If you love movies but hate paying for them, we’ve got you with several ways to get really cheap or free movie tickets. Sure, there are plenty of ways to watch movies for free at home with streaming services, but sometimes you just want to be in the theater, with the popcorn — the whole nine yards. So that begs the question — how can you see movies for free (or at least almost free)?
From the ticket itself to the popcorn to seeing movies in 3-D, costs can add up quickly (especially when you bring along kids). But we’ve got lots of tips to help you cut down on your costs, even ways to get free movie tickets, including a free movie offer if you are an Amazon Prime member. We’ll tackle gift cards, loyalty programs, theater subscriptions, and more.
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Limited-Time Holiday Deals: Save on gift cards, tickets, and memberships
AMC Theaters
- Get Taylor Swift Era Tour Collectibles (popcorn tins and drink cups) for 25% off
- Join or extend your AMC Stubs Premiere membership and get $5 Bonus Bucks
Cinemark Theaters
- Get a $5 bonus gift card when you buy $40+ in Cinemark gift cards online or in theaters through Dec. 31, 2023.
- Save up to $20 when you buy a 12-month Movie Club membership.
Regal Theaters
- See holiday classics, including The Grinch, Elf, The Polar Express, and National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation for $5 a ticket. Offer is valid from Nov. 26 – Dec. 23, 2023.
- For every $50 you buy in online gift cards, you’ll get a $15 concessions bonus eCard through Nov. 27.
- Get a $10 concession bonus with every $50 worth of gift cards you buy in the theater (the bonus will be printed on receipt paper at the time of purchase).
- Upgrade to an IMAX ticket for free when you buy tickets for Napolean through Nov. 26.
1. Get free movie tickets with Amazon Prime Premiere.
Amazon Prime members can enjoy free movie tickets to see new Amazon Original content (movies and TV series) in select cities before their Prime release date. next up, Prime members can attend a free early screening of the series Candy Cane Lane for one night only (Nov. 8) at 7 p.m. (local time). All you have to do is visit PrimePremiere.Amazon one week before the screening and reserve your ticket. Here are the details and upcoming premieres:
- Prime Premiere date, Nov. 29: Candy Cane Lane (tickets available starting Nov. 17)
- Prime Premier date, Dec. 13: Reacher Season 2 (tickets available starting Dec. 6)
You can reserve two (per Prime account) free movie tickets. Plus, you’ll (and your guest) get a free small popcorn and a small soda or water.
Tickets are on a first-come, first-serve basis, so reserve your tickets as soon as they become available at PrimePremiere.Amazon. Prime members also get exclusive access to photo ops and special giveaways.
2. Save up to 40% on movie tickets with Sam’s Club Travel & Entertainment.
Sam’s Club members can save up to 40% on movie tickets when they purchase them online at Sam’s Club Services Hub page. Here are the theaters and their savings:
- Look Dine-In Cinemas over 40% off
- AMC Theaters up to 40% off
- Regal Theaters over 35% off
- Showcase Cinemas 35% off
- Cinemark Theaters 20% off
- Edwards Theaters 35%+ off
- United Artist Theaters over 35% off
- Marcus Theaters 35% off
3. Watch movies for free with Gofobo’s advance screenings.
Movie studios love to generate buzz before movies officially release, and the way they do that is by offering advance screenings.
Here are a few free current movie screenings you can get passes for through Gofobo:
- The Creator
- Paw Patrol: The Mighty Movie
- A Haunting in Venice
- Spy Kids: Armageddon
Obviously, screenings aren’t in every city, but hey, it’s worth looking into it!
4. Watch a movie before it’s released in theaters for $5 with Regal Mystery Movie Monday.
Regal Mystery Movie Monday is a promotion at select Regal theaters that lets you watch a movie before it premieres (hence, the mystery) for $5. It’ll only cost you an extra $2 for a small popcorn and drink. You can buy up to 10 tickets. Next Mystery Movie Monday is Sept. 18, 2023. Here are a few participating theaters:
