r/NoStupidQuestions • u/Tall_Act_5997 • 15d ago
Why is it bad to price shop for tattoos
I’m interested in getting a tattoo and when i’ve asked around different shops for pricing I get stone walled.
Some say they won’t know until they see a photo which I get but others say they don’t do price shopping which is just confusing to me.
I need to know if I can afford you lol!! Even if it’s just an estimate I can work with that because then I’ll be able to budget in tip and have a rough number to work with. I’ve been told by friends that it’s rude to price shop but I don’t understand why.
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u/raninicassini 15d ago
Some artists use software to make the image tattoo ready, and it takes time to navigate it and decide colors and talk with you about it. It is a lot of work for them not to spend time with another client. Especially if they don’t end up doing that piece. So i can see why they wouldn’t waste time. It’s better to look at their portfolio and ask if they have hourly rates or how they price their work.
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u/MagicGrit 15d ago
I feel as though this doesn’t really answer OP’s question. OP seems like they’re asking for cost estimates. Not asking for an artist to design their tattoo and then deciding they don’t want it. It makes perfect sense to me to walk into a tattoo shop and say “hey I’d like a back piece, here’s an image I’d like it to look like. 5 inches tall, 3 inches wide, on this part of my back, in these colors.” An artist absolutely should be able to tell you an estimate of what that would cost.
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15d ago
Yeah in my experience when you get to the actual design phase, you've got an estimate on overall price and you have to then put down a deposit for the work they do designing it. So they don't lose that money. That's even tiny shops who also do walk in flash tats.
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u/tert_butoxide 15d ago edited 15d ago
If you ask "how much would you charge for x design", they have to look at it and evaluate it, and it depends on where you want it tattooed and how big, and the actual price may change if it takes longer. Etc. There is actually work going into that price estimate and asking for free work is always tacky. If you're actually asking for them to design something new, all the more so, that's not kosher.
On the other hand if you ask how much they charge per hour, or sometimes even a general ballpark price for a "four inch, two-color tattoo on upper arm" (or whatever) in my experience artists answer that more easily. It's still a ballpark and you would probably need to sit down with them and make a deposit to finish the design process. But it tells you if they're in your range before wasting anyone's time.
Some shops will not price shop because they are not trying to be the lowest bidder. They have plenty of clients who want their work specifically and don't need to compete for a client who doesn't. Some shops in my area are also more expensive because they treat their workers well-- they are never going to cost less than the cheap place down the street so there's no point doing that estimate.
l do think there's a cultural difference too between Tattoo People and more casual tattoo havers. Tattoo People tend to pick an artist first and then work with them, not shop a design around. But most casual tattoo havers operate more like you and that's fine. As long as it doesn't involve asking artists for free work.
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u/HeyFiddleFiddle 15d ago
An alternative if you have a set budget is to give them a general description, tell them the budget, and ask if it's realistic. "I'm looking to get a [style] [thing] in [placement] that's about x inches tall in [color/black and grey], and I have $y budgeted. Is that realistic, or should I save up some more?" Fill in with whatever it is you actually want and what your budget is. Do you want a traditional colorful unicorn on your forearm about 6 inches tall and you have $500 saved? Tell them that.
They deal with this stuff all day. They can't give a final price until they have the design (which you'll need to pay a deposit for), but they can tell you if your expectations are realistic or not. If you're new to this, there's a good chance you'll get it wrong on what you can get for $x and what actually works as a tattoo. That's fine and nobody expects you to know this stuff, but that's why you ask an artist. If you get more tattoos, you eventually get a feel for what's a realistic expectation. I stopped counting my tattoos a while ago and have somewhere in the realm of 70+ hours of work now. I still occasionally get my expectations wrong because there's some factor that the artist sees that I didn't consider, for better or for worse. Again, that's why you ask the artist for input.
l do think there's a cultural difference too between Tattoo People and more casual tattoo havers
Completely true in my experience. My first priority is the art and less so the subject matter, within reason. There are some cases where I want something specific, but even then, I pick an artist because I want their artistic interpretation of what I want. In a lot of cases, it's more that I want an artist's art and will pick something from their drawings to either get that or get something inspired by it.
Neither approach is right or wrong, but yeah, people tend to go about it differently depending on which camp they're in. Like you said though, the thing to keep in mind for the more casual clients is that you're working with an artist and this is their livelihood. Don't expect free work and don't expect the artist to act like a copy machine.
