How to Upscale Video in Premiere Pro with Two Methods
- Last updated on 2025-03-17
Table Of Content
Introduction
Whether you are a professional videographer or a casual social media user, people always like to watch and post videos in HD. You don't want to compromise on your video streaming quality when you have an HD/ UHD device display. So, to match the video quality of your old, low-resolution video with your modern device display, social media platforms, or YouTube, you must know how to upscale video in Premiere Pro.
How Does Premiere Pro Upscale Video?
Being one of the leading video editing suites, Adobe Premiere Pro offers an extensive video-transforming tool and techniques in its AI-supported latest Pro program. Among various AI-based video editing functions, including video resizing, audio mixing, animating effects, adding titles, automatic transcription, etc., Premiere Pro AI upscale functions are the most demanding ones to enhance video quality.
Before diving into the step directly, let's get a brief idea about how this tool works to upscale the video quality by increasing the pixels in each frame. Premiere Pro uses a simple algorithm to fill the gap based on adjacent pixels. To upscale a video from 1080p with 2 million pixels to 4K with 8 million pixels, you have to stretch 2 million pixels into a 3840x2160 frame, and there will be 6 million gaps to be filled.
How to Upscale Video in Premiere Pro?
So let's see how to upscale video in Premiere Pro using two methods: single video with low resolution and multiple video with mixed resolution.
Method 1: Upscale Single Video With Low Resolution
1.1 Prepare Video for Premiere Pro AI Upscale
To upscale 720p to 1080p in Premiere Pro, you have to prepare the video first, and then you should start the upscaling process. For this, you can stabilize the video if it is shaky, cut or crop any unwanted part, or do any other editing or customization.
This will help make the video upscaling process more accurate and seamless. After preparing your video, you must figure out the desired resolution size to which you want to upscale your prepared low-resolution video.
1.2 Upscale Video in Premiere Pro
Import your desired video into the program’s project bin option, then add it to the timeline by dragging it. Right-click on the video clip, then choose “Replace with After Effects Composition.”
In the After Effects Window go to the “Effects & Presets” > search for “Detail-Preserving Upscale” Effect option > add it to the video clip while dragging/ double clicking on it.
In the “Effects Control” Panel, you can select “Fit to Comp Width” to upscale the video clip by covering the width of the canvas. You can set the scale percentage to make the clip even larger, for example, 200% for 1080p to 4K upscaling and 300% for 720p to 4K upscaling.
Here, you can also customize your video with “Reduce Noise” to eliminate digital noise and “Details” to enhance the details in your video by default settings up to 50%.
Once you are done with your video upscaling process, head back to Premiere Pro, move to sequence, and select the entire timeline clip or any section for rendering. Next, export the video and make sure that the export setting matches the sequence settings.
Method 2: Upscale Multiple Video with Mixed Resolution
When you have multiple videos with mixed resolutions and want to convert them into one single streaming resolution, you can either upscale or downscale the resolution to match any of the resolutions of your multiple videos. For example, if you have two videos with 1080p and 4K resolution, you can select one resolution for the output. Since you are talking about methods of how to upscale 1080p to 4K Premiere Pro, you will see the steps of video upscaling to 4K of your mixed-resolution videos here.
In the Premier Pro Dashboard, open the project window where you have already imported your multiple videos with mixed resolutions. For example, here we are dealing with two videos with 1080p and 4K resolutions. We will match these two videos’ resolutions to 4K by upscaling.
Go to “File” > then “New” > “Sequence” >. The new sequence drop-down box will appear with presets of various resolution and framerate options. You have to select the preset that matches your desired output resolution. In our case, to upscale both videos to 4K, we selected the “RED” Preset because it has our desired resolution and frame rate.
After clicking on “RED” > click “HD 4K” > 4K HD 16×9 23,976. Here, 23,976 denotes the frame rate per second. Next, you have to give a name to your project in the “Sequence Name” Section at the bottom > click “OK”.
Next, Go to “Edit” at the upper left side horizontal panel > Preference > Media > get “Default Media Scaling” on the right side window > select the “Set to frame size” > click “OK” at the bottom.
