12 Best Ways To Make Money Reading Books
If you're anything like me, you love a good book.
There's something incredibly satisfying about grabbing a great read and dissolving into your sofa for a lazy Sunday afternoon without a care in the world.
However, while reading might be a leisurely activity, this hobby can also be turned into a side hustle if you know where to look.
I've covered how people can make money writing reviews before. But this post is going to break down the best ways you can make money reading books and writing short reviews for them.
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How To Make Money Reading Books
Table of Contents
1. Kirkus Media
Kirkus Media is a reputable company that lets you make money reading books, and it offers a wide range of services for authors, editors, and book lovers alike on their website.
Kirkus is also seeking English and Spanish book reviewers to cover content for Kirkus Indie, the media company's magazine section that features independent authors.
Reviews have to be roughly 350 words in length, and reviewers are given 2 weeks to read and review books once they are assigned. Kirkus covers pretty much any genre, and they expect a high quality review with some thought, not a plagiarized jumble.
Kirkus pays $50 for reviews based on testimonials I have read, so this could be a decent way to make money by reading and reviewing books.
Extra Reading – How To Make $50 A Day.
2. Start A Book Affiliate Site
Personally, I think the best way to get paid to read books is to start your own book review blog.
Starting your own blog is not quick or guaranteed money. However, I think the potential value of creating your own website is much higher than working $15 gig jobs on review websites.
The path to income might be much slower, but the rewards could be worth it.
If there is a particular genre you are interested in, you could start a very niche website to cover books or content in the space.
Alternatively, if you are interested in a general topic, you could start a blog on that subject and just write book reviews every so often. Between Amazon affiliate links and advertising revenue, you might be able to make a modest bit of side income every month!
And blogging can turn into a serious income stream. For example, WebMonkey made $272,000 in 2022, and it now makes $1,000 a day or more between Mediavine ads and affiliate income.
My blog is in the finance niche, but there's no reason you can't make money reading books and writing about them on your own blog.
I've personally always wanted to create a military history based blog where I write about interesting battles or historical figures and then promote my content on niche communities on Reddit, so perhaps this will be a side project down the line!
Extra Reading – How To Pick A Blog Niche!
3. Start A Book Review YouTube Channel
If you're feeling creative, one option you can try is to make money reading books on YouTube.
The idea here is to read books and then talk about them or review them on YouTube. This lets you make money with YouTube ads and also through affiliate links in the description box.
And you can make quite a bit of money with this idea. Just take a look at the YouTube channel Paper Back Dreams.
It's run by a young adult who clearly loves books. She has 80,000+ subscribers on YouTube, plenty of other followers on various social media platforms, and is probably making bank by having companies sponsor the intro to some of her videos (plus any ad revenue).
This is proof that you can take a passion, turn it into a hobby, and earn passive income while providing other people value.
I watched one of her videos, and it was hilarious (as well as informative). I'm not remotely surprised she's found success on YouTube, and a quick search brought up plenty of other book review channels with decent followings as well.
As long as you create something of value and market yourself effectively, you can make money doing almost anything.
Just note: if you're wondering if you can read books aloud on YouTube for money, the answer is no.
Book reviews are okay because you're providing your own thoughts and intellectual property on a subject. The reason you can't read books on YouTube is because it's essentially copyright infringement.
You can read excerpts and likely be alright, but I'd focus on the review for the most part! However, it's certainly possible to make money on YouTube, so don't let competition scare you!
In fact, I started my own channel recently, and have grown it to nearly 10,000 subscribers!
So, if you love books and have always wanted to start a YouTube channel, this idea could be up your alley!
Extra Reading – The Best Ways To Make Money On Autopilot.
4. Online Book Club
Another popular way to get paid to read books and snag some free reading material in the process is to use Online Book Club.
Online Book Club isn't a get-rich-quick scheme, and they outline that very clearly in their hiring page.
Rather, Online Book Club is designed to help new authors promote their work, and they have some incentives in place to attract qualified reviewers. It's as simple as that.
Your first few reviews for Online Book Club will be unpaid, but you will get all reading material for free. If your review quality is high enough, you can then start to earn $5-$60 per book review.
I don't like that you have to do unpaid work since most legit online jobs pay you for all the work you complete.
That said, if you stick with it, Online Book Club is a popular way to read books for money if you're willing to write.
5. The U.S. Review Of Books
The U.S. Review of Books is currently hiring freelance writers for both book reviews and guest blogging, so it's another way to get paid to read books.
However, you need some prior experience, sample work, and at least 2 professional references for your entry application.
If you're hired, you're assigned books to read and review that match your reading preferences as closely as possible. Reviews are 250-300 words and expected to be completed within 2-3 weeks of assignment.
The website doesn't state how much reviewers are paid, but reviewers are paid on the 5th of every month for the previous month of work in addition to receiving free books.
6. Any Subject Books
Another website you can use to potentially make money reading books is Any Subject Books.