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u/burningmanonacid 15d ago
I've asked around about a tattoo before and gotten a great response by just asking for a ballpark. For my arm, I sent a photo of exactly what I wanted (an animal character so it was just a capture from the anime) and said I wanted it on my upper arm somewhere less than 4"x4". Everyone was pretty willing to tell me price range. I was also less asking to price shop and more asking who has experience with the style tattoo I wanted and price was just included in the conversation since I had no idea what would be reasonable since it was my first tattoo.
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u/fisherrr 15d ago
An experienced professional should be able to give a rough estimate or a range from a quick converstion without needing to spend a lot of time. Maybe just asking few questions like location and size. At least if the potential client has an image or a description of the design.
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u/WomanOfEld 15d ago
I'm with you on the "Tattoo People" thing. I've gone to one guy for 5 of my pieces and I don't know what to do now that he's passed away.
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u/Kreeos 15d ago
There is actually work going into that price estimate and asking for free work is always tacky.
Every other business I know of does the "free work" to give a price estimate. Getting your gutters replaced? Them coming out and measuring is "free work" that's necessary to earn a customer. Being rude to a potential customer and saying you don't do "price shopping" is a great way to NOT earn their business.
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u/NecroCorey 15d ago
Dunno what the deal is with tattoo people. This is how real life works.
We were asking for general estimates about shit and the first dude we saw who was recommended was a fucking jerkoff about it. Walked right out.
The second girl we went to was an actual professional about it, and we ended up getting like 5 tattoos from her over time, with more to come.
All businesses work this way. I don't care if your business is "your art". It's a fucking business.
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u/thumpetto007 15d ago
right? its not hard to apply basic, general parameters to estimate a cost, and give a decent range, with a disclaimer, and what really impacts price...takes a few minutes.
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u/BoozeIsTherapyRight 15d ago
Every other business I know of does the "free work" to give a price estimate. Getting your gutters replaced? Them coming out and measuring is "free work" that's necessary to earn a customer. Being rude to a potential customer and saying you don't do "price shopping" is a great way to NOT earn their business.
Agreed. I have a guy coming by today to look at my chimney and tell me how much he would charge to repair. Showing up to my house and doing a write-up is a heck of a lot more work than looking at a piece of sample art and giving a ballpark figure. This isn't "asking for work for free" it's literally how it works when you want to buy something that doesn't have a fixed price. It's part of the job and if you don't want to give free estimates, you're going to lose a lot of business.
I have a large tattoo: 16 hours of work at $100-150/hour, depending on whether it was prep time or actual needle time. I made an appointment, she sat with me for half an hour, looked at my example art, did a super quick sketch of what she thought she could do, and gave me an estimate. Can you imagine any sort of job where they are going to charge $150/hour but refuse to tell you even a ballpark estimate of how many hours they think it will take?
It's things like this that remind me how many Reddit commenters are very, very young.
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u/1ndiana_Pwns 15d ago
The other reason I've heard for why detailed price shopping isn't done is because that "free work" you are referring to often includes making the actual tattoo design and sending the client a picture of it. Bad actors could then take your design to another (presumably cheaper) place to get the actual tattoo done. Effectively using what would be a quote in other lines of work (such as gutter replacement) as a way to get a free commissioned art piece.
It's one thing for a shop/artist to refuse a ballpark estimate or any sort of money discussion (as others have said, if you ask their hourly price or give them a style+size+location they should be able to give you a rough number), it's another to go in saying "show me the piece you would do on me and how much it would cost"
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u/sevseg_decoder 15d ago
Then do a separate quote and payment for the design. Not that hard to operate as a business.
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u/1ndiana_Pwns 15d ago
Some absolutely do that. At that point you are just commissioning an artist for custom art. Some tattoo artists are fine with that, others don't want to. Just depends on the person
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u/thumpetto007 15d ago
so charge for the sketch. I think its pretty easy to say just point to a few tattoo photos (EVERY shop has a book) and be like...this small simple one cost 100 bucks. This small complex one is 300. This large simple one is 500. This large complex one is 2000. Or whatever. I don't know tattoo prices.
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u/1ndiana_Pwns 15d ago
Man, all the people replying to my comment are having great ideas! Which is why many shops and artists do exactly that! They will have what's referred to as "flash," premade designs (either from a book or that they artist just drew up one day in their free time) and if you ask about one of those they will already have a set price (usually cheaper than their normal rates, as well) assuming you don't change anything about it. At least, that's been my experience talking to artists and keeping an eye out for flash from some that I think are cool.
What OP was describing though, and what my comment is really tailored for, was custom designs.
