Where Can I Teach Yoga?

If you’re wondering “where can I teach yoga?” then our guide has everything you need to know! We’ll run through 7 different places to teach yoga, and the pros and cons of each.

Before we start, if you’re not already qualified, the best way to secure a position in a quality studio or facility is to complete the highest quality course.

At OriGym, our industry-leading Level 3 Yoga Teacher Training course is entry-level and suitable for yogis of varying experience levels. 

You can discover more about this course by downloading our FREE course prospectus.

7 Unique Places You Could Teach Yoga 

Now we’ll look at the different places where you can teach yoga, and tell you the benefits and downsides of each!

#1 - Gym And Fitness Facilities Are A Great Option For Where To Teach Yoga

The best place to start your career when you become a yoga instructor is in a gym or fitness facility, as these jobs are the ones that are most frequently available. 

Most positions will be on a freelance basis, and you may be expected to fulfil some additional duties alongside teaching a class, which often include:

• Administrative tasks
• Greeting visitors to the gym
• Assisting with marketing and sales initiatives 

Working as a freelance yoga teacher will allow you to work in a few different locations, and add variety to your teaching. 

For example, you might have the opportunity to teach different styles of classes at different facilities, like a power flow in one gym and a hot yoga class in another.

There’s also usually room for increasing the number of classes you teach based on their popularity. 

You’ll be given a minimum amount of hours you’ll be able to ask for an increased workload based on:

• How many people attend your class
• Member retention
• Your performance across the classes and gym as a whole
• Customer reviews

However, you’ll have to adapt your style for the demand of the particular gym, meaning there’ll often be less of a focus on things like the philosophy and history of yoga, and more on making the practice accessible to all gym goers.

This is something you can bear in mind when looking for places to teach yoga. As you can see below, Nuffield Health teach a variety of styles:

Working in a smaller gym, though, means you’ll have the potential to gain experience teaching though the style of class might be more generalised.

For example, plenty of job advertisements, like the one below, will advertise for a fitness instructor, specifying yoga as one of the options in the description:

So, if you want to know ‘where can I teach yoga?’ a gym is a great place to start once you finish your qualifications!

#2 - Where Can I Teach Yoga? Spa Facilities

A spa or health club might not be the first thing that comes to mind when deciding where to teach yoga, but it can be one of the most lucrative and the best ways to gain experience.

These facilities will often be higher end and offer yoga as either part of a holistic wellness programme or as part of a fitness regime.

The benefits of this are you’ll get plenty of experience working with those with different goals in their practice. 

Some may be there for physical stretching or toning but there’ll also be a heavier focus on yoga aided relaxation.

You will have an option to teach in different ways here too. Depending on the facility you might:

• Work with individuals on a one-to-one basis
• Teach small classes
• Instruct yoga as part of a retreat

You will usually be expected to fulfil other responsibilities around the health club or spa facility, especially in full time, salaried positions like below:

As you can see, the additional parts of the job are similar to working in a gym and so will give you valuable experience for other roles.

One of the drawbacks is that class sizes will often be smaller so you won’t get the same experience as other places, teaching large classes like you would in a studio.

As you can see below, The Berkeley gives guests an option to have one to one sessions or be in a small group of four:

Despite this though, working one to one will help deepen your practice and help you become more adaptable by working with different people who respond to different styles of teaching.

#3 - Working in a Studio is One of the Most Popular Places to Teach Yoga

When you finish your training and you’re thinking about where to teach yoga, a dedicated studio will probably be your first thought.

This is one of the best places to teach yoga because it’s a dedicated facility and will therefore have a wider range of yoga styles taught by different instructors.

You can learn from these other instructors whilst you’re developing as a teacher and you’ll often be able to go to other instructors’ classes to see how they teach and what works.

Depending on your qualifications and your experience, you might teach one of the following in a yoga studio: 

• Ashtanga yoga
• Vinyasa yoga
• Hatha yoga
• Yin yoga
• Rocket yoga
• Hot yoga

Looking at Eleven:Eleven’s studio in Liverpool, you can see what a dedicated studio’s timetable might look like:

Despite the wider variety in a dedicated studio, this is one of the hardest places to teach yoga when you’re just starting out because it’s so competitive.

