The 51 Best Met Gala Looks of All Time

The Met Gala was first established in 1948 by fashion expert Eleanor Lambert to raise money for the then newly-founded Costume Institute. That first event featured many prominent faces in the fashion industry, as well as high profile members of New York’s social scene. Tickets were priced at $50 a piece, and through the decades were held at various different venues including Central Park and the Waldorf-Astoria.

That all leads us to this year’s event. The theme? A tribute to Karl Lagerfield. Who’s coming? Nobody knows. What about Beyoncé? We definitely don’t know the answer to that? So since that’s about all we can give you in regards to this year’s event, we figured we’d take a look back at some of the best Met Gala looks of all-time.

In 2021, Lorde wore a look designed by the now ultra-recognizable designer BODE. The shirt/skirt combo was an elevated version of the label's trademark psuedo-patchwork aesthetic, incorporating buttons and embroidery into an otherwise luxurious look.

Venus doesn’t come to the Met every year, but when she does…you better believe she serves. Get it? She serves. No? Okay.

Victor Glemaud and H&M are the masterminds behind this dazzling piece that Laura Harrier wore to last year's Met. It’s giving us classic Audrey Hepburn.

Madonna has been the punk rock queen since the 1980s, so it definitely wasn't hard for her to nail the 2013 Met theme, which was "PUNK: Chaos to Couture."

Meg looked regal in this elaborate Moschino dress and swooped back bun. This look was sort of like a modern day Billie Holiday meets Josephine Baker outfit, and we loved it from top to bottom.

All eyes were on Selena Gomez at the 2016 Met Gala when she showed up in Louis Vuitton.

Kate Moss and Marc Jacobs. Marc Jacobs and Kate Moss. You know the drill at this point.

Not only did Kaia Gerber perfectly capture the theme with her dress, she also nailed it with her hairstyle. The big fluffy curls were a huge part of the fashion game back in the Old Hollywood era, and Gerber looked like she would fit right in, rocking Alexander McQueen on the coveted Red Carpet.

Chloe Bailey is very quickly becoming one of our red carpet favorites. She and her sister Halle have been killing it in the fashion game, and Bailey took to the Met for the second time in her career, this time in a shimmery gold Area SS22 dress. 

Yara Shahidi. Sis, this was definitely a show stopper. That Dior is a must have.

Throwback to when Cher showed up with Bob Mackie in Bob Mackie to the 1985 Met Gala.

Okay V, just might have won the 2022 Met with this one. Vanessa, you're already the Coachella Queen, now you’re trying to come for the Met as well? At some point you have to let up.

When talking about “Gilded Glamour,” acknowledgement has to be made that Billie Eilish captured this to a T. From the sheer sleeves to the satin floor length corset dress, Eilish looked amazing in her Gucci getup.

Sometimes a simple dress is the way to go. Gigi Hadid stunned at the 2015 Met Gala.

Talk about a good looking couple. David and Victoria Beckham hit the 2008 Met Gala carpet decked out in Armani, and it was definitely a hit.

Glenn Close has captured the essence of Old Hollywood perfectly through the course of her career, and she showed us again last year why she is one of the best to do it in a pink Valentino pant suit with a matching cape.

George and Amal Clooney showed up to the 2018 Met Gala in Richard Quinn for "Heavenly Bodies: Fashion and the Catholic Imagination" theme, and it was glorious.

While we were unable to find a full body picture of Madonna from the 1997 Met Gala, unfortunately, you can still see that the dress was a standout. 1997/1998 was a transformational year from Madonna as she was celebrating becoming a mother for the first time, and turning 40. What followed was the Ray of Light album, an era where she debuted a much more relaxed and dewy look as opposed to before.

Last year Dove wore an Iris Van Herpen piece alongside Brilliant Earth 18K White Gold Sincelo Lab Created Diamond Earrings. Dove was styled by the renowned Erin Walsh, marking the first time Dove and Brilliant Earth has been featured on the red carpet at the Met Gala, and her dressed looked like it belonged in both a fashion and art museum.

Lenny, my dude, don’t think this was quite in line with the Gilded Glamour theme, but it is epic rockstar, so we gotta include.

Okay so when it comes to 1940s/50s Hollywood, HoYeon Jung captured it perfectly, but added a modern risque vibe. The length and dress cutout would have definitely been gasp worthy in that era, but it looked so cute. Speaking of HoYeon Jung, are we getting a Squid Game season 2?

We absolutely had to start this list off with one of the biggest fashion queens of the 21st century. While we don’t know for sure if Rihanna is going to attend this year’s gala, it’s safe to assume the answer is no as she is reportedly close to giving birth. That means we have no other choice than to look back at her past outfits, and this one is among her most notable. Dressed as the Pope, Rihanna stunned in a way that only she is capable of doing at the 2018 event.

Few attendees have the privilege of attending the Gala in a look of their own design, but the late great Virgil Abloh is one of the few to be able to boast such an accomplishment. In 2021, he wore an eye-catching suit/skirt combo with a truly memorable hat.

Elizabeth Taylor is said to have attended the Met at some point in her career, but there aren’t any official pictures of her at the event (at least from our research). That said, everybody knows Liz Taylor was and still is a fashion icon, and was definitely one of Hollywood’s biggest stars.

This has led to celebs paying tribute to her many legendary looks at the Met. Actress Gemma Chan wore a Tom Ford designed costume that looked very similar to a pieceTaylor wore in her 1968 film “Boom,” and looked stunning per usual.

