visible.
-
Preview the result
The upscale result with Apply upscaled image.
-
Re-check
After the upscale the check reads 409 PPI against 300 DPI recommended.
Real captures from the Cmsmart demo store (order #1670 and test products). Customers, orders and data are demo data.
Requirements
What resolution does print need?
The arithmetic is yours; the minimums come from printers. Two published examples are below.
| Item | Value | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Effective PPI | Image pixels divided by the print size in inches | Arithmetic |
| DTG apparel and similar | 150 DPI minimum; 300 DPI for phone cases and stickers | Printful DTG file guide, checked 6 October 2026 |
| DTF transfers | 300 DPI at 1:1 print scale; the guide advises against upscaling after the fact | Printify DTF guide, checked 6 October 2026 |
| Cmsmart upscale factors | 2x or 4x | Cmsmart plugin 2.17 |
| Cmsmart engines | Lanczos (default, for line art and text) and Real-ESRGAN (for photos, slower, uses more tokens) | Cmsmart plugin 2.17 |
| Auto-suggest | Offered when a raster is scaled past a threshold or a side is under 700 px; PDF and vector layers are skipped | Cmsmart plugin 2.17 |
The auto-suggest is a size rule of thumb, not a DPI check. The DPI verdict comes from Preflight.
Recommended settings
Recommended upscale settings by artwork type
Every option below exists in plugin 2.17. The recommendation is our starting point; test it on your own artwork.
| Setting | Start with | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Engine for logos, line art, text | Lanczos (the default) | Keeps hard edges clean and is the lighter option. |
| Engine for photos | Real-ESRGAN | Built for photographic detail; slower and uses more tokens. |
| Factor | 2x first; 4x only if the re-check still fails | The smallest factor that clears the required DPI. |
| Required DPI | Your printer's published minimum | The re-check compares against it. |
| Re-check after upscaling | Always | It shows the new effective PPI before the order. |
Cost
How is it paid for?
AI runs on tokens from the store owner's Cmsmart wallet, so your buyers never see a charge. Tokens come with a monthly plan and the balance resets at each renewal. This page does not print a per-use cost; the live plans and balance are on AI credits and in your dashboard.
Comparison
Ways to raise image resolution for print
Written by the Cmsmart team, who make this tool. Competitor facts come from vendor pages, checked on 6 October 2026; anything a page does not state is marked as not stated.
| Question | Cmsmart in your own store | Free desktop upscaler | Commercial desktop upscaler | Online print-resolution tools |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Where it runs | In the buyer's designer on Cmsmart Cloud | On your computer (Upscayl is open source) | On your computer (Topaz Gigapixel) | In a browser or editor (Let's Enhance, Kittl) |
| Who does the work | The buyer, at the print size | Your staff | Your staff | The buyer or staff, outside your store |
| Factors | 2x or 4x | Up to 16x | Up to 16x | Kittl: output up to 4096 x 4096, input at least 256 x 256 |
| Batch | No | Yes | Not stated here | Not stated here |
| Pricing model | Tokens from your Cmsmart wallet | Free (desktop) | Subscription plans | Per vendor |
| Best for | Customer photos inside your own order flow | Bulk or offline work | Photographers and studios | One-off images |
Where the others win
- Upscayl and Topaz reach higher factors and work in batches; Cmsmart stops at 4x and has no batch mode.
- Desktop tools work offline and give your staff more control over each file.
- Let's Enhance publishes a page built around 300 DPI for print.
Sources (checked 6 October 2026): Upscayl · Topaz Gigapixel · Let's Enhance print page · Kittl AI image upscaler. Product names are trademarks of their owners.
Be clear before you start
What does it not do?
- Upscaling cannot add detail that the camera never captured; a very small image stays a small image.
- Only 2x and 4x are offered, and there is no batch mode.
- The automatic suggestion is a size heuristic, not a DPI check. Use Preflight for the verdict.
- PDF and vector layers are not upscaled.
- For DTF, the Printify guide advises against upscaling after the fact; use it as a rescue after a preflight verdict, not as a habit.
Go further with custom development
Need more than the plugin does today?
We build these as scoped projects on your WooCommerce store, tracked in WorkSuite like every client project. Talk to an ecommerce expert and we will quote it.
- Batch upscaling of existing catalogue artwork
- A fixed engine per product family
- Automatic rejection below a floor resolution
- Upscale hand-off to your own pipeline
Real numbers, real clients
Trusted by store owners in 80+ countries
What we have delivered since 2012, and what customers say about working with us.
- 6,300+ client projects since 2012
- 4,600+ projects delivered since 2012
- 1,800+ live stores online now
- 80+ countries clients worldwide
- 500+ custom development projects since 2012
- 120+ engagements running 5+ years ongoing support
Since 2012 · a Netbase JSC company · as of Sep 2026 · source: WorkSuite project records
Rated by customers on third-party sites (as of Sep 2026)
Teams in 80+ countries run their ecommerce projects with Cmsmart
The website is very well made. However, I would like to point out the quick response of the staff, especially Ms. Andrea, who solved all our problems very quickly and kindly. Thanks.
Juš Jordan Kondić
Verified on Trustpilot
NBDesigner is a very robust plugin for printing shops. It may take a bit of time to learn, as I am, but the support team is there to help. I've been in printing 30 years and I am impressed with how the developers have thought this plugin through. It has everything.
Pamela Redman
Verified on Trustpilot
Plug in is so good. Please make toturial video step by step. Selena answered the question well, but I wish it had been faster.
วชิระ เชื้อผู้ดี
Verified on Trustpilot
Read more testimonials Delivered & maintained with WorkSuite: tickets, tasks, milestones and invoices in one place. See how it works
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Rescue low-resolution photos before they reach the press
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