Ungray vs ChatGPT
ChatGPT can colorize an old photo in a single prompt, for free, and it keeps getting better. The difference is how: ChatGPT generates a new image from your photo, while Ungray adds color to the original. For family photos, that difference matters.
Choose ChatGPT if…
you want a quick, free one-off, or to restore, crop, remove scratches and colorize in one conversation, and small changes to the image don't matter.
Choose Ungray if…
every face and detail must stay exactly as photographed, you need your full scan resolution, you have many photos or films, or you don't want uploads used for training.
Good to know
OpenAI labels ChatGPT images as AI-generated (C2PA and SynthID). Ungray results are your original photo plus color.
At a glance
| Ungray | ChatGPT | |
|---|---|---|
| How it works | Keeps the lightness of every pixel of your photo and adds color only | Generates a new image from your photo and prompt; OpenAI notes edits "may extend beyond the area you selected" |
| Faces | Unchanged by design: light and shadow come from your original | OpenAI says Images 2.5 is "better at preserving the subjects", an improvement rather than a guarantee |
| Resolution | Your original resolution, any size; optional 2× or 4× upscale up to 120 MP | Not published for the app; the API allows up to 3840 px on an edge (8.3 MP), "experimental" above 2560×1440 |
| Free use | 10 previews a day (1024 px), no account; 3 full-resolution downloads with an account | Available on every tier, including Free; free users can upload 3 files a day, image limits unpublished |
| Paid | Packs from $5 for 20 photos (never expire) · Pro $9/mo | Go $8/mo · Plus $20/mo · Pro from $100/mo |
| Fix one color | Recolor: tap or brush the area, pick the exact color; nothing else changes | Ask in words; the whole image is regenerated |
| Many photos | Built for albums: drop photo after photo, credits per photo | One conversation at a time in the app; batch editing is available to developers through the API |
| Video | Video colorization with steady colors, $1/min at 1080p, first 15 s free | No; OpenAI's video model Sora is discontinued |
| Your uploads and training | Never used for training; deleted after 24 hours (videos 7 days) | On Free, Plus and Pro, content may be used to train models unless you turn off "Improve the model for everyone" |
| AI labeling | Not added yet (planned) | C2PA Content Credentials and a SynthID watermark on every image |
| Other edits | Colorize, recolor, upscale | Almost anything you can describe: repair, crop, restyle, combine |
| Who owns the result | You do | You do |
Why "generated" vs "colorized" matters
A generative model doesn't paint over your photo; it draws a new one that resembles it. Usually the resemblance is excellent, and it's improving with every model. But it isn't the original: a wrinkle, an eyebrow, the text on a sign or the pattern on a dress can come out slightly different, and in a portrait of someone you knew, small differences are what you notice. Reviewers caught earlier versions changing faces; OpenAI says the current model is better at preserving them.
Ungray works differently. It never touches the photo's lightness, the part that holds every face, crease and grain of film. It only adds the color channels on top. A wrong guess in Ungray is a wrong shade, which you can fix with Recolor, never a different person. More on why that matters.
Where ChatGPT is stronger
- Free and already there. If you use ChatGPT, colorizing a photo costs nothing extra.
- More than color. Repair tears, remove scratches, crop and colorize in one prompt.
- Provenance. Every image carries Content Credentials and an invisible watermark, so it can be identified as AI-made.
Where Ungray is different
- Your original, plus color. Not a lookalike: the same pixels of light and shadow, at the full resolution you scanned.
- Exact color control without regenerating anything.
- Made for whole albums and home movies, with steady colors from frame to frame.
- Private by default. We never train on your uploads, and they're deleted automatically.
Which should you choose?
For a quick, free one-off where a lookalike is fine, ChatGPT is convenient. For the family archive, for faces that must stay exactly as they were, and for film, use a colorizer that keeps your original: try Ungray free, no account needed.
Sources
All checked October 21, 2026: Introducing ChatGPT Images 2.5 · Images in ChatGPT · Image generation API guide (sizes, editing) · File uploads FAQ · How your data is used · Provenance signals (C2PA, SynthID, Sora) · Batch API · Terms of use. ChatGPT is a trademark of OpenAI; this page is our independent comparison.