Is Nine9 legit? Nine9 talent reviews and cost

Nine9 is a real company that has operated since 2003, and it is not a talent agency. In its own words it is "a talent listing service" that does not represent anyone and guarantees no work. Its sign-up forms charge a $99 or $199 setup fee plus $39.95 a month, its stated refund policy calls both fees non-refundable, and the BBB shows 105 complaints in three years and has withheld a rating while it reviews a pattern of complaints.

So the honest answer to "is Nine9 legit" has two halves. It is a legal, bonded business that sells what its fine print says it sells: an online comp card, a database of public castings and weekly workshops. Whether that is worth about $580 to $680 in the first year is the real question, and it is the one to settle before you give a card number at the end of a virtual open call. For comparison, the agency and client modeling casting calls that lead to paid work cost nothing to attend.

Is Nine9 legit?

Nine9 is a legitimate business in the plain sense: twenty-two years old, publicly listed offices, a posted $50,000 California talent-service bond, and terms that say what you are buying. Its FAQ is blunt about it. Asked "Are you my agent? If you aren't my agent, why am I paying you?", it answers: "No, we are not agents. You are paying for your online digital comp card and your access to our site and services."

Where people feel misled is the gap between that fine print and how they arrived. The BBB's alert on its profile says complaints "allege advertising for virtual casting calls for specific TV shows or movies are instead a sales presentation for the company's services." Nine9 answered the BBB in August 2023 with a plan to make clear that the virtual open call "is not for a single project", and in a 2026 complaint reply it wrote that the open call "is not an audition and is not marketed as such." If you thought you were auditioning, you were in a 30 to 40 minute presentation that ends with a registration link.

One more thing to read closely. The California disclosure on Nine9's own sign-up form says the company "is prohibited by law from offering or attempting to obtain auditions or employment for you. It may only provide you with training, counseling, or listing information." A listing service gives you a list. Submitting, auditioning and booking are on you.

How much does Nine9 cost?

Nine9's home page and FAQ show no price. The FAQ says fees "are explained during your first virtual open call." The numbers are on its sign-up forms and its California legal notice, and they are not all the same.

The site does not explain who gets which offer, so ask on the call and read the form before you submit it. The price has also moved over the years. A Detroit ABC affiliate reported a $450 sign-up pitch in 2017, and an Atlanta consumer reporter in 2022 quoted a "regular fee of $499" plus the same $39.95 a month. Photos are a separate cost: Nine9 says professional photos "are not required", publishes no shoot price, and its terms say any photography is done by independent third parties.

Recent BBB reviewers describe the same surprise in different words: one wrote in October 2026 that the "$99 is only a setup fee, with $39.95 a month on top". Nine9's reply to a similar review was that it goes over pricing "verbally as well as in written form on the sign up sheet". Both can be true. Read the sheet.

Nine9 reviews by site

Nine9's ratings disagree with each other more than almost any company we have reviewed, and the reason is visible in the reviews themselves.

Our reading of the gap: many Trustpilot reviews are written at or right after the open call, when the host has been friendly and nothing has been billed twice yet. BBB and PissedConsumer reviews are written months later by people looking at card statements. Neither set is fake on its face. They are reviews of two different moments, and the later one is the one that tells you about value. Note also that the BBB says accreditation is paid for and "does not mean that the business's products or services have been evaluated or endorsed".

Nine9 refunds and how to cancel

The refund policy Nine9 filed with the BBB reads: "The initial setup cost for an account and services with Nine9 is non-refundable. The monthly recurring fee is non-refundable after it has been paid." Its Terms of Use add only that refund requests are considered "on an individual basis". Cancelling is easier than refunding. Nine9 says it signs no contracts, the service is month to month, and you can cancel any time through Talent Services. Do it by email: in a 2026 BBB reply the company wrote that cancellations "are done via email so there is an electronic record", and it did not treat a voicemail as a cancellation.

