Have you been curious about hosting Zoom breakout rooms? Breakout rooms are an excellent resource that allow you to engage participants while hosting impactful conversations. Mimicking in-person interactions is becoming increasingly more important as people around the world continue to embrace virtual solutions that nullify the need for in-person interactions and breakout rooms offer the perfect opportunity to mimic these in-person interactions that are becoming increasingly more rare. 

While hosting an effective breakout room may seem daunting, or even overwhelming, it can actually be quite simple! In this article, we’ll define Zoom breakout rooms, how much they cost, and dive into tips and tricks to consider when hosting effective breakout rooms. 

What is a Zoom breakout room?

Breakout rooms are sessions or micro meetings that break off from the overarching Zoom meeting that allow participants to meet in smaller groups. These groups are completely isolated from one another and have their own audio and video. While Zoom meetings are excellent resources that can be used to discuss topics at a high-level, breakout rooms allow participants to get granular and host more intimate conversations. 

Zoom breakout rooms make it possible for you to divide meeting participants into smaller more manageable groups. These groups can be predetermined by the meeting host or co-host or chosen in real-time by meeting participants. Take a webinar for example. The initial webinar would be the main session or meeting that would be used to discuss the overarching theme or lesson, and breakout rooms could then be used to host more in-depth conversations in a private space. 

Additional features include:

• Local recordings 
• Calendar integration 
• HD video and audio
• The ability to create up to 50 breakout rooms 
• Full audio, video, and screen share capabilities 
• Joining breakout rooms with both audio and video 
• Max 200 participants in breakout rooms (without additional add-ons) 
• Automatically or manually splitting attendees into smaller groups 

How much does it cost to use Zoom breakout rooms?

The cost associated with hosting breakout rooms on Zoom largely depends on your needs and which plan you opt for. Zoom includes breakout rooms in all pricing plans including the free personal account, the pro plan, the business plan, the business plus plan, and enterprise services. 

For annual subscribers, Zoom can cost as much as $315 and that doesn’t include additional add-ons. Add-on pricing varies depending on what features and functions you’re interested in with cloud recording starting at $40/ a month and the large meetings feature going for as much as $804 a year. 

Who can participate in Zoom breakout rooms? 

Zoom breakout rooms are sessions or micro meetings that are split off from the initial meeting meaning only those that are in attendance during the overarching meeting can join one of the breakout rooms. During these breakout sessions, participants can dive into topics further, host more in-depth conversations, problem-solve or brainstorm ideas, seek peer feedback, or ask questions to gain more clarity. 

Why do teams use breakout sessions? 

Breakout rooms are used to get granular and improve attendee engagement. Where the overarching meeting may be more obscure, the breakout room makes it possible for teams to dive into the details. Breakout rooms provide teams with the space needed to dive into relevant topics while simultaneously providing them with the tools necessary to curate the ideal group. These more granular meetings allow participants to create a space where a curated group of people can come together to ask meaningful questions, host in-depth conversations, or get to know each other on a more personal level. Interested in learning more? Check out this article to learn how to supercharge your breakout sessions.

Tips and tricks to consider when hosting breakout rooms on Zoom:

• You can create breakout rooms during a meeting or pre-assign meeting participants to breakout rooms to avoid confusion. 
• As the meeting host or co-host, you can share your screen with each individual breakout room during the meeting or choose to broadcast a message to all participants. 
• You can create up to 50 breakout rooms and pre-assign a maximum of 200 participants. Remember, the maximum number of participants allowed in each breakout room depends on the meeting capacity. 
• You can empower participants to choose their own breakout room or pre-assign them before the meeting. In addition, you can also enable participants to leave the breakout room and return to the main meeting at any time. 
• Screen recording is available but depends on your plan. If you wish to record your meeting in addition to your breakout rooms, you may want to explore this function beforehand. 

Host more effective breakout rooms with Remo 

Zoom breakout rooms offer an excellent opportunity to foster connections and host in-depth conversations; however, they lack in creating networking opportunities that allow for genuine human-to-human connections. 

If you’re looking to create an interactive, immersive online meeting space, Remo is the answer. Remo is an immersive virtual event and meeting platform that empowers you to recreate natural interactions in any type of gathering, from global events to remote work meetings with your peers. Remo makes it possible for you to connect with others in real-time by providing you with the tools you need to immerse yourself in an event, host round table discussions, create a workshop, or brainstorm with your teammates. 

Unlike Zoom, Remo makes it possible for you to create a one-of-a-kind immersive virtual experience that fosters engagement and connectivity. When compared to a hefty $499 Zoom subscription, Remo is a cost-effective alternative that allows you to create multiple rooms and host short online events for FREE. We’re transforming the way people around the world experience meetings by humanizing online interactions. Interested in learning more? Start your FREE TRIAL today! 

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