Get Paid To Watch Movies: 9 Best Ways To Begin
OT
Summary:
There are many ways to earn money watching movies, including becoming a Netflix tagger, offering feedback on movies online, or sharing your opinions on new movie trailers. If you’re patient enough, watching online videos can eventually become an easy way for you to earn extra cash and even get access to free movies.
Are you a huge movie fan? Whether you’ve dreamed of being the next Siskel or Ebert or you simply enjoy watching movies for fun, you probably find the possibility to earn money watching videos or movies extremely enticing. There are some companies that claim to pay you to watch videos online, but are they legit? And are there ways to earn money watching movies on your own?
The good news is that it is possible to get paid to watch movies and online videos. As Twitch streamer and geek influencer Jason Kelley (JayKellz) explains, “Being paid to watch movies is one of the best experiences I’ve ever had. If you haven’t done so, I would recommend it.”
That said, you’ll really need to commit to this hobby to turn it into a lucrative side hustle or even a full-time gig. If you want to watch movies for free, get paid to watch movie trailers, or help studios decide on their next movie productions, then keep reading to find out how you can turn your love of movies into a reliable income stream!
Compare Side Jobs
Compare money making ideas and new gigs. Find your next side hustle.
9 ways you can get paid to watch movies and videos
Opportunities for making money online watching movies range from small, sporadic gigs watching videos online to full-time jobs reviewing feature-length films. Here are ten ways you can get paid to watch movies and videos online:
1. Watch movie previews on a rewards app
You’re probably familiar with at least a few apps that give you rewards for doing small tasks, such as cash back on everyday grocery purchases or points for taking surveys that you can redeem for free gift cards or PayPal cash. While these apps don’t pay enough money to qualify as side jobs, you can still earn a little extra cash from them by watching movie trailers or video ads.
Note that these rewards apps aren’t geared exclusively toward movie lovers; they’re mainly for consumers who want to earn points toward rewards or save while shopping online, so don’t expect to make a lot of extra cash exclusively by watching movie previews on these platforms. If you’re serious about making a proper side gig out of watching full-length movies, you’re better off looking for more lucrative opportunities elsewhere.
2. Become a Netflix tagger
Since its transition into a streaming service in 2007, Netflix has become one of the biggest platforms for watching movies and TV series online. And having one of the largest content libraries on the internet comes with a major challenge: categorization.
To solve this problem, Netflix hires “taggers” to help organize their content into the proper categories. Basically, taggers watch movies and TV shows added to the Netflix library, then select the most appropriate tags for them, thus helping viewers find the content most relevant to their tastes.
You can earn between $21 and $30 an hour as a Netflix tagger. Be warned, however, that this side job can easily turn into a boring full-time position. If you’re already obsessed with watching Netflix movies and shows, this can be a good way to make extra money from your interests, but otherwise, you may want to think carefully before you tread into the world of Netflix tagging.
3. Review movies on your own YouTube channel
Before the rise of the internet, the only way movie critics could find work was through mainstream media, such as newspapers or radio stations. You usually had to be a journalist and leverage plenty of connections to land such a prestigious job. Thankfully, these days anyone can earn a decent income by reviewing movies online.
One of the best ways to do so is by starting your own YouTube channel. You can post reviews of movies you’ve recently watched, or you can share YouTube videos of yourself reacting to movies and TV shows on various streaming services. With enough time and dedication, this can eventually turn into a reliable stream of passive income for you!
Pro Tip
Keep in mind that in order to become a successful YouTuber — whether your videos focus on watching movies, playing games, or anything else — you need to be consistent. If you’re camera-shy or you’re not willing to put in the work, you may find it difficult to turn your hobby into a full-time YouTube gig!
4. Start a movie review blog
Maybe you do want to be an independent film critic, but you don’t like the idea of recording yourself talking about movies. The good news is that video isn’t the only popular way to share movie reviews. If writing is more your thing, you can earn cash by starting your own movie review blog!
Like a YouTube channel, a review blog can become a steady source of passive income if you put in the work to get it off the ground. Set up a website and write a handful of reviews for movies or TV shows you’ve watched, then start directing traffic to your blog to earn revenue from ads or affiliate links. If your blog becomes popular enough, you may eventually want to hire more people to write movie reviews and turn your passion into a full-time business!
