Best employee wellness programs: Top picks for 2025

In a post-pandemic UK, the link between employee wellbeing and business success has never been clearer. Yet, for many HR leaders, the challenge is immense. Faced with rising employee expectations, increasing burnout, and a national dental crisis causing millions of lost workdays, traditional benefits packages are proving insufficient. Investing in the health of your team is no longer a perk; it’s a strategic necessity for productivity and retention. A holistic approach that covers mental health, fitness, and often-overlooked areas like dental care is now the benchmark for a competitive benefits package.

This guide is designed to help you navigate the complex market of the best employee wellness programs available to UK businesses. We’ve moved beyond generic advice to provide a detailed breakdown of seven leading platforms, from on-demand dental care providers like Toothfairy to comprehensive mental health support and fitness networks. For each programme, you will find a clear analysis of its key features, benefits, and practical implementation details, complete with screenshots and direct links to help you make an informed decision. Understanding the impact of these initiatives is vital, and learning how to effectively measure employee satisfaction is crucial for demonstrating ROI and refining your approach. This list will equip you to choose a solution that genuinely supports your employees and strengthens your business.

1. Toothfairy

Best for Comprehensive Dental Wellness

Toothfairy stands out as a premier choice for businesses seeking to integrate dental care into their employee wellness programmes. This UK-based, dentist-founded digital platform brings clinically supervised, on-demand dentistry directly to your employees’ phones. It represents a significant evolution in how dental care is accessed, moving beyond traditional insurance models to provide immediate, tangible support that can directly impact employee health and reduce absenteeism.

As the UK’s first health-regulated dental app, Toothfairy combines patented technology with a network of real, qualified dentists. This powerful blend allows it to deliver a robust service that addresses the most common reasons for dental-related work absences: emergencies, cosmetic treatments, and teeth straightening.

Standout Features and Business Applications

The platform’s strength lies in its practical, high-impact features, making it one of the best employee wellness programs for tackling oral health head-on.

• 24/7 Emergency Access: Employees can connect with a qualified dentist via secure video consultation any time, day or night. This immediate triage for issues like toothache or dental trauma allows for prompt advice, e-prescriptions sent to a local pharmacy, and efficient referral to an in-person clinic if necessary, minimising downtime and distress.
• Remotely Monitored Cosmetic and Straightening Treatments: Toothfairy provides a smarter, more affordable way to access cosmetic dental work. This includes dentist-prescribed teeth whitening and clear aligner therapy for straightening teeth, offering an intelligent alternative to specific aligner brands. The entire process is supervised by a registered dentist, ensuring clinical safety and professional oversight without the need for frequent in-person appointments.
• Proactive Oral Health Support: The app uses smart AI to help triage issues and provides a hub for ongoing dental advice. This encourages a proactive approach to oral health, helping employees manage their wellbeing before minor issues become major problems requiring time off work.

Why It Excels as a Wellness Benefit

Toothfairy directly addresses a critical gap in many corporate wellness strategies. Dental problems are a leading cause of sickness absence, and by providing a simple, accessible solution, employers can demonstrate a clear commitment to their team’s health. The service is designed for easy implementation, with bespoke business plans available to suit different company sizes and needs. While complex procedures still require a physical visit, Toothfairy’s virtual-first model handles a vast range of common dental needs efficiently.

To get started, businesses can book a discovery call to design a custom plan. Individuals can download the app to see specific service pricing and options.

Pros:

• Round-the-clock access to UK-qualified dentists for emergency advice.
• Clinically safe, dentist-supervised cosmetic treatments (aligners and whitening).
• Reduces employee absence by providing immediate dental triage and care.

Cons:

• Pricing is not listed on the website; requires contacting the company or using the app.
• Not a replacement for in-person visits for surgical or complex procedures.

Website: https://www.toothfairyapp.co.uk

2. Wellhub (formerly Gympass)

Wellhub, the platform formerly known as Gympass, offers a comprehensive corporate wellbeing network that gives employees flexible access to a vast range of health and wellness resources. It stands out as one of the best employee wellness programs by bundling physical fitness, mental health, and nutritional support into a single, user-friendly subscription model. Employers can roll out the programme company-wide, empowering their teams to proactively manage their wellbeing.

