Best US Cities for Yoga Instructors
Top US cities for Yoga Instructors ranked by estimated median salary, with cost-of-living-adjusted earning power.
| # | City | Estimated salary | Cost mult. | vs national |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Honolulu, HI | $53,700 | 1.30× | +$13,700 |
| 2 | San Francisco, CA | $52,600 | 1.45× | +$12,600 |
| 3 | Scottsdale, AZ | $50,000 | 1.18× | +$10,000 |
| 4 | Oakland, CA | $49,800 | 1.35× | +$9,800 |
| 5 | New York City, NY | $49,000 | 1.32× | +$9,000 |
| 6 | Los Angeles, CA | $49,000 | 1.22× | +$9,000 |
| 7 | San Diego, CA | $48,700 | 1.21× | +$8,700 |
| 8 | Irvine, CA | $48,400 | 1.30× | +$8,400 |
| 9 | Yonkers, NY | $48,300 | 1.20× | +$8,300 |
| 10 | Miami, FL | $48,200 | 1.12× | +$8,200 |
| # | City | Salary | Hourly |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Honolulu, HI | $53,700 | $26/hr |
| 2 | San Francisco, CA | $52,600 | $25/hr |
| 3 | Scottsdale, AZ | $50,000 | $24/hr |
| 4 | Oakland, CA | $49,800 | $24/hr |
| 5 | New York City, NY | $49,000 | $24/hr |
| 6 | Los Angeles, CA | $49,000 | $24/hr |
| 7 | San Diego, CA | $48,700 | $23/hr |
| 8 | Irvine, CA | $48,400 | $23/hr |
| 9 | Yonkers, NY | $48,300 | $23/hr |
| 10 | Miami, FL | $48,200 | $23/hr |
| 11 | Long Beach, CA | $47,700 | $23/hr |
| 12 | Anaheim, CA | $47,700 | $23/hr |
| 13 | Boston, MA | $46,200 | $22/hr |
| 14 | Anchorage, AK | $45,600 | $22/hr |
| 15 | Henderson, NV | $45,100 | $22/hr |
| 16 | Seattle, WA | $45,000 | $22/hr |
| 17 | Orlando, FL | $44,700 | $21/hr |
| 18 | Chula Vista, CA | $44,200 | $21/hr |
| 19 | Hialeah, FL | $43,900 | $21/hr |
| 20 | Frisco, TX | $43,900 | $21/hr |
| 21 | Las Vegas, NV | $43,600 | $21/hr |
| 22 | Minneapolis, MN | $43,600 | $21/hr |
| 23 | Phoenix, AZ | $43,000 | $21/hr |
| 24 | Tampa, FL | $43,000 | $21/hr |
| 25 | Reno, NV | $43,000 | $21/hr |
| 26 | Gilbert, AZ | $43,000 | $21/hr |
| 27 | Charleston, SC | $43,000 | $21/hr |
| 28 | Portland, OR | $42,800 | $21/hr |
| 29 | Newark, NJ | $42,800 | $21/hr |
| 30 | Sacramento, CA | $42,800 | $21/hr |
| 31 | Riverside, CA | $42,800 | $21/hr |
| 32 | New Orleans, LA | $42,500 | $20/hr |
| 33 | Virginia Beach, VA | $42,400 | $20/hr |
| 34 | Chesapeake, VA | $42,400 | $20/hr |
| 35 | Denver, CO | $42,200 | $20/hr |
| 36 | Colorado Springs, CO | $42,100 | $20/hr |
| 37 | St. Petersburg, FL | $42,100 | $20/hr |
| 38 | Chicago, IL | $41,400 | $20/hr |
| 39 | Austin, TX | $41,400 | $20/hr |
| 40 | Baltimore, MD | $41,400 | $20/hr |
| 41 | Stockton, CA | $41,400 | $20/hr |
| 42 | Aurora, CO | $41,400 | $20/hr |
| 43 | Tucson, AZ | $41,200 | $20/hr |
| 44 | Glendale, AZ | $41,200 | $20/hr |
| 45 | Garland, TX | $41,200 | $20/hr |
| 46 | Plano, TX | $41,100 | $20/hr |
| 47 | Chandler, AZ | $41,100 | $20/hr |
| 48 | Philadelphia, PA | $40,600 | $20/hr |
| 49 | Atlanta, GA | $40,600 | $20/hr |
| 50 | Salt Lake City, UT | $40,600 | $20/hr |
| 51 | San Antonio, TX | $40,300 | $19/hr |
| 52 | Columbus, OH | $40,100 | $19/hr |
| 53 | Knoxville, TN | $40,100 | $19/hr |
| 54 | Wilmington, DE | $40,000 | $19/hr |
| 55 | Raleigh, NC | $40,000 | $19/hr |
