Modeling Agencies in NYC: 15 Verified Agencies and How to Apply

How to Apply: Digitals, Measurements and Official Forms

Every agency here starts with digitals, the plain photos the industry also calls polaroids. Shoot them in daylight against a simple wall, in fitted clothes, without makeup or filters. A phone is enough. Our guide on how to take headshots at home covers light and framing, while how to become a model explains the main types of modeling.

Most of the modeling agencies in NYC we checked ask for at least a close-up, a profile and a full-length photo. State and Two ask for four, Elite asks for six, and ONE also wants two short videos. Nearly every form asks for your height, and many add bust, waist, hips and shoe size.

Apply only through the form or email on the agency’s official site. Wilhelmina, for example, only reviews applications sent through its form, while DNA takes them by email. Open calls are scarce right now, as the questions at the end explain, so check the agency’s page for current open call hours before you go. Then be patient, because most reply only when they’re interested.

Fashion and Editorial Modeling Agencies in NYC

These seven focus on runway, editorials and campaigns.

IMG Models

IMG Models works from Park Avenue South and has offices in five other cities. Its directory has model, development and talent boards, and the agency says it refuses to segment talent by race, age or size. You apply through Get Scouted from age 14. The FAQ for applicants under 18 asks for a guardian’s consent and daylight snapshots without makeup, and it says there’s no fee to apply or to sign.

Elite Model Management New York

Elite’s New York office opened in 1977, according to its site, and today sits on East 18th Street. Its boards run from Development and Direct to Classic and Creative. Elite doesn’t hold open calls at the office, so you apply by email or through the Become Elite form. It asks for six photos in fitted clothes, without makeup or large accessories, plus measurements taken with a tape.

Ford Models

Ford’s New York office is on East 31st Street, and its boards there are Image, Management, Curve, Men and Special. On Get Scouted, you choose New York to open the application. Ford’s tips are short: a clean face, hair pulled back and a fitted outfit. Its recruitment warning adds that you should never pay to attend a casting and that its staff write only from fordmodels.com addresses.

Wilhelmina

Wilhelmina’s New York office is on Lexington Avenue. Its boards cover women, men and curve models, and its US offices add Sports+Fitness and WillyMoves, a division for dancers and choreographers. On the Become a Model form you pick a city, and minors need a parent’s or guardian’s authorization. You also need legal status to live and work where you apply.

Next Management

Next Management runs one of its seven offices on Fulton Street. Besides women’s and men’s boards, each with a New Face section, it has a talent board for actors, athletes, dancers and musicians. The recruitment page holds the online form, which asks for your height and up to five photos. It also says open calls are canceled until further notice, and the site footer shows Next’s state registration number.

The Society Management

The Society works from West 26th Street, with boards for women and men, development boards, creatives and celebrities. Its application form is meant for people from 16 to 23 and asks for a full-length shot, a close-up and a profile, taken facing daylight without makeup. Applicants under 18 need a parent’s or guardian’s approval, and that adult must attend any meeting. The contact page lists the agency’s registration number.

DNA Model Management

DNA Model Management sits at 1 State Street Plaza in Lower Manhattan, with main and development boards for women and men. Unlike most agencies here, it takes applications by email, with separate addresses for women and men on its submissions page. Send unretouched photos without filters or makeup, plus your height, measurements, location, age and social media handles. DNA says it never asks for nude or lingerie pictures and never charges to look at your photos.

Commercial Modeling Agencies: Print, E-Commerce and Fit

These two cover commercial work, from print and e-commerce to fit modeling and on-camera jobs, across a wide range of ages and sizes.

FFT Models

FFT Models, on East 28th Street, has represented talent for print and on-camera work for more than 30 years, according to its site. Its children’s division goes from newborns to preteens, and the adult division from teens to seniors. The Become a Model page asks for two current color photos, a smiling headshot and a full-length shot. FFT only represents people in the New York tri-state area who can reach the city on short notice.

State Management

State Management opened in 2015 and lists its New York office on Seventh Avenue, with branches in Chicago and Los Angeles. Its divisions span kids to classic and petite to plus size, and it also represents sports, fitness and fit models. The Become a Model form wants four photos (close-up, waist-up, full length and a three-quarter profile) shot in daylight with no makeup. Kids have their own submission email.

Curve and Size-Inclusive Modeling Agencies

Several modeling agencies in NYC run curve boards. Ford, Wilhelmina and New York Model Management all show one, and State’s divisions reach plus size. These two put size inclusion at the center.

ONE Management

ONE Management, founded in 2001, works from Bond Street. Its New York women’s boards include a curve division that, in the agency’s words, lets models work at any size. The online application asks for photos plus a walking video and a personality video of 15 to 40 seconds each. ONE says there’s no height requirement to submit, and applicants from 14 to 18 need a parent’s or guardian’s consent.

