Feb 28, 2023

The Wall Street Journal Paywall Bypass: No Code, No Tools, No Tricks

In order to make the most from content, publishers should be aware of the best monetization model to use for their business. This way, they can be prepared and ready to maximize revenue.

Has someone ever sent you a link to read something compelling on The Wall Street Journal, and as soon as you click-through, you’re met with that pesky paywall? It’s happened to all of us; a block between you and the content you want to read.

The good news is, there are ways to get around the paywall and to read not just that one article that was sent to you, but a near unlimited supply of content. While the most intuitive way around it is to subscribe to The Wall Street Journal, there are other ways you can pay for the content you want that doesn’t take a single dollar out of your wallet. Intrigued? Read on for our tips!

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What is The Wall Street Journal?

The Wall Street Journal is one of the world’s leading publications in comprehensive news coverage. The WSJ covers everything from breaking news to current hot topics in the US and globally. Many readers note their unparalleled coverage in the worlds of business, finance, and technology as a big reason to subscribe, but beyond that, they have popular columns in real estate, the arts, and travel. Readers can subscribe to The Wall Street Journal for around $1/week if they sign up with a promo, but that amounts to a yearly cost of $52 (again, with a promo), with print subscriptions amounting to over triple that price tag.

While The Wall Street Journal is beloved by many, they implement a hard paywall across all of their premium content. A hard paywall essentially blocks unsubscribed readers from every piece of content on their website (as opposed to a soft paywall, which allows the reader to access a few articles in a time bound period before they have to subscribe to see more). To learn more about the different types of paywalls and how to bypass them, check out our Paywall Guide.

This can be a frustrating experience for readers, particularly if you’re looking to access a few articles without wanting the full gamut of a subscription (or without the associated commitments and costs). There’s good news though – there are a few ways you can get around those paywalls without even needing to code or enable any special tooling.

How To Get Past The WSJ Paywall

If you do not have a connection with a subscription, you don’t have to feel out of luck, you can simply try Invisibly.

Invisibly is simply a new way to pay for content. When you download the app, you gain access to thousands of articles without having to pay for a single one (unless you want to!) – from publications like The Wall Street Journal, Barron’s, MarketWatch, and more. You can view articles from one publication or use the app as an aggregator and read all of the publications you know and love.

The app uses your data to pass through paywalls and grant you access to all of the content you want to see. Simply answer a few questions like a simple survey and gain points that in turn you can use to unlock paywalls on articles. Your data is 100% secure and is only shared with your consent.

If you’re looking to get through all of those pesky paywalls that stop you from the content you want to see, Invisibly might just be your best-kept secret. It doesn’t require you to pay a dime, and as long as you’re willing to answer questions every so often, you can see all of the content you want.

Here’s how you can get started:

Download the Invisibly App in the App Store
Set up your profile
Earn points by filling out your profile, answering a few questions, referring friends
Those points are stored in your wallet. Whenever you hit a paywall, you can simply cash those points in and start reading articles from The Wall Street Journal or a number of other publications you love.

The methods of bypassing gated content can sometimes be a little dodgy and oftentimes violate the terms of service for those publications (like sharing your user log-ins). Invisibly is 100% above board, and through partnerships with publications like The Wall Street Journal, they can offer their content for simply the price of you answering a few questions or filling out a profile.