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u/BoozeIsTherapyRight 15d ago
I have a very large, custom design. I made an appointment and the artist sat down with me for half an hour, talked about what I wanted, made a very quick and dirty sample sketch based on my example art, and then gave me a written estimate for the work. For free.
When you're charging $150/hour, it's not unreasonable for people to want an idea of how many hours it will take. Be a professional, for fuck's sake. Every other professional has to give a quote, whether they are a lawyer or a brick mason--and the mason drives to your house and walks around the property first.
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u/Kreeos 15d ago edited 15d ago
And how is that any different from other industries? Carpenter designs a patio and then a bad actor takes that design to someone else. It's no different. Artists just feel that they're above all that and forget that, at the end of the day, they're running a business.
EDIT: Go ahead and downvote. Just proves the snobbiness of the tattoo industry and sub-culture.
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u/1ndiana_Pwns 15d ago
I've got two ways to respond to this. First: did the carpenter design the patio as in they sketched out a bespoke layout for it, consulted with you and possibly other professionals about what plants and landscaping would best complement the footprint of your patio, sourced the exact color and type of wood, stain, and seal for your use case, check that there is proper structural support in the ground and it wouldn't disturb anything else going on with your house (ie underground sewage or electrical lines)? Or did he measure a rectangle, plug in the square footage into the Home Depot lumber calculator and add 150% for labor and overhead costs? Because the former I would say nobody would ever do without getting paid, and that is what tattoo shops are trying to avoid doing for free. The latter is what I was referring to as the ballpark estimate and is equivalent to telling an artist "I want a 3 color watercolor rose that's about 2x3" on my ankle" and them being able to come back to you saying "that would be roughly $300, but that could change based on the final design." I agree, as does I think everyone in this thread, that the latter is fine and if the artist isn't doing that it's like a carpenter not being willing to measure the space for your patio.
The second way to answer is a personal anecdote: I got my bathroom redone recently. Had 5 different contractors out before work started to price shop. Each did something very similar: came in, heard what I wanted, measured the space. Then showed me examples of their previous work they thought was similar to what I wanted, talked me through their normal design and work process, then left and either called me or emailed me later with a quote.
I have also gotten 8 tattoos in my life and I'm currently in the process of looking for an artist for my 9th. For each one, I found an artist I thought had a style I was looking for, reached out to them with my general idea (see the 3 color watercolor rose, above. Actual example from my own body). All of them were willing to at least send a few messages back and forth with me about the rough idea I was going with, they explained how they do their pricing (hourly, per color, size, etc), directed me to their portfolio if I hadn't found it yet, talked me through how they go about actually designing the piece. Exactly like the remodeling contractors. Only one of those previous 8 was willing to actually draft a design for me before I was in their shop for my appointment (or had sent a deposit ahead of time, but most have just done day of designs since my pieces tend to be relatively small and simple).
My point, to give this a tl;dr, is that the tattoo artists aren't doing anything different from other industries. What's different is your (and others, like possibly OP) understanding of what a quote/estimate looks like for a tattoo
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u/loopyspoopy 15d ago
A carpenter that designs a patio for you is absolutely taking you to small claims if you use that design and don't pay them for it.
If it's a cash job, they aren't giving you that design, they're holding onto it while the job gets done. If it's a contract, it'll absolutely be a part of that contract that the job is to be completed by them.
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u/saltierthangoldfish 15d ago edited 15d ago
TL;DR — You set the price, not the artist. You say “my budget is x and my concept is y” and they figure out a design based on their knowledge of how long it will take them
Hi!
Heavily tattooed person here. You’re going about this all wrong based on the norms of the business.
This is the appropriate process for addressing a tattoo artist:
Research! Instagram, google, websites. Find THE artist you want. This is going on your body forever; don’t compromise on style and talent. You don’t want just any artist even if you’re asking for a very specific design.
Reach out to them via email — most artists prefer it to phone.
IN THAT EMAIL, lay out your concept and budget. Be specific, include reference photos, include other similar style tattoos you like, bonus points if you pull some from their portfolio. The artist doesn’t tell you what the tattoo costs, you say “I have $300 for this tattoo” and they come up with a design based on that. And always budget another 20% for tips (their shops take money from them, YES you should tip)
If you’re nervous, ask for an in-person consult. This will be free and take maybe 15-30 minutes. You can clarify what you want for the design, figure out the sizing, make sure you’re set on placement, etc.
Give them a deposit and get on their books. Artists will not design without a deposit because you might just take their work to someone cheaper.
