How Much Do Yoga Teachers Make? (And How To Earn More)

I almost didn’t become a yoga instructor because I thought yoga teachers were poor.

Turns out — many of them are. But not all of them. And years later, not me.

Here’s the short answer: The average yoga teacher salary in the United States is about $31 per hour for group classes. Full-time studio teachers earn roughly $30,000–$45,000/year. But yoga teachers who build an online presence and teach digitally? They can earn six figures — and some, like me, have become millionaires doing what they love.

The difference isn’t talent. It’s business model.

In this post, I’ll break down exactly how much yoga teachers make across different teaching formats — studio classes, private lessons, online teaching — and share what shifted me from fear-based thinking about money into a six-figure yoga career. Whether you’re considering yoga teacher training or you’re already certified and wondering how to earn more, this is for you.

My Fears About A Yoga Instructor Salary

I was so freaked out about being poor as a yoga instructor that I couldn’t get “unstuck” about pursuing my dream to teach yoga. I finally resorted to hiring a life coach and he asked me a totally life-changing question:

“Brett, WHO are you looking at as examples of the kind of yoga instructors you want to emulate?”

I recited to him ALL my yoga instructor friends who weren’t making a lot of money teaching studio yoga classes. And even though they were all super nice yogis, they didn’t seem to really have their financial life together.

“Well”, he said, “what about

• Deepak Chopra,
• Bikram Choudhury,
• Kino Macgregor,
• Rod Stryker,
• Jason Crandell,
• Elena Brower,
• and Gabrielle Bernstein?

Brett, these people make tons of money as yoga instructors!”

He was right. These people are multimillionaires!

He challenged me to see that there are plenty of yoga instructors out there who have a healthy cash flow and have LOTS of money in the bank. He told me to use those experienced teachers as examples. (duh)

GAME-CHANGER: What we focus on dictates our reality.

I changed the teachers I wanted to emulate to those who were making great money. I surrounded myself with incredible coaches, mentors, and yoga instructors who had an abundance of mindset around earning a living as a teacher and healer. It helped me overcome my fear. It changed everything for me.

Now, I earn 15 times my corporate salary teaching yoga and am a millionaire yoga teacher myself!

I’m still in disbelief about this. But that’s the power of intention, action, support, and follow-through.

And that’s just it, as an entrepreneur, you have a ridiculously amazing opportunity to create financial security for you and your family.

Yet no YTTs treat yoga instructors as entrepreneurs. There’s no education on the mindset, methods, or maneuvering it takes to run a yoga business sharing what you love.

Instead, most teacher training programs teach students to work full-time as yoga instructors with private clients, teaching at multiple yoga studios, leading yoga retreats and workshops, or teaching corporate yoga (for those who want the big bucks).

And that’s how the yoga industry single-handedly undermines the true value that yoga instructors bring to our world.

How Much Do Yoga Teachers Make in 2026?

Let’s look at the real numbers.

The average base yoga instructor salary in the United States is $31 per hour for group classes. But that number varies widely by location, experience, and teaching format.

Highest-paying areas:

• San Francisco Bay Area: ~$38/hour
• New York, California, Washington: 15%+ above national average

Lowest-paying areas:

• Texas, Louisiana, North Carolina: 25–30% below national average

Only 45% of yoga instructors feel they earn enough to cover the cost of living.

Average pay per state, compared to national average

How much do yoga instructors make per class?

Do you see the problem? A yoga teaching job treats you more like an independent contractor than an employee and if you are earning $30 per yoga class, then you’d have to work a lot of yoga instructor jobs just to make ends meet. Let’s take a look at the numbers…

Full-Time Yoga Teacher Salary

A full-time studio yoga teacher teaching 20 classes per week at $30/class earns roughly $30,000/year before taxes. That’s nearly 3 classes per day with no days off. Add in commute time, prep, and the physical toll — it’s a grind.

Part-Time Yoga Teacher Income

67% of yoga instructors work fewer than 10 hours per week teaching classes. At $30/class and 8 classes per week, that’s about $12,500/year — a supplement, not a salary.

Experienced Yoga Teacher Salary

Experienced teachers with strong reputations or social media followings can command $50–$75 per class, bringing the weekly requirement down to 10–15 classes. More livable — but still trading time for money.

Factors for Every Yoga Instructor to Consider

The amount yoga instructors make varies widely. Whether you’re ready to open your own online yoga studio, want to be a sought-after local yoga teacher, or a hybrid approach of both online yoga classes and in-person private lessons, you’ll need to keep a few things in mind…

Location, location, location

The yoga market can be competitive in some areas, just like real estate. Depending on where you live, you might have eight yoga studios within a one-mile radius, or none! This is where some on-the-ground research can help you get a feel for what other yoga instructors in your area are making and how many yoga students might be interested in what you have to offer.

Strap on your best walking shoes and hit the streets. How many private yoga studios are teaching classes? Is anyone offering free classes you can test out? Ask around: What do the yoga instructors earn? What does the yoga world look like in your area? Hop online and see who is posting most in the digital yoga world in your town.

Where you are makes all the difference in how much you’ll make as a yoga instructor. Just like a house gets valued based on location, so will your yoga services, if you choose to only teach locally. Finding out the average yoga instructor salary for your area will help you set a benchmark.

The beauty of teaching online is that all the barriers location presents melt away. But if you’re interested in teaching yoga in-person, then you’ll want to do this reconnaissance work up front, so you know what you’re getting into.