Now, we drag our two video clips with 1080p and 4K to the timeline and see that both videos are upscaled in 4K. However, if you don't select the “Set to frame size” option beforehand, the video won't be scaled properly to match your desired frame size. So, to match the resolution and frame rate of both videos, you must select the “Set to frame rate” option before adding the video to the timeline.
However, if you haven't selected this option beforehand, you can also select it after adding the videos to the timeline. To do this, right-click on your required video > select the “Set to frame size” Option. You will get similar results by matching the same resolution and frame size of your multiple videos.
You can also customize the “Scale” of your video clip by clicking on the “Effect Control” On the top horizontal function bar > see the “Scale” Option under the “Motion” option. Here, you can set your desired scale parameters of individual video clips depending on your requirements.
Go back to the “Sequence” and for rending export the newly edited video in your preferred format.
Best Premiere Pro Alternative: UniFab Video Enhancer AI
Upscaling videos manually can be time-consuming. With UniFab AI Video Enhancer, you can rely on AI automation—no technical skills needed. Just install it on Windows or Mac, and start instant, automatic upscaling.
This AI Video Enhancer offers two dedicated models, Universal & Animation models, to upscale video with clear and crisp video quality. While upscaling video, this tool analyzes each frame and enhances every detail to produce the best results. With its AI-based versatile video upscaling function, this tool is perfect for personal, professional, and commercial use. Now, to upscale video from any low resolution to 4K, 8K, or 16K, let's see the futuristic features that will take your poor-quality video to the next level of professional perfection.
Key Features of UniFab Video Enhancer
✅Universal Model: Here, you can upscale video while sharpening, restoring lost video details, and optimizing color without compromising the original video quality.
✅Animation Model: Using this dedicatedly designed model, you can upscale anime, cartoon, or motion graphics while integrating the artistic aesthetics of the animation. With edge enhancement and color optimization, it supports detail enrichment to preserve subtle details in characters and backgrounds.
✅Denoise Video: While upscaling any video, it removes the digital noise caused by over-compression, high ISO settings, low lighting, etc.
✅ Video Compression: Efficiently reduce video size without compromising quality.
✅Video Compression: Efficiently reduce video size without compromising quality.
✅Output Customization: You can customize various factors, such as codec, resolution, bit rate, etc., to get the best output in your video upscaling process.
✅Built-in Editor: It supports impressive video editing tools, including cropping, adding effects, adding a watermark, editing audio and subtitles, and controlling speed.
Steps to Upscale Videos in UniFab
After knowing the fascinating features of this AI tool, it's time for a real-time experience of these functions following the steps below.
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Download and open UniFab program on your PC > go to "All Features" to select the “Upscaler” mode > Upload your desired low-quality video file to UniFab's main interface for upscaling to 1080P/4K.
Start customizing the output file with quality, resolution, format, codec, etc.
After completing customization, choose the “Start” option to finish the video upscaling process from low quality to 1080P/4K.
Conclusion
When you want to enjoy all of your old memories stored in an old and poor-quality video on your HD device, you must know the best way of upscaling video. The step-by-step guide on how to upscale video in Premiere Pro will meet your needs. However, if you want to explore the most hassle-free video upscaling with AI automation, UniFab Video Enhancer AI is the ultimate option with professional perfection.
FAQs of Premiere Pro Upscale
Is it possible to upscale video in Premiere Pro?
Yes, it is possible to upscale video in Premiere Pro. You can increase the resolution of your footage using the "Scale" option in the Effect Controls panel or by changing the sequence settings to match the desired output resolution.
How to enhance video quality in Premiere Pro?
To enhance video quality in Premiere Pro, you can use various tools, including sharpening filters, color correction, denoising, and applying effects like the "Lumetri Color" panel to adjust brightness, contrast, and saturation. Additionally, you can use third-party plugins for more advanced enhancement options.
Can you upscale 1080p to 4K in Premiere Pro?
Yes, you can upscale 1080p to 4K in Premiere Pro. Simply set the sequence resolution to 4K, and scale the 1080p footage accordingly. Keep in mind that upscaling will not add extra detail, and the quality may not be as sharp as native 4K footage.
Which is the best 1080P to 4K upscaler?
Check out this comprehensive review article to explore the best 1080P to 4K upscaler available.