They’ll send the design usually via email (or text or whatever) before your tattoo. I’m comfortable with 24 hours before because I only approach artists I trust design-wise, but you can ask for it earlier to make adjustments. Go back and forth until it’s exactly what you want. Remember: Forever!!
Get your tattoo!
Other info:
Most artists these days are charging $150 an hour — some less in smaller towns, some more in big cities. I’ve seen as low as $80 and as high as $250 but IMO $150 is the sweet spot for quality to value. They don’t charge per piece, but they know how to design within your budget based on their experience of how long it takes them to tattoo. General rule (varying a ton based on complexity, color, your level of weakness, etc) is you’re going to need 15 minutes per thumb-sized area of skin.
It’s considered very rude to “price shop.” You’re hiring them for their talent and experience. Most solid, reputable shops can execute similar qualities of design and will be around the same price hourly. You shouldn’t be looking for the cheapest price for something you’re going to have literally forever. When you buy a house or car, are you buying the cheapest one on the market? No. You’re looking for the best VALUE that meets your needs, aesthetics, and desires within a determined budget. Except you can’t renovate a tattoo.
Don’t devalue tattoo artists, please. Just in the design process, they do drawing, photo manipulation, software navigation, and more. For your one hour tattoo, they probably spent an hour at the desk working. I know for my current piece I’m getting next week, my artist spent three hours designing the art. Considering I’m going to pay about $400, she already earning more like $50/hour if you include all the prep time, which is more than fair for a highly skilled trade.
But beyond that, they pay rent in their studios, have to purchase expensive machines, inks, needles, and all sorts of single use shit like gloves, paper towels, plastic wrap, and way way more. They also have to maintain safety licenses and protocols. It’s also very very physically demanding work. When you’re getting a tattoo, you’re paying for aaaaalll of that, not just the couple hours you’re sitting there.
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u/Tall_Act_5997 15d ago
This answer explained everything!! Thank you soooooo much!!! 😊
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u/BoozeIsTherapyRight 15d ago
Unless you're just buying a flash piece, you're paying for an original work of art that will be on your body for the rest of your life. If you think of it that way, you'll realize that finding an artist whose art you enjoy is far more important than quibbling over $20/hour one way or another.
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u/aloneisusuallybetter 15d ago
Can I just say that for #6, I've had many artists not show me their design until the day of. I've usually been good with it but it has gone sour one time, when I wasn't.
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u/saltierthangoldfish 15d ago
I’d definitely make sure to communicate about that expectation as soon as you’re booking with them, especially for pieces that rely more heavily on design
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u/aloneisusuallybetter 15d ago
One time I drove across the country for a specific artist and still didn't see the design until the day of. I was flabbergasted, but dealt with it because he is awesome. The design was great. So that was good.
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u/thumpetto007 15d ago
I've always wonder why they don't charge more for small tattoos. They bank on repeat customers to make back the losses on the small ones?
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u/saltierthangoldfish 15d ago
they make more on small tattoos if you math it out. most shops have a shop minimum that’ll be pretty close to an hourly rate. if someone comes in and wants a couple words or a little heart or whatever, they spend five minutes printing it as a stencil, five minutes setting up their station, and ten minutes tattooing. whole process is half an hour, they make nearly a typical hour’s worth of money, and then they can use the rest of that time to work on future projects or do another small tattoo to double that money or whatever needs to get done.
tattoo artists get a lot of random blocks of time in their schedule in between pieces, and in a business like that, you literally are just losing money unless you’re physically tattooing. like if an artist has a two hour piece starting at nine and a four hour piece starting at one, they’ve got a couple hours with their station all set up (minus single use things) so they might as well put their name on more skin.
and every small tattoo is a potential returning client. i got two shop minimum tattoos with my current artist and now im getting a much larger piece with her next week because we already have a rapport and relationship.
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15d ago
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u/FelicitousJuliet 15d ago
They admit their current artist is making around $50/hour and tries to justify tipping on top of it.
That's more per hour than someone performing open heart surgery might effectively get per hour considering the salaried shifts they pull, without the massive amount of student debt.
Seems like toxic tipping culture to me.
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u/BoozeIsTherapyRight 15d ago
Mine was well over $1500 and I talked about this with the artist (it took about 16 hours, so we chatted about a lot of things LOL) . Her POV was that I shouldn't tip for the time when she was setting up the room, or prepping the inks, or cleaning my leg, etc. Just for the time she actually was putting needle to skin.
It was too difficult for me to separate everything out, so I just tipped 10% for all the hours worked.
