How Much Do Tattoo Artists Make in 2022?

We have created a table that displays the average tattoo artist salary for each country. The base income for a tattoo artist in the United States is $34,078 USD. In the United Kingdom it's £21,557 GBP. Read more to see how the rest of the world compares. These are base salaries and do not account for bonuses. Unlike other statistics, this data also includes tattoo artists who are less busy and not fully booked as those artists are more rare and the inflated numbers are not totally accurate.

 

So you’re starting a career as a professional and licensed tattoo artist and looking for related information. Well, you are on the right path because in-depth research is critical to your career success regardless of the field of expertise. While becoming a licensed tattoo designer might not be difficult, finding clients and making profits will be quite a challenge, at least in the beginning. Once you get going, the going gets easier. So, how much do you think you can earn as a professional tattoo designer? In this post, we wanted to share the average income for tattoo artists and the factors that impact their earnings the most. Let’s get started!

 

How much do tattoo artists make in different countries?

Keep in mind that these numbers are base incomes and do not count for out of hours tattoo work or extra online work that is carried out.

 

Country	Average Base Annual Income
Argentina	$504,498 (ARS)
Australia	$50,006 (AUD)
Austria	€30,197
Bahamas	$22,768 (BSD)
Belarus	7,618 Br (BYN)
Belgium	€29,924
Bermuda	$31,601 (BMD)
Bosnia	8,152 KM (BAM)
Brazil	R$36,052
Bulgaria	11,624 лв. (BGN)
Canada	$39,407 (CAD)
Chile	$7,802 (CLP)
China	¥72,375 (CNY)
Colombia	$15,667 (COP)
Costa Rica	₡5,901,658 (CRC)
Croatia	56,243 kn (HRK)
Czech Republic	308,473 Kč (CZK)
Denmark	272,873 kr. (DKK)
Ecuador	$11,749 (USD)
Egypt	63,349 ج.م.‏ (EGP)
Estonia	10,139 € (EUR)
Finland	29,553 € (EUR)
France	22,825 € (EUR)
Georgia	10,729 ₾ (GEL)
Germany	30,413 € (EUR)
Greece	15,373 € (EUR)
Guatemala	Q78,463 (GTQ)
Hong Kong SAR	HK$210,660 (HKD)
Hungary	2,782,471 Ft (HUF)
Iceland	4,239,249 ISK
India	₹2,45,699 (INR)
Indonesia	Rp116,993,866 (IDR)
Iraq	10,312,530 د.ع.‏ (IQD)
Ireland	€29,172 (EUR)
Israel	₪ 69,608 (ILS)
Italy	20,681 € (EUR)
Jamaica	$1,177,217 (JMD)
Japan	¥3,045,508 (JPY)
Kazakhstan	2,124,931 ₸ (KZT)
Luxembourg	34,415 € (EUR)
Malaysia	RM40,657 (MYR)
Malta	€14,424 (EUR)
Mexico	$122,616 (MXN)
Morocco	62,143 د.م.‏ (MAD)
Netherlands	€ 28,472 (EUR)
New Zealand	$41,655 (NZD)
Norway	kr 300,576 (NOK)
Pakistan	Rs 505,634 (PKR)
Panama	B/.12,457 (PAB)
Peru	S/19,389 (PEN)
Philippines	₱198,714 (PHP)
Poland	47,406 zł (PLN)
Portugal	14,975 € (EUR)
Romania	34,176 RON (RON)
Russian Federation	411,093 ₽ (RUB)
Saudi Arabia	61,528 ر.س.‏ (SAR)
Singapore	$34,527 (SGD)
Slovakia	11,972 € (EUR)
South Africa	R129,453 (ZAR)
South Korea	₩21,835,871 (KRW)
Spain	18,604 € (EUR)
Sweden	284,457 KR (SEK)
Switzerland	CHF 43'948
Taiwan	NT$551,579 (TWD)
Thailand	฿251,943 (THB)
Trinidad & Tobago	$55,038 (TTD)
Turkey	51,011 ₺ (TRY)
Ukraine	116,144 ₴ (UAH)
United Arab Emirates	89,432 د.إ.‏ (AED)
United Kingdom	£21,557 (GBP)
United States	$34,078 (USD)
Uruguay	$324,697 (UYU)
Vietnam	66,787,369 ₫ (VND)

(Source: salaryexpert)

 

Which factors impact tattoo artist earnings?

There are several factors that affect a tattooist’s earnings. Here are the ones that are most important for you to know:

 

• Location

As discussed earlier, the country you practice tattoo designing will have a massive impact on your earnings. We have already shared a list of countries and the average annual earnings of tattoo artists. It's common for tattooists to move around the world and do guest spots at different studios. This allows some artists to earn way more than in their home country.  However, visa restrictions make this impossible to do long term. Even within the same coutnry, average salaries for tattoo artists can vary a lot. For example, in New York City tattooists make well over $80,000 USD a year. This is way higher than the national average.

 

• Experience

The next factor is obviously the amount of work you’ve done and the quality of your portfolio. The more experience you gain, the easier it will become to charge more for the services rendered. As you gain traction with a customer base you can start to increase your prices. You can gain more experience by signing up as an artist on Freehand and drawing peoples custom tattoo ideas. This allows you to practice new styles whilst simultaneously earning extra cash. Amazing, right?

 

• Education

Although this is not a requirement for becoming a tattoo designer, customers might want to know whether or not you have some kind of art background. This is more relevant for rookies who are just starting out with tattooing. You may need to prove yourself with drawing on paper or inking on fake skin.

 

• Service type

The amount you charge will also depend on how you run your business. Are you a tattoo artist that works on their own? Do you work as a subcontractor? To put it simply, you will have to charge the customers an amount that helps you manage the expenses and bring home profits. You can even consider owning your own tattoo studio and renting out the chairs to freelance tattoo artists. This business model is similar to barber shops and salons and can create a nice income. 

 

Why should tattoo designers use Freehand?

Every tattoo artist or tattoo designer needs either money or exposure. Our website is quite helpful for them since it provides an online platform for both budding and expert tattoo artists. You can quickly upload your portfolio on Freehand and allow potential customers to hire you through the platform for custom tattoo ideas. This is as easy as it can get. So, what are you waiting for? Create your Freehand account today!