Let’s talk about supermodels for a second. Supermodels ruled the universe in the 90s and 00s, and everybody either wanted to be one or date one (or both). Kate wore a very simple Calvin Klein lemon yellow halter dress to the 95 Gala, and for some reason we haven’t been able to let it go. It’s peak Kate Moss showing everyone why she was one of the best in the world in her field.

Did your jaw drop too? This is hands down one of the most iconic Met Gala looks of all-time. Naomi is just…wow. A true fashion and beauty icon.

And she did it again fourteen years later when she pulled up to the 2019 event wearing a Valentino couture gown. After two decades of dominance, it’s safe to say that Naomi is the queen of the Met no doubt.

First of all, we’re all so sad that Zendaya isn’t going to this year’s Met Gala as we were definitely looking forward to seeing what she was going to be wearing. That said, her 2018 armor look had her look like a character straight out of Star Wars, proving that Z can truly pull off any and every look.

Cardi B made her first Met Gala a memorable one, wearing gold, pearls, and a crown. Hopefully Cardi is one of the unannounced guests that make a grand arrival on the Met red carpet this year.

The question is which Iman Met Gala look. Iman wowed in a stunning black Christian Dior dress at the 1996 gala.

And just in case you’d forgotten exactly who Iman was, she gave a powerful reminder at last year’s Met, dazzling in a gold Dolce & Gabbana x Harris Reed piece that was very much larger than life. Similar to her other supermodel counterparts, Iman has made multiple appearances at the Met over the decades, and has dominated each time.

It’s hard to imagine a time where Rihanna was in the position of having to prove herself in the fashion world, but there was indeed such a time. Rih donned this show stopping puff-sleeve tuxedo at the 2009 event in a year that really began to prove her cutting edge and risk-taking style. 

How about we get some men in here shall we? There is absolutely no doubt that Chadwick Boseman won the 2018 Met Gala. The custom-designed Atelier Versace caped-suit was one of the most visually stunning looks that we have ever seen on the red carpet, and is even more powerful in the wake of his passing. May Boseman continue to rest in peace.

Depending on your personal style preference, Jared Leto’s look from the 2018 Met can either be considered great or slightly disturbing. Regardless of your opinion, everybody can agree that his look definitely stood out. Leto wore an all-red Gucci piece, but that’s not why he made headlines. Leto also brought a model of his own head (yes his head) to the event. In hindsight, maybe this wasn’t as disturbing as we initially thought, as the theme that year was “Heavenly Bodies.”

Wearing a Rick Owens suit complete with a cape, Diddy took the Pope look to whole nother level. And since he’s Diddy, of course he decided to bring something a little different to the red carpet by sitting down on the steps. Apparently that had never been done before in the history of the Met. Leave it to Diddy to do something that nobody else could get away with.

Princess Diana remains culturally relevant as ever over two decades after her untimely passing, and one of those reasons is her timeless elegant style. Princess Di arrived at the 1996 Met (which honored Christian Dior) in a dark blue John Galliano dress, instantly stealing the show.

Frank Ocean's looks are always fairly modest, but in 2021 he attended with a green robot baby in his arms. His companion was clad in pieces from the singer's new luxury line, Homer. He coupled the eccentric choice with a laid back look from Prada.

The 1999 Met also brought out the likes of musical legends such as thee Whitney Houston, who came to the event dressed in Dolce & Gabbana.

Beyoncé did not come to play with y’all, she came to slay. This sheer Givenchy piece from 2015 is still firmly etched into our memories, and not letting up.

Sure we could have gone with one of the many gorgeous dresses Kim has worn to the Met over the years, but the masked bodysuit stands for many reasons. We had never seen Kim wear anything quite like that before, and her fit left us all wondering how exactly she was able to see the whole night. Guess we’ll never know.

Our first Michael Kors entry comes at the hands of Gigi Hadid, who wore a Michael Kors Collection Dress to the 2019 gala.

Lupita Nyong’o’ had all eyes on her colorful Versace dress at the 2019 festivities. Can we also give a round of applause to her makeup designer as well? Wow!

Jennifer Lopez and Versace are certainly no strangers to one another, seeing as though they have teamed together many times. After all, it was Versace that J.LO wore to the 2000 Grammys that has since taken on a life of its own. The two partnered again for the 2019 gala, once again stealing the spotlight.

Kendall Jenner’s sheer diamond encrusted dress was one of the evening’s most talked about outfits at last year’s Met.

The 1990s were known for keeping it cool and simple, and that is exactly what Gwyneth Paltrow did at the 1995 Met Gala when she wore a silver Calvin Klein halter dress. The theme that year was “Haute Couture.”

In what was one of Beyoncé’s first major appearances just months after giving birth to first child Blue Ivy, Queen Bey knocked em dead at the 2012 Met.

Years after the event, Solange described her 2015 Met Gala dress as being a sculpture, and that’s exactly what her dress looked like. A sculpture.

Yara Shahidi and Dior made a great one two punch at the 2021 Gala. Hopefully Shahidi returns this year with another dazzling fit.

Kate Hudson took it back in time at the 2021 Met Gala, wearing an early 2000s-inspired bralet and skirt combo courtesy of Michael Kors.

We already knew Zendaya was a major fashionista in the making in 2016, but she upped the ante at the 2016 Met with her gold and glittery Michael Kors dress. 

If you don’t know about Mrs. Jackie Onassis, you’re gonna learn today. One of the most stylish women of all-time, Jackie O wore a classic black Valentino dress at the 1979 Met Gala, adding to her list of legendary looks.