Get Paid to Read Emails: 12 Realistic Options

If you enjoy spending your spare time reading, there are plenty of opportunities to turn this into a side gig. However, you don’t just need to consider reading articles or new books, as you can make money reading emails.

Is This a Legit Way to Make Money?

While there are lots of scammy GPT (get paid to) sites out there, as unbelievable as it sounds, it is possible to earn money reading emails. There are companies out there who are willing to pay people just to read their emails, making this a legit way to make some money.

You’re certainly not going to get rich by reading emails, but if you’re looking for an easy way to make some extra money on the side, this could be a good option.

Why Would Someone Pay You to Read Emails?

Before you start to explore the sites that will pay you to read emails, you may wonder about their motivation. Why would someone pay you to read emails?

In the past, if a company wanted you to buy their product or sign up for their service, they may place ads in a national newspaper or run a television commercial. However, these days, the traditional marketing methods are no longer as effective. Advertisers have had to look to other methods to attract new customers.

One of these methods is reading emails. Advertisers create email marketing campaigns to encourage people to watch an ad, download a new app, or try a product. The advertisers are prepared to offer a commission to websites to get their products out to potential users, and these websites will share this commission with you.

Of course, the end goal is to get you to buy something or sign up for something, but you’re not under any obligation to do so. There may be instructions to follow in your email to sign up for a free trial or download a free app, but you don’t need to purchase anything.

However, if you do come across a product or service you enjoy, or think someone in your social network may appreciate, then the advertiser has achieved its goal.

So, by reading emails, you can make some extra cash, the websites generate income, and the advertisers can grow their brands.

How Much Money Can You Make by Reading Emails?

It’s important to realize that reading emails will not make a vast sum of money. It’s one of the lowest-paying GPT tasks. Most websites will only pay 1 to 5 cents as a reward for opening an email and reading it. Additionally, most websites will only send a few emails each day, so you’re not going to earn a lot of cash reading emails.

However, if you read emails each day anyway, why not take an extra minute or two and earn a little extra cash? If you sign up for multiple sites, you could earn a dollar or so a day, which could add up to $25 – $100 a month.

The websites may offer points or cash for reading emails, but when you sign up, you’ll be informed of how much reading each email is worth. But, it could be nice to earn some extra cash for just a couple of minutes a day.

There is also the potential to earn more. Some emails will contain special offers and tasks that provide increased earning potential. You may earn money with simple tasks such as signing up for free trials or installing a new app on your device. In a worst-case scenario, you can cancel a subscription before the free trial ends or you may discover a new product or service that you’ll enjoy.

Websites and Apps That Will Pay You to Read Emails

So, now we’ve established that reading emails can provide a little extra cash, let’s look at the websites and apps that will pay you to read emails.

1. Swagbucks ($10 signup bonus)

Swagbucks is a popular GPT site that can help you to earn cash in your spare time. In addition to reading emails, you can get paid to watch videos, answer surveys, play games, and even shop online.

There is an “inbox” on the Swagbucks site where you can find emails to read and make some cash completing the tasks. However, Swagbucks will occasionally send emails to the email address listed on your profile from advertisers. You’ll see how much you can earn for completing an offer or clicking to confirm you’ve read the email right in the email. Each click will pay you a few SBs and 100SBs is worth $1.

Swagbucks allows users to cash out with PayPal payments or gift cards. Some gift cards only require 85 SBs, so you don’t need to wait forever to cash out. The platform is open to anyone over the age of 13 in the USA, Canada, UK, Australia, and several European countries.

2. InboxDollars ($5 signup bonus)

This is another popular platform that can help you to earn some extra cash online. InboxDollars is actually one of the best platforms to earn money by reading emails. You’ll be offered a consistent flow of emails that could earn you a few cents each. To receive your InboxDollars credit, you just need to click the link in the email. You’ll be directed to the InboxDollars site for additional instructions or be sent straight to the advertiser’s website. After you “confirm” you’ve read the email, you’ll get immediate credit.

InboxDollars also offers bonuses for completing specific tasks, so you can boost your earnings further. This includes $1 for downloading the toolbar, up to 6 cents for watching a short video and earn up to $10 for completing surveys.

InboxDollars has a minimum $30 cashout threshold, and you need to be over the age of 18. However, InboxDollars does accept members from all around the world.

3. MyPoints ($10 signup bonus)

Although MyPoints is more well known for providing rewards for your online shopping, there are other ways to earn points, including reading emails. You can earn up to 30 points for clicking on the link inside advertiser emails, and MyPoints also offers new users a welcome bonus.

While you may not get lots of emails, you can supplement your earnings with surveys and other tasks to reach the minimum redemption level. You’ll get to accumulate 700 points to claim a $5 gift card, or you can exchange your MyPoints for a PayPal payment.

4. iRazoo

iRazoo has paid out over $95 million in rewards to its members. The company recruits members to complete activities for consumer input. This includes watching videos, playing games, completing surveys, and opening emails. You’ll get points for completing daily goals and reading Razoo emails. You’ll even get 100 free points just for providing your email address to sign up.

You can exchange your points for gift cards from big brands such as Home Depot, Amazon, or for a PayPal payment. You’ll need 3,000 points to earn your first reward, so you may need to do more than read emails to reach this for the weekly release of rewards.

