The online space has created diverse opportunities for people to make money using only a smartphone or laptop. Surprisingly, it’s now possible to make money from the comfort of your home by reading books online. Although it doesn’t appear to be a logical money-making model, thousands of people across the world are making real dollars as they get paid to read books.
Whether you are interested in fiction, non-fiction, crime novels, self-help manuscripts, and motivational books, there are countless materials available for you to read and earn money. This doesn’t have to be a full-time income, and if you have a flair for reading, it’s simply an opportunity to make extra money during your free time.
To help you delve into how you can get paid to read books, this post compiles a list of the best websites where you can earn money by spending a few hours reading manuscripts.
How Can I Get Paid To Read Books?
You can earn money from reading books by joining websites that pay people to assess manuscripts through thorough reading. This means you’d have to be an ardent reader since you may be required to read a lot of content.
How Much Book Readers Are Paid?
Book readers online can earn up to $20 per hour. However, this is not a fixed amount; you can make less or more than $5, depending on how much time you spend reading the books. Besides, if you are a fast reader, that would definitely be an advantage.
How To Make Money Reading Books
There are so many websites to make money by reading books online. But if you want to generate a fair amount of money from being a book reader, you need to find the right website that would be worth your time and effort.
For instance, some websites will only pay you a few cents after spending hours reading manuscripts; meanwhile, there are sites willing to pay you almost $10 or offer you Amazon gift cards for reading online.
When you find a legit website that pays book readers, you must sign up to be given access to the manuscripts. Signing up is usually pretty straightforward. The website may require a few personal details such as your name, email, address, and book interests. Once you sign up successfully and the website accepts you, you can make money reading books.
Equipment Needed To Get Paid Reading Books
You don’t need to possess any technical skills or have a certain degree before you can get paid to read books. Here is the equipment you only need to be eligible:
- Internet
The companies that pay people to read books are strictly web-based platforms. This means you must be connected to the internet to read and earn. However, you don’t need to worry about having fast internet. Reading books online isn’t the same as watching videos on YouTube or Netflix. If you use a 3G network, you will do just fine.
- Smartphones
You need a device to read books online. That’s where a smartphone comes in. You can use your phone to sign up on the website, verify your account, and start reading the available manuscripts. In fact, this means you can always get paid to read books anywhere you are as long as you use your mobile phone.
- Tablets
You might need a tablet if you prefer using a bigger screen to read online. Sometimes, smartphones may not give you a soothing reading experience. But with a tab, you don’t need to zoom in on the manuscript to see it clearer. The screen should be wide enough to display the texts vividly.
15 Websites That Pay You To Read Books
Here are some of the best websites where you can get paid to read books online:
1. Kirkus Media
One of the ways to make money by reading books is by signing up on Kirkus Media. This is a company that specializes in reviewing books by different authors. Due to the large number of books they have to review daily, they now hire book readers to assess books and write reviews of about 350 words.
Kirkus is a credible platform, and they pay a reasonable amount of money like it’s a typical freelance job. To be hired, you need to submit a few writing samples. You may also need to add your resume to be more eligible for the job. Usually, copy editors and proofreaders are hired by Kirkus media.
2. Online Book Club
Online Book Club is another credible website where people get paid to read books. You can earn between $5 and $60 for reviewing books after reading. The company seeks to get honest reviews from book readers and then offers a monetary reward.
It’s completely free to join Online Book Club as a member and start making money by submitting book reviews. However, before you can be eligible to earn on the platform, you must submit a free book review. It serves as an interview to verify your expertise before you can be considered a member of the Online Book Club.
3. Publishers Weekly
This is a weekly news magazine that specializes in the book publishing industry. They seek to hire qualified proofreaders, copy editors, and book reviewers. But since you are interested in just reading books, you can apply for the role of a proofreader, which allows you to read manuscripts and make simple spelling and grammatical corrections.
To get hired, you must submit a 200-word book review written by you, as well as your recent resume. Although Publishers Weekly doesn’t specify the amount paid to its remote workers, your earnings are pretty reasonable.
4. The U.S. Review Of Books
The U.S. Review of Books is an online-based company that reviews thousands of books regardless of genre. Book reviewers are usually hired to write about 200-300 word reviews on different types of books.
You can earn hundreds of dollars weekly by reviewing multiple books. Notwithstanding, your earnings are determined by the length of books you review. At the end of the month, the company accumulates your earnings and pays them directly to your bank account.
5. Upwork
Upwork is an online marketplace for freelancers. However, you can get paid to read on the platform. There are thousands of clients (authors) looking for professional proofreaders to edit and review the content of their books.
Aside from book publishers and authors, bloggers also come to Upwork to pay for proofreading services. Hence, if you are on Upwork as a freelance proofreader, you can make a decent amount of money reading and editing people’s books, articles, blog posts, or essays.
Signing up on Upwork is free, but the platform takes %20 of your earnings. Nevertheless, it’s a freelance platform where you can negotiate with clients and be paid what you want. If you review a book for $200, Upwork will take $40 (which is %20 commission).
6. Women’s Review Of Books
The Women’s Review Books is a platform strictly for women who are into book publishing. The website was inspired and developed by the Wellesley Centers for Women at Wesley College.
To join the platform as a paid book reviewer, you must first sign up via the website and submit a few samples of already published book reviews written by you. You may also be required to tender your resume.