California
- Regal Escondido, Escondido, 92025
- Regal Marketplace @ El Paseo, Fresno, 93722
- Regal Modesto, Modesto, 95356
- Regal Turlock, Turlock, 95380
- Regal UA Clovis, Clovis, 93612
Colorado
- Regal Cinebarre Boulder, Louisville, 80027
- Regal River Point, Sheridan, 80110
- Regal Southglenn, Centennial, 80122
- Regal UA Colorado Center, Denver, 80222
- Regal UA Colorado Mills, Lakewood, 80401
- Regal UA Denver Pavilions, Denver, 80202
Florida
- Regal Gulf Coast, Fort Myers, 33913
- Regal Naples, Naples, 34190
- Regal Town Center, Port Charlotte, 33948
Massachusetts
- Regal Independence Mall, Kingston, 02364
- Regal Mashpee Commons, Mashpee, 02649
- Regal Solomon Pond, Marlborough, 01572
Michigan
- Regal Lansing Mall, Lansing, 48917
- Regal UA Commerce Township, Walled Lake, 48390
Virginia
- Regal Virginia Center, Glen Allen, 23059
- Regal West Tower Cinemas, Richmond, 23294
5. Watch a never-before-seen movie for $5 with AMC Screen Unseen.
AMC recently announced their new Screen Unseen program. Similar to Regal’s Mystery Movie, AMC will allow moviegoers to view a mystery movie for $5 (plus tax) one-night-only at select theaters.
AMC will announce the movie rating, but not the title until showtime. The first Screen Unseen event is rated PG-13 and will take place on Nov. 6. After the movie they ask you to share your thoughts on X (formerly known as Twitter) for a chance to win a prize pack. You can order advance tickets now online or in the AMC app. Here are a few of the participating locations:
California
- AMC Anaheim Gardenwalk 6, Anaheim, 92802
- AMC Burbank 16, Burbank, 91502
- AMC Montebello 10, Montebello, 90640
- AMC Santa Monica 7, Santa Monica, 90401
Florida
- AMC The Regency 20, Brandon, 33511
- AMC Dine-In Coral Ridge 10, Fort Lauderdale, 33306
- AMC Merchants Crossing 16, Fort Myers, 33903
- AMC Veterans 24, Tampa, 33634
Idaho
- AMC Classic Pine Ridge 11, Chubbuck, 83202
Illinois
- AMC South Barrington 24, Barrington, 60010
- AMC River East 21, Chicago, 60611
- AMC Evanston 12, Evanston, 60201
- AMC Randhurst 12, Mt. Prospect, 60056
Missouri
- AMC Barrywoods 24, Kansas City, 64151
- AMC Springfield 11, Springfield, 65804
- AMC Esquire 7, St. Louis, 63117
New York
- AMC Crystal Run 16, Rochester, 10940
- AMC Empire 25, New York, 10036
Texas
- AMC Village On The Parkway 9, Addison, 75254
- AMC Katy Mills 20, Katy, 77494
- AMC Willowbrook 24, Houston, 77064
6. Save up to 50% by seeing movies at certain times or on specific days.
Plenty of theater chains — including AMC, Regal, and Cinemark — try to entice people to see movies midweek by offering $5 or $5.50 movies on Tuesdays.
AMC, Cinemark, and Regal require you to be part of their free loyalty programs to get cheap tickets. Check with your local theater and skip the weekend rush to easily save 50% on movie tickets!
Watching matinees (typically movies shown before 2:00 or 3:00 p.m.) can also save you up to 30% over regular ticket prices.
(But if you’re someone who’d rather watch movies at home, we know all of the free streaming services offering access for your viewing pleasure.)
7. Adults pay child ticket prices with Regal’s Family Ticket.
With a Regal Family Ticket (purchase online, in the Regal app, or in theater) you can bring your kids (12 and under) to any Regal theater and pay child admission prices for everyone, including yourself. Here’s how it works: The family ticket is for a family of four, which means you can have two adults/two kids or one adult and three kids. If you have more than three children you can just buy extra child tickets. The family ticket is not valid for R-rated movies.
8. Join Fandango VIP to screen movies for free and get other goodies.
Fandango’s free loyalty program offers a bunch of perks, but every time you see 4 movies, you get a $5 credit — which can be used for movie tickets, digital rentals, or other purchases.
In addition, VIPs get invitations to free movie screenings and exclusive events.
TIP: Fandango VIP works with theaters’ rewards programs. So make sure to sign up for those to keep getting reward points. And make sure you check out with Facebook.
9. Consider signing up for a movie theater subscription if you’re a frequent moviegoer.
Remember when MoviePass was the only game in town? Now there are plenty of movie theater subscriptions available — including a relaunched MoviePass service.
If you’re someone who wants to pay one monthly fee and then get the equivalent of tons of free movies, you’ll want to know all about how we compare the top 7 movie theater subscription programs. If you see a lot of movies, this can be a solid way to save a ton of money.
