One of the first things people notice when they look for a yoga teacher training in India is how much the fees vary. Two courses with the same number of hours, in the same town, can differ in price several times over. Some of that difference is real and some is marketing. This article explains what you are actually paying for, so you can compare courses on something more useful than the headline number.
What a residential fee should include
Almost every teacher training in India is residential, and the fee is usually all-inclusive. Before you compare prices, check that each course includes the same things:
- Tuition for the full syllabus, including all practice sessions, lectures and practicum.
- Accommodation for the whole course. Ask whether rooms are shared or single and whether bathrooms are attached.
- Meals, usually sattvic vegetarian food, and how many are served each day.
- Course materials: manuals, texts and anything you are expected to buy.
- Certification: the certificate itself, and whether the school is registered with Yoga Alliance so that you can register afterwards.
- Transfers: whether pick-up from the airport or railway station is included.
Things that are usually not included: flights, visas, travel insurance, your own Yoga Alliance registration fee after the course, and personal spending on days off.
What drives the price
Group size and faculty
The largest real cost in a training is experienced teachers' time. A course with a small group and senior teachers leading most sessions costs more to run than one where forty students are taught largely by recent graduates. Ask how many students are in a batch and who teaches each part of the syllabus.
Room type
Most schools price by room. A single room typically costs noticeably more than a shared one for the same tuition, so compare like with like.
Location
Rishikesh has the widest range of prices simply because it has the most schools. Courses in quieter places such as Uttarkashi tend to have fewer students and more remote facilities, which affects both the price and the experience.
Where you come from
Many Indian schools, including ours, charge Indian students less than international students. This is normal and usually reflects local incomes rather than a different course.
An example: our own fees
To make this concrete, here is what we charge for our 200 Hour YTTC in Uttarkashi, a 26-day residential course with a maximum of 20 students. For Indian students the fee is ₹76,000 in a double-sharing room or ₹96,000 in a single room, after a 20% scholarship that is applied to every booking. International students pay 10% more, and the course page shows the fee in US dollars and euros. The fee covers tuition, study materials, accommodation with attached bathrooms, sattvic meals and pick-up and drop from Dehradun airport.
The 500 Hour Advanced YTTC is longer and priced accordingly; its full fee table is on the course page.
Why the cheapest course often costs more
A very low fee is not always a bargain. The ways schools cut costs are predictable: larger groups, fewer hours with experienced teachers, more of the syllabus delivered as self-study, and basic rooms. You may also be asked to pay extra for things you assumed were included, from manuals to the certificate itself.
The real cost of a training is a month of your life and the cost of getting to India. Spending a little more on a course where you are actually taught is usually the better investment.
Questions to ask before you pay a deposit
- Exactly what is included in the fee, and what costs extra?
- How many students are in the batch, and who teaches each subject?
- Is the school a Registered Yoga School with Yoga Alliance, and at which level?
- What is the refund and cancellation policy if you cannot travel?
- Can you see the full syllabus and a sample daily schedule?
A good school will answer all of these clearly and in writing. For more on choosing a course, read How to Choose a 200 Hour Yoga TTC, or ask us directly.
