After concluding high school, the then 17-year-old Massotti left her home city of Três Passos, Rio Grande do Sul to work as a model in São Paulo.
[2] However, as she was not successful, Ariela Massotti decided to study performing arts to become an actress.
Soon after that, she was hired by Rede Globo after an acting evaluation, permanently moving to Rio de Janeiro.
[5] Ariela Massotti returned to Rede Globo in 2008 to play the lead role Otávia Prado in the telenovela Ciranda de Pedra, who tries to steal her sister's boyfriend.
[6][7] She guest starred in the comedy series Zorra Total in 2010, and played the lead antagonist in Malhação during the 2010–2011 season.