If you're evaluating workplace wellbeing tools beyond the usual self-guided apps, Breakthru is likely on the shortlist. It's one of the few products explicitly designed for teams and meetings rather than personal-time use. Mellem sits in similar territory, but takes a different approach to what the "practice" actually is.
Short version: Breakthru layers short, async movement and breathing breaks into meetings. Mellem anchors a live, human-led group session at the heart of the practice, and uses a desktop app to extend that practice into the days between sessions. Different centres of gravity.
Breakthru: what it does
Breakthru is a workplace wellbeing tool focused on short movement and breathing "breaks" delivered inside and around meetings. It integrates with Zoom, Microsoft Teams, and Slack so a meeting host can run a one-minute breathing exercise with their team at the start, middle, or end of a call. Individuals can also take breaks on their own.
The design idea is sound: meetings are where the fatigue builds up, so the intervention belongs there. Breaks are guided by a short video or animation. Content covers breathing techniques, stretches, and mindset resets. The tool is async by nature. Whoever is running the meeting decides when to press play.
It's positioned to enterprise buyers and priced per-user. The pitch is that it lowers the activation energy for a reset by putting it one click away inside the tools teams already use.
Mellem: what it does
Mellem starts somewhere else entirely. The anchor of the practice is Mellem Live, a 15-minute live guided session led by a certified Mellem guide, scheduled into the team calendar at whatever cadence works for the team. Cameras off, no discussions, no homework. The guide leads short breathing and focus techniques. Everyone else just shows up.
The Mellem App is the optional companion. It runs on Mac and Windows, reads your calendar, detects when calls end, and offers a short guided reset when a real gap opens up. Same practice, different moment. It's what reaches you on the days when there's no Live session on the calendar.
Reporting is aggregate and anonymous: attendance, short post-session check-ins, and an optional single word. No individual dashboards. No manager-visible data.
Key differences
| Breakthru | Mellem | |
|---|---|---|
| Centre of gravity | Short async breaks inside meetings | Live guided group session on a regular cadence |
| Guide | Pre-recorded video / animation | Live, certified Mellem guide |
| Session length | 1 to 5 minutes, inside a meeting | 15 minutes Live; 3 / 5 / 7 or auto in the app |
| Who triggers it | Meeting host presses play | Scheduled in the calendar; app suggests in the gaps |
| Between-meeting coverage | Individual use inside the integration | Calendar-aware desktop app, optional add-on |
| Reporting | Usage analytics | Aggregate, anonymous. Attendance, check-ins, single-word wall |
| Pricing model | Per-user subscription | Live credit bundles (annual) + optional app at £5 / active user / month |
When Breakthru fits
Breakthru is a reasonable fit when:
- You want the intervention inside meetings. A meeting host running a breathing break at the top of a weekly team call is a real use case.
- You prefer fully async delivery. No coordination needed beyond someone pressing play.
- You already run a heavily Slack- or Teams-centric operation and want the tool to live there.
When Mellem fits
Mellem is the better fit when:
- You want a human holding the space. A live certified guide materially changes the experience compared to a pre-recorded clip. The group shows up together and follows a real person.
- You want a ritual your team can count on. A regular scheduled session creates a rhythm that a set of async clips never quite does.
- You want coverage between sessions too. The Mellem App extends the same practice into every working day, tailored to each person's calendar and rhythm.
- Privacy is non-negotiable. App data stays on-device. Live reporting is aggregate and anonymous by default.
- You've watched engagement on other tools fade by week eight and want a format built to hold.
Can you use both?
You could. Breakthru inside meetings, Mellem as the anchor ritual and between-meeting practice. In practice most teams we talk to pick one. The question is really about what kind of intervention fits the culture: a short async break pressed by the host, or a scheduled ritual where a guide leads a small group through 15 minutes that resets the week.
If you want to see how Mellem compares across the wider category, the best meditation apps for work overview covers consumer-focused options too. The driving engagement page is the clearest explanation of why Mellem is built to hold where other formats fade.
Want to see it in practice?
A 30-minute call is the fastest way to see whether Mellem fits your team. We'll listen to your needs, walk through what a Mellem programme could look like, and answer any questions. No pitch deck. No pressure.