Sarafyan made her acting debut on Judging Amy as Aisha Al-Jamal in the episode "Culture Clash" in 2000. She also appeared in the music video for Stronger by Britney Spears, and later appeared on Buffy the Vampire Slayer as Lori in 2002. She made her film debut in The Last Run as Lauren in 2004 and continued to appear in other television series including The Shield, The Division, Wanted, South of Nowhere, 24, and CSI: NY.