Yoga was practiced by 16.9% of U.S. adults age 18 and older during the 12 months before the 2022 survey. Participation varied by sex, age, race and ethnicity, and family income, while most practitioners said they used yoga to restore overall health. These figures come from the CDC/NCHS Data Brief 501 (2024), which reports 2022 measurements.
Contents
- U.S. yoga participation in 2022
- Participation by sex and age
- Participation by race and ethnicity
- Participation by family income
- Why practitioners use yoga
- Yoga and meditation
- Yoga for pain management
U.S. yoga participation in 2022
The CDC/NCHS measured whether adults had practiced yoga during the previous 12 months. Across U.S. adults age 18 and older, 16.9% reported practicing yoga in 2022. This is a participation rate for the survey period, not a count of unique classes, sessions, memberships, or people practicing on a particular day.
The same source also describes what practitioners were trying to accomplish. Among adults who practiced yoga, 80.0% practiced it to restore overall health. In addition, 57.4% practiced meditation as part of yoga, and 28.8% practiced yoga to treat or manage pain. These measures describe overlapping purposes: a practitioner could be included in more than one category.
The results therefore show both reach and intent. Yoga was a notable activity among adults in the 2022 measurement, and the most common reported purpose was broad health restoration. Meditation was also common, while pain management represented a smaller but substantial share of practitioners.
Participation by sex and age
Women reported a higher yoga participation rate than men in 2022. The rate was 23.3% for women and 10.3% for men, according to the CDC/NCHS Data Brief 501 (2024). The figures describe adults who practiced yoga in the prior 12 months and should not be read as measures of frequency or intensity.
Participation also differed across age groups:
| Adult group | Yoga participation rate, 2022 |
|---|---|
| Ages 18–44 | 21.3% |
| Ages 45–64 | 14.1% |
| Age 65 and older | 8.0% |
Adults ages 18–44 had the highest reported rate among the listed age groups, at 21.3%. The rate was 14.1% for adults ages 45–64 and 8.0% for adults age 65 and older. All three figures are from the CDC/NCHS Data Brief 501 (2024) and refer to 2022.
The purpose data by age add context. Among practitioners ages 18–44, 78.4% practiced yoga to restore overall health. The comparable share was 83.3% among practitioners ages 45–64 and 79.1% among practitioners age 65 and older. Thus, the share citing overall health was high in each age group, even though the underlying participation rate was different.
Meditation as part of yoga was reported by 62.0% of practitioners ages 18–44, 53.9% of practitioners ages 45–64, and 49.1% of practitioners age 65 and older. For pain management, the corresponding figures were 27.9%, 31.5%, and 27.2%. These are percentages within each practitioner group, rather than percentages of all adults in the age category.
Participation by race and ethnicity
The 2022 yoga participation rates varied across the race and ethnicity categories reported by the CDC/NCHS. Asian non-Hispanic adults had a rate of 22.5%, while White non-Hispanic adults had a rate of 19.3%. The rate was 15.7% among other and multiple races non-Hispanic adults, 12.6% among Black non-Hispanic adults, and 10.5% among Hispanic adults.
| Race or ethnicity group | Yoga participation rate, 2022 |
|---|---|
| Asian, non-Hispanic | 22.5% |
| White, non-Hispanic | 19.3% |
| Other and multiple races, non-Hispanic | 15.7% |
| Black, non-Hispanic | 12.6% |
| Hispanic | 10.5% |
Among people who practiced yoga, the share who practiced to restore overall health was 75.6% for Asian non-Hispanic practitioners, 81.7% for White non-Hispanic practitioners, 79.5% for other and multiple races non-Hispanic practitioners, 76.7% for Black non-Hispanic practitioners, and 75.1% for Hispanic practitioners.
Meditation participation also differed among the practitioner groups. It was reported by 56.7% of Asian non-Hispanic practitioners, 54.0% of White non-Hispanic practitioners, 70.8% of other and multiple races non-Hispanic practitioners, 70.7% of Black non-Hispanic practitioners, and 66.8% of Hispanic practitioners.
For pain management, the supplied CDC/NCHS figures report 21.1% among Asian non-Hispanic practitioners and 30.0% among White non-Hispanic practitioners. The available pain-management figures in this set do not provide corresponding percentages for every listed race and ethnicity category, so no broader comparison is made here.