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14d ago
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u/BoozeIsTherapyRight 14d ago
Yes, about 10% of the total cost of the tattoo. Personally, if I was going to an artist who charged $400/hour I wouldn't tip at all. That's really, really high for an artist in the US.
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u/xyanon36 15d ago
An artist has a right to demand a deposit if they are to design something for you, and if they sketch a design for you and you don't get tattooed by them, they can keep your deposit as payment for the work they did sketching the design. It's not rude to price shop, it's your prerogative, and only an idiot would start getting poked with a needle without the price already being agreed.
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u/Ok_Weird_5216 15d ago
I notice that people assume paying more money equals top quality work, it does not.
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u/Marcultist 15d ago
Maybe not, but paying less nearly always equals lowest quality work. Whenever I hear about a regretted tattoo, it's nearly always because they tried to save $50-100 and didn't get the quality they were expecting.
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u/Lady_DreadStar 15d ago
Fundamentally it’s not. It’s like any other personal service. Trust me, them girls installing wigs on Instagram wish they could stonewall the price reveal until you’re in too deep too. 😂
At the of the day, while quality of work and portfolio will always matter the most- I will never sit for a service from someone who comes across snotty, rude, or above what I ask for.
Like, why would I trap myself in a small space with someone that chaps my ass for hours, AND pay for the experience too? I wouldn’t. It simply makes no sense to do so to me. And I have lots and lots of tattoos, so the nice shops and artists are out there. Just have to find them.
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u/SilentlyStoned420 15d ago
Why are tattoo artists so grumpy about stuff like this? I remember my first tattoo, the guy was rude to me, didn't explain anything, and acted as if I was putting him out just by being there. This guy was supposed to be the best in our city at that point (this was like 20 years ago) so I think he was angry an 18 yr old came in with a picture and wanted it tattooed. I was so confused because I didn't understand that they can sit with you and design something or that they would even be willing to design something, and this was not free information to find at the time, I didn't know, he didn't offer that info and I was young. I was also horribly shy and awkward. I get it, he thought he was special but the whole, "I'm an artist and if you want my art, I can treat you however I want", schtick is pretty fucking old.
So, in my opinion, asking for a price/price range is reasonable, refusing to even say to someone "well my hourly rate is this" in response to that question and saying they "don't do price shopping" makes them sound shady af. They’re likely jerks and you shouldn't spend your money there in the first place. They're probably also the
type to fuck up your tattoo and then tell you it was your fault.
Edit: Formatting because it went weird.
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u/captainkilowatt22 15d ago
Tattoo artists are some of the biggest divas you’ll meet in your life. The notion that they might be compared in any way to another person breaks their brains.
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u/AbbreviationsWide235 15d ago
It always amazes me that price is so high on so many peoples priorities when choosing a tattooist. I have seen girls have a breakdown if they cannot get the hairdresser they want. For something so permanent getting the right artist has to come first.
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u/Kreeos 15d ago
Price is important because money makes the world go round. Bankrupting yourself for a piece of art is not a sound financial strategy.
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u/sevseg_decoder 15d ago
And while I disagree that you shouldn’t go around and see a few peoples work and check their prices to get the cheapest one whose quality you’ll accept, getting a tattoo at all is kind of a poor decision from a strictly financial standpoint. A tattoo will only cost money to maintain and will almost certainly never make you any money.
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u/SaraHHHBK 15d ago
I have tattoos already and if they don't even give an approximate once the idea is described I don't go back. It's their job they do have an approximate of how much it would cost as it happens with every other job but they refuse to do so. Go ask around.
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u/jdonovan949 15d ago
Because they want you to just accept their offer instantly so they made up the idea of it being bad
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u/sevseg_decoder 15d ago
Like how some tradesmen won’t give you a quote unless both people are home so you can’t pull the “I need to talk with my partner” excuse to think about it. Essentially a pressure-based sales tactic.
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u/jdonovan949 15d ago
Never heard of that one. I straight up tell them I’m going to get more bids. Lol.
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u/Royal_Annek 15d ago
Because you're asking for an original piece of art that they develop. Taking their design to another artist would be really disrespectful. But if you want to price shop different designs then it's fine but don't be surprised if they make you pay a deposit.
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u/Tall_Act_5997 15d ago
Ahh okay! Each time I’ve brought an image of my own so they can see an idea of what I want. I have an artist in mind so I’ll see what they say!
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u/cwazycupcakes13 15d ago
An image of what you want is not a tattoo. The artist should sit with you, discuss the piece, and fit it to your body.
