Psychic readers are said to have extraordinary mental powers or a sixth sense, generally known as ESP (extra sensory perception). ESP is the ability to look into the lives and future of people and predict events, which have yet to occur. Derived from the Greek word psychiokos or psyche, which means soul or that which is mental, the word psychic is generally associated with fortunetellers.

Psychic reading implies the art of reading into a person's life and mind. It involves use of intuition and deep analysis of a particular problem or a query that is posed by a person. Psychics use several techniques such as psychometrics, astrology, tarot, palmistry, telepathy, I Ching and so on to connect to a higher consciousness, which they believe will have answers to all questions and solutions to life's mysteries. Psychic readings can relate to a person's present , past, future, love life, family relationships, ailments, mental stress or tension and general success (or failure) in life. Psychic readers claim they can answer all these questions.

Some psychics offer free psychic reading as a service but this is not common. There are also professional psychics who offer free psychic readings for limited categories, such as health, love, and relationships. Most charge a fee for financial problems. There are some other psychics who offer a few minutes of free psychic reading and then charge for anything beyond that. Sometimes, the first call is given free while the rest of the calls are charged. This is generally used as a promotional offer. There are online psychic readers who provide free psychic reading over online chat.

There are several online psychic readers who provide one or more of such kind of free psychic readings. They can be located using search engines on the Internet. However, many offers of free psychic reading are just a way to attract people onto their sites.