28 Ways to Get Paid to Watch TV (2021 Update)
We spend hours a day watching TV. In fact, on average, Americans watch more than 7 hours and 50 minutes of TV per household per day.
Then factor in the 2 plus hours we spend streaming video content on demand on platforms like Netflix, Amazon Prime, and Hulu, and that adds up to a lot of time spent watching videos.
Since we do love watching TV whether it’s traditional live TV or shows and movies on a streaming service, wouldn’t it be good if we could earn cash for it?
Well, you can actually get paid to watch TV!
That’s what this post is all about. Below, I’ll cover the best ways you can make money watching videos.
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Websites & Apps that Pay You to Watch TV
One of the easiest ways to make money watching TV is using websites and apps that pay you to watch videos.
Usually these offer a selection of videos, many of them short, that they’ll give you cash to watch.
I’ll level with you here, with these apps and websites, you likely won’t be streaming shows you love like Mad Men or Breaking Bad. But they still give you an easy way to earn money from watching videos online which you likely already do anyway.
Here are some apps and sites that’ll pay you to watch videos…
1. Swagbucks
Swagbucks will give you points for watching videos.
You can redeem points for:
- Money to your PayPal account
- Visa reward cards
- Gift cards for places like Amazon, Target, Best Buy, and Walmart
What’s good about Swagbucks is that you can withdraw your earnings for as little as $1 to $5 depending on the payment option you choose.
With the site, you can also get paid for other things like:
- Taking surveys
- Shopping online
- Playing games
- Completing offers
- Browsing the internet
2. Media Rewards
Media Rewards is an app that gives you rewards for watching TV. It runs in the background. You just watch TV or listen to the radio as you normally do, and you earn points for each minute the app runs in the background. You can also get paid for taking surveys. You can earn up to $10 per survey.
There are a few different payment options available, such as PayPal, Visa Prepaid cards, and gift cards for retailers like Amazon.
Every month, Media Rewards offers limited spots, so you can request the invite and download the app to get started.
3. Current Rewards
The Current Rewards app gives you money for watching short videos.
You can also earn money for listening to music with a selection of more than 100,000 radio stations to choose from.
There are a few more ways to earn money with Current Rewards, such as:
- Answering surveys
- Trying free apps
- Trying free games
- Shopping
You can redeem your earnings for money to your PayPal account, or you can get a gift card for lots of retailers, such as:
- Amazon
- Adidas
- Walmart
- Uber
- Google Play
- Target
So, there are lots of ways to get paid.
- Learn more about the Current Rewards Music App in my review here.
4. InboxDollars
Next on the list we have InboxDollars. With InboxDollars, you can earn money by watching videos and streaming TV content.
You can watch videos and TV content from your computer or smartphone. Then as you watch more videos, you’ll earn virtual scratch-off cards to unlock prizes, which can be anywhere from a couple of cents to $100.
According to InboxDollars, large companies and brands want more consumers to find out about their upcoming films, products, and services. So, they need people to watch their content and share it with their friends online. But, it can be hard to find viewers, and that’s where InboxDollars comes in.
The site connects members, like you, with these film studios, big brands, and other companies, so that you can earn money watching videos.
InboxDollars gets paid you when you watch these videos and engage with the content, and the site shares a portion of those earnings with you.
Aside from paying you to watch videos, InboxDolalrs also gives you money for:
- Reading emails
- Completing surveys
- Playing games
- Shopping online
5. TV-TWO
If you’re interested in earning cryptocurrency, then you may want to try out TV-TWO. It’s an app that pays you with cryptocurrency when you watch videos. There’s content available from 2,000,000 creators. You can earn even more by completing tasks. It ideal for those interested in BTC and ETH.
6. FeaturePoints
FeaturePoints rewards you for trying free apps and watching videos. You can also earn money from completing surveys and shopping online. You can get your earnings sent to your PayPal account or you can choose to get a gift card.
There are gift cards available for lots of different retailers, such as:
- Amazon
- Walmart
- GameStop
- Xbox
- Target
7. Dabbl
Dabbl pays you for completing simple, fun interactive games, quizzes, and videos. And it pays you for taking surveys.