JAG Models

JAG Models started in 2013 as an inclusive agency, and its site says it works to remove barriers around size, weight, gender and race. The office is on West 13th Street. Its submissions form asks for your pronouns, height and home base, plus three images: full length, close-up and profile. JAG adds that its staff all use @jagmodels.com addresses, so you can check anyone who claims to work there.

NYC Agencies for Male Models

Most of the fashion agencies above also have men’s boards, but these two put men first in New York.

Soul Artist Management

Soul Artist Management opened in 2010 and works from West 25th Street. Its menu leads with gentlemen, including new faces, before ladies, digital, athletes and image. To apply, you send your stats through the submissions form with a current headshot, a profile and a full-length photo. The site also links to its state registration certificate.

Two Management

Two Management began in Los Angeles in 2013. Its New York office, on West Broadway, focuses on the men’s division and on editorial, runway and luxury campaign work. Two doesn’t hold open calls, so the submission form is the way in. Men should be at least 5 feet 11 inches (180 cm), and the form asks for four natural daylight photos with your hair pulled back. If the agency wants to meet you, it says it writes within two weeks.

NYC Agencies for Kids and Teens

Besides the children’s divisions at FFT and State, these two agencies take kids, always through a parent or guardian.

Teri B Talent & Model Management

Teri B Talent & Model Management opened in 2016 and works from Madison Square West. It represents babies through young adults for both modeling and acting, with boards for babies, kids, teens and young adults, families and differently abled talent. Parents apply on the Join Us page with the child’s date of birth, height and up to three photos. The agency says it represents clients throughout the US.

New York Model Management

New York Model Management, on Fifth Avenue, has women’s, men’s and creators’ boards, including a curve board. Its Kids division represents children from 6 months to 12 years who live within two hours’ drive of the city. Parents email three or four color snapshots taken at home, with the child’s age, height and date of birth. Skip hats, sunglasses, food and makeup. If the agency is interested, it replies within two weeks.

What New York Law Says About Modeling Agencies

The state Department of Labor explains New York’s Fashion Workers Act on its page about duties for model management companies and clients. Since June 19, 2025, an agency can’t require a fee or a deposit to sign you. It must give you a deal memo with your total pay before a job begins. Your contract can’t run longer than three years or renew without your written approval, and the law caps the agency’s commission.

Since December 21, 2025, these companies must also register with the department, post the certificate in their office and on their website, and put the registration number in ads that seek models and in contracts. The Model Management Registry is public. All the NYC modeling agencies in this guide appeared in it when we checked in November 2026, so look up any agency that contacts you.

A different license covers some businesses. New York City’s Department of Consumer and Worker Protection (DCWP) says that if your main business is finding jobs or engagements for artists, models included, you’re a theatrical employment agency and need its license. Its checklist adds that model management companies may not need it, though they may have duties under the Fashion Workers Act. You can search any business in the city’s license lookup. Outside the city, the State Department of Labor licenses employment agencies.

Permits and Rules for Child Models

New York treats child models as child performers. The Department of Labor’s child model FAQ says print and runway models under 18 who live or work in the state need a Child Performer Permit before they start working. The permit is free and lasts one year. A parent or guardian applies, usually online, through the department’s child performer page.

Employers need a certificate of eligibility, and they must notify the department at least two days before they hire a child model. The rules also cap daily and weekly hours by age, and part of the child’s earnings goes into a trust account that the parent opens. On set, a responsible person chosen by the parent must stay with any model under 16.

With agencies, a parent or guardian handles every step, from the form to the contract. IMG, for example, requires a guardian at any meeting or video call with a minor. Either way, a child never goes to a casting or a shoot alone. For more, read our guides to auditions for kids and teens and baby acting and modeling.

Red Flags and Modeling Scams

The Federal Trade Commission’s page on modeling scams puts it simply: real agencies get paid when you get paid. They don’t charge for a test shoot or photos, and they shouldn’t make their own photographer a condition for work. The FTC adds that scammers guarantee work, while real modeling never comes with guarantees. A demand for cash, a money order or gift cards is another sign. Before you sign, ask whether your state requires a license or a bond, and get every promise in writing.

The NYC modeling agencies in this guide say the same. IMG, Next, ONE and State Management all say they never ask for nude or lingerie photos or for money. Impostors often write through social media and use a real agency’s name, so call the office number on the official site before you reply to any “scout.” If you already paid, report it at ReportFraud.ftc.gov, and read how to spot a fake casting call for more warning signs.

More Ways to Find Modeling Work in NYC

Modeling agencies in NYC aren’t the only way in, since commercial shoots also cast directly. Browse commercial casting calls and our New York castings. If you act too, see auditions in New York, acting classes in NYC and how to get a talent agent. Our guide to acting agencies near you explains how talent agencies differ.

Living somewhere else? Start with our guide to modeling agencies near me, or compare the agencies in Los Angeles, Miami and Chicago.