Some sign-up forms carry a block headed "California Regulations" that gives a full refund if you cancel in writing within 10 business days. One BBB complainant wrote that Nine9 told them this applies only to California residents; the company apologized for the "conflicting information" and refunded that person. If the 10-day wording is on the form you signed, save a copy and quote it in your cancellation email, wherever you live.

Read the Terms of Use for one more clause before you type your phone number. They say that by submitting information to the website "you have opted to have your information available for resale and/or redistribution". If you signed up and the calls and texts have started, a data broker removal service can chase your details off the lists they end up on.

Lawsuits and the court record

We found no FTC, attorney general or other government enforcement action against Nine9 or its parent corporation. The court record is private civil suits. A class action filed in California in 2014 against the corporation behind Nine9 ended with a court-approved settlement in June 2016; WXYZ Detroit reported it as a $1.6 million settlement over contracts under California's talent-service law. Two proposed class actions over marketing text messages, in 2019 and 2021, both settled within months. A new proposed class action over telemarketing texts and calls was filed in August 2026 and is pending; those are allegations, with no ruling. The corporation also filed a Chapter 11 petition in November 2019, and that case closed in spring 2020.

A settlement is not a finding of wrongdoing. What the record does show is a company whose sales and marketing practices have been challenged repeatedly, which matches the BBB alert.

What California law says about talent listing services

California regulates this exact business model. Under Labor Code section 1701 and the sections after it, charging up front for representation is banned outright, and fee-charging "talent listing services" are allowed only with a $50,000 bond, a written contract, a 10 business day right to cancel for a full refund, and a notice that a solicitation "is not an audition for employment or for obtaining a talent agent or talent management." A listing service also may not require you to buy photos as a condition of using it. Nine9 posts a copy of a $50,000 bond dated August 2021 on its California legal notice page. We could not confirm from a state database that it is current, so ask for the bond number in writing if you are in California.

Most other states have nothing this specific. The FTC's consumer guidance is aimed at agencies ("Never pay an agency up front") and names no company; our page on modeling scams lists the checks that apply to any offer. Nine9 is not an agency, which is why it may charge a fee, and why, by its own California disclosure, it may not obtain auditions or employment for you.

Questions to ask before you pay Nine9

• Is my setup fee $99 or $199, and when does the first $39.95 charge land?
• Is this call for a specific show or brand, or is it a presentation of your service? Please put that in writing.
• Which castings in my city did your members book last month, and how many were paid?
• If I cancel within 10 business days, do I get a full refund, and where is that written on my form?
• Do I need to buy photos from anyone you list to be submitted?
• Will my phone number and email be sold or shared, and how do I opt out today?

If the answers come back vague, that is your answer. An agency that wants you earns only when you do. You can check how real ones work in our guide to legit modeling agencies for beginners.

Nine9 or a direct profile

Nine9 and MaxGirls both charge the talent a monthly fee, so the fair comparison is what the fee buys. Nine9 sells you access to a list of public castings that you then submit to yourself. MaxGirls is a reviewed directory that brands, photographers and production teams search by category, city, age, height and availability, and they email you. One has you chasing postings. The other makes you findable.

If you are an adult model and the goal is paid bookings, start with the cheap, reversible steps. Shoot model digitals at home, read how freelance modeling works without an agent, and publish a profile brands can find. If you run, climb or teach yoga, sports modeling is booked on skill and needs no listing service at all. For other companies that charge before you work, see our reviews of Explore Talent and Casting Networks, and how the main modeling websites compare on price.

Is Nine9 worth it?

For most adults who want modeling work, no. You would pay roughly $580 to $680 in a year for a comp card you can build yourself and a list of public castings, with no one obliged to submit you and no refund once billed. It can make sense for a beginner actor near one of its five offices who wants weekly workshops and will work the castings list hard, on the $99 form, canceled by email the month it stops paying for itself. If you were invited to a casting for a named show and found yourself in a sales presentation, trust that first impression.