5. Points2Shop

Points2Shop is available worldwide, but residents in the USA, Canada, and the UK tend to have more opportunities to earn points with tasks like taking surveys, playing games, and reading emails.
You’ll need to click the link in the email to earn points, and this platform is open to anyone aged 18 and over, or 13 if you have parental permission. This makes it a great option for teens to make some extra cash.

Unlike many platforms, Points2Shop only pays in Amazon gift cards, but if you enjoy shopping on Amazon, this could be a great way to get some free stuff.

6. FusionCash

This is another GPT site that is available to over 13’s in the USA with parental permission. You’ll even get a $5 bonus for signing up. FusionCash pays for tasks, including playing games, online shopping, downloading apps, referring friends, and reading emails.

Typically, you’ll earn a couple of cents for reading a FusionCash email, but you can boost your earnings by clicking the link and completing a specific advertiser task.

There is a minimum $25 payout threshold, but you can receive your rewards via PayPal or as a check or direct deposit. While it may take you a month or two to reach the minimum threshold, this could be a decent side gig.

7. UniqueRewards

This platform allows you to complete tasks to earn cash in your spare time, like many of the other GPT sites. While this may not be particularly unique, UniqueRewards is open to residents of the USA and Canada. You’ll also receive $5 as a signup bonus. There is also a $5 bonus each time you refer a friend.

Unlike many GPT sites, UniqueRewards does send out emails quite frequently, so you can get paid for reading and clicking on any links. Your “pending” earnings from these emails are released within 24 hours. There is a minimum $20 cash out, but your UniqueRewards earnings will be paid directly into your PayPal account.

8. Cash4Offers

Unlike many of the sites and apps we’ve listed here, Cash4Offers is open to Canadians, Australians, and residents in the UK, in addition to US residents. While you’ll get a $5 bonus for signing up, the site works a little differently compared to many other GPT sites. You can earn cash for reading advertiser emails, but at least $25 of the minimum $35 cash out threshold must come from surveys.

So, while you can earn money reading emails, you will need to participate in surveys and market research. Once you’ve had your first payment, you’ll get upgraded to a Gold Status account, and your payments will be processed far more quickly. So, you’ll receive your cash within three days rather than waiting for several weeks.

9. PaidtoReadEmail

As its name suggests, the primary focus of this platform is to get paid to read emails. However, you can also boost your earnings with games, surveys, referrals, and more tasks. This platform is open worldwide to anyone over the age of 18, and you’ll earn points for every task on the site.

Each point is worth 1 cent, and you’ll get a $3 sign up bonus. Each email you read will pay $0.02, but when combined with the other tasks, it should be fairly easy to reach the minimum $15 payout.

10. UniqPaid

UniqPaid has been around for several years, so it remains a contender in the GPT niche. The platform is open to anyone around the world, and one unique feature is that you can get paid instantly with PayPal. Even if you’ve only earned 3 cents, you don’t need to hang around waiting to reach a minimum threshold; you can request payment.

UniqPaid also provides a 10% welcome bonus for new members on any offers you complete within two days of signing up. You’ll get paid for completing tasks such as taking surveys, online shopping, referring friends, signing up for free offers, and reading emails.

11. SBKCenter

SBKCenter or Small Business Knowledge Center works with businesses and consumers to help businesses avoid creating “junk mail.” This is accomplished by sifting through your junk emails.
The platform is open to anyone aged over 18 and resident in the USA. You simply forward emails from various categories, such as insurance, retail, travel, and warehouse clubs. Participants can earn approximately $20 in about 6 to 10 weeks. While this isn’t much, it is essentially free money just to read some emails and forward them to SBKCenter.

12. Become a Virtual Assistant

If the idea of reading emails for websites and apps doesn’t appeal, you could still put your interest to good use by becoming a virtual assistant.

This is a great side gig, and you’ll be able to work from home around your current schedule. Virtual assistants are needed to handle admin work, including managing email accounts or providing customer support. There are lots of platforms to help you find work and lots of virtual assistant jobs, but it does take time to develop relationships with higher-paying clients.

Beginning virtual assistants can expect to earn up to $10-$20 an hour, but expert VAs can earn as much as $50 an hour.

Avoiding Scams

As with any potential side gig, there are unscrupulous companies out there. Scammers offer cash for reading emails, so you need to be careful to avoid getting scammed. These dodgy sites require your email account and personal password to “access” your emails and help advertisers understand your needs. This is obviously dangerous. These scammers will access your email account, lock you out and then use your email to send messages from your account.

Therefore, it is very important to check the legitimacy of any GPT site before you sign up. Fortunately, there are reviews and organizations such as the BBB and TrustPilot that can help you determine if a platform is legitimate. However, you will need to use common senses. No one should ask for your credit card details, email password, or other confidential information, and if they do, give the platform a wide berth.

As you can see, there are some legit opportunities to get paid to read emails, providing you choose established platforms and avoid scams. While you’ll not earn a fortune reading emails, it is worth signing up to a few different sites, so you can maximize your earning potential. You could even set up a new email account so that you keep all your paid emails together, and you don’t need to trawl through all your personal emails when you have a few minutes to earn some cash.

Many of these platforms offer incentives for reading emails and other tasks, but you can also help your friends and family members to earn some extra cash and enjoy a referral bonus. So, who knows, you may find that reading emails develops into a decent side gig that is flexible enough to fit around all your commitments and put some extra cash in your pocket.