The platform’s strength lies in its extensive partner network, which includes thousands of gyms, fitness studios, and digital apps. This variety ensures high adoption rates, as employees can find activities that genuinely appeal to them, from yoga and HIIT classes to guided meditations and therapy sessions. The model is particularly effective for distributed teams, providing equitable access to wellness resources regardless of location.

While corporate pricing requires a direct quote, the clear, tiered structure for employees makes Wellhub an attractive and scalable solution for UK businesses aiming to build a resilient and healthy workforce.

Website: https://wellhub.com/en-uk/

3. Unmind

Unmind is a clinically backed workplace mental health platform that positions itself as one of the best employee wellness programs by focusing exclusively on proactive and preventative mental wellbeing. The platform provides a comprehensive suite of digital tools, assessments, and resources developed by clinicians and academics. It empowers organisations to embed mental health support directly into their company culture, helping employees build resilience and manage challenges like stress and anxiety.

The platform’s credibility, particularly within the UK, is a significant differentiator. Its evidence-informed approach and partnerships, including long-running access programmes with the NHS, demonstrate a commitment to quality and efficacy. Unmind provides a safe, confidential space for employees to measure and manage their mental health through structured programmes, guided exercises, and in-the-moment support, making it a robust solution for businesses prioritising psychological safety.

Key Features and Implementation

Unmind is designed for enterprise-level deployment, offering dedicated support to ensure a successful rollout and sustained employee engagement. The company provides a custom quote based on the organisation’s size and needs. While its primary focus is mental wellbeing, its specialist approach ensures a depth of content that is hard to match.

• Scientifically Backed Content: Offers structured programmes and assessments covering seven key areas of wellbeing, including sleep, focus, and calmness.
• In-the-Moment Support: Provides a library of short, practical exercises for immediate relief from stress, low mood, or focus challenges.
• Employer Analytics: Delivers aggregated, anonymised data and insights on workforce wellbeing, helping HR leaders identify trends and measure the impact of their strategy.
• Proven UK Adoption: Has demonstrated strong credibility and adoption through its extensive work with UK organisations, including NHS trusts.

Practical Tip: Leverage Unmind’s reporting dashboard to identify company-wide wellbeing trends. If data suggests high levels of stress, use this insight to launch targeted internal campaigns that guide employees towards Unmind’s specific stress-management courses and tools.

While pricing is available upon request, Unmind’s strong clinical foundation and specialised focus make it a powerful partner for UK companies dedicated to building a mentally healthy and resilient workforce. For a holistic programme, it can be effectively paired with providers covering physical and financial wellbeing.

Website: https://unmind.com/

Your Action Plan for Implementation

Feeling inspired? It’s time to translate that inspiration into action. A high-impact wellness strategy is built on data and clear objectives, not guesswork.

Follow these three steps to get started:

1. Survey Your Team: The first and most critical step is to listen. Use anonymous surveys or focus groups to understand what your employees truly need and want. Are they struggling with stress, seeking better work-life balance, or concerned about accessing healthcare like dental appointments?
2. Define Your Goals and Budget: What do you want to achieve? Your primary goal could be reducing sick days, improving employee retention, or simply boosting team morale. Once your objectives are clear, establish a realistic budget that reflects the value you place on your team’s health.
3. Shortlist and Schedule Demos: Armed with employee feedback and clear goals, use this guide to select two or three providers that seem like the best fit. Book demonstrations to see the platforms in action and ask targeted questions about implementation, engagement, and reporting.

Investing in your team’s wellbeing is the single most important investment your business can make in its future. It cultivates a healthier, more resilient, and deeply engaged workforce ready to drive your organisation forward.

Ready to tackle one of the biggest hidden causes of absenteeism and presenteeism? Learn how Toothfairy can provide your team with instant access to dentists, orthodontists, and cosmetic treatments, making it one of the most impactful and affordable additions to the best employee wellness programs. Discover our corporate plans today.