How Many Days Is 200 Hours of Yoga Teacher Training? (Days, Hours and Formats)

"How long will it take?" is one of the first questions people ask us. It makes sense. You need to book leave, flights and a visa.

The honest answer depends on the format you choose. This guide shows the real number of days for each format, and how 200 hours actually fit into a 22-day course.

Written by Mayuri Shewale, E-RYT 500 (Yoga Alliance) and founder of Swaastik Yog School in Rishikesh. I lead the asana, alignment and teaching-methodology modules of every 200-hour batch at our school in Tapovan. The dates, timetable and prices below are the ones we use today.

How many days is a 200-hour course at Swaastik Yog School?

Our 200-hour yoga teacher training in Rishikesh runs for 22 days. It starts on the 5th or the 15th of every month.

• A batch that starts on the 5th ends on the 26th of the same month.
• A batch that starts on the 15th ends three weeks later, in the first week of the next month (for example, 15 October to 5 November).
• You can move in the day before. Day 1 starts at 6:00 AM.
• Classes run six days a week. Sunday is your day off.

The course ends with a written exam, a practical teaching exam and a graduation ceremony. Then you receive your certificate.

How long does each 200-hour format take?

Yoga Alliance sets the number of hours, not the number of days. So schools package the same 200 hours in very different ways. Here is how the main formats compare.

Format	How many days	Hours a day	Best for
Residential intensive (our course)	22 days, 6 days a week	About 8 hours of scheduled classes	People who can take 3–4 weeks off and want full immersion
Residential intensive (typical range)	21–28 days	Varies by school. Fewer days means longer days.	Same as above. Longer courses usually have more rest days.
Live online (our course)	About 4 weeks, Monday to Saturday	About 6 hours of live Zoom sessions (IST)	People who cannot travel, or need to stay home
Part-time or weekend	Several months	A few hours each weekend	People with a full-time job who want to train locally
Two 100-hour halves	Two trips of 14 days each	Same daily rhythm as the full course	People who cannot take 22 days off in one go
Very short "2-week" courses	About 14 days	About 14 hours a day, every day	Hard to recommend. See the maths below.

Want to compare learning online and in person in more detail? Read our guide to online vs in-person yoga teacher training.

How do 200 hours fit into 22 days?

Let's do the maths with our real timetable. Here is one training day, session by session.

Time	Session	Hours
06:00 – 07:15 AM	Hatha yoga	1¼
07:15 – 09:00 AM	Pranayama and shatkarma (breathing and cleansing)	1¾
09:45 – 10:45 AM	Alignment and anatomy	1
10:45 AM – 12:00 PM	Ashtanga yoga	1¼
03:30 – 04:45 PM	Advanced yoga class	1¼
05:30 – 06:30 PM	Meditation	1
07:30 – 08:00 PM	Mantra chanting	½
Scheduled classes per training day		8 hours

Brunch (9:00 AM), dinner (8:00 PM) and the long midday break are not counted above.

Now the whole course. These are rounded figures, to show roughly how it adds up:

Step	Number
Days in the course	22
Sundays off	3, sometimes 4
Training days	About 18–19
Scheduled classes (about 8 hours × 18–19 days)	About 145–150 hours
Self-study, teaching practice and exams	The remaining 50 or so hours
Total	200 hours

Where do the last 50 or so hours come from? Our timetable has a daily block from 12:00 to 3:30 PM marked "Rest & Self-Study". That is when you read the course manual, learn the Sanskrit pose names, plan your practice classes and rehearse them with a classmate. Teaching practice and the final exam also count toward your hours.

In short: about 8 hours of live classes plus self-study and teaching practice, on 18–19 training days, adds up to 200 hours.

What does Yoga Alliance actually require?

Yoga Alliance is the main international registry for yoga teachers. Its rules for a 200-hour school (an "RYS 200") are about hours and content. Its published standards do not set a minimum number of days.

The 200 hours are split into four subject areas, each with a minimum:

Yoga Alliance category	Minimum hours	What it covers
Techniques, Training and Practice	75	Asana, pranayama, meditation, mantra and mudra
Anatomy and Physiology	30	Bones, muscles, body systems, safe movement
Yoga Humanities	30	History, philosophy and ethics
Professional Essentials	50	Teaching methodology, professional development and practicum (teaching practice)
These add up to 185 hours. Each school decides how to use the other 15 hours, within these subjects.

Two more rules matter for you:

• Who teaches. At least 150 of the 200 hours must be taught by lead trainers who hold the E-RYT 500 credential.
• Online is allowed. Registered schools can teach in person, fully online, or a mix. At least 30 hours of a 200-hour course must be live (teacher and students online at the same time).

After you graduate, you register yourself with Yoga Alliance. Our guide on what RYT-200 means walks you through that step and its fees.

Why 22 days, and not 14?

Some courses promise 200 hours in two weeks. Do the maths before you book.

200 hours in 14 days is about 14 hours a day, every day, with no day off. That leaves little time to sleep, eat, or let anything sink in.

In my experience, the body needs the rest. You practise asana three times a day on our course. Most students feel sore in week one. By week two, most bodies have started to adapt. That takes time, and you cannot rush it.

Learning to teach also takes time. You need to teach, get feedback, sleep on it, and teach again. Spread over 22 days, you get many short turns at the front of the room. By the final week, you can lead a full class.

That is why we chose 22 days with Sundays off. It is long enough to learn properly. It is short enough that most people can fit it into their annual leave.

What do the 22 days look like, week by week?

