Yoga and mindfulness-based stress reduction (MBSR) are frequently used in the treatment of pain conditions. MBSR brings together yoga and mindfulness meditation. Aim: The aim of these systematic reviews was to assess and meta-analyse the efficacy of yoga and of MBSR for low back pain. Methods: MEDLINE, the Cochrane Library, EMBASE, CAMbase and PsycInfo were screened through January 2012. Randomised controlled trials (RCTs) comparing yoga or MBSR to control conditions in patients with low back pain were included. Main outcome measures were pain, back-specific disability, generic disability, health-related quality of life and global improvement. Safety was defined as a secondary outcome measure. For each outcome, standardised mean differences (SMDs) or risk ratios (RRs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were calculated, if at least two studies assessing this outcome were available. Results: Ten RCTs on yoga with a total of 967 patients were included. There was strong evidence for shortterm effects on pain (SMD = -0.48, 95% CI-0.65 to-0.31, P < 0.01), back-specific disability (SMD = -0.59, 95% CI-0.87 to-0.30, P < 0.01) and global improvement (RR = 3.27, 95% CI 1.89-5.66, P < 0.01). There was strong evidence for a long-term effect on pain (SMD = -0.33, 95% CI-0.59 to-0.07, P = 0.01) and moderate evidence for a long-term effect on back-specific disability (SMD = -0.35, 95% CI-0.55 to-0.15, P < 0.01). Yoga was not associated with serious adverse events. Three RCTs on MBSR with a total of 117 patients were included. There was limited evidence for a short-term effect on pain (SMD = -0.53, 95% CI-0.94 to-0.12, P = 0.01). One RCT included a longerterm follow-up. No group differences occurred at this time point. No serious adverse events due to MBSR were reported. Discussion: This systematic review found strong evidence for the effectiveness of yoga and limited evidence for the effectiveness of MBSR for chronic low back pain. While more research is needed before the value of MBSR for low back pain can be conclusively judged, yoga can be recommended as an additional therapy to chronic low back pain patients.