How do you get invited to the Met Gala? It’s a question we’ve been asking ourselves for years. The exclusive event, thrown each year by Vogue‘s Anna Wintour for the Metropolitan Museum of Art’s Costume Institute, is one of the most coveted invites on the social calendar. Finding your name on the RSVP list is a dream — and for most of us, an elusive one at that.
Since 1995, Wintour and her team have presided over the roughly 600 person guest list. If you’re on the outs with Wintour or Vogue, then sorry, but you won’t be receiving an invite this year. Even celebrities have been known to beg Anna Wintour to buy a ticket, which have risen in cost to US $50,000 each (approx. AU $75,000). Money, fame or notoriety won’t guarantee your attendance — ever.
But if you do want to walk the 2023 red carpet in your chosen Met Gala look, then we have a few ideas for how you can score yourself a ticket. Read on for the best (or most likely) ways to be invited to the Met Gala — and if you don’t make the cut, then you can watch the live stream with the rest of us.
12 Ways To Be Invited To The Met Gala
Be An ‘It’ Celebrity
No, celebrities don’t actually buy their own tickets. The Vogue team makes a list of everyone who’s having a moment in the limelight, and extends them an invite. Some celebrities, like Sarah Jessica Parker, attend most years despite not being in anything particularly ‘buzzy’ right now, while others, like the Bridgerton cast or Kourtney Kardashian, are invited once they become part of the cultural conversation. So yes, we’re manifesting a Pedro Pascal and Bella Ramsey red carpet moment at the 2023 Met Gala.
Perform At The Event
If you’re going to be performing at fashion’s glitziest of evenings, it’s only fair you score a ticket, right? Past performers include Rihanna in 2015 (the same year she became queen of the Met Gala red carpet in that yellow Guo Pei dress), Kanye West in 2013, Katy Perry in 2017, and Lady Gaga in 2010.
Brooklyn Beckham and Nicola Peltz
Date And/Or Marry Someone Super Famous
If you can’t quite manage to date the Met Gala headline performer, then you could consider dating another super famous person. You could even marry them. Regular Met Gala attendees like Nicola Peltz Beckham and Hailey Bieber were likely first invited thanks to their signigicant other, although their Met Gala looks are reason enough to invite them back year after year. Time to apply for that Raya membership, perhaps? Or you could try the old Instagram DM slide, it’s been known to work… although it does help if you’re already famous.
Date A Performer Or High Profile Attendee
Kim Kardashian was famously barred from the Met Gala guest list, reportedly due to Anna Wintour’s refusal to accept reality TV stars into the exlusive A-List event. She was invited on a technicality in 2013 when her then-partner Kanye West was performing — and the rest was history. Kim has been a staple of the Met Gala red carpet ever since, although it’s unlikely we’ll be seeing Kanye West be invited back any time soon.
Anna Wintour Met Gala
Be Extremely Rich And Make A Donation
They say money can’t buy you happiness (um, sure), but it can buy you a ticket to the Met Gala. The event is, after all, a charity event, raising money for the Costume Institute of the Metropolitan Museum of Art. (In 2022, the ‘Gilded Glamour’ themed event raised a record US $17.4 million, which is just shy of AU $26 million.) Individual tickets are priced at roughly US $30,000 each, but your ability to buy a ticket in the first place is subject to the approval of Anna Wintour herself. Pro tip: make regular, eye-wateringly large donations and you should be in the bag.
Vogue Staff
Work At Vogue
Getting your name on the Vogue masthead is no easy feat, but it might be more managable than some of the other ideas on this list. Granted, the editorial coordinator is probably not going to score an invite, but the further north you go, the more likely you’ll be walking that red carpet — just ask the global head of fashion network, Virginia Smith (left).
Bee Shaffer Anna Wintour
Be Related To Anna Wintour
Ahhhh, the old nepo baby trick. Anna Wintour’s daughter Bee Shaffer is invited almost every year, while her son Charles has made several appearances. We can’t provide tips on becoming related to Anna Wintour (adoption, anyone?), but if you’ve already succeeded, then congrats. Who among us wouldn’t be begging mum for an invite?
Harry Styles Alessandro Michele
Become An Incredible Designer
Fashion houses like Gucci, Chanel, Louis Vuitton and more buy tables to the event, which are rumoured to cost anywhere between $75,000 and $250,000 each, depending on the brand and its relationship with Vogue and Anna Wintour. If you happen to be the creative director of said brand, then you’ll not only be attending the event, but likely walking with the celebrity ambassador you’ve dressed — like former Gucci creative director Alessandro Michele and Harry Styles.
You don’t necessarily need to be a creative director for one of the foremost luxury fashion houses to attend, either. In 2021, Formula One driver Lewis Hamilton bought a table at the Met Gala and invited young Black designers, like Kenneth Nicholson, Edvin Thompson of Theophilio, and Jason Rembert of Aliette. We stan.
Be A Politician
Singing, acting, modelling or “other” not in your skill set? Consider running for public office (United States citizenship notwithstanding). Several politicians have been invited to the Met Gala over the years, including Hillary Clinton in 2001 (when she was a senator) and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez in 2021, wearing her infamous “tax the rich” dress. And yes, Donald and Melania Trump have attended several Met Galas over the years, but it was very much before he became president.
Hailey Bieber Met Gala
Become A Celebrity Publicist
A sure-fire way to at least reach the Met Gala red carpet is to become a celebrity’s publicist or assistant. Duties may include: holding their bag, arranging their dress for the cameras, and ducking out of shots like you’re training for Entrapment. Of course, with a 600 person guest list, it’s unlikely many assistants make it inside the Met Gala itself, but hey, you’re there for the fun part.
Emma Chamberlain Met Gala
Become A TikTok Or YouTube Star
Once upon a time, the Met Gala was a strictly anti-influencer event. That is no more (and we’re mostly the better for it). TikTok and YouTube stars like Emma Chamberlain, Addison Rae and Conan Gray have all attended in recent years, demonstrating the global shift away from mainstream publishing and towards digital content creators. Not everyone is happy about it thought. In 2021 — the year of the creator “takeover” — a publicist told Page Six it had ruined the Met Gala’s reputation. “I don’t think the Met is cool anymore,” they said. “It’s gone from super prestigious to full of influencers.”
Kylie Kris Khloe Kim
Be A Waiter
Hey, if you can’t be invited to the Met Gala, you can still work the Met Gala. What happens inside the event is one of fashion’s best kept secrets, but we do know there’s a dinner, and that means someone has to serve it. As far as work places go, where else might you see Taylor Swift dancing with Joe Alwyn, or catch every A-Lister smoking in the bathrooms?
ProfileAlex Bruce-Smith
Alex Bruce-Smith is the digital managing editor of ELLE and marie claire, bringing these luxury fashion titles to an Australian audience.
