What This Tattoo Cost Calculator Does Differently
This calculator does not guess a price from a size or a style, because the only price that matters is the one your artist gives you, and it depends on their rate, their city and your design in ways no formula knows. This calculator starts from that real number and adds everything the quote leaves out, so the total you budget for is the total you pay.
The Lines a Quote Leaves Out
The Shop Minimum
Some shops set a minimum charge for any tattoo, however small. If your hourly rate times the hours comes to less than the minimum, the minimum is what you pay, and the calculator marks the line when that happens. Ask about it when you book a small piece.
More Than One Sitting
A large piece is usually split across several sessions, and an hourly rate applies to each one. Put in the hours per sitting and the number of sittings and the calculator multiplies it through, with the shop minimum applied to each sitting.
The Deposit
Artists often take a deposit to hold the appointment. Whether it comes off the final price or is kept as a booking fee varies from shop to shop, and it changes the total, so there is a box to say which. The result splits what you pay at booking from what you pay on the day.
The Tip
The calculator does not assume a tip. Pick the percentage you plan to give, including zero, and it is worked out on the price of the tattoo itself.
The Touch-Up and the Aftercare
Some artists include one touch-up after healing and some charge for it, so ask before you book. Aftercare is cheap if you buy the right thing: a plain fragrance-free soap and a plain lotion are all a healing tattoo needs, and our soap picks and lotion picks name the drugstore products that pass, so you can put a real number in that box.
Questions to Ask Before You Book
- Is the price hourly or fixed, and does it include the design work?
- Is there a shop minimum?
- How much is the deposit, is it refundable, and does it come off the final price?
- Is a touch-up included, and within how long?
- How many sittings do you expect, and how long is each one?
Settle the size first, because it drives the time. Our printable size guide lets you print the exact outline you are discussing, so you and your artist are pricing the same tattoo. For what happens once you are in the chair, our first tattoo walkthrough covers the appointment itself.
FAQ
How Is a Tattoo Priced?
Usually by the hour or as one quoted price for the piece, and often with a shop minimum underneath either. Your artist will tell you which, and the calculator handles both.
Does the Deposit Come Off the Price?
At many shops it does, but not all, so ask. Tick the box in the calculator if yours keeps the deposit as a separate booking fee, and it will add it to the total instead of taking it off.
How Much Should I Tip My Tattoo Artist?
That is your call, and the calculator does not assume one. Choose a percentage, including zero, and it shows what that adds on the price of the tattoo.
Why Does the Calculator Not Estimate the Price for Me?
Because any number it guessed would be less accurate than a two-minute message to the artist you want. Rates vary too much between artists and cities for a formula to be useful, and a confident wrong number is worse than none.
What Else Should I Budget For?
Aftercare products for the two to three weeks a tattoo usually takes to heal, a touch-up if your artist charges for it, and travel if the artist is not local. The calculator has boxes for the first two.