Yoga statistics

We looked into the data to find out how many brits are getting down(ward dog) with the latest yoga poses and mindfulness techniques offered by this ancient practice.

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Yoga is a popular form of exercise that focuses on strength, breathing and flexibility to boost your physical and mental wellbeing. We looked at the statistics to see how many Brits are bending and flexing their way into yoga in the UK.

Quick overview

  • The Pilates and yoga industry has had a revenue of over £926 million in 2020, up 6% from the year before (£875 million).
  • There are over 10,000 yoga teachers in the UK and their average salary is £27.54 per hour.
  • Up to 460,000 Brits are taking part in yoga classes each week.
  • Yoga with Adriene is the biggest yoga YouTube channel in the world, with over 8 million subscribers.

What is yoga?

Yoga is a discipline that has been practised for thousands of years, thought to have its roots in ancient India. Essentially, it’s a range of postures and poses that are designed to make you more flexible and to improve your muscle strength. Unlike Pilates, it tends to involve meditation, stillness and deep breathing.

What are the benefits of yoga?

Some of the benefits of yoga include:

  • Better flexibility
  • Greater strength
  • Improved blood flow, especially to vital organs
  • Stronger joints
  • Better wellbeing

What different types of yoga are there?

There are lots of different types of yoga and some are more physical than others. The type that works best for you will depend on how intense you want to get and whether you prefer the more spiritual aspects of yoga or the more physical aspects. Some of the main types include:

  • Hatha yoga. Hatha yoga combines posture and breathing techniques. Your breathing is a key part of this type of yoga, which helps you to relax and reduce your stress levels.
  • Vinyasa yoga. Also known as power yoga, Vinyasa yoga is performed at a faster speed than many other types of yoga. It involves both seated and standing postures and inversions such as shoulder stands. If weight loss is your goal when doing yoga, then this is a good choice, as you’ll burn more calories.
  • Kundalini yoga. Kundalini yoga aims to invigorate your body and relax your mind. It’s based on the idea that energy is stored at the bottom of your spine and can be released through this type of yoga.
  • Ashtanga yoga. If improving your strength, endurance, flexibility and balance is your aim, you’ll love this type of yoga. This is another type of yoga that can be difficult for beginners, but with regular practice, it does get easier!
  • Yin yoga. This type of yoga is all about calming your mind and body.
  • Bikram yoga. Want to detox? This is the perfect yoga option for you, but be warned – things will get sweaty!
  • Restorative yoga. Passive stretching is the main focus of restorative yoga. Compared to some other types of yoga, you barely move at all and only go through a small number of poses but it helps your muscles to get some intense relaxation.
  • Chair yoga. Want to get the benefits of yoga but not overstretch yourself? Chair yoga is ideal for people who are less mobile as it’s less strenuous on the muscles.

We looked at Google search data to see how Brits’ interest in yoga has changed over time. Across the last five years, it’s clear that there is a peak in interest in January each year, perhaps suggesting that yoga is a popular New Year’s resolution. Then interest seems to trail off throughout the rest of the year. On average, there is a 73% increase in the level of interest between December and January each year, with 2018 seeing a massive 92% increase in search interest in January compared to December. In general, the trend shows that yoga has been increasing in popularity every year in the UK.

The interest in yoga in the UK seems to have hit its absolute peak during the 2020 coronavirus quarantine, when search interest went through the roof. In March 2020, we saw the highest interest in yoga in the past five years, a peak that lasted longer than any of the earlier ones. In July 2020, around the time most people’s summer vacations started, search interest dropped back to normal levels.

