See how much Spill's EAP alternative would cost
See pricingTraditional Employee Assistance Programmes (EAPs) have long been the cornerstone of workplace wellbeing, offering confidential counselling and support to help employees navigate personal and professional challenges. But as the world of work evolves – with remote and hybrid models, digital transformation, and a growing emphasis on mental health and inclusion – many organisations are discovering that conventional EAPs no longer meet the diverse and dynamic needs of their people.
Modern employees expect more than a helpline. They want accessible, proactive, and personalised wellbeing support that fits seamlessly into their daily lives. Today's employers are looking for measurable impact, meaningful engagement, and a clear return on investment. This shift has given rise to a new generation of modern EAP alternatives.
In this guide, you’ll learn:
- What is a modern EAP alternative
- The problem with traditional EAPs
- What features should a modern EAP provide
- What are the benefits of offering a modern EAP
- Who are the best modern EAP alternatives
- How Spill supports progressive companies
Let's jump in...
What is a modern Employee Assistance Programme (EAP) alternative?
A modern Employee Assistance Program (EAP) alternative is a tech-enabled platform that offers flexible, on-demand mental health and wellbeing support designed to meet the evolving needs of today’s workforce. Unlike traditional EAPs (which notoriously struggle with low engagement and usage) modern alternatives provide proactive, personalised care through impactful services like counselling, mental health training and self-guided wellbeing resources.
Modern EAP platforms (like Spill) are built to combine clinical support with digital accessibility, making it easier for employees to get the right help when they need it
These modern platforms prioritise usability, speed of access, and confidentiality—three key factors that drive higher usage and better outcomes for employees. Many use data and AI to match employees with the most appropriate care, offer multilingual and culturally competent support, and provide HR leaders with anonymised reporting to track impact. By expanding beyond crisis response to include ongoing, preventative care, modern EAP alternatives help organizations foster a culture of wellbeing, reduce burnout, and support mental health in a scalable, measurable way.
The problem with traditional EAPs
Progressive companies are increasingly looking for modern EAP alternatives over traditional EAPs because they recognise that today’s workforce expects more accessible, personalised, and proactive mental health support.
Traditional Employee Assistance Programs (EAPs) are built to help employers fulfil their legal duty of care to staff in a way that’s as affordable as possible. Support is available (usually via a 24/7 helpline), but it’s notoriously difficult to access the most valuable part of the service – counselling.
On average, traditional EAP usage is typically below 3% of employees (10x lower than modern alternatives like Spill). When you consider that on average 25% of your team are likely to struggle with their mental health each year, that’s a lot of people left without much needed support.
Let’s look at the main reasons contributing to this low utilisation:
Lack of awareness
Shockingly, only 27% of employees realise their company actually provides them with access to an EAP. Poor communication and outdated onboarding processes often leave these resources under the radar, tucked away in employee policies or an intranet page somewhere which isn’t visible for employees day to day.
Stigma and trust issues
Recent high-profile PR disasters relating to certain employee assistance providers have put a spotlight on EAP confidentiality. If employees have any concerns around using the service anonymously, fearing this will signal weakness or be viewed negatively by their employer, they are much less likely to seek support.
Almost a third (31%) of employees would not feel comfortable disclosing a mental health issue at work in fear of stigma and discrimination
Hard to access
Traditional EAPs often require calling a hotline during business hours, going through a mental health assessment over the phone, navigating a complex referral processes and often joining a long waiting list to be able to speak with a therapist. For someone who is struggling with their mental health and has been brave enough to speak up and ask for help, this process can feel incredibly frustrating and distressing.
Counselling is restricted
To get counselling through most traditional EAPs you must first have a triage call with a case manager before you can be referred for support. Unfortunately, case managers are often non-clinicians and have strict targets restricting the number of people they are allowed to put through for counselling. They can turn employees away for having issues that are “too small to meet the threshold for mental health support” or “too complicated for our service”.