You can redeem your earnings to a gift card. There are gift cards available for a wide range of retailers, such as:
- Walmart
- Amazon
- Disney
- Target
- Spotify
- Best Buy
- Marshalls
8. MyPoints
MyPoints is mostly known as a cashback website, but it also offers users points for watching videos. You can earn money watching playlists! You need to complete the playlist in order to receive the points. You can watch videos on your laptop or smartphone and make money.
You can redeem your earnings to your PayPal account. Or you can choose Visa cards and gift cards to retailers like Amazon and Walmart. The best part is that you can redeem gift cards for as little as $5.
And, just for joining, MyPoints will give you a $10 Amazon or Visa gift card.
9. PrizeRebel
PrizeRebel is a survey website that also gives you rewards for watching videos. When you watch videos, you can earn points. Payment options include PayPal payments and gift cards.
There are lots of gift cards options available for retailers, like:
- Amazon
- Starbucks
- iTunes
- CVS
- Walmart
- Visa
- Burger King
- eBay
What’s good about PrizeRebel is that you can cash out your earnings for just $1 to $5 depending on the reward option you choose.
10. QuickRewards
QuickRewards will pay you to watch a variety of informational and entertaining videos. You’ll earn rewards while you watch. There are lots of videos about the news, lifestyle topics, pop culture, and more.
You can also get paid to:
- Complete surveys
- Play games
- Complete offers
- Shop online
You get paid right to your PayPal account, or you can choose to get a gift card.
There are more than 50 gift card options available for places like:
- Amazon
- Applebee’s
- Red Lobster
- com
- Walmart
- Olive Garden
What’s great about QuickRewards is that you only need 1 cent in your account you redeem your earnings, and it pays fast too.
PayPal payments are sent within 72 hours, which is great. Gift cards are sent within a week.
11. Vindale Research
Vindale Research is mostly known as a survey website where people can earn money from taking surveys. But, Vindale research actually pays you to watch videos. You can take video surveys for money. Just look in the “Videos” tab on your Surveys page to see whether you’re eligible.
With the site, you can earn up to $50 per survey. And you get $1 just for signing up. The site offers quick payments right to your PayPal account.
12. FusionCash
FusionCash is a reward, or get paid to website as they’re also called, that pays you for watching videos. It also pays you for other tasks such as cashback shopping and taking surveys. You can even get paid to post on the site’s forum.
Payments are sent via PayPal, check, or direct deposit. And you can get a $5 bonus just for signing up.
Now, in order to cash out funds, you do need to have $25 in your account. So, it does take a little while with this one before you can get your earnings. It’s best to participate in a few different activities so that you can reach the payout limit faster.
13. GrabPoints
GrabPoints is a website that is hugely popular with an impressive 4-star rating from Trustpilot. With it, you can get paid to watch videos online.
According to GrabPoints, since streaming is popular and buying ad space on TV can be expensive, advertisers work with companies like GrabPoints to get more exposure.
So, advertisers pay GrabPoints, and when you finish watching a video, then GrabPoints pays you.
Aside from watching videos, the websites also pays you for:
- Completing surveys
- Completing offers
- Downloading apps
- Referring friends
You can redeem your points for gift cards and money to your PayPal account.
Sign up for the site, and then check out the different channels the site has offer. You can find a channel you want, and then start watching videos.
The channels on offer vary depending on your location, but there are lots to choose from in different categories such as sports and entertainment. And you can flip between channels to find one that interests you.
You can watch as many or as few videos as you want to from as many channels that are available to you. When the video ends, points are credited to your account. Now, some offers do need you to watch a couple of videos before you can earn points, so make sure that you read the requirements carefully. You can earn more money by watching more videos.
When you have 3,000 points in your account, which is equal to $3, you can request a payout. You can get your earnings sent to your PayPal account, or you can get a gift card instead. You will receive your reward within 48 hours.
