9 ways to make money from watching videos
If you ever find yourself wishing you could get paid to watch videos online, we've got some very good news – you can. Here's how.
Credit: Luis Molinero, FOGS – Shutterstock
Making money from watching videos is a lot easier than you might think. As you likely watch films and ads online in your spare time already, it's such a simple way to earn extra money.
Plus, doing video-related work experience could boost your CV. So if you're hoping to get a job in film, TV or digital media, it's ideal.
There are loads of ways to watch videos for money, and we'll go through the best options here.
How to get paid to watch videos
Here are the best ways to watch videos and earn money:
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Watch videos for money on Swagbucks
Swagbucks used to have a 'Watch' feature that paid you to watch videos. Unfortunately, this is no longer available on the app – but there are other options.
You earn points on the app by doing a range of quick and easy tasks, some of which can involve watching videos. For example, we've previously seen an offer on Swagbucks that let you earn 159 SB for installing and opening TikTok (via RevU).
You can also make money surfing the web on Swagbucks, including video searches. So, rather than searching for videos directly on YouTube, you could instead search through the Swagbucks app.
This means you can watch the same videos you would have otherwise, but get paid for it.
Other ways to earn points on Swagbucks include playing games and doing paid online surveys.
For more tips, read our in-depth Swagbucks review.
And, for a special sign-up bonus, click the link below.
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Make money watching videos on InboxPounds
InboxPounds lets you earn cash for simple tasks like watching videos and taking surveys.
You might not make big money on here, but the more tasks you do beyond watching videos, the more money you can make.
Even reading InboxPounds's deals emails, or searching the internet on their search page, can earn you cash.
While reviewing InboxPounds, we saw a task that paid you £1.50 to sign up for a free trial of Paramount+ and Prime Video (new customers only). This means you could stream top films and shows for free – and earn money in the process. The dream.
You can also get a £1 bonus for signing up to InboxPounds.
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Watch video ads on WeAre8 for earnings or charity
Hoping to watch ads for money and make a positive impact? WeAre8 could be the app for you.
Like some others on this list, WeAre8 is an app that lets you earn cash from watching videos. But it has a slight difference. As well as making money to boost your bank balance, you also have the chance to contribute to charity.
It's a social media app focused on social and environmental causes that pays you to watch videos.
When we tried and tested WeAre8, one of the ads we saw was by McCain. All we had to do was watch a short clip and answer a few multiple-choice questions to earn 8p.
This might not sound like much, but it's an advert we'd also seen on TV, so to get paid anything to watch it was great.
As an added bonus, when you get paid to watch ads on WeAre8, a donation is also made to charity.
There are three ways that you can have the money paid out:
- It can be paid to you (minimum withdrawal of £1)
- You can put it towards your EE mobile bill
- Or it can be paid to a charity of your choice.
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Watch ads, TV trailers and more for money on Slicethepie
Slicethepie is a review site that lets you earn points for doing loads of tasks like watching interesting videos, listening to music and answering survey questions.
The videos can include commercials and clips, such as trailers for films and TV shows.
The minimum withdrawal is $10 (around £8) which is paid into your PayPal account. As they read through all the reviews before making payments, you might need to wait up to five working days for the withdrawal request to be processed.
We have found the payouts to be very small per task, and it's not always an option to review videos for money (although music and fashion reviews might be available). With that in mind, this site probably isn't the quickest way to get paid to watch videos.
However, it's an option. Also, we've found that, even when unable to review videos on Slicethepie, we've discovered new music we liked so it didn't feel like a complete waste of time.
Find out more in our guide to reviewing on Slicethepie, or click the link below to sign up.
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Make money watching videos on PrizeRebel
Credit: bbernard – Shutterstock
PrizeRebel is another site to consider. If you head to the 'Offer Walls' section of their website, you'll see a category focused on videos.
However, although it is possible to watch videos on PrizeRebel, you might actually find it better for paid online surveys.
There are some more ways to boost your earnings. For example, if you refer friends to the site, you can earn a 15% bonus based on their earnings. And on PrizeRebel's social media pages, they often share opportunities to get bonus points, so look out for these.
You can request the money you've earned through the site as PayPal money or as gift cards. When withdrawing the money via PayPal, there's a minimum payout of $5 (around £4).
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Write subtitles for films as a freelancer via Fiverr
To add more film-related experience to your CV (and make money in the process) you could start writing subtitles for online videos as a freelancer.
