The first Monday of May has come around again, and fashion heads and celebrity stans alike will know what that means: Met Gala 2026 is here.
Last year’s event saw celebrities coming together on the iconic Met steps to celebrate the Superfine: Tailoring Black Style exhibit in their finest dandy-inspired garbs. Zendaya wore a ‘70s-coded all-white suit and hat; Chappell Roan arrived in a hot pink ’70s glam look; Demi Moore wore a surreal gown inspired by a men’s tie; Jenna Ortega’s dress was made of literal rulers.
This year, the Met Gala 2026 theme is “Costume Art.” According to curator Andrew Bolton, the 2026 Met Gala theme is inspired by “the centrality of the dressed body in the museum’s vast collection.”
The exhibition will mark the inauguration of nearly 12,000 square feet of the Condé M. Nast Galleries, a fashion-first permanent space located adjacent to The Met’s Great Hall. The collection will feature “paintings, sculptures, and other objects spanning the 5,000 years of art represented in The Met, alongside historical and contemporary garments from the Costume Institute.”
And while the Met Gala might seem like fashion’s most fabulous party, there actually are a few surprising rules that guests must follow if they attend the highly-sought after event. Read on below to find out the biggest Met Gala 2026 rules.
The event is invite-only
It doesn’t matter how famous you are—if you don’t get that coveted invite from Anna Wintour herself, you aren’t coming to the Met Gala. According to Amy Odell, the author of Anna: The Biography, people have tried and failed to buy their way in.
“If they were not considered to be in the ‘in’ group, they would not be able to do that,” Odell told TIME. “It created some strife within the society world because it’s not a society event anymore, which is not to say that socialites, in the traditional sense, don’t go, but it’s not like they can just buy a ticket and show up. I get the sense that within the social world today, there’s still some annoyance about that.”
Apparently, a list of hundreds of potential guests is compiled, with Wintour whittling the list down to around 400 invitees.
There is an 18+ restriction
In recent years, Wintour has reportedly added a new policy to her invite-only event: Since 2018, only people over the age of 18 are allowed. At the time, Maddie Ziegler, then-15, told The Hollywood Reporter, “I can’t go, because I’m not old enough!” Organizers for the event confirmed that “it’s not an appropriate event for people under 18.” In the past, younger teenage invitees included Elle Fanning, Hailee Steinfeld, and Willow and Jaden Smith.
And it seems there are some exceptions made: At the 2026 Met Gala, Nicole Kidman walked the red carpet with her daughter, 17-year-old Sunday Rose. Beyoncé also brought her daughter Blue Ivy, 14.
Guests have to pay for a ticket
Although you can’t buy yourself an invite, once you’ve got that invite, you do need to pay to get in. Everyone, no matter how well-known, has to pay for their own Met Gala ticket…or someone has to pay for them to attend. Often celebrities are hosted (and dressed) by brands or designers who have purchase tables.
Last year, one ticket cost $75,000. (A year earlier, it was $50,000.) Purchasing a table can put you back $350,000.
Absolutely no phones
The Met Gala is a strictly phone-free event. That means no selfies, no social media, no doomscrolling. At the Met Gala 2025, a handful of celebrities (who shall remain unnamed) reportedly broke the rule to post a video from inside the reception. (Gasp!)