Here is how a typical batch unfolds. For the hour-by-hour version, read our day in the life of a 200-hour trainee.

When	What happens
Day 0	Move in, settle into your room, meet the group
Day 1	Classes start at 6:00 AM
Week 1	Settle into the daily rhythm. Learn the basic postures, alignment and breathwork.
Week 2	Deeper asana, anatomy and philosophy. More teaching practice, with feedback.
Week 3	Revision, then the written exam and a practical exam where you plan and lead a 30–60 minute class.
Final day	Graduation ceremony and your certificate

What happens on the days off?

Sunday is free. Most students sleep in, do laundry, catch up on reading, or walk to the Ganga.

Weekend excursions are included in the course fee. Trips include temples, waterfalls and the evening Ganga Aarti. The plan changes with the season and the group.

The midday break is free time too. From 12:00 to 3:30 PM nothing is scheduled. Many students nap first, then study.

Need ideas for your Sundays? See our list of things to do in Rishikesh.

How long is the online 200-hour course?

Our online yoga teacher training runs for about 4 weeks, with a new batch each month. Classes are live on Zoom, Monday to Saturday. Sunday is a rest day.

• Morning (IST): pranayama and meditation, asana, philosophy and anatomy, from 6:30 AM to 12:30 PM, with short breaks.
• Afternoon (IST): teaching methodology from 4:00 to 5:30 PM.
• Batch size: a maximum of 4 students.
• Missed a class? Sessions are recorded and you can rewatch them for 3 months after the course.

Check the time zone before you book. In winter, India is 5½ hours ahead of London, so a 6:30 AM class in India starts at 1:00 AM in London. In the British summer the gap is 4½ hours.

Can I split 200 hours into two shorter trips?

Yes. Our 100-hour yoga teacher training runs for 14 days, starting on the 2nd and 15th of every month. It covers the first half of the 200-hour curriculum, on the same daily rhythm.

You can come back later to complete the remaining 100 hours. Only then can you register as an RYT-200. A 100-hour certificate on its own is not enough for Yoga Alliance's 200-hour credential.

Tell us before you book that you plan to split the course. We will help you plan the second trip.

How many days should I plan for the whole trip?

The course is 22 days, but your trip is longer. Plan for travel, arrival and a little buffer.

Part of the trip	Days
Flight to India and travel to Rishikesh	1–2
Move in the day before Day 1	1
The course itself	22
Travel home	1–2
Total time away	About 25–27 days

Many students add a few extra days to rest or explore before flying home. You can extend your stay before or after the course for an extra fee, if a room is free.

Most foreign students need a visa. Read our guide to the India visa for yoga teacher training before you book flights. Choosing your month? Our guide to the best time to visit Rishikesh for yoga covers the weather in each season.

How much does each day cost?

The fee is all-inclusive. It covers the course, your certificate, your room, two sattvic vegetarian meals a day, mats and props, course materials, Wi-Fi, weekend excursions and all taxes. Divided across 22 days, it looks like this:

Room type	200-hour course fee	Cost per day
Dormitory (4 people)	$440	$20
Shared room (2 people)	$880	$40
Private room	$1,100	$50

Airport transfers, laundry and personal spending are extra. You hold your seat with a 10% deposit, and pay the rest when you arrive. Compare room types in our guide to dorm vs shared vs private rooms, or see how prices compare across Rishikesh in our 2026 price index.

Is 22 days enough to become a yoga teacher?

Yes. It is enough to teach a safe, well-planned beginner or general-level class. That is what a 200-hour course is designed to do.

It is a foundation, not the end. Most good teachers keep learning for years. Many come back later for a 300-hour course, which also runs for 22 days here and leads to RYT-500.

New to yoga? You do not need to be advanced. Read yoga teacher training for beginners first. Then check the open batch dates on the 200-hour course page.

Frequently asked questions

How many days is 200 hours of yoga teacher training?

A residential course usually takes 21 to 28 days. Ours takes 22 days, with classes six days a week and Sundays off. Online courses take about 4 weeks. Part-time weekend courses take several months.

How many hours a day is a 200-hour yoga teacher training?

On our course, about 8 hours of scheduled classes a day: three asana classes, pranayama and shatkarma, anatomy, meditation and mantra chanting. There is also a daily self-study block from 12:00 to 3:30 PM.

Can you do a 200-hour yoga teacher training in 2 weeks?

Some schools offer it, but 200 hours in 14 days means about 14 hours of training a day with no day off. We think that is too much to learn well. Our course takes 22 days with Sundays off.

Does Yoga Alliance set a minimum number of days?

Its published standards for 200-hour schools set hours and subjects, not days. The course must cover at least 75 hours of techniques and practice, 30 of anatomy, 30 of yoga humanities and 50 of professional essentials.

When do your 200-hour courses start?

On the 5th and 15th of every month. You can move in the day before, and Day 1 starts at 6:00 AM. See open dates on the 200-hour yoga teacher training page.

Do I get days off during the course?

Yes. Sunday is free every week, and weekend excursions are included in the fee. There is also a 3½-hour break in the middle of every training day.

How long is the online 200-hour yoga teacher training?

About 4 weeks, with live Zoom classes Monday to Saturday in Indian time. Batches have a maximum of 4 students. Recordings stay available for 3 months after the course.

Can I split the 200 hours into two trips?

Yes. Take our 14-day 100-hour course first, then come back to complete the remaining 100 hours. You can register as an RYT-200 once you have finished all 200 hours.

Ready to pick your dates? Book your place with a 10% deposit, or ask us anything on our FAQ page.