What to use after a layoff.

Every option people use after a layoff — career coaches, outplacement firms, general-purpose AI assistants, executive coaching platforms, free community content, doing nothing, and CareerCanopy. Side by side, with the dimensions that actually matter.

We name what each option does and what it does not. Where a competitor wins on a dimension, we say so.

Dimension	CareerCanopy AI career companion for the months after a layoff.	Career coach A human professional you hire by the session.	Outplacement firm Severance benefit paid by the former employer; rarely chosen by the laid-off worker.	ChatGPT Plus / Claude Pro General-purpose AI assistants. Powerful, but not built for this.	BetterUp / executive coaching platforms Subscription coaching network, usually B2B-sold.	Reddit / YouTube / free content The collective wisdom of strangers who have been here.	Doing nothing Sitting with it. Often what people choose, especially in week one.
Cost	$79 one-time. No subscription.	$150–250 per hour. Most engagements run 4–10 sessions ($600–2,500).	$1,500–5,000 per person (paid by employer, not you). $0 to use if offered.	$20/month (~$120 over six months).	$200–500/month if self-paid. Often free through current or former employer benefits.	Free.	Free, financially.
Format	iOS app + web. AI conversation + structured plan + tools.	1:1 calls, often weekly. Sometimes written exercises between calls.	Group workshops + a small number of 1:1 sessions. Often a portal with templates.	Chat. You bring the structure.	Matched coach + chat between sessions.	Threads, comment chains, hour-long videos.	None.
Personalisation	Every message anchored to your background. Not a template.	High when the coach is good. Variable by coach.	Low. Generic résumé and interview frameworks.	As much as you put in. Each new session starts cold unless you maintain a project.	Coach-dependent. Platform handles matching.	None. Generic by definition.	N/A.
Emotional support	A core part of the product. Honest about hard markets and slow weeks.	Often the strongest part of the engagement.	Minimal. Outplacement is a search service, not a care service.	Inconsistent. The model will be supportive if asked but does not initiate.	Strong when the match is good.	Sometimes excellent (r/layoffs is a real community). Sometimes a sinkhole.	N/A.
Best for	Most people 30–55 in professional roles. The first day, and the months that follow.	People who want an accountability partner and can afford it. Senior roles where introductions matter.	Anyone whose employer is paying for it — take it, it is free to you.	Self-starters who already have a process and just want a smart assistant.	People whose employer (or former employer) pays for it.	Validation that you are not alone. Specific factual answers ("does WARN apply if…").	The first 24 hours. Sometimes the first week.
Not for	High-touch executive search. Active mental-health crisis. People who want a human relationship over months.	People on a tight budget. Anyone who needs help at 11pm on a Tuesday.	People expecting deep customisation. People who do not want group workshops.	People who need the structure built for them. Anyone who does not want to engineer their own prompts.	Self-pay individuals on a tight runway. Anyone who needs help in the first 24 hours.	A coherent plan. Anyone whose situation needs orchestration.	Past week two. The cost of inaction starts showing up around then.

CareerCanopy

AI career companion for the months after a layoff.

Cost: $79 one-time. No subscription.
Format: iOS app + web. AI conversation + structured plan + tools.
Personalisation: Every message anchored to your background. Not a template.
Emotional support: A core part of the product. Honest about hard markets and slow weeks.
Best for: Most people 30–55 in professional roles. The first day, and the months that follow.
Not for: High-touch executive search. Active mental-health crisis. People who want a human relationship over months.

Career coach

A human professional you hire by the session.

Cost: $150–250 per hour. Most engagements run 4–10 sessions ($600–2,500).
Format: 1:1 calls, often weekly. Sometimes written exercises between calls.
Personalisation: High when the coach is good. Variable by coach.
Emotional support: Often the strongest part of the engagement.
Best for: People who want an accountability partner and can afford it. Senior roles where introductions matter.
Not for: People on a tight budget. Anyone who needs help at 11pm on a Tuesday.

Outplacement firm

Severance benefit paid by the former employer; rarely chosen by the laid-off worker.

Cost: $1,500–5,000 per person (paid by employer, not you). $0 to use if offered.
Format: Group workshops + a small number of 1:1 sessions. Often a portal with templates.
Personalisation: Low. Generic résumé and interview frameworks.
Emotional support: Minimal. Outplacement is a search service, not a care service.
Best for: Anyone whose employer is paying for it — take it, it is free to you.
Not for: People expecting deep customisation. People who do not want group workshops.

ChatGPT Plus / Claude Pro

General-purpose AI assistants. Powerful, but not built for this.

Cost: $20/month (~$120 over six months).
Format: Chat. You bring the structure.
Personalisation: As much as you put in. Each new session starts cold unless you maintain a project.
Emotional support: Inconsistent. The model will be supportive if asked but does not initiate.
Best for: Self-starters who already have a process and just want a smart assistant.
Not for: People who need the structure built for them. Anyone who does not want to engineer their own prompts.

BetterUp / executive coaching platforms

Subscription coaching network, usually B2B-sold.

Cost: $200–500/month if self-paid. Often free through current or former employer benefits.
Format: Matched coach + chat between sessions.
Personalisation: Coach-dependent. Platform handles matching.
Emotional support: Strong when the match is good.
Best for: People whose employer (or former employer) pays for it.
Not for: Self-pay individuals on a tight runway. Anyone who needs help in the first 24 hours.

Reddit / YouTube / free content

The collective wisdom of strangers who have been here.

Cost: Free.
Format: Threads, comment chains, hour-long videos.
Personalisation: None. Generic by definition.
Emotional support: Sometimes excellent (r/layoffs is a real community). Sometimes a sinkhole.
Best for: Validation that you are not alone. Specific factual answers ("does WARN apply if…").
Not for: A coherent plan. Anyone whose situation needs orchestration.

Doing nothing

Sitting with it. Often what people choose, especially in week one.

Cost: Free, financially.
Format: None.
Personalisation: N/A.
Emotional support: N/A.
Best for: The first 24 hours. Sometimes the first week.
Not for: Past week two. The cost of inaction starts showing up around then.

The honest summary

Who picks what.

If your former employer offered outplacement, take it. It is free to you, and the worst case is that you do not find it useful. The best case is that the portal saves you a few hours of admin and the group sessions are tolerable.

If you can afford a career coach, that relationship is hard to beat — especially for senior roles where introductions and personal advocacy matter. Expect $1,000–2,500 for a multi-session engagement.

If your runway is tight and you want a system, CareerCanopy is what we built. $79 one-time, full-access, honest about the parts of a layoff most products skip. The plan is built around your background, not a template.

If you already have a process and just want a smart assistant, ChatGPT Plus or Claude Pro at $20/month is a legitimate choice. The trade-off is that every session starts cold and you bring the structure.

For the first 24 hours, do nothing. Tell whoever needs to know. Eat. Sleep. The search can start in a few days. None of these tools, including ours, is the right thing in hour one.

$79 · One time

Less than one session with a career coach.

For the first day, and the months that follow.

Start your plan

What to use after a layoff.

Side-by-side comparison

Who picks what.

Less than one session with a career coach.