How to Become a Voice Actor With No Experience

Start by training as an actor, because voice over is acting with a microphone. Then set up a quiet corner with a good USB microphone and headphones, practise daily on copy you write yourself, and audition where beginners are welcome: ACX audiobooks, open casting sites and work you create. Hold off on a demo until you're competitive. We put these questions to actor and voice-over teacher David H. Lawrence XVII.

Can anyone become a voice actor with no experience?

Almost anyone can start, but David's advice is to decide to become an actor. Only the thing capturing your performance changes: an audience, a camera or a microphone.

Your background can help. David sees people cross over from on-camera work, radio and theatre, but also doctors, lawyers and salespeople who bring a storytelling streak. Age isn't the barrier people fear: there's work at every age when a producer needs a voice like yours.

Step 1: why should you train as an actor first?

Because a "nice voice" isn't what books the job. David says what gets hired is authenticity (trusting you are enough), authority (taking on a job with confidence) and agility (delivering quickly, without days of rehearsal).

Voice over is also many jobs. His curriculum covers around 14 kinds, from commercials, audiobooks and phone systems (IVR) to animation, games, documentary narration, promos and training films.

Step 2: how should you practise reading aloud?

Read out loud every day and record it. Talk to one imaginary listener, because even an ad heard by millions is heard by one person at a time. Understand exactly what you're saying, and let the words carry the emotion instead of pushing. Most work now wants natural speech, not the old announcer sound. More in our voice acting tips.

Step 3: what do you need to record at home?

• A quiet, soft space. David starts people in a walk-in wardrobe with the clothes left in, or a card table pushed up to an ordinary wardrobe so you talk into your jumpers.
• A good USB microphone. He uses the Audio-Technica AT2020USB+ himself. A laptop's built-in microphone isn't good enough.
• Headphones or earbuds and a desk stand. That's his whole starter kit.
• Free software. He teaches with Audacity. PC or Mac doesn't matter; use the same computer every time.

Aim for good, not perfect: quiet, with presence, recorded neither so soft it lifts room noise nor so loud it clips.

Step 4: how do you practise without real scripts?

Write your own: a 15-second spot for something in your kitchen, a phone menu for an imaginary business, a paragraph of narration about your street. Don't copy real ads word for word.

Then use David's routine on each: read until the words speak to you, decide where you sit in the script, bring something from your own life, and make your second take a bold change, not a small one.

When should a beginner make a voice over demo?

Later than you think. David won't make a demo for someone who isn't ready, because a demo made too early is weaker than one made after training, and it's what agents judge you on. Plenty of people book without one. Some demos, like audiobook samples, you can record yourself; commercial, narration, phone system, animation and promo demos are best made with a producer. See our voice over demo guide.

Where do beginner voice actors actually find work?

Audiobooks on ACX. David calls audiobooks the lowest-hanging fruit. On Audible's ACX marketplace you search for titles and upload your audition yourself. As of November 2026, ACX says it's open to residents of the US, UK, Canada and Ireland with a local tax number and bank account. His caveat: many projects sell very few copies, so treat early titles as paid practice.

Casting sites. For commercials and narration he names Voice123, Bodalgo and Actors Access.

Work you create. Most voice actors work without an agent, he says, through referrals, past clients and their own content. Student films and small independent games can also give you first credits.

Do you need an agent or the union to start?

No. David says there are no managers in voice over, and agents mainly open the top tier: big advertisers, major film and TV, large narration houses. The bigger body of work underneath usually doesn't need one. See how to get a voice over agent for when you're ready.

Make SAG-AFTRA a goal, not a starting requirement. There's plenty of non-union work, though he notes union work usually pays better, with residuals and better conditions.

How do you audition when you have no credits?

The classic beginner trap, David says, is "suiting up" into a polished announcer version of yourself. Just be you, and slate in your own friendly voice, not in character. Name the file exactly as asked, and send most auditions as a 128k constant bitrate mono MP3 with no music or effects.

On casting sites, speed matters: an hour or two late can mean you miss the group that gets heard. Listeners often decide in about three seconds, so keep auditioning rather than waiting.

How do you avoid voice acting scams as a beginner?

Follow the money. As of November 2026, the FTC's job scams guidance says honest employers never ask you to pay to get a job, and a cheque you're asked to deposit and partly send back is a scam.

David adds one for voice: if a commercial audition insists on an exact 30-second read, pass, because he says it can be a sign they plan to use the best audition in the finished ad.

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