10. Get free movie tickets from Applebee’s.
Yep, Applebee’s gives away free movie tickets. The most recent giveaway was in June 2023 for the newly-released movie Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny. All you had to do to get yourself a free ticket was spend $35 to $69.99 in a single transaction at your local Applebee’s. Spend over $70 you could get two movie tickets.
You could only earn two tickets per transaction, up to a total of four tickets. To redeem, you had to enter your receipt information at activaterewards.com/Applebees by July 24, 2023. Fandango ticket promo codes were sent via email within 24 hours of validating your info.
11. Pay with discounted movie gift cards.
Buy discounted gift cards from sites like Raise, Gift Card Granny, and Amazon and save 10% or more. Watch for deeper discounts around the holidays.
Regal owns Edwards and United Artists Theaters while AMC owns Loews.
12. Go to Fandango’s special offers page to find deals on movie tickets, themed apparel, and more.
Fandango has an entire special offers page where they give free and discounted movie tickets to people who complete certain tasks or buy certain items. For example, right now, moviegoers can get a free ticket worth up to $13 to see The Little Mermaid, when they buy 3 Kellogg’s products at Walmart or Walmart.com. It’s worth bookmarking because these deals rotate throughout the year.
13. Join AMC’s free Insider program to earn rewards for watching movies.
The free AMC Stubs Insider program gives you 20 points for every $1 you spend, and after 5,000 points you get a $5 reward.
Members also enjoy a free large popcorn for your birthday and no ticketing fees when you buy at least 4+ tickets online. Plus, members get access to those $5 Ticket Tuesdays.
14. Buy gift cards at Costco to save up to 34%.
Costco almost always has deals on movie theater gift cards.
- AMC Black 2 Standard Movie Tickets + $20 gift card for $39.99
- AMC Yellow 2 Standard Movie Tickets + $20 gift card for $36.99 (not usable in CA, NY, or NJ)
- Cinemark $50 eGift card for $39.99
Those gift cards are good for tickets and concessions, and can be used on those discount movie days!
Note: AMC no longer sells black or yellow tickets. However, they never expire so you can still buy them at places like Costco and use them!
15. Redeem 1,000 Disney Movie Insiders points for $10 off a Disney movie ticket.
If you’re a Disney Movie Insider and have 1,000 reward points you can redeem them for a promo code you can use at AtomTickets.com for $10 off any Disney, Pixar, Marvel Studios, Star Wars movie or select 20th Century or Searchlight movie.
Don’t have 1,000 reward points in your Disney Movie Insider account? No worries, this promo doesn’t expire until July 18, 2024.
This is a one-time use promo code. However, you can redeem up to 4,000 reward points for four tickets per calendar month. Only one promo discount per transaction allowed.
16. Join Regal Crown Club and earn points to spend on movies, concessions, and more.
At Regal, Crown Club members earn 100 points for every $1 spent, which adds up to free movies and concessions.
You’ll get 1,000 points just for signing up and confirming your email. Plus, you can also earn extra points by visiting your local Regal theater a number of times per year.
- Earn 250 bonus points after 6+ visits per year
- Receive 500 bonus credits after 10+ visits per year
- Get 1,000 bonus credits after 20+ visits per year
17. Look out for product partnerships to get free movie vouchers.
We’ve seen Target offer a free $7 Atom Tickets movie voucher when you bought select movies on DVD and Blu-ray.
I’ve also seen Fandango credit offered by General Mills cereals, Yoplait, and Ziploc. Keep an eye out for movie promotions in the grocery aisle. And last year’s Monopoly promotion at McDonald’s offered plenty of unclaimed Fandango credits.
18. Check local events calendars for free community movies.
Community organizations are known for hosting public movie screenings — be it at a park, in a pool (they’re called “dive-in movies”), or at a local facility.
These are usually free — the only catch is that the movies they show are usually already out on video. So if you can wait that long, more power to ya.
19. If you’re patient, second-run movie theaters can offer big savings.
Sure, it’s hard to avoid social media when everyone’s talking about the plot of the latest Avengers. But if you can handle the wait, second-run movie theaters offer much cheaper ticket prices — I’m talking $1-$5, depending on your area. Here are a few recent examples of the $5 fan faves at AMC:
- Elemental
- Top Gun: Maverick
- Star Trek (09)
For a family of 5, you’d be saving more than $40 on average per cinema trip by waiting a month or so to see that new movie.
There are lots of places offering cheap movie tickets for kids.
20. Get a job at a movie theater for free flicks.
Employees at AMC, Regal, and most corporate theater chains get to see free movies! That’s a benefit very few employers offer!
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