14. Earnably
Earnably is another site that you should try as it pays you to watch videos. It has a few other ways to make money too, like by taking surveys and referring friends. You can redeem your earnings for money to your PayPal account or get a gift card.
15. InstaGC
InstaGC gives you gift cards for watching videos.
There are more than 340 gift card options available, with gift cards on offer for retailers like:
- Amazon
- Olive Garden
- Petco
- Pizza Hut
- iTunes
- Kohl’s
- Marriot
- Marshalls
- Walmart
- Target
- Netflix
Aside from getting paid to watch videos, InstaGC will also pay you for completing other tasks, like:
- Completing surveys
- Shopping online
- Searching the web
16. ZoomBucks
Zoombucks pays you for watching videos. The site says that since advertisers want eyes on their ads, rather than paying for airtime on TV, they work with sites like ZoomBucks to get more exposure.
Whenever you watch videos on the site, you get paid.
Just sign up and complete your profile, then you can find a channel that interests you. The site offers channels that cover a wide range of interests, like sports, entertainment, and lifestyle. The channels you can watch are determined by your location.
You have to watch the entire video to get paid for it. And some offers do have specific viewing requirements, like some of them will need you to watch three videos to earn, and others may only require you to watch a single video.
Once you finish watching a video, points will be credited to your account. You can keep watching for more earnings, and you can even switch between channels to find a video that you’d like to watch.
Once you have 3,000 points in your account, you can cash out your earnings. You can redeem your points for cash to your PayPal account, or for gift cards, like Xbox gift cards.
Aside from paying you to watch videos, the site also pays you to complete offers and take surveys.
Jobs that Pay You to Watch TV Shows & Movies
One of the best ways to get paid to watch TV is to get a job that involves watching television. Does such a thing exist though?
Indeed, it does! There are lots of jobs that involve watching TV.
Here are some jobs that pay you to watch TV:
17. Professional TV watcher
Yup, being a professional TV watcher is actually a thing you can do! Professional TV watchers are hired to watch hours of TV so that they can find the right clips for shows and news broadcasts. Many shows hire people to do this. But, it isn’t always easy to find these gigs.
This is a dream job for many of us after all!
That being said, positions for pro TV watchers do pop up from time to time.
Here’s where you can sometimes find jobs as a TV watcher:
18. Entertainment Writer
One of the best ways you can make money watching your favorite TV shows and movies is to become an entertainment writer.
You know those blogs that talk about TV, movie news, etc.? Well, many of these movie/tv-focused sites actually pay people to write articles for them.
You’ll get paid for writing a wide variety of articles.
Here are some entertainment sites that pay you to write about movies and TV shows:
19. Pet-sitter
Love animals and watching TV, then why not try pet-sitting?
Lots of people have dogs, cats, or other pets that they need to leave alone at some point either to go to work or to go on vacation. And, they hire pet-sitters to keep their pets company.
You could watch TV while you pet-sit!
This job does involve more responsibilities than just watching TV, of course. Like, you’ll need to feed the pet and perform other care tasks. However, for a portion of the job, you’ll be getting paid to watch TV. And you can even pick the shows you want to watch.
Here are a few places to find pet sitting work:
Rover pays up to $1,000 a month so you could make a lot of cash from this.
20. Netflix Tagger
Can you get paid to watch Netflix?
Yes, but this is a really difficult gig to get. I mean, we’d all like to make money watching Netflix. But, these jobs just don’t come up that often.
Sometimes there are jobs available for Netflix taggers.
Basically, Netflix taggers get paid to watch Netflix media and then they tag each one with keywords like “comedy” or “sci-fi.”
Sometimes Netflix tagger jobs are offered, but you’ll need to apply through the official Netflix website:
- Find jobs with Netflix here.
Now, aside from Netflix tagger jobs, Netflix offers lots of different positions, some of which involve watching content. So, I would check back on the Netflix jobs site to see if any jobs that involve watching TV come up.
21. Mystery Shopper
When most of us think about mystery shopping work, we think about visiting stores and giving our opinion on them. But, mystery shopping work isn’t just limited to stores, with many industries working with mystery shopping companies.
