All you Need to Know about Webinar Breakout Rooms

And this is where breakout rooms can come to your rescue. 

Breakout rooms are interactive features, designed to make virtual events more engaging by splitting participants into smaller groups for discussion, collaboration, and activities. But here’s a question many organizers ask is – can you actually use breakout rooms in a webinar?

And in this article, we discuss just that and pretty much everything else you need to know about breakout rooms in webinars, so you can make your webinars more engaging.

What Exactly Are Breakout Rooms?

Simply put, breakout rooms are smaller, separate sessions within a larger virtual event. Instead of having hundreds of attendees in one room, you can divide them into smaller groups where they can discuss specific topics, collaborate, or work on tasks together.

Breakout rooms allow event organizers to divide attendees so they can work in smaller groups, followed by everyone coming back together to share their respective insights.

They’re commonly used for

• Workshops and training sessions.
• Brainstorming activities.
• Group discussions.
• Networking.
• Team collaboration.

Breakout rooms provide the possibility to convert passive listeners into an active audience.

Can Breakout Rooms be Leveraged in a Webinar?

Yes, breakout rooms can be used in webinars—but not all webinar platforms support them natively. You can include breakout sessions in your webinar, based on the following factors – 

• The platform you’re using.
• The platform’s subscription plan you’re on.
• The size of your audience.
• Whether your event is set up as a webinar or a meeting.

These variables dictate the availability as well as the functionality of breakout rooms, which is why things can get a bit tricky with leveraging breakout rooms in webinars.

Why are Breakout Rooms Limited in Webinars

Webinars are typically designed as one-to-many experiences, where one host or a few speakers present content to a significant number of people, and the interaction levels are relatively low.

Because of this structure-

• Participants often don’t have full audio/video access.
• The host controls most of the interaction.
• The experience is more like a presentation than a conversation.

Breakout rooms, on the contrary, are built for collaborative interaction; hence, they are traditionally more common in meetings or larger events than webinars. 

Platform Support: What You Should Know

Different platforms handle breakout rooms in webinars differently. Here’s a simple breakdown.

Airmeet

Airmeet is a platform where you can organize all sorts of virtual events like conferences, summits, meetups, along with webinars, and it is designed to deliver a rich networking experience. Besides, it gives you full control on the look of the event, with tons of customizable options.

It has features like –

• Social Lounge and breakout spaces
• Speed Networking
• Q&A and polls
• Detailed Analytics
• Custom Branding, etc. 

Zoom Webinars

Zoom is a popular virtual events platform across the globe. It supports breakout rooms in webinars, but terms and conditions apply here. To use breakout rooms on Zoom, you need to subscribe to their advanced plans.

Once enabled, hosts can

• Form multiple breakout rooms.
• Assign attendees automatically or manually.
• Move between rooms & monitor discussions.

But for a basic webinar setup, this feature might not work.

Microsoft Teams Webinars

Microsoft Teams offers breakout rooms in meetings, but their functionality in webinars is limited—especially for large-scale events. For bigger audiences, breakout room support may not be available or practical.

Other Webinar Platforms

There are multiple webinar platforms that don’t even feature breakout rooms. However, they offer other engagement features like-

• Networking spaces.
• Chat-based discussions.
• Parallel sessions.

This means breakout rooms might not be present in every platform, but similar interactive features might be there.

How Breakout Rooms Work in a Webinar

Here’s how breakout rooms work in a webinar .

Creating Breakout Rooms

A workshop may require smaller groups for hands-on collaboration, and a networking session, on the other hand, might involve more rooms with fewer participants in each. 

The number as well as the size of rooms is generally planned beforehand to make sure that there is balanced participation and smooth coordination across the sessions.

Assigning Participants

Once the rooms are created, participants are assigned to them automatically or manually, with the system randomly distributing attendees across rooms. The host selects who goes where based on roles, expertise, or preferences.