Part-time, full-time, or side hustle?

How much time do you have to dedicate to your new career as a yoga instructor? Are you ready to jump in completely and go full-time? Would being a part-time yoga teacher be a great bridge to launching your career? Or would you like to start a side hustle and see what happens?

In my years of teaching online yoga teacher training, I’ve seen my students launch all types of businesses, everything from a full-blown yoga studio to a side hustle with a few private classes per month. It’s up to you what you feel you have the capacity to take on. For some of us (myself included!), we dive in headfirst. For others (I’m talking to my Kaphas!), a slow, steady start works best.

Becoming a certified yoga instructor is an accomplishment in itself. The choice is up to you on how your career as a yoga teacher will fit into your life. 67% of yoga practitioners teach yoga less than ten hours per week. Whether teaching yoga is your dreamy side hustle or your full-time passion, there are so many ways to be a certified yoga teacher. You decide what’s best for you.

Do you have a niche?

Where do you fit into the yoga space? Do you dream of teaching acro yoga to ten students? Or do you want to be one of the highest earning yoga instructors in your state? Is prenatal yoga a specialty you’d like to explore? Depending on your personal experience, there are so many ways to make the yoga you teach personal and tailored to a specific group of people.

Maybe you want to focus on kids yoga, bikram yoga, or how to incorporate yoga into your work as a Pilates instructor. The possibilities are endless. The way you’ll find your people is by being YOU. Everything from the yoga poses you teach to the yoga teacher training course you attend will influence your style as a yoga instructor. Teaching yoga is personal and you can decide who you’d like to focus on teaching and why. Some people even offer yoga therapy! The yoga community needs you, your experience, and what you have to offer.

Fall in love with my 300-Hour teacher training or …

How to Earn More as a Yoga Teacher

The traditional model — running between studios, teaching one-off group classes — has a ceiling. Here’s how to break through it.

1. Know Your Worth

Research the average yoga instructor salary in your area and don’t settle for less. Many new teachers undercharge because they feel grateful just to be teaching — but undervaluing yourself isn’t ahimsa. You deserve to earn well doing meaningful work.

2. Teach Yoga Online

This is the single biggest lever. When you teach online, you’re no longer limited by the number of hours in a day or the number of students who can fit in a room. You can reach thousands of students, create passive income through recorded classes, and build a business that scales.

I’ve created several resources on this:

• How to Lead a Live Online Zoom Yoga Class
• How to Get Traffic to Your Yoga Website
• 13 Yoga Teacher Tax Deductions You Should Know

3. Create Your Own Yoga Business

Instead of juggling group classes and moody studio owners, empower yourself to build something that’s yours. You can still teach your favorite styles — somatic yoga, Kundalini, restorative, prenatal — but in a way that earns you real money.

The first of the yamas is ahimsa — do no harm. And that means to yourself just as much as to others. You don’t need to sacrifice your well-being just to share your practice.

4. Invest in Business Training

Most YTTs teach you anatomy and sequencing but nothing about running a business. That’s why I built business coaching directly into my 300/500-Hour Yoga Teacher Training — because yoga teachers deserve to thrive financially, not just spiritually.

68% of our graduates report an increase in yoga-related revenue before they even complete the program. 100% feel clear on their next

Instead of juggling group classes, workshops, and moody yoga studio owners, empower yourself to create your own yoga business.

You can still teach your favorite things, like hatha yoga, children’s yoga, restorative yoga, private lessons, or whatever…

…but you can do it in a way that earns you good money.

After all, the very first of the yamas and niyamas is Ahimsa, to do no harm. And that means to yourself just as much as it means to others.

You don’t need to sacrifice your well-being just to share your yoga practice with others!

The shift to online teaching has opened doors that didn’t exist a few years ago. You no longer need to be in a major city with dozens of studios to build a thriving yoga career. It’s forcing yoga teachers (and teachers in all industries) to think outside the box. To step outside the traditional “teach in a studio” model and go into yoga business for themselves.

You don’t have to report to a yoga studio every day to be successful, anymore. Those days are over. Many yoga teachers are wildly successful and their entire yoga practice is online. Heck, I’m one of them! You can bust through the national average salary yoga instructors make and create a business that works for you and reaches more people. A win-win!

I’ve already created a few yoga teacher resources on how to earn more money as a yoga instructor, namely by going online:

• How To Teach Yoga Online And Make Money (Like Me)
• How to Lead a Live Online Zoom Yoga Class
• 6 Crucial Online Marketing Tips for Budding Yoga Teachers
• 10 Tips On How To Start A YouTube Channel For Yoga Teachers
• 3 Best Tools To Launch A Yoga App (That You Can Actually Afford)
• 13 Types of Yoga Teacher Tax Deductions (And Other Tax Tips)

I’ve been trying to help yoga teachers find their way online for YEARS because I’ve felt that the standard yoga industry grossly undervalues its most skilled workers.

FAQ

Next Steps

• If you’re interested in learning the three skills that empower you to embody your yoga off the mat to get the results you desire in your personal life, check out my Yoga for Self Mastery course.
• Explore my knowledge hub for How to Become a Yoga Teacher or consider becoming a Somatic Yoga Coach in my newest certification program.
• Practice yoga with me on my YouTube channel with over a thousand free classes.

*https://www.indeed.com/career/yoga-instructor/salaries

**https://www.yogaalliance.org/Portals/0/2016%20Yoga%20in%20America%20Study%20RESULTS%20-%20TOPLINE.pdf