Of course, if you’re skilled enough at writing movie reviews, there’s another way you can get paid to watch movies…
5. Become a professional movie critic
While the adage “everyone’s a critic” holds especially true in the age of social media, there are still plenty of opportunities for professional critics in mainstream media. If you watch a lot of movies and have a talent for articulating the strengths and weaknesses of a film, you can do freelance work reviewing movies for a local magazine or a movie review website.
Note that most magazines and review outlets will require that you have a relevant college degree and experience (e.g., film school or journalism) before they offer you a job as a film critic, so this opportunity isn’t accessible to everyone. However, if you meet the requirements and your writing is engaging enough, you could easily make a successful career out of watching movies!
Pro Tip
Struggling to find paid work as a professional film critic? Write a few movie reviews for free to fill out your portfolio before you reach out to potential clients!
6. Become a Nielsen household
Did you know that you can get paid to watch movies and TV shows by signing up to be a Nielsen TV Family? Ratings by Nielsen Media Research measure audience viewership for television networks to help guide decisions on which shows get continued and which shows get canceled. They achieve this by monitoring the watching tendencies of participating households, known as Nielsen Families, who in turn are paid for their time.
Nielsen offers different programs through which you can earn extra money. You can sign up for the Nielsen Computer and Mobile Panel and get paid to watch videos and movies online, or you can become a Nielsen Family and earn money by watching TV shows and movies on your television. Either way, it can be a great way to get paid simply for watching movies as you normally do!
7. Work as a “movie mystery shopper”
Another way you can get paid to watch movies is by performing in-theater checks for your local movie theater. This is basically working as a secret shopper, except instead of being paid to shop in a store, you’re earning money by going to the movies!
In-theater checks involve evaluating key points like the condition of the theater, the quality of the customer service, the cleanliness of the bathrooms, and the quality of the concessions. As a “mystery moviegoer,” you’ll take surveys and give feedback on your experience to help movie theaters improve on any lacking points in the future.
Several companies offer theater checking jobs, with the most prominent being a Certified Field Associate for Market Force Information. The pay isn’t high, but it can be a great opportunity to watch blockbuster movies for free!
8. Transcribe audio for movies and TV shows
Do you have a good ear for audio and a skill for typing quickly? If so, you may have what it takes to work as a transcriptionist for movies and TV shows.
While closed captions on TV are often generated with artificial intelligence these days, film transcription still needs a human being to ensure that all audio is properly converted to text. Note that transcribing audio usually requires that you watch TV shows and movies repeatedly to make sure the subtitles are correct, but if you’re willing to put in that time, you can make a decent income from this side job!
9. Participate in movie focus groups
Focus groups used to be a cornerstone of malls, but you don’t need to go to a mall to participate in one anymore. These days, you can earn some extra cash or free gift cards by joining focus groups online.
Participating in movie focus groups may involve watching movie previews for a brand new movie, then giving your honest opinions on these videos. While it may not be as exciting as getting paid to watch feature-length movies and full episodes of TV shows, your feedback from watching video ads does help improve the quality of marketing campaigns, which is a win-win for advertising companies and consumers.
Another way you can earn money from focus groups is by listening to movie pitches. Movies are expensive to make, so in order to avoid taking major risks that lose them millions of dollars, movie studios conduct market research by pitching movie ideas to everyday moviegoers like you (and paying them for their feedback, of course). If you’re a huge movie buff, you can easily make a few extra bucks by helping studios decide what movies to make next!
FAQ
Does Netflix pay you to watch movies?
You can get paid to watch Netflix by working as a Netflix tagger. Basically, you watch movies and series in the Netflix library, then categorize them by adding the appropriate tags.
How much can you get paid to tag movies for Netflix?
Working as a Netflix tagger generally pays between $21 and $30 an hour.
Can you make money watching YouTube?
YouTube does not pay you for watching ads on the platform. However, you can make money from YouTube by starting your own YouTube channel and monetizing your videos.
Key Takeaways
- There are multiple ways you can get paid to watch movies, such as watching movie trailers for focus groups, working as a Netflix tagger or film transcriptionist, and writing movie reviews (independently or professionally).
- Most of these side jobs don’t pay very much, but they offer interesting ways to make extra money or watch movies for free.
- If you want to make a decent income from watching movies, you’ll need to put in a lot of time and effort to turn it into a full-time gig, such as by becoming a film critic or a successful YouTuber.
Are you looking for ways to earn some extra money, but you’re not really into watching movies? No problem; there are plenty of other options out there for earning extra cash! Check out SuperMoney’s list of 15 side jobs you can do from home, and use our comparison tool to find the best side gigs you can start right now!
Share this post: