You may think you want to work here, but i assure you that you do not - Editorial Associate Refinery29 Employee Review

2.0
Jun 5, 2020
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

great colleagues, fun office atmosphere, the opportunity to work in media and get paid to do it but....

Cons

Vice/R29 own all your ip. they don't respect your time or your personhood. They especially prey on BIPOC and LGBTQ staffers to use their time and ideas for content and then refuse to promote them until they quite or are fired. They repeatedly tell you that you should be "grateful" for what you have, when in factt they should be grateful to have YOU. This place is rotten from the core. I give it a year until Vice just kills the brand. Vice is also bad! Digital media in general is a big ol' scam.

Explore other reviews about Refinery29

5.0
May 27, 2026
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

Great culture, extremely nice employees, diverse workplace

Cons

Not very cutting edge with their approach to tech

4.0
Mar 23, 2026
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

Refinery29 was training day, every day. The pace and creative expectations forced you to sharpen fast. I cut my teeth here over four years and came out a fundamentally better strategist. The work was culturally plugged in, the people were sharp, and you were trusted with real responsibility early. If you wanted to learn how brand, content, and audience intersect at speed, there was no better place.

Cons

The intensity that makes it a great training ground also means the environment runs hot. Not everyone thrives in that — and depending on your team, support structures varied. The company went through a lot of change during my time, which created some instability.

See reviews by: Helpful|Rating|Date|All