Whether you’ve newly become interested in yoga therapy or have already been pursuing it as a serious career path, you’ll need to first address the question, “How much does it cost to become a yoga therapist?” While the costs are certainly important to consider, our students can attest to the fact that the investment is well worth it when you’re able to work doing what you love and helping others heal.
As a Co-Founder, Director, and Teacher of Breathing Deeply’s yoga therapy training program, I’m here to assure you that there are a multitude of options and resources available to help potential yoga therapists find a career path that suits their unique needs. Keep reading to get a better understanding of the cost to become a yoga therapist, the costs and benefits of certification, and why undertaking yoga therapy training can benefit both you and your clients for a lifetime.
Table of Contents:
- What Is the Difference Between a Yoga Therapist and a Yoga Instructor?
- How Much Does It Cost to Become a Yoga Therapist?
- How Much Does a Yoga Therapist Earn in the U.S.?
- Is There a Demand for Yoga Therapists?
- Is Getting Yoga Certified Worth It?
- Become a Yoga Therapist with Breathing Deeply
What Is the Difference Between a Yoga Therapist and a Yoga Instructor?
Before we get started, it’s important to understand the distinction between a yoga therapist and a yoga instructor or yoga teacher:
- Both use yoga techniques to help improve their students’ or clients’ physical health.
- Both require training and have options for certification.
- Yoga instructors normally specialize in a specific style of yoga, providing expertise, guidance, and oversight in a large group setting.
- Yoga instructors teach students poses, techniques, and practices that can be physically engaging and restorative.
- Yoga therapists use yoga to address their clients’ specific physical or mental health conditions in a one-on-one, private environment.
- Yoga therapists often use specialized, trauma-informed approaches and techniques to address chronic health issues as opposed to general fitness.
- Yoga therapists spend more time training, completing yoga teacher training as well as more specialized yoga therapy training.
For more information, read our blog post about the difference between a yoga teacher and a yoga therapist.
How Much Does It Cost to Become a Yoga Therapist?
If you think that you’d like to take the next step with yoga therapy training, you’ll want to know how much it costs to become a yoga therapist. There are several parts of the process to consider:
- Tuition costs for yoga therapy training and any scholarship opportunities
- The costs of obtaining and maintaining yoga therapy certification
- Once you’ve become a yoga therapist, the costs of running a private practice
If you are not yet a yoga teacher, it’s worth noting that yoga teacher training and its costs will need to come before yoga therapy training.
In addition, keep in mind that there are career opportunities outside of running a private practice. However, private practice is a common component of many yoga therapists’ careers, so we’ll go through information about that process as well as tuition and certification in more detail below.
Tuition Costs for Yoga Therapy Training
At Breathing Deeply, we’ve structured our training programs to offer flexibility to students. This means flexible payment options that can be paid over time, as well coursework that can be completed at your own pace. Whether you want to move faster or need more time to pay for training and fit it into a busy schedule, we’re able to work with you.
You can become a yoga therapist fastest by completing our Foundations Program. It is designed to be completed in a year, but can be done at your own pace:
- Tuition is $2,995 in full (or you can pay $500 down and then $235/month for 12 months).
- There are 3 online retreats that cost $350 each.
- The final exam costs $250.
- The total cost to become a yoga therapist with the Foundations Program is $4,295.
For those who want specialized training and to get IAYT certified, you can complete our Advanced Program in as little as 2 years (which includes 1 year of working through the Foundations Program). The initial financial commitment of the Advanced Program is only the Foundations Program tuition. Payments for modules and other components of the program are paid as you go, including:
- 3 online retreats from the Foundations Program that cost $350 each.
- 8 additional week-long online retreats that cost $1,100 each.
- The final exam costs $250.
- The practicum fee costs $1,800.
- The total cost to become a yoga therapist with the C-IAYT accredited 875-hour Advanced Program is $14,895 in total (paid over time).
Breathing Deeply works with all of our students to find a path and a pace that feels feasible and reasonable so you can invest in yourself and your career in yoga.
Breathing Deeply’s Scholarship Program
Breathing Deeply recognizes that certain communities have historically encountered high barriers to entry in this career path and many others. We are committed to providing resources to expand the field of yoga therapy to include all those who wish to participate in it.
In the coming months, we are excited to launch a scholarship program that will be available to students from traditionally marginalized communities. We see this as an important first step to making yoga therapy a more equitable and inclusive field, and we invite you to contact us with any questions about this opportunity.
