The many types of breathwork fall into two families: techniques you can learn in minutes and practise on your own, and complete methods and schools that are taught by a trained facilitator. Once you can tell those two apart, the whole landscape — 25+ named approaches — becomes easy to navigate. This guide maps both, compares the best-known methods, and lists every named type so you can find the one that fits your goals.
Interest in breathwork is backed by growing evidence: a 2023 meta-analysis of randomised controlled trials found it can meaningfully lower stress and improve mental health.
New to the practice itself? Start with our foundational guide: What Is Breathwork? This page focuses on the different types.
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Almost every “type of breathwork” is one of two families, and getting this distinction clear is the single most useful thing on this page. It’s the difference between a tool and a system: a technique is one pattern you can pick up and use anywhere, while a method wraps techniques inside a whole approach — its own philosophy, its own sequence, and often a facilitator holding the space. Once you can spot which one you’re looking at, no name on this page will confuse you.
A loose map, not rigid boxes — meant to orient you, not label anyone.
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Techniques are single, learnable breathing patterns — the foundation of the whole practice. They’re gentle, well-studied, and safe to do on your own. A few you’ll meet everywhere — select any name to open its full guide:
| Technique | Intensity | Guidance |
|---|---|---|
| Diaphragmatic (belly) | Gentle | Solo or guided |
| Coherent / resonance | Gentle | Solo or guided |
| Box breathing | Gentle | Solo or guided |
| 4-7-8 | Gentle | Solo or guided |
| Physiological sigh | Gentle | Solo or guided |
| Ujjayi | Gentle | Solo or guided |
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This is where breathwork gets rich. Methods are complete practices — each with its own philosophy, breathing sequence, and distinctive style, and most have a named founder and a training lineage behind them. Some grew out of yoga and long-established traditions; others were developed more recently for therapy, performance, or self-exploration. What they share is structure: a set way of breathing, a clear purpose, and usually a trained guide. They range from gentle and functional to intense and altered-state. Below, we compare the best-known ones first, then list every named type so you’ve got the full picture of the types of breathwork out there.
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These are the methods people ask about most — select any name to open its full guide and see how intense each one tends to be. They share one thing: they’re complete, structured practices, not casual techniques. Unless you’re already trained in a method, each is best learned and practised with a trained breathwork professional who can guide you safely — and once you’re properly trained, you can practise on your own.
| Method | Intensity | Guidance |
|---|---|---|
| Alexander Technique | Gentle | Learn with a pro |
| Pranayama | Moderate | Learn with a pro |
| Transformational Breath® | Intense | Always guided |
| Circular Breathing | Intense | Always guided |
| Conscious Connected Breathwork | Intense | Always guided |
| Holotropic Breathwork | Intense | Always guided |
| Rebirthing Breathwork | Intense | Always guided |
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Here’s every named method we track, grouped by how intense the work tends to feel — the same three bands as the Map above. Within each, methods are listed A–Z, with a note on how they’re best learned. Where we’ve written a full guide, the name links to it. Intensity is a general orientation, not a fixed label — some methods span more than one, and new ones appear all the time. If you teach a method and would place it differently, tell us and we’ll update it.
| Method | Guidance |
|---|---|
| Alexander Technique | Learn with a pro |
| BradCliff Method | Learn with a pro |
| Buteyko Method | Learn with a pro |
| Middendorf (The Perceptible Breath) | Learn with a pro |
| Method | Guidance |
|---|---|
| Oxygen Advantage | Learn with a pro |
| Pranayama | Learn with a pro |
| Method | Guidance |
|---|---|
| Breatheology | Learn with a pro |
| SOMA Breath | Learn with a pro |
| Method | Guidance |
|---|---|
| Barratt Breathwork | Always guided |
| Pause Breathwork | Always guided |
| Somatic Breathwork | Always guided |
| Vivation | Always guided |
| Wim Hof Method | Always guided |
| Method | Guidance |
|---|---|
| Alchemy of Breath | Always guided |
| BioDynamic Breathwork (BBTRS) | Always guided |
| Breath Guru | Always guided |
| Breathing Space | Always guided |
| Circular Breathing | Always guided |
| Clarity Breathwork | Always guided |
| Conscious Connected Breathwork | Always guided |
| Holotropic Breathwork | Always guided |
| HypnoBreathwork | Always guided |
| Neurodynamic Breathwork | Always guided |
| Psychedelic Breathwork | Always guided |
| Rebirthing Breathwork | Always guided |
| Shamanic Breathwork | Always guided |
| Transformational Breath® | Always guided |
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The right type depends on your goal and how much intensity you want. Techniques are the evidence-backed place to start on your own; for the methods, the surest path is to explore the group that fits your goal with a trained professional who can match one to you.
Whichever direction you choose, a few things help: Let your body lead — notice how you feel during and after a practice, and ease off anything that brings on dizziness, strong anxiety, or discomfort.
Treat it as exploration, not a commitment — there’s no single “right” type, and it’s normal to try a few before one clicks. Consistency beats intensity — a few minutes of a gentle practice most days does more than the occasional big session.
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Gentle techniques are safe for almost everyone. The intense, connected, and altered-state methods carry real cautions — they aren’t suitable for everyone and are best done with a trained facilitator. Before trying an intense method, read Breathwork Safety & Contraindications.
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More than 25 named types. But they all fall into two families — techniques (single breathing patterns) and methods/schools (complete systems) — and most methods belong to one of a handful of loose groups.
A technique is a single breathing pattern you can learn in minutes and practise on your own. A method or school is a complete system with its own philosophy and sequence, taught by a trained facilitator.
Gentle techniques are the usual starting point. They’re well-studied, calming and safe to practise on your own before exploring any of the more intense, facilitator-led methods.
A few names come up again and again — but popularity reflects visibility, not what’s right for you. The best type depends on your goal and your comfort with intensity.
Techniques and the gentler functional methods are safe to practise solo. Intense, connected or altered-state methods are best done with a trained facilitator, especially if you have a health condition or any trauma history.
Slow, gentle techniques that lengthen the exhale are the usual starting point. The intense methods aren’t the place to begin for anxiety. See our Breathwork Benefits and Breathwork for Anxiety guides for detail.
Not quite. Pranayama is one tradition of breathwork — the yogic art of breath control — and a family in its own right. Breathwork is the broader umbrella covering pranayama plus many modern methods and techniques.
The connected, altered-state methods are the most intense. They can surface strong emotion and are best explored and done with a trained facilitator.
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The many types of breathwork can look crowded at first — until you see the split: there’s no single “best” one. Learn a technique when you want a simple, self-guided pattern for calm or focus, and explore a method or school when you want a deeper, guided experience, gentle and therapeutic or intense and transformational. Start where you’re comfortable, respect the cautions on the intense work, and when you’re ready to go deeper, a verified professional will help you find your path. Use this page as your map, and the whole landscape stops being overwhelming.
The views expressed in this article are those of the author and are for informational purposes only. This information is not to be taken as medical advice. Please consult your physician and read the warnings before joining or participating in any breathwork information published on our website.
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