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How to become a model: honest steps, with sources

What agencies publish about who they take and how to apply, from their own pages. No fees, no promises, and a free check of where you fit before you apply.

Last verified · updated 2026-09-29

The short answer

To become a model, pick the kind of modeling your height and look fit, take four plain digitals with your phone, and apply through each agency's own website. Applying is free. Runway boards publish height ranges; commercial work takes a much wider range of heights, ages and looks. Agencies decide in person, so apply to several.

Step by step

What to do

  1. 01

    Find the kind of modeling you fit

    Runway and editorial boards publish the strictest height ranges: Premier's scouting guide gives women 5'8" to 6'0" and men 5'11" to 6'2". Commercial work runs across a much wider range of heights, ages and looks, and many agencies run separate boards: The Campbell Agency lists Mainboard, Curve, Runway, Classic, New Faces and Influencers.[1][4]

  2. 02

    Take four plain digitals

    Agencies ask for digitals, not a paid portfolio. Kim Dawson asks for a portrait, a full-length shot, a smiling shot and a profile, and says phone photos are fine in soft natural light. Heffner asks for no filters or retouching and a neutral background.[3][5]

  3. 03

    Apply on each agency's own site

    Wilhelmina, Ford, Storm and Premier take applications through forms on their own websites, which ask for your height and age. Use the official submission page linked from each agency's profile, and apply to several agencies: each one decides for itself.[10][12][13][2]

Before you apply

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  1. 04

    Never pay to apply

    The FTC says real agencies don't charge you to apply. It lists a required photographer or photo package, promises of work or earnings, and payment by gift card, wire transfer or cryptocurrency as warning signs.[34]

  2. 05

    Expect the decision in person

    Almost no top agency publishes its numbers, and agencies make exceptions. An application starts a conversation; it is not a verdict on you.[10][12][13][2]

The receipts

What agencies and guidelines say

  1. 01
    Premier notes that commercial work runs across "a much wider range of heights, ages, and looks" than editorial.[1]
  2. 02
    Premier Model Management's scouting guide gives women's editorial and runway as 5'8" to 6'0", and men's as 5'11" to 6'2".[1]
  3. 03
    Select's London open call sets minimums of 5'7" (170 cm) for women and 5'10" (177 cm) for men.[6]
  4. 04
    Kim Dawson asks for four digitals (portrait, full length, smiling, profile). Phone photos are fine in soft natural light, with "no filters, makeup, hats, or sunglasses".[3]
  5. 05
    Heffner Management welcomes "ALL sizes and gender expressions" and accepts phone photos.[5]

Questions

Asked, answered.

Do I need experience to become a model?
No. Agency forms ask for plain digitals, your height and your age, not a portfolio, and Kim Dawson and Heffner say phone photos are fine. For UGC work, Billo says no professional experience or social media presence is required.
Does it cost money to apply to a modeling agency?
No. The FTC says real agencies don't charge you to apply, and it lists a required photographer or photo package as a scam warning sign.
How tall do you have to be to be a model?
Runway and editorial boards publish the firmest floors: about 5'8" for women (5'7" at Heffner and Select London) and about 5'10"–6'0" for men. Commercial, petite, fit, parts, promotional and UGC work don't use the runway floor.

Read next: Modeling categories and their requirements · How to take digitals · Verified agencies by city · How to spot a modeling scam

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