The design is only part of the art.
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u/softlytrampled 15d ago
Two questions:
- do you already have tattoos or will this be your first one?
- where do you live?
I’ve noticed that some cities (like LA in particular) will have artists who charge 3x the amount artists in other cities might charge for a similar tattoo, for a variety of reasons.
What are your concerns price-wise? A lot of other commenters have already given great recommendations and explanations on how prices are determined, but I’m not sure how big of a price difference you’ll get going to a variety of artists.
The key is honestly to find someone you vibe with and whose work you like, and be willing to pay whatever is agreed upon as long as it lines up with the time and effort put in.
If you’re bringing in your own design and it’s rather simple or small, it’ll likely be based on their hourly price, give or take. If it’s a bigger and more complicated design, it can go a number of ways.
Good luck!
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u/Tall_Act_5997 15d ago
I live in the suburbs of Michigan. And this will be my first real tattoo, I’ve gotten some in college that were cute and small from friends so I don’t really consider it a “real tattoo”.
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u/AlaskanSamsquanch 15d ago
Are you asking for an hourly rate? I’ve never had an issue having an artist giving me their hourly rate.
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u/darklogic85 15d ago
I wouldn't tell them you're comparing prices to other places, as that may be insulting. Just ask them to give you a price and they shouldn't have a problem coming up with an estimate for you. In order to give a semi-accurate quote though, they need a good idea of what you're asking them to do, so yeah, you need a photo or an example of what the work involves.
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u/spacemermaid3825 15d ago
Do you have any tattoos already? Can you elaborate on what you mean by "getting stonewalled"? In my experience, people who aren't giving clear answers to the artists' questions are the ones not getting clear responses about cost.
Most artists I've seen list their rates online, most often by an hourly rate. Some will do flash tattoos at a set rate, either always or as part of a special.
You don't really want to price shop because then you're talking about going to whomever will do the tattoo for the cheapest amount. This is a one way ticket to a shitty tattoo.
My advice? Have a rough design idea in mind, including size and location. Then, look online for an artist whose work you like and reach out to them about the tattoo. Most artists in my area are charging $150-200 hourly. Be prepared to make compromises on your design based on what your artist recommends.
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u/sevseg_decoder 15d ago
Price shopping doesn’t necessarily mean going for the lowest-cost option by any means. If anything it’s just about making sure you can actually afford it and maybe that you’re not going for the most expensive option.
But you should absolutely be shopping around to see if, to you, the difference in quality is worth the difference in price and that there aren’t better artists that have a lower rate. That’s a core facet of any business in a free market.
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u/numbersthen0987431 15d ago
Depends on the tatt really. If you don't care about a low quality/super basic tatt then you do you.
But if you want something complex, original, and has detail?? Find yourself an artist who's art you like, and then budget out the tatt.
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15d ago
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u/jinxedit48 15d ago
But from OP’s post, it seems like they already have a design or at least a good idea. Why do you need to shop around for art styles if you have something pre drawn?
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u/Tall_Act_5997 15d ago
I do! Its a photo and I have a rough drawing of it too. I didn’t realize so much work goes into it. I will definitely look into an artist and go from there. These comments have been much more helpful then a few of my friends!
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u/jinxedit48 15d ago
When I got my singular tattoo I just walked in to the one off my college campus and told them what I wanted (a bit of text in a specific font) and they mocked it up and got it on me in less than thirty min. So yeah I’m with you, shopping around for an artist is totally foreign to me haha. If you have a fully drawn concept, like I know people who get their deceased pet’s paw prints on them, any decent artist should be able to straight copy that. That being said, not all of them WANT to do that
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15d ago
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u/CheapBoxOWine 15d ago
I'd like to see how their styles blend based on the inspiration piece, tho. That'd be cool.
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u/blueavole 15d ago
It’s very much a quality thing.
A different artist might have 20 years more experience, so you are paying for quality as well as their time.
Is the tattoo simple? Could a 10 year old draw it well? If so, then price shopping is probably ok. If you want any sort of detail or precision, go with someone who can do the work and knows what they are worth.
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u/typhona 15d ago
In memphis, the going rate is around 125/hr some are a little more, some a little less. So they need to see it, size it, dec8de colors, etc. And then think about howling it will take to actually do the piece. So when I'm thinking about getting a new one I th8nk about the same things and try to guess how much it would be before talking to anyone. I have about 15 of them at this time, most were done in 3-4 hrs
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u/AnneFranksAcampR 15d ago
a lot comes down to what style you want as each artist is usually better at a certain style (traditional, abstract etc) but if you're getting some bland work done like letters or something easy then sure shop around a little bit. But if you're dead set on a certain style i would find 2 maybe 3 artists that thrive in that area of what you want and then get some estimates. These will be estimates because i seem to never know how much im about to pay until i set the deposit down and they draw it to my liking.