Usually, this is a location you should build up to. By working freelance across different locations you’ll get a wide variety of experience, teaching different styles, to make you more attractive to studios like this.

One way to make yourself more desirable is to gain a wide variety of experience and specialise in different styles.

The more unique or niche these are, the more this can work in your favour. If you want to specialise in baby yoga or you’re looking to become a prenatal yoga teacher, this can increase your demand.

Make sure you’re specialising in other, more in-demand styles though, too, so that you have a good balance.

You can also sign up to be on a studio's substitute lists so that when an existing instructor is away or ill you can fill in.

This is a great way to build rapport with studios and increase your chances of getting a slot when one becomes available!

You can approach your existing studio and studios where you’ve met the teachers and taught with them before. This way you’re acting on the trust and rapport you’ve already developed with other teachers. 

#4 - Where Can I Teach Yoga? Religious Buildings

One option for places to teach yoga that you may not have considered is using religious or sacred buildings to deliver a practice that’s more grounded in spirituality and worship. These religious buildings include:

• Churches
• Synagogues
• Mosques
• Buddhist centres
• Hindu centres and temples

It’s fairly common for some of these spaces to be available for rent as a community centre for a variety of religious and other practices.

They’re usually big spaces, which will allow for a large class and plenty of room to spread out members and get the most out of practice.

Having your yoga in a religious setting will also enrich the experience for your class members. You will attract a more specific group of people too, practising yoga to enrich themselves mentally and spiritually.

However, there are a few stipulations with what and how you can teach in a religious setting.

Firstly, yoga’s traditional association is with Hinduism and Buddhism so, despite it now being more widely taught, it still has this connection.

This means that other religious places of worship can be resistant to renting their space out for yoga as they may see it as an opposing religious practice, and they might not be comfortable allowing you to lead a class there.

Another drawback is that these places won’t have yoga equipment like a gym or a yoga studio so you’ll have to source your own yoga blocks, yoga mats and yoga straps. 

So, if you’re asking ‘where can I teach yoga in a religious setting?’ the best answer is to find Hindu or Buddhist centres.

Not only are these places more likely to say yes but your practice will be situated alongside other complementary practices, like in this one in Manchester:

 There’s plenty of other practices including: 

• Meditation
• Acupuncture
• Reflexology 

So, if you’re deciding where to teach yoga, and want a more spiritually infused practice, this can be a great option.

Just make sure that when you’re enquiring at a centre or place of worship you are respectful of the religion of the particular place. 

If you’ve got a more fitness focused approach to yoga then you can approach a church or synagogue community space, stressing that your practice is less traditional.

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If this article is helping you iron out some of the details of your practice, check out our others on how to be successful in the industry!  

• What Makes a Good Yoga Teacher? Ultimate Guide
• How to Become a Successful Yoga Teacher: 11 Top Tips
• How Much Experience Do I Need Before Yoga Teacher Training?

#5 - Where to Teach Yoga: In the Park

If you’re wondering ‘where can I teach yoga outside?’ the park is a great way to root your practice in natural surroundings!

If you can market yourself, and promote your class, this is one of the best options when you’re starting out because it will be free. 

You will need to check with your council and obtain a permit in order to do this. You can pay a flat annual fee, depending on the amount of class members and frequency of the class.

Below are the prices for a year in the Royal Parks in London:

You can also pay for a daily pass whilst you’re growing your class and gaining class members:

There’s also less of a limit on the class size as there’ll be plenty of open space for you to teach in!

The main downside, especially if you’re choosing places to teach yoga in the UK, is that this is weather dependent.

This can make teaching classes outdoors unreliable and unpredictable as you may plan out a class but be rained off at the last minute!

However, you can create a social media page on Facebook and Instagram for your classes and easily inform people and rearrange should this happen like Purebarre Prosper have below:

Another drawback is that there can be outside interference or distractions in a public place like the park such as children playing or other people doing sports or exercise.