Subtitles and transcripts can be very time-consuming to write. So, to save time, some content creators hire freelancers to write their video subtitles for them.
On sites like Fiverr, you can find freelancers offering to write video subtitles for a fee. To get an idea of prices, have a look at what other freelancers charge for similar services. Then, post rates that you think are fair but competitive.
As a guideline, we've seen some freelancers on Fiverr start their rates at around £5 to write subtitles.
If you speak another language, this is a bonus. It means you'd be able to charge a bit extra to translate videos on a freelance basis. Not to mention it's bound to impress future employers.
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Make money from film and TV reviews
Hoping to make a living from watching videos? Becoming a film or TV reviewer is one of the best, most established ways of doing so.
It's by no means easy to reach the point of writing about videos as a full-time job. But, with hard work, dedication and strong writing skills, you can do it.
Film and TV criticism are very competitive lines of work. So, particularly if you're thinking about writing on a freelance basis, you'll need to start by charging lower rates to reflect your level of experience.
But remember, you deserve to get paid for your writing. You shouldn't have to accept payments that are lower than you think is fair, just because you're starting out.
To prepare for a full-time job as a film or TV critic, it's worth looking into internships to boost your CV. Unfortunately, not all journalism internships pay well (or at all, in some cases). For help with accommodation during internships, check out PressPad.
And, if you do find yourself on an unpaid internship, our guide to supporting yourself financially during the placement can help.
Once you build up a portfolio of reviews and make a name for yourself, you can increase your rates and take on bigger commissions.
Pitching article ideas about films and TV shows to editors
To start getting commissioned for film or TV reviews as a freelancer, it's worth setting up a blog. There, you can showcase your writing style and talent.
Then, look for commissioning editors of relevant publications. Reach out to them directly (addressing them by their name in emails) and pitch them your idea.
At the end of your pitch, link to your portfolio or blog website so they can see your work.
Be confident with your article ideas, keep pitches concise and don't be disheartened by rejections. Keep going and hopefully, in time, you'll be able to make money from writing about your favourite films and TV shows.
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Take part in paid psychological studies
If you're interested in taking part in psychological and behavioural studies, this could be a good way to make money from watching videos.
The amount you can get paid in compensation for doing psychological studies will vary massively depending on the type of trial and how long it lasts, but you could receive as much as £100+ for your time.
But please note – we recommend only signing up for studies if you genuinely want to do them, rather than simply as a way of making money. Depending on the nature of the study, there's a potential for them to be emotionally or mentally challenging. So, it's best to only take part in ones you're fully comfortable with.
How to find psychological trials
As with all clinical trials, it's important to focus on trusted organisations when signing up for psychological studies.
When looking for legitimate paid psychology trials, we recommend focusing on studies at universities.
First, contact the psychology department at your uni to see if there are any upcoming studies you could get involved in. This would be the best and easiest way to take part in one.
But, if that's not possible, you could look into studies at other universities.
To focus your search, try typing '[university name] psychological trials' into Google. This should come up with the relevant page on the uni's website.
There, you'll find call-outs for study trial participants and guidance on how to apply.
Or, you could contact a university's psychology department directly, either on the phone or by email, to find out more about their upcoming studies.
Often, universities will say that they are looking for "volunteers" for the studies. But, these opportunities will typically still include some form of compensation (either in cash or vouchers) for your time and expenses.
For example, you can register as a participant in research studies on the University of Cambridge's website. Although they ask for volunteers, they offer "modest monetary compensation".
Not all studies are guaranteed to include videos, but keep an eye out for ones that suit you and your interests.
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Promote videos for companies online
As well as getting paid to watch videos, you could consider charging companies to promote their clips and ads online.
Sponsored posts are a common way to make money for online influencers. While you don't necessarily need a huge online following to do this, it would help if you have a reasonable number of followers on social media and/or your own blog.
The bigger your audience, the more you can charge companies to share their content.
Of course, it's important to make sure the videos you're promoting are useful and relevant to your audience. It could impact your online brand if you share content your followers don't engage with.
Try reaching out to the influencer marketing departments of brands you're interested in to discuss working together on a sponsored video post.
You could also use freelance sites like Fiverr to find companies who'd be happy to pay you a fee to share their video content online. This could be especially effective if you have a smaller online following.
But if you do get paid to share a post online, remember to clearly state that it's an advert or sponsored post. You can find more info and guidance in the ASA's Influencer Guide.
Fancy getting free money? Of course you do – find out how in our guide.
