Aiarty Image Matting may be my new favourite app to remove photo backgrounds quickly and accurately

If you’ve ever tried removing or editing the background of an image, you’ll know how time-consuming and frustrating it can be.

Even the best tools can often leave images with jagged edges, ghostly halos, or chunks taken out of vital parts of the image. But that’s where Aiarty Imagine Matting can help, by bringing its AI wizardry to the rescue, it can transform the tedious task of image matting into a streamlined, efficient process that produces professional results.

Aiarty promises near-perfect background removal and has been built with designers, photographers and digital creators in mind. While it has a range of features if you are looking for a broader toolkit when you may want to check out our best photo editing software roundup.

But does Aiarty really deliver a clean cut image? I put it to the test to find out whether it lives up to the hype, and more importantly, whether it’s worth investing in. So here is everything you need to know…

Specs & Pricing

Setup and getting started

• Simple download and installation process
• Quick tutorial to guide new users through the basic features

Getting started with Aiarty is remarkably straightforward. I installed it on a Mac mini M4 and it took minutes to install. Upon first launch, you get an option to select the free trial or if you’ve already purchase the software just enter your product key and the email you used to purchase and you’re in.

Next, there is a well-designed onboarding experience that includes tutorials covering the essentials of the softwar,e which is particularly useful if you’re a new user.

This software is incredibly intuitive; it automatically detects your system capabilities and optimises the settings. Almost everything is there for you on the main opening page; however, some advanced features may take some digging, so I’d fully recommend having a look through the tutorials so you can make the most out of everything it has to offer. Of course, if you prefer to learn while you play, then the layout of this software means you’ll find it really easy to get to grips with everything quickly.

Setup score: 5/5

Features

• Comprehensive matting tools with AI capabilities
• Has the ability to batch process so ideal for working on larger projects

As you’d expect, Aiarty is packed full of features that cater to beginners, hobbyists and professionals. Of course, the stand-out feature is the AI-powered edge detection which makes light work of complex subjects like hair or fur with impressive accuracy.

It also does a fantastic job at matting images taken in low light, reducing noise and keeping the fine details. It doesn’t just remove backgrounds either, you can change the colour of the background or add your own custom image. One feature that I really loved was being able to create a mask of the main image and then fill that silhouette with a custom image, this is great for stand-out social media or marketing posts.

There are other image editing functions such as rotate, flip and crop as well as some drawing tools including blur, brush, dodge and burn, although they are quite basic so if you’re working with images on a professional basis you’ll probably use this on the side rather than in place of your regular image editing software.

Its batch-processing capabilities work well, it can handle up to 3,000 images in one go, which is an absolute game-changer as this feature will save you plenty of time when working on large projects, as it allows you to use the same matting settings across multiple images.

Features score: 4/5

User experience

• Clean and modern interface
• Real time preview window

This piece of software strikes a good balance between simplicity and functionality. The layout is simple, it’s easy to use and navigate as soon as you open up the program. Even if you don’t go through the tutorials at the start the navigation is so intuitive you’ll be able to suss it out within minutes. Although some of the advanced features may take some time to master. The workspace is neatly laid out and can be customised to suit your particular work style.

One thing that is really impressive is the real-time preview, so you can see the changes instantly. It also has a good range of keyboard shortcuts to help increase productivity time even more.

UX score: 4/5

AI tools

• Image enhancement without the loss of quality
• Precise edge detection

Since AI is the main selling point of this software, the majority of the features centre around its AI capabilities and I have to say, they are impressive, particularly when handling complex and transparent images. The AI image editing does a really good job at objects like hair and fur and can differentiate between even the most subtle variations with outstanding accuracy. You can also flip between AI or manual object detection so great for when you just want to fine-tune small areas.

It has four AI modes including AlphaStandard which is good for handling semi-transparent images, EdgeClear for super sharp edge detailing, AlphaEdge for edge clarity and SolidMat for solid objects like books and buildings.

Processing times are also super quick, taking no more than a couple of seconds per image. It uses a neutral network at adapts really well to different subject types so whether you’re working with portraits or product shots, it won’t struggle in the slightest.

AI score: 4.5/5

Who’s it for?

• Professional photographers, designers, and content creators needing efficient image matting solutions

Aiarty is a good tool whether you’re a professional who needs to regularly separate subjects from the background, you’re a content creator looking to make your image stand out or you just enjoy turning your photographs in to art. It’s particularly valuable for anyone who needs to batch process images and want to get it done faster without losing accuracy.

Scorecard

Buy it if...

• You need accurate image matting
• You work with multiple images 
• You need extra help with complex images like hair and fur

Don't buy it if...

• You’re on a tight budget
• Your computer doesn’t meet the minimum requirements
• You don’t regularly remove backgrounds