A recent BBC investigation found internal communications to EAP counsellors asking them to keep triage calls below 19 minutes and refer just 18% of callers to therapy
Limits and exclusions
Similar to the physical healthcare insurance model, some EAPs will turn employees away if they mention anything that resembles a pre-existing condition. Each EAP decides what its own criteria are for assessing who gets access to counselling, and what level a person needs to score against those criteria. These criteria and the required levels aren’t made public in most cases.
BUPA’s EAP service excludes all learning difficulties and behavioural or developmental conditions (like autism and ADHD).
Reactive, not preventative
Traditional EAPs are designed mainly for crisis intervention, not ongoing mental health support or early prevention. By the time employees consider using the service, they may already be in burnout or distress which is affecting their work performance, attendance, or behavior.
In short, the combination of poor visibility, outdated delivery, and limited scope makes traditional EAPs inaccessible or unappealing to many employees—especially younger, diverse, or remote workers who expect modern, flexible, and stigma-free support.
44% of UK companies are considering changing their EAP provider because they’re not happy with the service provided
So, what’s the alternative?
What features does a modern EAP alternative provide?
Modern EAP alternatives like Spill have taken the core concept of an Employee Assistance Programme (giving employees free access to mental health support at work) and made it much easier and faster to access support on your terms. As a result they see much, much higher usage (Spill is typically used by around 25% of employees).
Here are the key features to look for:
Easy access
Easy access to an Employee Assistance Program (EAP) through tools like Slack or MS Teams (rather than a traditional phone number) removes the friction that often stops employees from getting the support they need. In moments of stress or overwhelm, people are far more likely to engage with resources that are discreet, fast, and embedded into their daily workflow.
Same day sessions
Same-day therapy sessions are a priority because most mental health challenges require timely support – not days or weeks of waiting. When someone is experiencing acute stress, anxiety, panic, or emotional distress, being told to wait for help can worsen the situation or cause them to disengage altogether. From a business perspective, this also helps prevent issues from escalating to the point where someone needs extended time off work to rest and recover.
Unlimited counselling
Unlimited counselling sessions are an important feature in a modern Employee Assistance Program (EAP) because they reflect a realistic, ongoing approach to mental health care rather than a short-term, crisis-only model. Traditional EAPs often cap sessions at 3–6 per issue or per year, which can leave employees without support before they’ve made meaningful progress—especially for conditions like anxiety, depression, grief, or trauma that require more time and continuity.
100% confidentiality
Complete confidentiality is a crucial feature when choosing a modern Employee Assistance Program (EAP) because it directly impacts whether employees feel safe enough to use the service. Mental health and personal issues are deeply sensitive topics, and if employees worry that their information might be shared with their employer they are far less likely to reach out for help. This fear, whether real or assumed, creates a major barrier to engagement and undermines the very purpose of having an EAP.
Therapist matching
Many modern Employee Assistance Programmes facilitate tailored therapist matching, allowing users to set preferences and filter therapists by specialism, ethnicity, gender and other criteria to find the best fit for them. The quality of the therapeutic relationship is one of the biggest predictors of successful mental health outcomes, so when employees are matched with a therapist who aligns with their specific situation they are more likely to feel safe and understood.
Proactive support
Employee Assistance Programmes that focus on early intervention and proactively reach out to employees who are struggling before they reach the point of crisis are far more effective. By identifying signs of stress, burnout, or declining mental health early (through usage patterns and surveys), modern EAPs can offer employees support before issues escalate and require time off work to recover.
Transparency around average usage
Traditional EAPs are notoriously secretive when it comes to usage data (because they don’t want to broadcast the fact that it’s often very low). But real-time access to employee usage data should be provided as standard, giving you clear insight into the impact, effectiveness, and value of the program – without compromising employee confidentiality.
Flexible pricing
Most traditional EAPs will lock you into a 2-3 year contract, with a huge exit fee if you try to leave early because you’re unhappy with the service. Look out for modern alternatives that offer shorter contract lengths, pay-as-you-go options, free trials and pricing plans that can easily scale up or down with your headcount.
The benefits of offering a modern Employee Assistance Programme
Choosing a modern Employee Assistance Program (EAP) over a traditional one offers significant benefits for your business by providing more effective, accessible, and measurable support for employee wellbeing.