This includes lots of other businesses like restaurants, and movie theaters!
Yes, you can become a mystery shopper and get paid to see free movies.
And, you even get those movie snacks for free with some jobs! Great, right?
Mystery shopping companies pay you to visit movie theaters like Regal Cinemas, AMC Theatres, IMAX, Cinemark Theatres, Carmike Cinemas, Starplex Cinemas, and Showcase Cinema.
You’ll need to provide feedback on things like how the staff treated you, and how clean the theater was. This is such a fun way to make money watching movies.
Here are some mystery shopping companies that serve movie theaters:
For more mystery shopping jobs, check out this post.
22. Movie/TV Critic
Movie or TV critics, who’re sometimes called reviewers, give their opinion on the content they watch. This means that you could actually get paid to watch TV shows and movies and give your opinion on them.
How do you get started with this though?
Here are a few places to learn about becoming a movie critic:
Here’s where you can find tv/movie critic jobs:
23. Closed Captioner
Another way you could earn cash watching TV is by becoming a closed captioner. Closed captioners write the captions you see when you click on the CC button on sites like Amazon Prime. Closed captions are designed for those who’re deaf or hard of hearing.
Now, with this gig, you have to concentrate on writing the captions, so it’s not the most fun way to earn an income watching shows. However, you’re still getting paid to watch TV!
Here are a few places where you can find closed captioning jobs:
For more closed captioning jobs, make sure you check out this post.
According to Rev, top earners make $1574 a month from working with the site.
24. Jobs with streaming platforms
I mentioned above that Netflix pays you to watch TV. But it’s not the only streaming platform that offers TV watching jobs. Other companies like Hulu offer jobs that involve watching television. So, it’s worth checking on these company job boards from time to time to see if there are any openings.
Here are some companies to check out:
Jobs that involve watching TV may not always be available, but it’s still worth checking.
Other Ways to Make Money Watching TV
Here are even more ways you can earn money watching shows and movies:
25. Start your own YouTube Channel
Want to get paid for watching the shows that you want? Well, then you should definitely consider starting your own YouTube channel.
You could share movie reviews, opinions on your favorite shows, and anything else that’s TV-related. This is such a good way to make money. YouTube channels that talk about shows and movies are super popular, with channels like Screen Junkies, Watch Mojo, and WhatCulture getting millions of viewers and subscribers.
Start your own channel and upload content consistently.
When you reach a certain number of channel views, you’ll be eligible to become a YouTube Partner. As a YouTube Partner, you are able to earn money from the ads that play on your videos. And, you can also make money in other ways like by creating sponsored videos for brands or by selling your own merch.
While YouTube isn’t particularly forthcoming with how much it pays its content creators, online reports suggest that for every 1,000 views they get, YouTubers earn from $0.25 to $7. Payment is sent to your AdSense account, and payment options for AdSense earnings include Electronic Funds Transfer (EFT) and check.
The best part about YouTube is no matter where you live, you can use it to earn money. For example, if you ever wanted to know how to get paid to watch TV in U.K., Australia, Canada or any other country, creating a YouTube channel is the answer.
- Get started here.
26. Create your own blog about movies and TV shows
Making YouTube videos isn’t for you? No worries. If you’d love to talk about your favorite TV shows and movies, then consider starting a blog.
You could write articles giving your opinion on classic shows, new releases, and more!
And, eventually, you could make money from your blog.
What’s great about blogging is that you can choose to write about the topics you want, which means you can watch the movies and TV shows that you want.
How do you get started though?
Well, first of all, you’ll need to purchase a domain name and hosting, which you can do on sites such as:
Then, you’ll need to use a platform like WordPress.org to publish your content.
Make sure that you upload content on a consistent basis. This way, you’ll build up an audience for your blog.
With blogging, you can make money from your site in a few different ways, such as by:
- Putting Google ads on your site
- Using affiliate links in your posts
- Creating sponsored content for brands.
The more traffic you can get to your site, the better because you’ll get more views on ads, more clicks on affiliate links, etc., which means more money.