Participation by family income
Family income was associated with different yoga participation rates in 2022. Adults with family income below 200% of the federal poverty level had a participation rate of 10.4%. The rate was 14.0% among adults with family income from 200% to less than 400% of the federal poverty level, and 23.0% among adults with family income at 400% of the federal poverty level or more.
| Family income group | Yoga participation rate, 2022 |
|---|---|
| Below 200% of the federal poverty level | 10.4% |
| 200% to less than 400% | 14.0% |
| 400% or more | 23.0% |
The purpose of yoga was broadly similar across these practitioner income groups. Practicing to restore overall health was reported by 80.2% of practitioners below 200% of the federal poverty level, 78.9% of practitioners from 200% to less than 400%, and 80.5% of practitioners at 400% or more.
Meditation as part of yoga was reported by 65.3% of practitioners below 200% of the federal poverty level. The share was 56.7% in the 200% to less than 400% group and 55.7% in the group at 400% or more. These measurements concern people who already reported practicing yoga; they do not estimate meditation among all adults in each income group.
Why practitioners use yoga
Restoring overall health was the leading reported purpose in the 2022 results. Across all yoga practitioners, 80.0% selected this purpose. The share was 79.6% among men and 80.2% among women. By age, it was 78.4% for practitioners ages 18–44, 83.3% for practitioners ages 45–64, and 79.1% for practitioners age 65 and older.
Across race and ethnicity groups, the overall-health measure remained between 75.1% and 81.7% in the reported figures. The highest listed share was 81.7% among White non-Hispanic practitioners. The other reported shares were 80.5% among practitioners with family income at 400% of the federal poverty level or more, 80.2% among practitioners below 200%, 80.2% among women, 80.0% overall, 79.6% among men, 79.5% among other and multiple races non-Hispanic practitioners, 79.1% among practitioners age 65 and older, 78.9% among practitioners from 200% to less than 400%, 78.4% among practitioners ages 18–44, 76.7% among Black non-Hispanic practitioners, 75.6% among Asian non-Hispanic practitioners, and 75.1% among Hispanic practitioners.
These results indicate that health restoration was a common motivation across each demographic breakdown supplied by the CDC/NCHS. They do not establish why individuals began practicing yoga, whether yoga caused a health change, or how often practitioners used yoga.
Yoga and meditation
More than half of U.S. yoga practitioners reported practicing meditation as part of yoga in 2022: 57.4% overall. The share was 59.3% among women and 52.9% among men.
Age differences were also reported. Meditation was part of yoga for 62.0% of practitioners ages 18–44, 53.9% of practitioners ages 45–64, and 49.1% of practitioners age 65 and older. Within the race and ethnicity categories, the figures were 70.8% for other and multiple races non-Hispanic practitioners, 70.7% for Black non-Hispanic practitioners, 66.8% for Hispanic practitioners, 56.7% for Asian non-Hispanic practitioners, and 54.0% for White non-Hispanic practitioners.
Income-group results were 65.3% for practitioners below 200% of the federal poverty level, 56.7% for practitioners from 200% to less than 400%, and 55.7% for practitioners at 400% or more. Because these categories overlap conceptually with yoga practice rather than representing separate activities for every person, the figures should be interpreted as reported components of yoga practice.
Yoga for pain management
Pain management was a reported purpose for 28.8% of adult yoga practitioners in 2022. The share was 31.8% among men and 27.5% among women. By age, 27.9% of practitioners ages 18–44 used yoga to treat or manage pain, compared with 31.5% of practitioners ages 45–64 and 27.2% of practitioners age 65 and older.
The CDC/NCHS figures also report differences for two race and ethnicity groups: 21.1% of Asian non-Hispanic practitioners and 30.0% of White non-Hispanic practitioners practiced yoga to treat or manage pain. These percentages are descriptive survey results for 2022. They do not show whether yoga relieved pain, identify a medical diagnosis, or measure clinical effectiveness.
Taken together, the 2022 statistics describe yoga as an activity practiced for several overlapping reasons. Participation was highest among the reported younger age group, women, Asian non-Hispanic adults, and adults in the highest family-income category. Among those who practiced, overall health restoration was common, meditation was part of yoga for more than half, and pain management was reported by more than one-quarter.