However, this doesn’t mean they can’t accept someone without book review samples. Submitting yours only increases your chances of being accepted into the platform. Your ability to meet deadlines is vital when working with the Women’s Review of Books. Due to the large number of manuscripts that needs to be reviewed, the deadline is always tight.
7. New Pages
Aside from your interest in reading, if you have a flair for creative writing, New Pages is a site you should join. As a member of the platform, you can read books on different subject matters and write creative reviews on them.
New Pages usually seek to hire book reviewers that know how to write engaging, high-quality, and easy-to-read reviews. Amazingly, you are allowed to review books that are in line with your interests. This means if you prefer reading fiction, you can request to review only fiction books.
Another reason New Pages is a great site to get paid to read books is that there’s flexible timing, and you can choose when you read books and write your reviews.
8. Net Gallery
Net Gallery is a well-known website that shows you how to get paid to read books. The platform welcomes librarians, educators, proofreaders, book reviewers, booksellers, and even bloggers to read the numerous books that are being promoted on the site.
However, unlike other companies, Net Gallery doesn’t pay you money for reading books and writing reviews. Instead, they offer you digital copies of books in exchange for your time and effort. But since it’s a digital book, you can always sell it to as many people as possible and make a lot of money.
9. Moody Press
Moody Press is a website where you can make money reading books online. But most of the members of this site are bloggers. Owning a blog is a key requirement for joining Moody Press because you will be instructed to write book reviews and publish them on your blog.
Once you sign up on the site and submit your application, you will have to wait for a while before you get selected. Moody Press usually sends a physical copy of the book to you within 7 to 10 days after your application. You are expected to send your review within the duration required by the company.
10. Book Browse
If you are looking for an online magazine for book lovers, you need to check out Book Browse ASAP. This website usually seeks to hire ardent readers who can also write engaging reviews on every book they read on the platform. But just like Net Gallery, Book Browse doesn’t pay with money. They offer free books in exchange for the reviews you provide. You can decide to sell your books and earn money if that’s what you want.
Also, Book Browse doesn’t always have a wide range of books you can choose from. Review opportunities are based on the number of manuscripts being sent to the site for review.
11. Chicago Book Review
Chicago Book Review is another place you can get paid to read books at home. It is a book publishing site aimed at improving Chicago’s publishing world by sharing quality book reviews.
This website is responsible for reviewing published books from over 125 book publishing companies across the state of Chicago. Hence, the company intends to recruit reviewers who can write engaging pieces of content for a book review. The company seeks to increase the sales of books within Chicago by publishing interesting and intriguing book reviews.
If you love reading books and expressing your thoughts on the books in written content, you should consider sending your resume and a few writing samples to Chicago Book Review. That’s how you begin your application.
12. Bethany House
Another good website where you can get paid to read books is Bethany House. This is a publishing site that publishes books mainly on Christianity and the history surrounding the religion.
So if you are interested in Christian-themed topics, you may want to join Bethany House. However, to be a book reviewer on this site, you must have your own blog. This is because you will be requested to post your reviews on your blog and a retailer blog such as Amazon. This is done to spread the word about the books and potentially increase sales.
As for remuneration, you will be duly compensated. You will get paid based on the number of books you have read and written a review about. Note that there are so many reviewers on Bethany House, so when given a task, ensure you complete it as soon as possible before it’s given to someone else.
13. Reedsy Discovery
Reedsy Discovery is a book review platform that gives you the opportunity to read books to make money. It’s a site that welcomes thousands of passionate readers to access countless indie books before they are distributed to the general public.
Reedsy Discovery allows you to properly brand yourself as a book reviewer on the platform when setting up your profile. You will also be allowed to connect with the authors of the books you read.
The method for earning money on this site is quite different. The company doesn’t pay you directly; instead, they set up a reward program that allows readers of your review to tip you between $1 to $5 if your content is interesting.
14. Booklist
Booklist is quite different from other websites recommended on this list. The website has a different approach when it comes to recruiting people to read books and provide reviews.
To join Booklist, you will be required to send a query to express your reasons for wanting to review a particular book for them. If the team assesses and accepts your application, you will have to review a book immediately. Your book review is expected to be around 175 words.
Since you can earn up to $15 per review, there’s no denying that Booklist is a reliable platform to get paid to read books as a reviewer. You can also be allowed to publish your reviews on a personal blog and earn $12.50. Anyone passionate about reading and writing can join Booklist to express his skill and talent.
15. Writerful Books
Writerful Books is another fantastic platform where you get paid to read books in English and then write creative reviews on the books you’ve read. Although you can review anything you like, the company prefers contemporary novels from American, British, Canadian, New Zealand, and Australian authors. Writing reviews on the publications of these authors will give you an edge.
You can earn between $10 to $50 for every book review that gets accepted and published. Also, Writerful Books regularly rewards the top reviewer on the site with a $100 Amazon gift voucher.
Get Paid To Read Books: Final Notes
The best way to turn your passion for reading into profit is by joining book publishing sites as a book reviewer. Thankfully, this post has shown you the best ways to get paid to read books. You can make this your little side hustle while chasing a bigger paycheck.
On the other hand, reading books and writing reviews about them will continually improve your intellectual strength, and you will be more knowledgeable as you read from different authors.
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Having been an avid reader and a teacher most of my life, I decided to try and get into the proofreading and copy editing line. It has proved difficult to find a way way in. Becoming a book reviewer would also be a good fit for me. Thank you for sharing your knowledge and inspiring me.