Some platforms also allow self-selection, giving participants the flexibility to choose the room or topic that interests them most. The assignment method you choose can impact the quality of interaction within each group.

Running the Session

After participants enter their assigned rooms, each breakout room functions as its own mini-session. Attendees can communicate with each other via audio and video, share screens, and also collaborate on ideas & tasks. This setup motivates more active participation compared to the main webinar room. 

The host can move between rooms to observe discussions, provide guidance, and keep the session on track. They can also send announcements or reminders to all rooms to make sure that everyone stays aligned with the session timeline.

Bringing Everyone Back

Once the breakout activity is complete, the host ends the session and brings all participants back to the main webinar room. Then comes a debrief, where groups share their insights, discuss outcomes, or present their ideas. 

Bringing everyone back together helps connect the smaller discussions to the larger objective of the webinar as well as ensures a cohesive experience for all attendees.

What are the Ideal Use Cases of Breakout Rooms in a Webinar?

Breakout rooms are not necessary in every webinar—but they are incredibly useful in the right situations.

• Workshops and Training Sessions 

Perfect for hands-on learning where participants can learn and practice.

• Brainstorming Activities 

Great for generating ideas in group discussions.

• Networking Sessions 

Helps attendees connect in a more personal setting.

• Group Discussions

Useful for panel discussions or collaborative problem-solving.

If your goal is engagement rather than just presentation, breakout rooms can make a big difference.

What are the Benefits of Using Breakout Rooms?

When used effectively, breakout rooms can completely transform your webinar experience.

• Higher Engagement 

Participants are more likely to speak up in smaller groups than in a large audience.

• Better Collaboration 

Smaller groups encourage idea-sharing and also facilitate teamwork.

• Personalized Experience 

You can tailor discussions centered around audience segments or topics.

• Improved Learning 

Interactive participation helps people to retain information better, as compared to passive listening.

What are some Limitations of Breakout Rooms You Should Be Aware Of

While breakout rooms are powerful, they’re not perfect.

• Platform Restrictions 

Not all webinar tools can support them, some require premium plans.

• Audience Size Limits 

Large webinars might not be able to handle the breakout rooms efficiently.

• Technical Complexity 

Handling multiple rooms can be challenging for your hosts.

• Limited Oversight 

It is difficult to see every room simultaneously. 

Because of these limitations, it is important to plan carefully before using breakout rooms.

Best Practices for Using Breakout Rooms

If you decide to use breakout rooms, with a little planning, you can make your session much smoother and more effective.

Before the Webinar

Define the purpose of each breakout session so that the participants can know what to expect. Decide on group sizes on the basis of your goals. And if needed, assign moderators to guide discussions among groups.

During the Webinar

Provide clear and simple instructions and only then allow the participants into breakout rooms. Also, set a time limit to keep discussions focused—and also check in on each room to ensure a smooth session.

After the Session

Bring everyone back to the main room and ask groups to share their insights. Wrap up by summarizing the takeaways so participants can connect the discussion to the overall session.

How Modern Platforms Are Rethinking Breakout Experiences

Today, webinars are evolving beyond traditional formats. Rather than relying only on breakout rooms, modern platforms feature more flexible ways to motivate interaction.

Platforms like Airmeet offer features like

• Networking tables for small group conversations.
• Interactive lounges for attendees.
• Real-time engagement tools.
• Chat, polls, live Q&A, all these make interaction feel more natural as well as continuous across the event.

These features allow you to create breakout-like experiences without the complexity of managing multiple rooms manually. This is especially useful for large-scale webinars where traditional breakout rooms may not be practical.

Bottom Line

There’s no doubt that breakout rooms can make webinars feel far more interactive as well as ensure two-way communication. But keep in mind that using this feature alone won’t guarantee overall webinar success. 

The more important aspect is to create an event experience where you enable participation, discussion, and connection. Because, fact is that people are more likely to remember a webinar and convert when they are actively involved in the session, as opposed to simply listening in.