# Face Swap

> Replace the face in a video with the face from a reference image, for character replacement, privacy or creative remixes, for 130 credits per run.

Source: https://nodaro.ai/docs/nodes/video/face-swap

The **Face Swap** node replaces the face in a video with the face from a reference image. Connect a video and a photo of the new face, and the node returns the same video with the face swapped. Use it to replace a placeholder actor, to anonymize footage, or for creative remixes.

- Found in: Video › Animate & Perform
- Output: video
- API type: `face-swap`

## When to use it
- Replace a placeholder actor with your final character in a storyboard video.
- Anonymize the faces in recorded footage.
- Apply the same character face across several generated clips.

## Quick start
### Add the node

Press Tab on the canvas and choose **Video › Animate & Perform › Face Swap**.

### Connect the face and the video

Connect a clear photo of the new face to **Face**, for example from [Upload Image](https://nodaro.ai/docs/nodes/image/upload-image) or a [Create Face](https://nodaro.ai/docs/nodes/assets/create-face) node. Connect the clip to **Video**.

### Run it

Click **Run**. The video with the swapped face appears on the node.

Workflow: A storyboard clip with a placeholder actor gets the final character's face.

- Create Face → Face Swap (face)
- Generate Video → Face Swap (video)

## Inputs
| Input | Accepts | What it does |
| --- | --- | --- |
| **Face** | Image nodes, and asset nodes such as Character and Create Face | The face to apply. Required. |
| **Video** | Video nodes | The clip with the face to replace. Required. |

The output, **Video**, is the URL of the face-swapped video.

## Settings
The node runs one face-swap model, Roop, and has no other settings. The **Injected references** list in the settings panel shows the face images the node will send.

## Example

A clip made with [Generate Video](https://nodaro.ai/docs/nodes/video/generate-video), and the same clip after Face Swap. The new face comes from one photo: the Butterfly portrait on the [Lighting](https://nodaro.ai/docs/nodes/creative-controls/lighting#four-styles-one-portrait) page.

  
![A front-facing portrait of a young woman with long dark hair and light eyes, evenly lit against a gray backdrop.](https://nodaro.ai/docs-media/examples/lighting/butterfly.webp)

The face photo, connected to Face.

Comparison:
- Source clip: [A woman in her sixties with short silver hair, laugh lines and brown eyes smiles at a cafe table in a navy cardigan](https://nodaro.ai/docs-media/examples/face-swap/cafe-source.mp4)
- After Face Swap: [The same clip with a younger face with smooth skin and light eyes; the silver hair, the cardigan, the smile and the cafe are unchanged](https://nodaro.ai/docs-media/examples/face-swap/cafe-swap.mp4)

The face is the portrait's now: younger, with smooth skin and light eyes, where the source had laugh lines and brown eyes. The silver hair, the cardigan, the smile, the head movement and the cafe all come from the source clip.

## What changes and what stays

Face Swap replaces the face itself: the eyes, the nose, the mouth and the shape of the face. Everything else comes from the video:

- the hair, the body, the clothes and the background;
- the movement, the head turns and the expressions, which the new face follows.

So a source clip whose hair and build already match your character gives the most convincing result.

The swapped video comes back **without sound**, even when the source clip has a soundtrack. To keep the sound, take it from the source clip with [Extract Audio](https://nodaro.ai/docs/nodes/video/extract-audio) and put it back with [Merge Video & Audio](https://nodaro.ai/docs/nodes/video/merge-video-audio). To give the new face a new voice as well, run the extracted sound through [Voice Changer](https://nodaro.ai/docs/nodes/audio/voice-changer) first.

## Choose the face and the clip

| | Works well | Works poorly |
| --- | --- | --- |
| **Face photo** | One face, front-facing, sharp and evenly lit, eyes open | Profiles, sunglasses, hands or hair across the face, several faces in one picture |
| **Video** | A face that is large in the frame and turns only a little | A small or distant face, fast turns, a face that leaves the frame |

A [Character](https://nodaro.ai/docs/nodes/assets/character) or a [Create Face](https://nodaro.ai/docs/nodes/assets/create-face) node is a good face source: its approved portrait is already a clean, front-facing picture.

## Use faces you have the right to use

Swap in your own face, a person who has agreed to it, or a character you created. You must have the right to use any person's likeness that you upload or recreate, as the [terms of service](/terms) say. Label AI-generated content where the platforms and the laws you publish under require it.

## Credits
A run costs 130 credits. When the model fails to make the video, the credits are refunded.

## Tips
- **Use a clear, front-facing photo.** It gives the most accurate swap.
- **Choose a clip with a visible face.** The face in the video must be clear for the swap to find it.
- **Light matters.** Well-lit, high-contrast face photos give cleaner swaps.
- **Keep clips short.** Shorter videos finish faster.
- **Generate the clip for the face.** With [Generate Video](https://nodaro.ai/docs/nodes/video/generate-video), ask for a person whose hair and clothes match your character, facing the camera, then swap the face in.

## Frequently asked questions

### What does Face Swap need?

A video with a clearly visible face, and a clear photo of the face to put in its place. Connect the photo to the Face input and the clip to the Video input.

### How many credits does Face Swap cost?

130 credits per run.

### Can I use a Character asset as the face?

Yes. The Face input accepts image nodes and asset nodes such as Character and Create Face. The node uses the asset's picture.

### How do I get the cleanest swap?

Use a well-lit, high-contrast, front-facing face photo, and a video where the face is clearly visible. Shorter videos also finish faster.