If you do decide on one of these places to teach yoga, make sure to choose a secluded or quieter spot in the park.

You can set up your classes like this one in Manchester:

Class members are asked to bring their own mat and so the only cost will be for your time. 

You can have a free class, like this one, when you start out. This way you’re more likely to get higher numbers. 

However, you don’t want to undersell your services so as soon as you can be confident you’ll get decent attendance, you can charge a small fee and start to gain private yoga clients for other venues!

#6 - Further Into Your Career, A Yoga Retreat is One of the Places to Teach Yoga

If you want to know ‘where else can I teach yoga?’ once you’ve advanced slightly in your career, you can look at instructing as part of a yoga retreat.

The spas and health clubs we mentioned earlier may host these or it may be one hosted by an individual studio.

These are most commonly between 3 and 5 days and will have a variety of practices with other activities planned in the surrounding areas of the retreat. 

It will usually be in accommodation with surrounding natural areas and meals and board will be provided, usually with different pricing options for different rooms.

If you want to know how to run a yoga retreat of your own, there’s huge benefits to this too. It’s a significant way to enrich your practice and have a meaningful, shared experience with your class members. 

Not only will you be able to deepen your connection with your practice and class members, you’ll also be able to do a range of styles over the weekend. 

They can also potentially be very lucrative if you find a good venue and decide on the right pricing for your students.

To ensure you get one of the best deals you can choose venues that advertise their potential as a retreat space, like Party Houses:

As you can see, there’s plenty of availability for activities other than yoga so that you can make the most of the surroundings.

Most retreats will include:

• A morning practice of meditation and asanas
• Meals
• Activities in the grounds including hikes
• Talks on the philosophy and history of yoga
• Teaching a restorative yoga class, yoga nidra, or yin in the evening

The only downside of planning a retreat is that there’s a lot of steps and responsibilities involved compared to a standard class.

This is why it’s something you can build towards once you’ve got more experience and you’ve established yourself with regular class members.

#7 - Where to Teach Yoga: Online

Our last answer to your question ‘where can I teach yoga’ is using online platforms, either through live streaming or pre-recorded material.

If you choose to become a yoga instructor online, this will usually mean teaching yoga over Zoom, through livestreaming services like Facebook or Ustream, or videos on YouTube, and can be filmed in a variety of locations including:

• Your home
• A rented studio space or community centre
• Outdoors

One of the biggest benefits of this is that it can be done anytime, anywhere, and with the potential to get anybody involved.

People will be able to join in from their own homes and won’t be limited by travelling. This means you can potentially teach people from anywhere around the world, and offer a more inclusive service.

However, you’ll need to put even more effort into marketing your yoga business this way because you’ll be competing with a far higher number of instructors.

So, if you’re wondering ‘where can I teach yoga?’ at the start of your career, this may not be the best option.

There’s some downsides for your clients as well as you, in that you won’t be able to correct people’s posture in quite the same way.

This means there’s a risk that their practice may suffer as a consequence and may even have a higher risk of injury.

There’s also always going to be issues when relying on technology and the internet for your practice.

Technical difficulties are bound to happen but you can avoid these best as possible by doing practice runs with friends and family.

If you decide that this is still the best option for where to teach yoga, then you’ll need to make sure you consider the following when you’re setting yourself up:

• Decide on a consistent time and place
• Choose somewhere with good lighting
• Make sure you have a microphone and the right camera for your purposes
• How to instruct the best yoga class for a variety of abilities

Once you’ve ironed out these details you can decide on social media strategies and ways of getting clients to your online classes!

Before You Go!

Hopefully, if you were wondering ‘where can I teach yoga?’ we’ve provided you with plenty of options to suit your level of experience and expertise!

Don’t forget you can enrich your practice and career options by becoming a certified instructor, through the completion of our Level 3 Yoga Teacher Training course. 

You can find out more about this and all our other yoga courses by downloading our free course prospectus!