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Photography · head to head

Facetune vs Lensa

Facetune logo

Facetune

Photography

Selfie and portrait retouching app from Lightricks, sold on a subscription with a short free trial

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Lensa logo

Lensa

Photography

AI photo editing and avatar generation app from Prisma Labs, known for its viral Magic Avatars feature

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: Facetune the free trial is short, commonly around 3 days, and automatically converts into a paid annual subscription unless the user proactively cancels beforehand, a pattern that has generated a consistent volume of complaints about unexpected charges.; Lensa the underlying Stable Diffusion model was trained on images scraped from the internet, including copyrighted artwork, without direct consent from the original artists, and Lensa avatar outputs have been criticised for replicating identifiable artist styles without attribution or compensation.
  • They diverge on capability: Facetune covers Skin and blemish retouching, Lensa covers Magic Avatars.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 1 September 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Facetune and Lensa actually diverge.

Attributes where Facetune and Lensa differ
AttributeFacetuneLensa
Pricing modelFree download with a short free trial, most tools require a Facetune Pro subscription that auto-renews annuallyFree download with a short free trial, Magic Avatars and most tools require payment

Identical on both: starting price (Free), free tier (Yes), platforms (iOS, Android), user rating (Not yet rated), category (Photography).

What each one covers

Drawn from each product's published feature list. An absence here means we hold no record of it - not that the product lacks it.

Only in Facetune

  • Skin and blemish retouching
  • Facial reshaping
  • Body contouring
  • Teeth whitening and eye enhancement
  • Background blur and replacement
  • One-tap auto-enhance

Only in Lensa

  • Magic Avatars
  • Photo retouching
  • Sky and background replacement
  • Portrait enhancement
  • Multiple avatar style packs
  • Selfie upload and processing

What people use each for

The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.

Facetune

  • Someone wanting quick, targeted retouching of a single selfie or portrait before posting to social medianot Lensa
  • A user comfortable cancelling a free trial through their phone app store settings before it converts to a paid annual chargenot Lensa
  • Someone who has decided to pay for the annual subscription and wants a broad set of face and body retouching tools in one appnot Lensa
  • A user who has used Photoleap or Videoleap from the same publisher and wants a consistent editing tool stylenot Lensa

Lensa

  • Someone wanting to generate stylised AI avatars from their own selfies, understanding those selfies are uploaded for AI processingnot Facetune
  • A user comfortable with the documented training-data provenance concerns around the underlying Stable Diffusion model choosing to proceed anywaynot Facetune
  • Someone wanting general photo retouching tools separate from the avatar featurenot Facetune
  • A user comfortable cancelling a free trial through phone app store settings before it converts to a paid chargenot Facetune

Where each one falls short

Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.

Facetune

  • The free trial is short, commonly around 3 days, and automatically converts into a paid annual subscription unless the user proactively cancels beforehand, a pattern that has generated a consistent volume of complaints about unexpected charges.
  • Cancellation must be done through the phone Apple App Store or Google Play subscription management screens rather than a clear button inside the app itself, adding friction specifically at the point users most want to stop paying.
  • Nearly all meaningful retouching functionality is locked behind the paid tier, so the free download is not a genuinely usable product on its own, only a gateway to the trial.
  • Heavy reliance on face and body reshaping tools has drawn broader criticism, common to this whole app category, over promoting unrealistic beauty standards, particularly among younger users.
  • Published subscription pricing has varied by region and promotional period, so the price a new user is quoted is not necessarily stable or consistent across markets.

