The main types of modeling are fashion and runway, commercial and print, e-commerce and catalog, fit, fitness, curve or plus size, petite, parts (hands, feet and other close-ups), promotional and event work, and art modeling, with mature and creator-led work cutting across several of them. What separates them is not glamour but three practical questions: which measurements a client books, who does the booking, and what you have to submit before anyone agrees to meet you.
This guide is written for adults (18 and over) and sticks to what agencies and government sources publish, as read on 1 October 2026. Several types have their own detailed guides, linked from the matrix below, so this page stays at overview depth and helps you choose where to start.
How agencies and clients sort models
Agencies organize the people they represent into boards or divisions, and each board answers to a different group of clients. The US Bureau of Labor Statistics describes the job broadly: models pose for artists, photographers and customers to advertise products, and some work as fit models so a designer can get a new style to fit properly. Its Occupational Outlook Handbook profile of models adds that advertisers often target specific groups, so models may specialize, and it names petite, plus-size and parts work, along with models with disabilities who model products for consumers with disabilities.
O*NET, the US Department of Labor's occupation database, fills in the rest. Its O*NET summary for models covers modeling garments at fashion shows, private showings and retail stores, posing for magazines and advertisements, and posing for paintings and sculpture. Its task list is a useful reality check, because alongside posing it includes recording rates of pay and job lengths, getting booking details from agents, reporting finished jobs to agencies and traveling to go-sees to win work.
You can see the same sorting on any agency website. Boards are commonly split into women and men, then commercial print, curve, fit, petite, parts or influencers, and some agencies even split fit models by sample size. In other words, the type you belong to is the board that books faces, bodies or skills like yours, and many people fit more than one.
Type comparison matrix
The requirements below are examples taken from individual agency pages, not industry rules. Two agencies can publish different ranges for the same type, which is the main reason to read the page of the exact agency you plan to submit to.
| Type | What published requirements look like | Where the work comes from | What to submit or build |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fashion and runway (mainboard) | The NEMG submissions page lists 5 ft 8 in to 5 ft 11 in for women and 6 ft 0 in to 6 ft 4 in for men in its fashion division; the Page Parkes FAQ asks women for 5 ft 8 in to 6 ft 0 in without shoes | Designers, fashion houses, magazines, showrooms, and shows staged for photographers, journalists and garment buyers | Unfiltered digitals, a natural walking video where the agency asks for one, then editorial test images |
| Commercial and print | NEMG's commercial and lifestyle division starts women at 5 ft 6 in and takes any size; the Modern Muse submissions page lists no height restrictions for adults in its commercial division | Advertising for products and services, catalogs, retail websites and television commercials | Smiling and neutral digitals, a short personality video, and comfort taking direction on camera |
| E-commerce and catalog | Driven by the brand's sample sizes and by how accurate your measurements are, rather than one height rule | Retailers and online stores shooting product pages and seasonal catalogs | Exact, current measurements, digitals in fitted clothing, and reliability across full studio days |
| Fit modeling | The Stetts application FAQ says fit models have the specific measurements designers look for; MPM's board menu sorts its women's fit boards by size | Designers and manufacturers running fittings before a garment goes into production | A measurement record you keep steady, plus clear spoken feedback on how a garment feels and moves |
| Fitness | A real sport, coaching or training background, which is how Stetts separates fitness models from fit models | Activewear and sports brands, gyms, health campaigns and sports events | Activewear digitals, movement frames and proof of your sport; see the fitness model guide |
| Curve and plus size | The ONE Management submissions FAQ says its curve division works at any size, while Page Parkes lists curve women at 5 ft 8 in to 5 ft 11 in and size 14 and up | Retail, e-commerce, campaigns and fittings for extended size ranges | Honest measurements and fitted-clothing digitals; see the plus size model checklist |
| Petite | Page Parkes says it does not represent petite models, while MPM runs a dedicated petite board | Commercial print, petite clothing ranges, e-commerce and close-up work | Proportion-aware digitals and an exact barefoot height; see where petite models work |
| Parts (hands, feet, legs, lips) | The Closeup Models parts page asks hand applicants to wear no polish and no false nails | Jewelry, beauty, skincare, food and product close-ups | Daylight close-ups of the part plus ring, glove or shoe sizes; see the hand and parts model checklist |
| Promotional and event | No look standard from any regulator; in Australia, alcohol promotions bring Responsible Service of Alcohol training rules | Trade shows, launches, sampling and activations, usually booked through staffing agencies | Reliability, quick product learning and any certificates the state requires; see what promotional models do |
| Art and life modeling | O*NET lists art model, studio model and life drawing model among the job titles it collected | Art schools, drawing classes, painters and sculptors | The ability to hold a pose calmly, punctuality, and comfort with long sessions |
| Mature and classic | The Hired Hands applications page lists a mature and classic board, and Handmodel.berlin says it is looking for hands of people aged 60 or over | Commercial and lifestyle advertising that needs older faces and hands | Current digitals that show your real age range, with no retouching |
| Swimwear and activewear catalog | Set brand by brand; closed sets, changing areas and image approval matter more than a height rule | Retail catalogs and seasonal campaigns | Ask who will be on set and how images will be used before you accept |
| Cosplay and convention | Costume craft and character accuracy rather than measurements | Conventions, game and entertainment brands, and photographers | Check who owns a character before you sell prints of yourself wearing it |
| Creator-led and influencer | The MPM application form asks for your follower count, and the agency runs an influencers division | Brand content, paid social posts and UGC-style shoots | A media kit built from your own analytics and clear usage terms |
The disagreements are information in themselves. Page Parkes and NEMG start their fashion boards at the same height but stop at different ceilings, and ONE Management publishes no height requirement at all to submit, while warning that some of its clients are more restrictive. If one agency's page rules you out, another board at a different agency may not.
