MyHeritage® LiveMemory vs Deep Nostalgia® (2026): Compared
MyHeritage® LiveMemory and Deep Nostalgia® compared: what each one animates, which plans include them according to MyHeritage, what each costs, and when Incarn makes more sense.
AI & Technology Writer, Incarn
In short
LiveMemory is MyHeritage's newer tool: it animates the whole scene, where Deep Nostalgia® animates the face. Deep Nostalgia and LiveMemory are not in the same set of plans: Deep Nostalgia is in the Complete plan (258 EUR/year according to MyHeritage) and the Photo plan, LiveMemory is in the Photo plan (49.90 USD/year with a quota of 20 animations per year, according to MyHeritage's November 2024 announcement) and the Omni plan. For 1 to 20 photos, Incarn, which we make, charges 1.99 EUR/photo with no subscription.
TL;DR: LiveMemory is MyHeritage's newer tool: it animates the whole scene, where Deep Nostalgia® animates the face. Key pricing distinction: Deep Nostalgia® is included in the MyHeritage® Complete plan (258 EUR/year according to MyHeritage) and in the Photo plan, while LiveMemory is a separate product in the Photo plan (49.90 USD/year, quota of 20 animations per year, according to MyHeritage) or the Omni plan (339 EUR/year according to MyHeritage). For 1 to 20 photos with no annual commitment, Incarn, which we make, charges 1.99 EUR/photo.
In November 2024, MyHeritage launched a newer photo animation tool called LiveMemory, first in its mobile app and then on its website in June 2025, alongside Deep Nostalgia.
Which raised an obvious question: is LiveMemory actually better? Or just a rebranding of the same 2021 GAN engine under a fresher name?
The best way to answer it for your own album is to run the same photos through both trials. A small set covers most family collections: a 1940s portrait, a 1960s family group shot, a faded 1970s school photo, a black-and-white military photo from the 1950s, and a damaged scan from the 1930s. Here is what each tool is designed to do, and what to look for.
What Is MyHeritage® LiveMemory?
MyHeritage® LiveMemory is a photo animation tool that generates a short video from a still image, animating the whole scene, not only the face. It was launched in November 2024 inside the MyHeritage® mobile app, then on the website from June 2025, alongside the older Deep Nostalgia® tool.
Both tools coexist in 2026 and serve different use cases: Deep Nostalgia® uses a GAN model from 2021 focused on a single face, while LiveMemory animates the full frame. Neither replaces the other, and they sit in different MyHeritage® subscription plans, which matters when you calculate the cost.
What Deep Nostalgia Is
Deep Nostalgia launched in February 2021 and went viral. The technology: a GAN-based model trained on a dataset of facial movements. Upload a photo, and the tool animates your ancestor's face in a short clip.
It generated millions of uploads in its first month.
Two points are structural. First, it is designed around a single face, ideally a frontal portrait. Second, pricing: an annual subscription, either the Complete plan (258 EUR/year, bundled into a genealogy subscription most photo animation users did not want) or the Photo plan (49.90 USD/year according to MyHeritage).
By 2025, Deep Nostalgia was still running on its 2021 GAN engine, while diffusion-based image-to-video models had moved the state of the art forward.
What MyHeritage Changed with LiveMemory
LiveMemory keeps the same workflow (upload, click, download) but is a separate tool with a different model: it animates the whole scene as a short video clip, not only the face. MyHeritage describes it as "next-generation motion technology" without publishing the details of the model. What is documented is the scope: the whole scene moves, not only the face.
What to compare on your own photos:
- A single portrait: the blink, and whether the shoulders and background move too (LiveMemory animates the whole scene, Deep Nostalgia® the face).
- A group shot: the faces at the edges of the frame. Small peripheral faces are the hardest case for any animation model.
- A low-contrast school photo: whether the two results actually look different.
- A military portrait: the uniform collar and insignia, where ghosting shows first.
- A damaged photo: scratches and fading. Neither tool does restoration first, so restore beforehand.
Summary: the main difference is scope. LiveMemory animates the whole scene, Deep Nostalgia® the face.
What did not change: the subscription model and the genealogy platform wrapper.
How the MyHeritage Plans Work
Deep Nostalgia® and LiveMemory are not in the same set of MyHeritage® plans, and that distinction matters.
Deep Nostalgia® is included in the Complete plan (258 EUR/year, 149 EUR the first year according to MyHeritage) and in the Photo plan (49.90 USD/year according to MyHeritage). If you already pay for MyHeritage for genealogy research, Deep Nostalgia comes at no extra cost. LiveMemory is a separate product: the Photo plan at 49.90 USD/year (20 animations per year, according to MyHeritage) or the Omni plan at 339 EUR/year (according to MyHeritage, 30 animations per year).
The math for occasional users looking at LiveMemory:
| Scenario | Cost | Animations |
|---|---|---|
| LiveMemory Photo plan (49.90 USD/year according to MyHeritage) | ~2.50 USD per animation if all 20 are used | Capped at 20/year |
| Incarn (paid per photo) | 1.99 EUR per animation, down to 0.80 EUR in the 50-pack | No cap, no annual fee |
| LiveMemory Omni plan (339 EUR/year according to MyHeritage) | ~11.30 EUR per animation if all 30 are used | Capped at 30/year |
For 5 photos: Incarn costs 6.99 EUR (5-photo pack), and the credits never expire. The Photo plan costs 49.90 USD/year and refreshes annually whether you use all 20 or not. The subscription model makes sense mainly if you are already inside the MyHeritage ecosystem and plan to animate regularly.
