How Much Do Yoga Instructors Make?

When it comes to becoming a yoga instructor, one of the first questions you’re likely to have is how much you can expect to earn.

This is a difficult question to answer, and one look online is only going to make you more confused.

How Much Do Yoga Instructors Make?

Are you always self-employed as a yoga instructor? How can you manage this and ensure your wage is enough to live off of? What about the limits of this unique profession – is there room for growth? 

If you ask these questions, you’ve come to the right place.

This article will take you through everything you’ll need to know about how much yoga instructors make.

We’ll be breaking down some average salaries, common ways yoga instructors make money, and how you can become one and maximize your income. 

Let’s get right into it!

How Much Does A Yoga Instructor Make?

We’re going to be working off US dollars for the purposes of this article, though the salary can vary depending on where you are in the world.

First off, we can say that the average wage of a yoga instructor is somewhere between $15 and $25 dollars.

If we go by the high number here, the average yearly wage would be around $50,000 to $60, 000.

If you’re looking for a quick answer – these figures are a good starting point to keep in mind, but they don’t tell the whole story.

In truth, the wages of a yoga instructor can vary massively depending on a few different factors. These include:

  • The base of clients that you’ll be instructing.
  • The number of classes/students you teach per day.
  • The amount you charge for classes (if self-employed)
  • Self-employed vs part of a company or organization. 

All of these factors will massively change the amount you’ll be making.

Let’s consider self-employed yoga instructors for a moment.

If you’ve just started up and only have a few clients/students, the only income you’re likely to get is from them, and therefore you’ll have a lot less income.

On the other hand, if you are an experienced self-employed yoga instructor with a large client base, you might find yourself with enough students to pay yourself a much higher salary. 

Career Tips To Maximize Your Income As A Yoga Instructor

How Much Do Yoga Instructors Make?

In this section, we’re going to be taking you through some of the steps you’ll need to take in order to give yourself the best start possible as a yoga instructor.

We’ll be explaining how each step will add to possible future income. 

Step One: Authentic Training

In order to become a yoga instructor that clients will pay for, you’ll need to have a deep understanding of the practice.

You might already be quite far down your yoga journey, but with many different styles of yoga, you’ll need to make sure you’re picking a few to get familiar with.

It’s best to start with a traditional form such as Hatha Yoga, and this can be the foundation that you can build additional practices alongside or on top of.

It’s a simple idea – but the more you immerse yourself into the practice of yoga, the better teacher you’ll be. Most yoga teachers gain authentic training in one of two ways.

Firstly is by being taught how to teach by a yogi, and the second is to learn the practice long enough to figure things out on your own.

Either way, after years of experience, you will be ready to start teaching students.

We would recommend a broad range of knowledge in a few different kinds of yoga so that you have options for the future. 

Step Two: Get Qualified

You may already have the skills and knowledge to teach yoga, but that doesn’t mean you can become a yoga instructor.

As the practice has become more popular over the years, one thing that is expected from some clients and schools is an official qualification.

This isn’t something you have to have, but it goes a long way in building a client base and, therefore a salary for you to live off of. 

There are a lot of different qualifications and certificates you can get to become a yoga teacher, but we recommend getting one in Hatha Yoga, especially if you’re only taking the first steps on your journey to becoming a teacher.

There are Diplomas available that will give you an entire course on how to become a yoga teacher. 

It’s better to get this qualification early because eventually, you’ll find yourself wanting it in the future. 

Step Three: Building Clients And Relationships

If you want to be a self-employed yoga instructor with your own classes (or perhaps even a school), then you’re going to need to build a client base.

More than this, you’ll want to make sure to build good relationships with those who show up to your classes.

This is one of the fundamental things that will cause you to build a salary over time.

You want to ensure you’re creating a positive environment, getting to know your clients, understanding their needs, and coaching them towards their individual goals – whether for their mind, body, or both.

As long as you can do this, you’ll go far in creating an environment that clients will come back to.

You’ll also want to make sure that you’re setting prices that not only allow your customers to be able to pay but will also allow you to live and make a good career for yourself.

Final Thoughts

Becoming a yoga instructor is a great way to carve a career for yourself that will make a difference whilst also allowing you to live.

How well your career goes and how much money you’ll make can be considered ahead of time, and with some careful planning, you’ll be able to increase your salary.

We hope that this article has given you some insight into the world of becoming a yoga instructor and you now know a little more about what to expect.

There’s a lot more to consider, so you should do some additional research before committing to this unique profession! 

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Angela Frederik
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