Lensa

  • The underlying Stable Diffusion model was trained on images scraped from the internet, including copyrighted artwork, without direct consent from the original artists, and Lensa avatar outputs have been criticised for replicating identifiable artist styles without attribution or compensation.
  • Users and journalists reported the Magic Avatars feature generating sexualised images from ordinary selfies, including reported cases involving photos of minors, without the user requesting that style, raising documented concerns about model behaviour and safeguards.
  • Magic Avatars typically requires a separate one-time purchase on top of any Pro subscription, so the total cost of trying the feature is not covered by a single subscription fee alone.
  • The free trial converts automatically into a paid recurring subscription unless cancelled beforehand, following the same pattern of complaints about unexpected charges seen across comparable apps in this category.
  • Generating avatars requires uploading a set of personal selfies for AI processing; Prisma Labs states these are deleted after processing and not used for further model training, but this relies on the company's own stated policy rather than independently verifiable proof.

Pricing, plan by plan

Facetune

Free
  • FreeFree
    • Very limited basic editing tools
    • Most retouching features locked
    • Trial access to Pro tools for a short period, commonly around 3 days
  • Facetune Pro$47.99/year
    • Full access to retouching, reshaping and enhancement tools
    • Auto-renews annually unless cancelled before trial or renewal date
    • Cancellation handled through Apple App Store or Google Play subscription settings, not inside the app

Lensa

Free
  • FreeFree
    • Very limited basic editing tools
    • Trial access to Pro features for a short period
    • Magic Avatars sold separately per pack in most cases
  • Lensa Pro$35.99/year
    • Access to enhancement and retouching tools
    • Auto-renews annually unless cancelled before the trial or renewal date
    • Magic Avatars typically purchased as a separate one-time pack fee on top

Which should you pick?

Choose Facetune if

  • You need skin and blemish retouching.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on iOS, Android.
  • You also want facial reshaping.
Facetune review

Choose Lensa if

  • You need magic avatars.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on iOS, Android.
  • You also want photo retouching.
Lensa review

Questions people ask

Is Facetune or Lensa better?
Neither clearly leads. Facetune starts at Free and Lensa at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Facetune or Lensa?
Facetune starts at Free and Lensa at Free.
Does Facetune or Lensa run on more platforms?
Both run on iOS, Android, so platform support will not decide this one for you.
Can I use Facetune for free?
Both have a free tier, so you can try either at no cost before committing.
What is Facetune best used for?
Facetune is most often used for someone wanting quick, targeted retouching of a single selfie or portrait before posting to social media, a user comfortable cancelling a free trial through their phone app store settings before it converts to a paid annual charge, someone who has decided to pay for the annual subscription and wants a broad set of face and body retouching tools in one app, a user who has used photoleap or videoleap from the same publisher and wants a consistent editing tool style. Of those, someone wanting quick, targeted retouching of a single selfie or portrait before posting to social media and a user comfortable cancelling a free trial through their phone app store settings before it converts to a paid annual charge are not what Lensa is typically brought in for.
What can Facetune do that Lensa cannot?
Facetune covers Skin and blemish retouching, Facial reshaping, Body contouring, Teeth whitening and eye enhancement. Lensa covers Magic Avatars, Photo retouching, Sky and background replacement, Portrait enhancement.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Facetune: Does Facetune have a free trial?

Yes, typically around 3 days, after which it automatically converts to a paid annual subscription unless cancelled beforehand.

Lensa: Is Lensa Magic Avatars feature the same as photo editing?

No, Magic Avatars is a separate AI portrait generation feature using the Stable Diffusion model, distinct from the app's standard photo retouching tools.

Facetune: How do I cancel a Facetune subscription?

Cancellation is done through the Apple App Store or Google Play subscription settings on your phone, not through a button inside the Facetune app itself.

Lensa: Did Lensa face criticism over its AI avatars?

Yes, documented criticism covered the underlying model training data being scraped without artist consent, and reports of the feature generating sexualised images from ordinary selfies without the user requesting that style.

Facetune: Can I use Facetune without paying?

The free download offers very limited functionality; nearly all retouching tools require the paid Facetune Pro subscription after the trial ends.

Lensa: What happens to my selfies after generating an avatar?

Prisma Labs states uploaded selfies are deleted after processing and not used to further train the underlying model, though this relies on the company's own disclosed policy.

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