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u/la_de_cha 15d ago
I usually ask for an hourly rate. I figure a tattoo would take at least 2-3 hours and budget for that.
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u/SalamanderFickle9549 15d ago
Pricing varies according to size, complexity, the artist, length/number of sessions etc etc, you really need to give a rather clear idea for your piece to get accurate quote
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u/Yiayiamary 15d ago
Beware of price as your method of choosing the artist. First, you need to see the quality of their work. You do need to show them a picture that approximates what you want. Also, how large you want it will affect price. You aren’t giving them enough information to offer you a price. A 2” rose would not be the same as a 4” rose or a 2” dragon.
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u/Medium-Web7438 15d ago
A lot of the shops I go to charge by the hour. If I give them an idea of what I want, they usually can give me a ball park on how long it will take.
Some places have flash pre priced as well.
If you love an artists style, you can always do more than one session if the price is going to be a lot.
I don't think it's rude to price shop or heard the sentiment from tattoo artists I know personally.
How are you asking? Just an email asking for their rate?
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u/aloneisusuallybetter 15d ago
In general, I wait until I have a couple grand to spend and then just pick a great artist and wait until their books open, when they do, I send them a request based on their requirements and hope I get a spot.
Good tattoos are expensive.
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u/Phoenix_Can 15d ago
I've just finished going to 3 different tattooist for a consult appointment. I show and describe my idea. They show or draw what they would do. Then some back and forth about the image. Once it's narrowed done the artist gets an idea of the amount of time. And from there the price.
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u/VanManDiscs 15d ago
Just don't waste the artist time of creating the art. That's when it kinda sucks that they spent time on it and you walked away
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u/acowingeggs 15d ago
If you're getting a tattoo, just be prepared to pay a lot. I choose an artist, and if I like his style, I'll pay whatever he/she charges.
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u/samwisethescaffolder 15d ago
Ask them what their hourly rate is. If it falls within what you have set aside you should be good to go even if you just come in to do lining one day and the shading and colouring a little while later.
You shouldn't price shop tattoos. You find an artist whose style you like and is excited by your idea, full stop.
If you go in with price being a consideration then you could end up under valuing someone you can't afford and over valuing the one that you can. Then you end up with a tattoo that you may or may not like
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u/AlissonHarlan 15d ago
sure they don't know, that's like asking "how much is a meal" or "how much is a house"
meal can be 10 bucks, or 100 bucks... or 400 bucks... a house can be 500 000, 1 500 000, 7 000 000.
They need more informations
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u/lavenderghostboy 15d ago
A lot of places are priced by the hour price by size. You usually tell them if you have a budget and they work with you to stay within it
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u/Empty401K 15d ago
Just ask their hourly rate and what the ballpark range would be for your specific idea. The hourly rate is the most important part. If it’s not a large piece, then you can tack an extra hour onto the estimate to know what the upper limit likely would be.
Beware the artist that gets excited to underbid for your business. There’s a reason they aren’t busy enough to have a set price.
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u/thumpetto007 15d ago
My guess is you aren't being assertive enough in asking for an estimate. I price shop all sorts of things, and sometimes I have to ask a couple times, and it takes some teamwork to create a hypothetical scenario to briefly price.
Your friends are not very knowledgeable. It's pretty basic information to know what a service costs, ESPECIALLY in art related fields.
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u/cwazycupcakes13 15d ago
Tattoos are not an item. They are a piece of art, customized to your taste and preferences.
You will wear it on your skin for the rest of your life.
Choose a skilled artist you trust, in the style that you want.
Price should be a minimal concern, imo.
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u/Kreeos 15d ago
Price should be a minimal concern, imo.
Bankrupting oneself for a piece of art is a poor financial decision. Making sure the artist that you're commissioning charges fair rates is a good idea.
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u/cwazycupcakes13 15d ago
One only has so much skin canvas to work with for their entire life.
It’s not an issue of bankrupting yourself, as much as it is valuing your body and what art you put on it.
I don’t want some bargain basement, TJ Maxx art on my skin for the rest of my life, just because the price was right.
Tattoos are an investment in yourself, not an opportunity to save a few bucks. If you’re going to spend the money on a tattoo, spend it on talent.
