Tattoo Cost Calculator
Budget studio time from hours and a shop hourly midpoint — not an artist quote. Click any i for detail.
Studio time
Hours
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Hours
Session time on the skin. Consults and healing check-ins are usually extra or included by shop policy. |
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|---|---|
Shop rate
i
Shop rate
Walk-in / shop minimum vs a dedicated custom artist vs a guest-spot premium. |
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Your state
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Your state
Scales midpoints for typical state-level labor and material costs versus the U.S. average. Not a local contractor bid. |
How to use this calculator
- Estimate hours (small flash is often 1–2; a sleeve is many sessions).
- Pick a shop rate band.
- Toggle color and tip.
- State scaling is a coarse cost-of-living stand-in.
Results explained
Hours × hourly rate, plus optional color percent and tip percent, then × state multiplier. Design drawings and aftercare products are separate.
Quick reference: tattoo midpoints
U.S. studio hourly planning rates.
| Item | Detail |
|---|---|
| Shop / walk-in (default) | $150/hour |
| Custom artist | $180/hour |
| Guest / high-demand | $220/hour |
| Color / large fill | +15% |
| Tip (default on) | 20% |
| Typical shop minimum | $80–$150 even if the piece is tiny |
Cover-ups and color-realism usually run longer than line-work of the same size.
How the estimate is built
Total ≈ hours × $/hr × (1 + color%) × (1 + tip%) × state multiplier.
Example scenario
3 hours at $150 with a 20% tip is about $540 at U.S. average before state scaling.
FAQ
Is there a minimum?
Most shops charge a minimum even for tiny flash — if hours × rate is below that floor, expect the floor.
Multiple sessions?
Add the hours (or raise quantity of hour-blocks) across sittings.
Medical tattoo / micropigmentation?
Different practitioners and fees — not this page.