Every cheap movie ticket deal in Australia

We’ve all been there. All you wanted was to switch off, kick back for some cheap thrills with the latest Fast and Furious movie. But why settle for a Medium Popcorn and Drink combo when a Large is just a few bucks more? And what kind of cinema experience is complete without a choc-top? Before you know it, you’ve racked up a wallet-busting bill that’s about enough to put you into intensive Mi Goreng care until next payday.

With on-demand streaming services like Netflix taking over as the primary way people watch movies and TV, cinema-going culture has taken a dive. Of course, we can also thank C-19 for twisting the knife a little further. The movie ticket price gouge of the mid-naughts also didn’t help.

While prices remain high today, a trip to the flicks doesn’t have to be so expensive. There are plenty of ways you can score cheap movie tickets in Australia. In fact you might be missing out on awesome discounts already.

Let’s start with mobile and broadband providers. If you’ve got a mobile phone plan, chances are you’re signed up with either Optus or Telstra, the latter of which offers movie ticket perks. So long you main Event Cinemas, Telstra will hook you up with decent discounts on tickets, popcorn and drinks there.

If you're not with the telco, your next best bet is eBay Plus, an online shopping subscription that gets you cheap Tuesdays at Hoyts, as well as a long list of shopping perks and discounts.

Telstra users have access to discounts Hoyts franchise rival, Event Cinemas. As part of the Telstra Plus rewards program, Telstra customers can cut the cost of their standard, 3D and Vmax tickets.

Telstra doesn’t offer cheap Gold Class tickets, though, which is a bit of a bummer.

It’s also worth mentioning that these discounts are also available at any cinema still rocking Greater Union, Birch Carrol and Coyle, Village or Moonlight Cinema branding.

You can also get a little discount by upgrading a medium Candy Bar Combo to a large for free. 

Telstra’s discount tickets aren’t available after 5pm on Saturdays or during any public holiday. It also isn’t available for Bollywood movies, which is odd.

First of all, you need to be a Telstra customer. If you’re signed up to Telstra for your mobile or broadband service, you’re eligible for cheap tickets. To get your discount, head over to the Telstra website and select your local cinema and desired movie session to see if it's eligible.

If it is, you will be asked to log in using your Telstra Plus account details. Once logged in, you can purchase your tickets through Telstra’s account management portal.

If you’re not already a Telstra customer but you’re interested in scoring some cheap Event cinema tickets, take a look at some of its most popular SIM-only plans available.

If you've ever heard of Amazon Prime, eBay Plus is essentially the same pitch. You pay a yearly subscription to get access to express shipping discounts, access to exclusive deals events, and members-only discounts every Tuesday.

Included in Tuesday's discounts are cheap Tuesday tickets at Hoyts cinemas. Standard tickets will cost $11, and Hoyts LUX tickets $25 if you're a registered eBay Plus member.

It couldn't be simpler. Sign up for the 30-day eBay Plus free trial and login with your account details. In your dashboard, you'll see an option to book tickets, which will redirect you to the Hoyts website with your discount applied.

Members of RACQ (Royal Automobile Club of Queensland) roadside assistance get access to a comprehensive range of discounts at participating Event and Birch Carrol and Coyle Cinemas.

There’s discount access to Gold Class for $31.50 per ticket (usually $42.00) during peak session times, $24 per ticket for off-peak sessions (usually $39.50) and $12.50 standard eSaver movie tickets (usually $20). RACQ and its partnered cinemas also run timed discounts, like the $9.50 Summer Movie eVoucher.

RACQ members can also score a discounted small popcorn and drink combo at $9 (usually $12.50)

Here’s every RACQ movie ticket discount available:

• Adult eSaver Ticket: $12.50 (usually $20.00)
• Child eSaver Ticket: $10.00 (usually $20.00)
• Event Gold Class Peak Ticket: $31.50 (usually $42.00)
• Event Gold Class Off-Peak Ticket: $24.00 (usually $39.50)
• Star Voucher: $15.50 (usually $20.00)
• Super Saver: $11.50 (usually $20.00)
• Popcorn & Drink: $9.00 (usually $12.50)
• Vmax E-Saver: $16.50 (usually $24.00)

Head over to the RACQ website and select the type of ticket/discount you want to redeem. You will then be prompted to enter your personal details, including your RACQ member number (the 16 digit number found on the front of your RACQ membership card).

You will then be asked to enter your payment details. Once the purchase is complete, you will receive your voucher which you can use on the participating cinema’s website to book your movie session.

Victorians registered with RACV (Royal Automobile Club of Victoria) have a wider choice of cinemas than Queenslanders when it comes to discount movie tickets.

If you have an RACV membership, you can discount movie tickets for Village Cinemas, Hoyts Cinemas and Palace Cinemas. Though, at the time of writing, the only evident deal on the RACV website is a $9 Monday Movie Night through Village Cinemas.

There are two ways to redeem your RACV movie ticket discounts. Firstly, you do it online via the RACV website. All you need handy are your family name and membership number. When you purchase your ticket via RACV, you will be sent a digital voucher code that can be redeemed when you book your session through the participating cinema.