| 56 | St. Paul, MN | $40,000 | $19/hr |
| 57 | North Las Vegas, NV | $40,000 | $19/hr |
| 58 | Boise, ID | $40,000 | $19/hr |
| 59 | Fresno, CA | $40,000 | $19/hr |
| 60 | Worcester, MA | $40,000 | $19/hr |
| 61 | Dallas, TX | $39,700 | $19/hr |
| 62 | Nashville, TN | $39,700 | $19/hr |
| 63 | Bakersfield, CA | $39,700 | $19/hr |
| 64 | Madison, WI | $39,700 | $19/hr |
| 65 | Norfolk, VA | $39,400 | $19/hr |
| 66 | Jacksonville, FL | $39,200 | $19/hr |
| 67 | Charlotte, NC | $39,200 | $19/hr |
| 68 | Mesa, AZ | $39,200 | $19/hr |
| 69 | Houston, TX | $38,900 | $19/hr |
| 70 | Fort Worth, TX | $38,900 | $19/hr |
| 71 | Spokane, WA | $38,900 | $19/hr |
| 72 | Pittsburgh, PA | $38,600 | $19/hr |
| 73 | Arlington, TX | $38,600 | $19/hr |
| 74 | Tallahassee, FL | $38,600 | $19/hr |
| 75 | Milwaukee, WI | $38,300 | $18/hr |
| 76 | Albuquerque, NM | $38,300 | $18/hr |
| 77 | Grand Rapids, MI | $38,000 | $18/hr |
| 78 | Detroit, MI | $37,800 | $18/hr |
| 79 | Cincinnati, OH | $37,800 | $18/hr |
| 80 | Kansas City, MO | $37,800 | $18/hr |
| 81 | Lexington, KY | $37,800 | $18/hr |
| 82 | Corpus Christi, TX | $37,800 | $18/hr |
| 83 | Buffalo, NY | $37,800 | $18/hr |
| 84 | Greensboro, NC | $37,800 | $18/hr |
| 85 | El Paso, TX | $37,500 | $18/hr |
| 86 | Cleveland, OH | $37,500 | $18/hr |
| 87 | St. Louis, MO | $37,500 | $18/hr |
| 88 | Winston-Salem, NC | $37,500 | $18/hr |
| 89 | Indianapolis, IN | $37,200 | $18/hr |
| 90 | Louisville, KY | $37,200 | $18/hr |
| 91 | Omaha, NE | $37,200 | $18/hr |
| 92 | Memphis, TN | $36,900 | $18/hr |
| 93 | Oklahoma City, OK | $36,900 | $18/hr |
| 94 | Lincoln, NE | $36,900 | $18/hr |
| 95 | Birmingham, AL | $36,600 | $18/hr |
| 96 | Toledo, OH | $36,600 | $18/hr |
| 97 | Lubbock, TX | $36,600 | $18/hr |
| 98 | Wichita, KS | $36,100 | $17/hr |
| 99 | Fort Wayne, IN | $36,100 | $17/hr |
| 100 | Mobile, AL | $36,100 | $17/hr |
Does location actually decide Yoga Instructor pay?
Yoga Instructor work is rarely remote, so the metro you choose still largely determines what you earn. Pay ranges from $36,100 in Mobile to $53,700 in Honolulu — a spread of 49%.
Highest-paying is not the same as best-off
The number that ranks these metros is not the number you live on. In Honolulu, $53,700 against $2,100/month rent leaves roughly $28,500 a year after housing. In Mobile, $36,100 against $850 leaves about $25,900. The top still wins after rent, but by $2,600 rather than the $17,600 the headline suggests.
Why these metros and not others
The metros at the top are not simply the expensive ones; they are where the hiring is. Honolulu (U.S. Pacific Fleet/Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam, Queen's Health Systems); San Francisco (Salesforce, Google); Scottsdale (Mayo Clinic Arizona, HonorHealth). Depth of demand for personal services work is what lifts pay above the local baseline, and it is why two equally costly cities can pay this role differently.
Salaries are modelled from BLS national medians adjusted for local price level at a wage elasticity below 1 — pay rises with local costs but not proportionally. See our methodology.