12-step (AA/NA/Celebrate Recovery), secular/self-empowerment (LifeRing, SMART Recovery), Buddhist/mindfulness (Recovery Dharma, Refuge Recovery), women-specific (Women for Sobriety), and moderation-based (Moderation Management) approaches differ meaningfully in philosophy. Your loved one who wants help can try a couple of different formats before deciding none of them “work,” since fit with a specific fellowship’s approach and community often matters as much as the model itself.
1. Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) — Find a meeting worldwide via the official locator; the original 12-step fellowship for alcohol use disorder, with in-person and online meetings in nearly every country. [aa](https://www.aa.org/find-aa/world)
2. Narcotics Anonymous (NA) — 12-step fellowship for people recovering from drug addiction of any kind; in-person meeting search plus a dedicated virtual meeting finder filterable by language (NA World Services, Virtual Meetings). [na](https://na.org/meetingsearch/find-na/)
3. SMART Recovery — Free, secular, science-based mutual support meetings using cognitive-behavioral tools; covers alcohol, drugs, and other addictive behaviors (gambling, food, etc.), led by trained volunteer facilitators. [smartrecovery](https://smartrecovery.org/meeting)
4. Celebrate Recovery — Christian-based 12-step recovery program with thousands of groups worldwide plus weekly online Zoom meetings, addressing addiction alongside other “hurts, habits, and hang-ups”. [celebraterecovery](https://celebraterecovery.com/find-help-2/)
5. LifeRing Secular Recovery — Self-empowerment-focused, secular alternative to 12-step programs; peer-led in-person and online meetings emphasizing personal responsibility over a higher power. [lifering](https://lifering.org/)
6. Women for Sobriety — Nonprofit peer support specifically for women with substance use disorder, using the “New Life” program; 90+ free weekly meetings, in-person and online, led by certified facilitators with at least one year of sobriety. [meetings.womenforsobriety](https://meetings.womenforsobriety.org/meetings/)
7. Moderation Management — Peer support for people who want to reduce or moderate drinking rather than pursue full abstinence; free online meetings and a structured self-management program, useful for those not ready for or not appropriate for abstinence-only groups.It is a very controversial site in that the founder was convicted of vehicular manslaughter after crashing into another family’s care and killing them all. It should not be used by anyone seeking a simpler way to drink or use drugs rather than do the hard work of recovery. [moderation](https://moderation.org/)
8. Recovery Dharma — Peer-led, Buddhist-inspired mindfulness and meditation-based recovery community; an active in-person and online meeting index across the US and internationally. [recoverydharma](https://recoverydharma.org/meetings-and-events/)
9. Refuge Recovery — Buddhist-inspired mutual aid fellowship similar in spirit to Recovery Dharma, with in-person meetings organized by region, popular on the West Coast. [refugerecovery](https://www.refugerecovery.org/retreats-events)
10. In The Rooms — Free online recovery community and meeting aggregator hosting 130+ live weekly video meetings across many fellowships (AA, NA, and non-12-step groups) plus specialty meetings for women, men, LGBTQ+, and trauma-focused recovery. [intherooms](https://www.intherooms.com/home/category/community-and-meetings/)