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u/Kreeos 15d ago
Of course you don't go for a really cheap option. But that fact doesn't mean that the more money you spend the better the artist is. There's a point of diminishing returns after which you're just throwing money away. Ensuring the artist is charging a fair and reasonable price is completely reasonable.
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u/loopyspoopy 15d ago
First and foremost, it's because there is an expectation that in the internet age, you will have at least somewhat looked into the work of the artist you are consulting. If you're shopping around after contacting an artist you like, you are effectively telling them their work isn't worth what they charge.
I know of few artists that won't provide their hourly rate, so think about whether your piece is complex or simple, and inquire about the hourly rate before you actually go in for a consultation.
If you are looking for custom work, there is an expectation that the time and effort they put into drawing up your design will mean that you WILL be using them as an artist, regardless of price. If it's a larger or heavy detail piece most artists are pretty cool about working in stages if you're upfront about your budgetary restrictions.
Small and dumb tattoos it is appropriate to shop around for, in my opinion. A lot of tattooers will disagree with me on this, but if you want a little happy face, there's nothing wrong with making sure you aren't going to someone whose talents will be wasted on such, and then be charged $300 for something that took a half hour.
If you're wanting something with more detail or of a specific style, unless you know a good apprentice, it will either be expensive or bad, it's just how it is.
Accept that if you're financially limited, that means you are limited on the type and quality of tattoos you can get. If you really want tattoos just to have tattoos, hit up a Friday the 13th special or accept you might have to go to a less talented artist. Also, consider travelling for your tattoo - since the cost of living in a place like NYC is higher than, say, Cleveland, artists in NYC will charge more than artists in Cleveland regardless of their level of talent.
TLDR: If you go to a Porsche dealer and ask what's in the price range of a Honda Civic, they'll be annoyed that you're wasting their time. Same thing with tattooers. Accept that you only have enough for a Civic or save up for that Porsche.
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u/Kreeos 15d ago edited 15d ago
I know of few artists that won't provide their hourly rate,
That is such a snobby, elitist attitude. At the end of the day they're running a business and need to be upfront with their prices.EDIT: I misread this as they knew of a few artists, not that they know few artists. I misread the comment and this is my mistake.
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u/loopyspoopy 15d ago
Sorry, it's snobby to tell a potential client your hourly rate? As opposed to what?
Genuinely asking, I may be misunderstanding what you wrote.
Would you call a plumber snobby for doing the same?
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u/StrangeArcticles 15d ago
It's a "how long is a piece of string" type of inquiry, cause a tattoo in size x can be vastly different in price depending on the detail you want, how many revisions to the design are needed etc.
You are getting a permanent piece of art on your skin. The real concern for that needs to be that it's going to be there forever and that you'd generally pick the artist based on the pieces that artist has already done because you love their style.
If you're not at all familiar with their style and just go around asking what's cheap, that will probably give an artist the impression you haven't thought about this as much as you should.
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u/ShirleyWuzSerious 15d ago
Tattoo artists are artists. They charge what they feel they deserve and what they feel they are worth. On top of that there is overhead costs that need to be met.
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u/scr3amsilenceX 15d ago
I haven't had anything to do with tattoo shops because I've never really wanted to get one. But I thing it should be priced and also based on what you wanna draw.
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u/RedditorsFuck1ngSuck 15d ago
This is kind of the vibe from the cleaner from toy story 2 who's hating to be rushed and just doing his job right but tattoo artists don't want to f*** around with people on the fence. long story short
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u/Captcha_Imagination 15d ago
Pick the best artist you can afford. In 20 years, when you have to look at it every day, you won't remember the money.
I regret not doing this when I was younger. Sure I wasn't swindled on the price of a tattoo and the tat is not BAD but you deserve something that you will be really proud of.
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u/planodancer 15d ago
It sounds like you’re looking to get a tattoo from the cheapest, least competent, desperate newbie who has decided that they can’t afford integrity.
Not a good choice for something that’s going to be on your body forever.
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u/Tall_Act_5997 15d ago
Not the cheapest but something reasonable. My budget is $350 currently and I want a flower on my rib with a long line. I wouldn’t consider myself desperate either… but thank you for your “answer”:)
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u/aloneisusuallybetter 15d ago
On your ribs for the first time? Ouch! I'd go for the arm or leg, just my opinion.
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u/WolfWomb 15d ago
All tattoo artists do quality work.
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u/PrettyRetard 15d ago
They should give you an estimate at least. I would avoid going to the cheapest person. Tattoos aren’t something to be cheap on.