Otherwise, you can go old school and purchase your voucher at one of RACV’s physical locations.

Western Australia’s RAC arm offers discount tickets from a wide range of participating cinemas. Most notably, you can score $25 tickets to Hoyts Premium LUX sessions if you’re a member of RAC. That’s a pretty decent deal but Hoyts LUX at Westfield Carousel only charges around $27 per ticket for LUX anyway, which is already far cheaper than usual.

Besides that, there’s a long list of participating cinemas that RAC members can nab cheap tickets for.

• ACE Cinemas (Midland Gate, Rockingham)
• Palace Cinemas (Northbridge, Perth City)
• Hoyts Cinemas (Garden City, Southlands, Carousel, Fremantle)
• Grand Cinemas (Armadale, Bunbury Currambine, Cugnet, Joondalup and Warwick)
• Event Cinemas (Innaloo, Morley and Whitford)

The RAA (Royal Automobile Association) of South Australia gives its members discount tickets to Event (standard and Gold Class) and Wallis GU FIlmhouse Glenelg. If you want a fancier feel, Gold Class will cost members $30 per ticket (saving $12) or $10 for eSaver tickets for use at any time other than post-5pm on a Saturday.

Event Standard and Gold Class tickets have to be pre-purchased online through RAA My Account members portal.

Otherwise, you can visit your local RAA branch and purchase your vouchers through the member's services kiosk.

New South Wales residents registered with the NRMA (National Roads and Motorists Association) can save up to 35% on Event Cinema movie tickets.

The deal structure is almost identical to RACQs, just with fewer options. Here’s what discounts NRMA members can score:

• NRMA eMovie (Not valid after 5pm Saturdays): $8.50
• NRMA eSaver (includes Saturday evening): $16.50
• NRMA Gold Class Movie Vouchers: $21.50

Discount Event Cinema movie vouchers are purchased via the company’s online account portal MyNRMA. Head to the website, select your discount and head to the checkout.

Once there, you will be asked to enter your personal details (name, phone number etc.) and your NRMA membership number, which can be found on your membership card. After the payment is processed, you will be given a voucher code that can be redeemed via the Event cinema’s online booking system.

Tassie’s RACT gives its members a long list of perks and benefits. As for its movie ticket discount offering, RACT members can score cheap $14.50 tickets for Village cinemas as well as $32 tickets for Gold Class eMovie vouchers.

RACT members can purchase their discounted movie tickets via Experience OZ. Once purchased, tickets can be used at any Launceston, Hobart, Glenorchy, and Eastlands Village Cinemas location.

Health Insurance mob HBF offers its customers a variety of discounts on tickets for Event Cinemas, ACE Cinemas, Grand Cinemas, Hoyts Cinemas and Village Cinemas.

HBF customers can claim their discounts via the HBF health app for iOS and Android or via the HBF online portal.

Besides mobile providers and roadside assistance companies, there’s a long list of health insurance providers, unions, and airlines offering some kind of movie ticket discount. Here’s everything we could find. If you know of some better deals, be sure to let us know in the comments below.

Through Bupa Plus, customers can score up to 25% off tickets at both major cinema franchises, Hoyts and Event.

If you work in retail or fast food, you might (or should) be a part of the SDA Union (Shop, Distributive and Allied Employees Association). There are loads of benefits to being a part of the SDA Union but most importantly, there’s a variety of movie ticket discounts for a variety of cinemas.

If you Medibank Private is your go-to health insurance provider, you could be getting $14 Thursday movie tickets at Palace Cinemas (or $11 tickets if you’re a senior).

You can redeem your discounted Palace Cinema tickets online via Medibank’s website or simply by flashing your Medibank Private (and senior’s card if you’ve got one) at the Palace Cinema box office.

Lastly, there are the MPA (Master Painters Association) member discounts for Ambassador Card holders. This is the first we’re hearing about the MPA but it turns out members get some serious savings when it comes to movie tickets. Here’s every discount available to Ambassador Card holders:

• Screen Savers Adult (Village/Event/BCC): $13.95 per ticket
• Screen Savers Adult Unrestricted (Village/Event/BCC): $15.50 per ticket
• Screen Savers Adult Off-Peak (Village/Event/BCC): $12.50 per ticket
• Screen Savers Child/Senior (Village/Event/BCC): $9.90 per ticket
• Screen Savers Child Unrestricted (Village/Event/BCC): $12.50 per ticket
• Gold Class Voucher: $30.00 per ticket
• Gold Class Off-Peak Voucher: $25.00 per ticket
• Gold Class Food and Beverage Voucher: $30.00
• Hoyts Adult Restricted Voucher: $14.50 per ticket
• Hoyts Child Restricted Voucher: $11.90 per ticket
• Hoyts Student Restricted Voucher: $12.90 per ticket
• Hoyts LUX Restricted Voucher: $31.00 per ticket
• Palace Adult Voucher: $12.50 per ticket
• Palace Student/Child Voucher: $12.50 per ticket
• Gold Class $10 Food and Beverage Voucher: $10