Animation Approach: What Differs Between the Three
If you compare Deep Nostalgia®, LiveMemory, and Incarn on the same photo, three criteria are worth checking: naturalness of motion, face preservation (no warping), and artifact quality (hair, clothing, background stability).
| Deep Nostalgia® | LiveMemory | Incarn (we make it) | |
|---|---|---|---|
| What it animates | Face only | Whole scene | Whole scene |
| Model technology | GAN (2021) | Proprietary, newer | Seedance 2.0 (diffusion, 2026) |
| Subscription required | Yes, from $49.90/yr (Photo plan) | Yes, from $49.90/yr (Photo plan, 20/yr) | No, 1.99 EUR/photo |
| Annual quota | No cap | 20/yr (Photo) or 30/yr (Omni) | No cap |
| Free trial | Limited videos | Limited videos | 1 animation free at signup |
| Output with free trial | With watermark | With watermark | With watermark |
On a 1940s portrait: Deep Nostalgia® animates the face in a short loop. LiveMemory adds motion to the full frame, including shoulders and background. Incarn (Seedance 2.0) generates motion that is unique to this specific image, not a preset motion path.
On damaged or low-contrast photos: a restoration pass before any animation helps all three tools. A scratched or faded scan is harder for the model to read. The guide to preparing old photos for AI animation covers the five steps worth taking before upload.
Incarn runs on Seedance 2.0, a video diffusion model from BytePlus. Diffusion models generate motion frame-by-frame based on the actual image content. The aim is motion specific to each portrait, not a generic animation path.
Over 12,000 photos have been animated on Incarn since launch. 98% of users report being satisfied with the result.
The Alternative: How Incarn Works
The workflow is straightforward. Upload your photo on incarn.co, get one free animation at signup, then pay 1.99 EUR per photo after that. No subscription, no genealogy platform to navigate, no credit card for the free trial.
One photo, one animation. If you want to try a different motion on the same photo, that counts as one more animation. Clean pricing, no hidden bundles.
A client wrote to us after animating a photo of his mother, who died in 1987. He watched her move for the first time in 38 years. He said his grandchildren had finally "seen" their great-grandmother breathe. That is the use case both MyHeritage and Incarn are serving, but only one of them requires an annual subscription for it.
Which Tool to Choose in 2026
Use LiveMemory if:
- You already pay for the MyHeritage® Omni plan for genealogy research (it includes 30 LiveMemory videos a year)
- You want to animate up to 20 photos every year, year after year (the Photo plan quota)
- You need animations inside the MyHeritage ecosystem (family tree, record matching, etc.)
Use Incarn if:
- You want to animate fewer than 50 photos per year
- You have no existing MyHeritage subscription
- You want HD output with no watermark on individual portraits (paid version)
- You need a free trial with zero friction (just an email, no credit card)
Use neither if:
- Your photos are severely damaged: restore them first with an AI restoration tool, then animate
- You need lip-sync for video presentations: D-ID is built for that use case
The honest comparison: LiveMemory extends Deep Nostalgia® from the face to the whole scene, and Incarn is the option without a subscription (pay per photo). The right tool depends on your volume and whether you already pay for MyHeritage. If LiveMemory's yearly quota or subscription does not fit, we compared 4 MyHeritage® LiveMemory alternatives, with and without a subscription.
For a broader comparison of the AI models behind these tools, the Seedance vs Kling breakdown covers the technical differences in detail.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is MyHeritage LiveMemory free?
Not beyond a limited number of free videos, according to MyHeritage. LiveMemory is a separate MyHeritage® product from Deep Nostalgia®. It is in the Photo plan (49.90 USD/year with a quota of 20 animations per year, according to MyHeritage) or the Omni plan (339 EUR/year according to MyHeritage, 30 animations per year). Deep Nostalgia® is included in the Complete plan (258 EUR/year according to MyHeritage) and in the Photo plan. A limited free trial exists for both before prompting a subscription.
Is LiveMemory better than Deep Nostalgia?
They do different things. LiveMemory animates the whole scene, while Deep Nostalgia® animates the face, and they sit in different plans according to MyHeritage. The simplest check is to try both on the same photo during the free trial.
Can I try Incarn for free without a credit card?
Yes. Incarn gives one free animation at signup with no payment information required. You can see the result before deciding whether to purchase a photo pack.
What happened to Deep Nostalgia?
It still exists in 2026: it was not replaced. MyHeritage launched LiveMemory alongside it in November 2024 (in the mobile app, then on the website from June 2025), and the two coexist: Deep Nostalgia® animates a face, LiveMemory animates the whole scene. According to MyHeritage's help pages (July 2026), Deep Nostalgia® is still included in the Complete plan, and animations already created with it remain available in your account.
Does Incarn work with black-and-white photos?
Yes. Incarn is designed for black-and-white and sepia portraits. If the photo is low-resolution or has visible scratches, improving the quality first produces noticeably better animation results. For a dedicated guide on what to expect from black-and-white photos specifically, animating old black and white photos with AI covers the main cases in detail.
AI & Technology Writer, Incarn
Thomas covers AI and machine learning applications for creative tools. Former research engineer with a focus on computer vision and video generation.
Deep Nostalgia® and MyHeritage® are trademarks of MyHeritage Ltd. Incarn is not affiliated with MyHeritage. Comparisons (features, pricing) are provided for information only and reflect publicly available offerings at the time of publication; they are subject to change.