For the difference between the two biggest lanes in more depth, including usage fees and exclusivity, see our comparison of fashion vs commercial modeling.
Where bookings come from
The BLS says almost all models sign with agencies, which represent and promote them in return for a portion of their earnings, and that most people apply by sending photos through an agency website or attending an open call. Freelancing is possible, but the same profile warns that most clients prefer to work with agents, which makes a freelance start difficult for new models. Each type leans on a slightly different mix of channels:
- A mother agency. The first agency that signs and develops you, and which may introduce you to agencies in other cities. Stetts asks applicants who already have a mother agent to have that agent submit them, which shows how introductions are expected to flow.
- Specialist boards. Parts, fit, curve and fitness bookings often run through dedicated divisions or specialist agencies with their own client lists.
- Brand and retailer castings. E-commerce and catalog clients cast through agencies but rebook models who arrive on time and match their measurements.
- Staffing agencies. Promotional and event work is usually booked by firms that supply event staff, which brings employment law into play.
- Direct bookings. Art schools and drawing groups often book life models themselves, and creator-led work can come straight from brands.
Whichever channel you use, copy one O*NET habit: write down the rate, date, hours and terms of every job, just as the occupation's task list describes recording pay and job lengths on vouchers. Your own log is what you check statements against later.
What type of model am I? A self-check
Answer each question honestly and note which types collect your yes answers. Treat the result as a starting lane rather than a verdict, because agencies that run several boards can move you between them once they meet you.
- Is your barefoot height inside the range a fashion board publishes? If yes, add fashion and runway. If not, keep going rather than stopping here.
- Do people respond to your expressions on camera, and can you take direction quickly? Add commercial and print. Hired Hands says strong acting skills are highly desirable for its commercial models.
- Do your measurements stay steady month to month, and can you describe precisely how a garment feels? Add fit modeling.
- Do you compete, coach or train seriously in a sport? Add fitness.
- Does a curve board's published size range include you, or does the agency say its curve board works at any size? Add curve.
- Are you below fashion minimums but well proportioned in full-length photos? Add petite and commercial.
- Are your hands, feet or another part in excellent condition, and will you protect them every day? Add parts.
- Could you talk with strangers for a whole shift and learn a product in an afternoon? Add promotional and event work.
- Can you hold one position calmly for a long stretch? Add art and life modeling.
- Do you already publish to an audience that trusts your recommendations? Add creator-led work.
- Can you work weekday daytime hours? Hired Hands and Stetts both say they only take on models with weekday availability, so a no here narrows most agency routes, whatever your look.
Reading your result: if most of your yes answers cluster in one type, submit to that board first. Yes answers scattered across commercial, parts and promotional work point toward a commercial agency that runs several divisions, rather than a fashion mainboard.
Submission basics that apply to every type
Almost every agency asks for the same raw material first: digitals, which are plain, recent, unedited photos, rather than a paid portfolio. ONE Management says you do not need professionally shot images, and asks for natural light, a plain backdrop, form-fitting clothes, no makeup and no poses. Modern Muse says photos with filters will not be considered, and Stetts asks for one smiling and one more serious expression, with natural lashes and nails preferred.
Measurements need the same care. Agencies do not all measure the same way: the Elite application form places the waist tape about an inch above the belly button, while Divide Management's guide measures the waist at its narrowest point. Note which method you used next to each number. Our plus size guide includes a measurement record sheet that sets the methods side by side, and it works for every type.
Scam checks before you pay or sign
The rules that protect you depend on where you live, but the warning signs barely change between types. The US Federal Trade Commission's guide to modeling scams says real agencies will not ask you to pay for a test shoot, for photographs or to secure a spot, and that they are paid after the client pays them. In December 2025 the FTC added a warning about virtual casting call texts that lead to sales pitches for photo shoots and classes. In Australia, Scamwatch's jobs and employment scams page says to stop and check any offer that needs you to pay money to make money.
Agency rules add teeth in some places. Under regulation 26 of the UK's Conduct of Employment Agencies and Employment Businesses Regulations 2003, an agency finding work for a photographic or fashion model may only charge a commission out of earnings from work it found, and the exception that lets agencies charge some performers to appear in a publication does not cover models. The Australian Government's Creative Workplaces page for NSW and Queensland says NSW treats models as performers, and that their representatives cannot charge fees for auditioning, retention or entering into a contract. New York's Department of Labor says model management companies must not collect a fee or deposit for signing and must not charge commission above 20 percent of a model's pay.
If something has already gone wrong, report it: in the US through ReportFraud.ftc.gov, in Australia through Scamwatch's report form, and in England, Wales and Northern Ireland through Report Fraud, where the old Action Fraud address now redirects. For who needs a license to find you work in each market, see manager vs agent licensing rules.
Limits of this overview
The limitations are worth stating plainly. Every requirement in the matrix is one agency's published example, captured on a single date, and agencies change their boards without notice. Local markets differ too: a city with few fashion clients may have plenty of commercial and promotional work, and the reverse. This page gives no pay figures, because rates depend on usage, market and agency, and invented averages would mislead you.
The wider job market is also shifting. The BLS job outlook for models projects employment to decline 1 percent from 2024 to 2034, and says technology, including AI that lets companies reuse images of products and models, may limit demand. That makes consent clauses matter: New York now requires model management companies to get a model's separate written consent before a digital replica of them is created or used, and our likeness licensing checklist covers what to look for elsewhere.
This is general information, not legal advice. If you are holding a contract, ask a lawyer who handles entertainment or employment work to read it. In the UK, Equity's Models' Network describes itself as the UK trade union for fashion models and offers a template contract to members who book work without an agency, which is worth knowing about before you sign anything.