Higher engagement and usage
Modern EAPs make it much easier to access support, from logging in to booking a session or accessing self-help resources. As a result, they typically see usage rates 5–10x higher than traditional programs, meaning more employees get the support they need, when they need it.
Better mental health outcomes
By offering unlimited access to counselling, personalised therapist matching and proactive outreach, modern EAPs help employees access the right support at the right time – before issues escalate. This leads to improved wellbeing, reduced burnout, and better long-term outcomes.
Increased staff retention
When employees feel like the business is committed to investing in proper support for the team they are proven to be more focused, motivated, and loyal to the company. Modern mental health support helps retain talent by showing the company genuinely values its people – not just their output.
80% of employees are more likely to stay at a company that provides high-quality resources to care for their mental health.
Better brand perception
Providing effective employee mental health support is a major competitive advantage when it comes to attracting new talent. When looking for a new job, 1 in 3 workers now prioritise companies that offer mental health support. Having a modern EAP clearly displayed on your careers page and job listings signals to potential employees that you’re a responsible employer, and can have a big impact when it comes to attracting and retaining talent.
The best modern Employee Assistance Programme (EAP) alternatives
To see a long list of the best EAP providers and find the most suitable option for your company, check out our employee assistance comparison guide here.
Alongside the list of features above that make an EAP suitable for a modern and progressive team, it's important to also pay attention to the quality of care on offer. That's why employee ratings and reviews from an unbiased source like Trustpilot are so insightful, shining a light on the experience an employee can expect when they do reach out in need of mental health support.
With these checklists in mind, let's see how Spill's employee assistance programme stacks up…
A closer look at Spill's modern EAP alternative
Spill provides employees with access to counselling services, just like a traditional EAP — but unlike a traditional EAP it's incredibly easy to access, offers proactive and unlimited support, and can be personalised to maximise therapeutic outcomes for employees.
Here's an overview of Spill's modern EAP offering in line with our checklist of important features:
✅ Easy access
Spill integrates directly with the tools your team uses to communicate (including Slack, MS Teams, Whatsapp, SMS and Email), making mental health support highly visible and accessible for anyone who's feeling low. There are no phone numbers or log in details to remember, employees can click straight into the Spill platform and book a therapy session in seconds.
✅ Same day sessions
Employees can choose a date and time that suits them, and speak to a Spill counsellor from the very same day, including evenings and weekends. No callbacks, no waiting lists and no assessments required before using the service.
✅ Unlimited counselling
Unlike most EAPs, Spill doesn’t believe in limiting the amount of support available to someone who’s struggling with their mental health. Employees can get unlimited access to message based support and 25 or 50 minute video counselling sessions, to speak with a qualified therapist whenever they need.
✅ 100% confidentiality
Spill is a completely private and secure service. Nothing is ever shared or recorded from the session, and employers can only see aggregate usage data and anonymous feedback from their team – so people feel safe and comfortable using the service.
✅ Therapist matching
We have counsellors covering 80+ areas of therapeutic expertise (from ADHD to addiction or divorce) to connect your team with the most relevant specialist to support their specific situation.
✅ Proactive support
Spill’s safety net feature runs regular mood surveys to check in on how employees are feeling, and catch the early warning signs when someone’s mental health starts to dip. A Spill counsellor will proactively reach out to offer support to anyone who’s struggling.
✅ Transparency around average usage
The Spill dashboard gives you real time feedback on how your team are using the service. While Spill is completely confidential (you’ll never be able to see who’s logging in, how many sessions they’re using or what they’re discussing with a counsellor) – from an aggregate level, you will be able to see the number of sessions used over time and any feedback employees opt in to sharing.
✅ Flexible pricing
At Spill we believe that you should only pay if you’re getting value from a service, so we allow companies to cancel with just 30 days notice if they find a better alternative. We also offer fully pay-as-you-go and co-pay options to support smaller businesses where budgets are tight.
To find out more about Spill's modern employee assistance programme alternative and pricing options for your team, book a demo today.