Blogging requires you to learn about things like SEO and marketing though if you want to make a profit. So, you will have to put some effort in here. But, you are writing about something you enjoy, and if successful, you could earn $1,000s each month from your blog.
27. Become a Nielsen Family
Another option is to become a Nielsen Family. Nielsen Family households get paid for watching TV. Nielsen tracks viewing habits so that it can provide ratings for television programs. So you get to help determine what is put on TV.
Now, the only issue is that you can’t apply to be a Nielsen Family.
Instead, Nielsen selects households in different populations and communities.
If you are selected, you’ll receive gifts for your continued participation.
- Learn more about being a Nielsen Family here.
28. Start your own podcast to chat about TV
Another way that you could earn some cash from watching TV is by starting a podcast. There are tons of podcasts out there on shows ranging from The West Wing to Seinfeld. Whatever your favorite show is, it’s likely that other people love it too. So consider starting a podcast on it.
You can find a step-by-step guide from ThePodcastHost.com on how to start a podcast here.
Podcasters make money through sponsors and advertisers. So, you need to build up an audience before you really start making money from this. You’ll need to put out quality content on a consistent basis to gain an audience.
Start your own podcast and you can make money from home.
Just pick a show to discuss or you can talk about TV shows in general. There are even podcasts out there dedicated to just Netflix or shows that were canceled after just one season.
Since podcasts are so popular, you could make quite a lot from this.
One of the most famous podcasters, Joe Rogan, made a deal with Spotify which was worth more than $100 million.
While you may not earn $100 million like Joe Rogan, you can still earn $100s or even $1,000s a month from your podcast.
Enjoy the Show!
Now you have lots of ways to make money watching TV!
Give them a try and you can make money doing something that you already do anyway.
Apps like Swagbucks and Current Rewards which pay you for watching videos are good. They’re probably one of the easiest options for making money watching TV. However, they don’t pay that much. They’re more suited for making beer money.
If you’re looking to make a decent income from this, then you’ll want to try out one of the jobs that pay you to watch TV.
These jobs give you much more money than sites like QuickRewards and Dabbl. However, since these are jobs, they require you to work as well as watch TV, so it’s not for everyone.
Both apps that pay you to watch TV and jobs that pay you to watch TV are good options.
I would just recommend choosing the option that best suits you. I think that contributing to entertainment blogs is a great choice because you get to watch shows and write about them. That’s the option I would try, but then again, I enjoy writing!
For anyone who just wants a relaxing time where they make a few bucks watching videos, then I would highly recommend going with those apps and websites like Earnably and GrabPoints that I mentioned above.
For more money though, give the jobs a try. Oh, and if you want to make your own business out of watching TV, do consider options like starting your own YouTube channel, blog, or podcast. You could be your own boss and make an income doing what you love!
Do you have any tips on how to get paid to watch TV? Let us know in the comments section below!
InboxDollars: Paid over $57 Million to members to watch videos, take surveys, shop and more. Join InboxDollars Now and Get $5 Instantly!
Panda Research: Earn up to $50 per survey or offer completed. Join Panda Research Today!
Daily Goodie Box: Want free stuff? DGB will send you a box of free goodies (Free Shipping - No Credit Card). Get your box now!
Pinecone Research: Get paid to test new products & earn $3 per survey! Join Pinecone Research Now!
Opinion OutPost: Get your share of over $400,000.00 a month they pay to their survey takers. Join Opinion Outpost
Swagbucks: Get paid to watch videos, shop online, take surveys and more. Join Swagbucks Now & Get a $5 Instantly!
Anyone can work as a member of the audience, as long as you fit with the producer requirements for that particular show.
From children to seniors, anyone can have the chance to work as part of an audience on a TV stage.
There are ways to get paid to watch TV, such as through companies that offer rewards for reviewing shows, participating in surveys, or testing products. Platforms like Swagbucks, InboxDollars, or specific market research firms sometimes pay you to watch advertisements or TV programs for feedback. However, these opportunities often involve completing additional tasks or surveys alongside watching TV.
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