While Any Subject Books is not currently seeking reviewers, this site is still one to bookmark as it has historically been a reliable way to make money by reading and providing your opinion.
Any Subject Books has reviewers commit on a book-by-book basis to provide honest and thorough reviews for the books they read.
Payment varies based on the length of the book a reviewer is assigned, and submissions are not guaranteed to be accepted. However, if you can build a relationship with Any Subject Books once they start hiring reviewers again, you might have found a reliable source of extra income.
Note: Any Subject Books isn't operating anymore.
7. Book Browse
Book Browse is a predominantly U.S. book club website, and it also has opportunities to read books for money.
Any genre is welcome on Book Browse for the most part, but to become a paid reviewer you will have to complete an application form along with some sample reviews.
Book Browse reviews are roughly 300 words in length, so this isn't too much work upfront.
According to Book Browse “Our reviewers tend to write about one review a month for us, and receive a byline and modest payment,” so make of that what you will. Regardless, if you want free books and to get paid to read, this is another option to consider!
8. Booklist
If you're still wondering how to make money reading books, one website you can apply to is Booklist.
Booklist is a review journal for public and school libraries, with a primary goal of assisting librarians and readers with their selections. Book reviews are the backbone of Booklist, who publish roughly 8,000 reviews a year.
While opportunities are limited, freelancers can be commissioned to write reviews for $15 and piece, or blog posts for the Booklist website for $12.50.
You have to familiarize yourself with the publication and get in contact with a genre-specific editor if you are interested in working with Booklist, but this could be a decent opportunity to make quick money if you have experience with review writing.
9. Women's Review Of Books
Women's Review of Books has been around for 36 years, and while they are currently paying writers for their reviews and short stories, they expect you to have experience and credentials to back up your pitches.
WRB expects all pitches to include information on your credentials, the type of work you are interested in, and samples of your previous already published work.
Writers are paid $100 per review, so this is definitely one of the higher paying book reading jobs out there, but competition is tough for this one.
10. Voice Over Work
If you've ever been told you have a voice that's fit for radio or extremely soothing, you might be able to get paid to read books aloud by doing voice over work or even audio book recording.
Websites like Fiverr or designated voice over marketplaces like Voices.com offer an incredible amount of opportunity for voice over work.
Audio book gigs can pay thousands of dollars, and there is only going to be a growing need for audio work as the world continues to become more digital.
Extra Reading – How To Make $5,000 A Month.
11. Editing Work
If you have great attention to detail and a strong command of grammar and language, editing work is another way to make money reading books that you can try.
Editing jobs are always in demand, and while I've found they are harder to get than general content writing work, the pay can be quite lucrative.
According to Indeed.com, freelance editors earn $23+ per hour on average, although editors with experience or specialization in a certain vertical can make more. And the Bureau of Labor Statistics says editors earn $61,000 per year on average.
You probably have to build up a portfolio or business website for your services, and securing your first few clients will be tough (you may have to price yourself competitively to get through the early stages).
However, with enough hard work and determination you may be able to build your own proofreading and editing side hustle in time!
You can also checkout this list of 32 remote job websites to start your online job search for editing work!
12. Upwork
While this option is similar to point 11, Upwork is an awesome marketplace for editors, reviewers, and even ghostwriters. If you want to get paid to read books, it's definitely worth checking out Upwork and creating your own freelancer profile.
Upwork sucks in that they charge between 15% – 20% in service fees on all contracts. However, if you have some serious editorial credentials, you can charge a decent rate.
Just check out these two Upwork book editors I found:
Each editor is charging $30+ per hour, so this is a pretty high-paying online side hustle that you can try out.
Obviously, this isn't the most leisurely way to make money reading books. However, for a side job or even full-time career, there's plenty of money on the table.
Extra Reading – Best Upwork Jobs For Beginners.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can You Monetize Reading Books On YouTube?
No, you can't make money reading books on YouTube. This is because reading books aloud on YouTube is considered intellectual property infringement, so your channel isn't eligible for monetization and might get banned.
However, you can make money with reading books on YouTube by creating book review content that shares your opinions about different books.
This isn't infringing on any intellectual property. And a lot of people make money with reading or listening to music with these sorts of channels.
How Much Money Can You Make Reading Books?
Most gigs that let you get paid to read books require writing reviews about them as well. And for these gigs, you can usually earn $15 to $50 at most per review.
Full-time writing and editorial jobs can pay much more. But this is generally a fun side job, not a full-time income source.
Extra Reading – How To Make $3,000 Fast.
Final Thoughts
I hope this guide on how to make money reading books helps you find a new, fun side hustle you can do in your spare time.
I don't think a lot of methods to get paid to read books are going to make $20k a month or anything like that. But you can still make some decent side income while doing something you enjoy.
Just have realistic expectations, and there's no reason why you can't find success with this side hustle.
Additionally, if you want to learn how to make money as a freelance writer in this space, I suggest checking out my new course, Freelance Writing For Freedom!
Thanks for reading!
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