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The Best City to Live for Models

Long story short, the best city for models is Los Angeles. If you are serious about modeling but you are not sure which city is the best for your modeling career, go to Los Angeles.

Fashion Capitals

When it comes to fashion, four cities stand out in the entire world: Paris, Milan, London, and New York. However, just because these four cities shape the fashion industry and set the trends worldwide, it doesn’t mean they are the best locations for your modeling career. This is because there are different types of modeling.

Three major types of modeling are runway modeling, commercial modeling, and print modeling. The top four fashion capitals (Paris, Milan, London, and New York) are perfect choices if your focus is runway modeling. However, If you are interested in doing all types of modeling, Los Angeles comes with the most beneficial opportunity package.

Los Angeles runways are not as popular as the ones in New York and Paris but The City of Angels is the center of the commercial and print modeling market, thanks to Hollywood. The massive film and entertainment industry located in Southern California fuels a vast amount of modeling projects from editorial features to TV commercials, creating modeling opportunities all year round.

Cost of Living

According to a Forbes analysis published last year, New York is number 4 on the list of most expensive cities around the world. Los Angeles takes the 6th place, followed by Paris.

The fact that New York is more expensive than Los Angeles gives you one more reason to choose Los Angeles to settle in for your modeling career, especially if you want to live in the United States. Though, it’s better not to have high hopes about the affordability of Los Angeles. It’s still one of the most expensive cities to live in the world.

I would consider Los Angeles, New York, and Paris equally expensive to call home. So instead of counting the cost of living as one of the factors for making a decision, it’s better to focus on the amount and variety of the opportunities as I briefly touched on earlier.

Travel for Modeling

Whichever city you settle in for your modeling career, keep an eye on modeling opportunities around the country, and around the world. If the compensation far exceeds the travel expenses, hit the airport and fly to wherever the project is.

Imagine living in Los Angeles and finding an editorial shoot that pays $5k in New York. It’s well worth spending a couple of hours in the air and a couple of days away from home.

Always have an open mind about where and when the modeling jobs you may book. Keep taking modeling classes and check casting sites such as Model Near to apply for modeling opportunities.

Blogger and fashion enthusiast for 20 years. Experienced runway and commercial model located in Los Angeles. I love creating helpful content and sharing with the world. Reach me out for any questions or feedback.

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