The Costs of Obtaining and Maintaining Certification
Getting certified as a yoga therapist helps give you credibility and may open up more work opportunities for you. The International Association of Yoga Therapists (IAYT) is the highest level of yoga therapy certification and the industry standard.
The costs associated with IAYT certification include:
- A $100 application fee
- A $125 exam fee
- $85/year IAYT membership costs
In addition, you will need to meet continued education requirements in the years that follow in order to stay IAYT certified, which may have a cost as well.
With Breathing Deeply, you can become a yoga therapist in as little as a year, depending on the state where you want to practice. With our pay-as-you-go model, you can complete your yoga therapy training at your own pace and even take a break if needed before getting certified.
The Costs of Running a Private Practice
Yoga therapists have access to a variety of jobs and career opportunities nationwide. More and more commonly, yoga therapists are finding work in public settings, such as hospitals, addiction centers, and wellness centers. Most often, however, yoga therapists will choose to build their own private practice, either part time or full time.
In terms of the cost to become a yoga therapist with a private practice, there are many factors to consider. Initial costs include:
- Buying equipment, such as yoga mats and blocks
- Renting a space
- Advertising your practice
Fortunately, there are creative ways to keep costs down. If you work part time at your private practice, you may be able to rent space from a physical therapist or other private practitioner for a few days per week. With most clients wanting to visit a yoga therapist in person, your advertising budget can be limited to a small, local geographic area.
It’s essential to remember that these initial costs pale against the many benefits that building a private practice provides. Each of these costs will help you make your private practice profitable. Overall, the largest cost you’ll face is the time it takes to establish your business, build your clientele, and make lasting connections.
Breathing Deeply is uniquely positioned to support yoga therapists in starting private practices in a number of ways:
- We incorporate lessons about running a private practice into our yoga therapy training to help you prepare.
- We provide our students with lifelong access to our community of yoga therapists, allowing you to continue to network and get advice from your teachers and fellow students.
- We offer private yoga therapy sessions to clients online, run by Brandt (our Co-Founder, Director, and Lead Teacher) and some of our graduates. This gives our students an opportunity for work right after completing their training.
How Much Does a Yoga Therapist Earn in the U.S.?
A yoga therapist’s salary can be impacted by the location of your practice, whether you work in a private practice or at another institution, and, most importantly, your level of experience and any areas of specialization. Broadly speaking, according to ZipRecruiter, a yoga therapist can earn anywhere between $20,000 and $135,500 a year, with a national average of $68,275 annually.
Read our blog post about yoga therapy salaries for more information.
Is There a Demand for Yoga Therapists?
The demand for yoga therapists increases more and more with each passing year. As public knowledge around the therapeutic benefits of this profession expands and deepens, so too does the job market as it grows to encompass this emergent field.
Our students have found work in hospitals, mental health departments, addiction centers, chiropractors’ offices, wellness centers, and school districts in addition to starting successful private practices. Yoga therapists are well-qualified to fill a number of positions at healthcare institutions across the country and meet the public’s demand in both public and private settings.
Is Getting Yoga Certified Worth It?
In short, becoming a yoga therapist is highly rewarding, and getting certified is well worth it when it aligns with your goals. The time it takes to become a yoga therapist provides a deeply meaningful return on the investment, both to those building their therapeutic practice and to their clients.
Yoga therapy can be life-changing for a client who has been failed by Western medicine and searching in vain for relief. If you want to be able to help clients heal using yoga techniques that are targeted to the specific health conditions they face, then yoga therapy is the path for you. Certification can help provide you with the professional credentials to find work and build trust with clients.
Become a Yoga Therapist with Breathing Deeply
Whether you’re beginning your journey today or are a seasoned yoga teacher looking to deepen your practice, Breathing Deeply is here to guide and support your path towards becoming a knowledgeable, capable, and qualified yoga therapist. We’re here to answer your questions on logistics, such as how much it costs to become a yoga therapist and how long it takes, as well as any questions you may have about our teachers or the contents of our training programs.
For over a decade, Breathing Deeply has made it our mission to provide our students with flexibility, community, and access, enabling them to participate in our programs at their own pace and on their own time. Through our yoga therapy training programs, you can become a yoga therapist online in just one year, or take as long as you’d like with pay-as-you-go training modules.
We are proud to offer IAYT-accredited courses that can further your career and your ability to provide physical, emotional, and spiritual care to those in need. Apply to one of our programs today to join our thriving community of teachers and peers that will last a lifetime.