Month and year Search interest for "yoga"
Aug 2015 55
Aug 2015 56
Sep 2015 55
Sep 2015 52
Oct 2015 57
Oct 2015 54
Nov 2015 55
Nov 2015 57
Dec 2015 48
Dec 2015 52
Jan 2016 74
Jan 2016 68
Feb 2016 64
Feb 2016 62
Mar 2016 59
Apr 2016 65
Apr 2016 62
May 2016 61
May 2016 57
Jun 2016 59
Jun 2016 54
Jul 2016 57
Jul 2016 58
Aug 2016 58
Aug 2016 53
Sep 2016 64
Sep 2016 56
Oct 2016 60
Oct 2016 64
Nov 2016 58
Nov 2016 54
Dec 2016 51
Dec 2016 60
Jan 2017 75
Jan 2017 72
Feb 2017 78
Feb 2017 73
Mar 2017 69
Mar 2017 65
Apr 2017 64
Apr 2017 68
May 2017 63
May 2017 59
Jun 2017 54
Jun 2017 62
Jul 2017 62
Jul 2017 65
Aug 2017 61
Aug 2017 63
Sep 2017 67
Sep 2017 65
Oct 2017 66
Oct 2017 65
Nov 2017 58
Nov 2017 63
Dec 2017 54
Dec 2017 57
Jan 2018 79
Jan 2018 80
Feb 2018 66
Feb 2018 69
Mar 2018 74
Mar 2018 74
Apr 2018 71
Apr 2018 66
May 2018 59
May 2018 62
Jun 2018 65
Jun 2018 58
Jul 2018 57
Jul 2018 62
Aug 2018 67
Aug 2018 70
Sep 2018 71
Sep 2018 68
Oct 2018 66
Oct 2018 63
Nov 2018 60
Nov 2018 61
Dec 2018 55
Dec 2018 53
Jan 2019 90
Jan 2019 78
Feb 2019 76
Feb 2019 72
Mar 2019 69
Mar 2019 71
Apr 2019 61
Apr 2019 63
May 2019 60
May 2019 59
Jun 2019 62
Jun 2019 63
Jul 2019 62
Jul 2019 56
Aug 2019 65
Aug 2019 64
Sep 2019 66
Sep 2019 65
Sep 2019 63
Oct 2019 65
Oct 2019 59
Nov 2019 64
Nov 2019 64
Dec 2019 54
Dec 2019 53
Jan 2020 83
Jan 2020 75
Feb 2020 71
Feb 2020 71
Mar 2020 65
Mar 2020 69
Mar 2020 100
Apr 2020 93
Apr 2020 88
May 2020 76
May 2020 71
Jun 2020 67
Jun 2020 62
Jul 2020 59
Jul 2020 58
Aug 2020 62

The yoga industry

With yoga increasing in popularity, it’s no surprise that the yoga industry is booming in the UK. We collected the latest findings to see just how big the yoga industry is.

  • There are over 10,000 yoga teachers in the UK and their average salary is £27.54 per hour.
  • Between 20,000 and 30,000 yoga classes are taught in the UK each week.
  • This means that yoga teachers are taking 2 to 3 classes each per week.
  • The average yoga class size is 15 people. This means that 300,000 to 460,000 people are taking part in yoga classes each week.
  • The Pilates and yoga industries have had a revenue of over £926 million in 2020, up 6% from the year before (£875 million).
  • Over 16,400 people are currently employed in this industry in over 4,900 businesses.

Yoga online

There is no need to spend money on yoga if you have a decent-sized room to move around in. There are loads of free training videos available online. The most popular yoga channel on YouTube is run by Adriene Mishler from the US; she has over 8 million subscribers. She was recognised by Google as the most searched workout of 2015, she’s been mentioned in The Wall Street Journal, and she was awarded a Streamy in Health and Wellness in 2016.

The next biggest yoga channel is Boho Beautiful with 1.64 million followers, which is run by Juliana and Mark Spicoluk. The third biggest account is Sarah Beth’s channel, SarahBethYoga, which has no less than 1.01 million subscribers. As 300,000 to 460,000 people are taking part in yoga classes each week, it’s obvious that yoga is even bigger online and clearly it’s here to nama-stay.

Yoga channel Subscribers
Yoga With Adriene 8.06 million
Boho Beautiful 1.64 million
SarahBethYoga 1.01 million
KinoYoga 688,000
Fightmaster Yoga 595,000
PsycheTruth 496,000
BrettLarkinYoga 380,000
Ekhart Yoga 335,000
TaraStilesYoga 329,000
Yoga by Candace 292,000
Spirit Voyage 246,000
Yoga With Tim 147,000
Purple Valley Ashtanga Yoga 129,000
Body Positive Yoga 22,700
The Yoga Room 21,300
Faith Hunter 20,800
Samyak Yoga 14,400

A quick search on the Google Play Store reveals that there are over 250 different yoga apps available for download, ranging from free apps to more pricey options (up to £68.99 upfront) to subscription-based apps. One of the most popular Android yoga apps has been installed more than 5 million times.

Sources

  • Statista
  • Ibisworld
  • Core Strength Yoga
  • Indeed
  • YouTube
  • Finder

Click here for more research. For all media enquiries, please contact:

Matt Mckenna
UK communications manager
T: +44 20 8191 8806
matt.mckenna@finder.com@MichHutchison/in/matthewmckenna2

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