pricing estimates
Every tattoo client and session is different, so the time it takes to complete your tattoo will vary greatly depending on your project. However to give folks a rough sense of how long my tattoos take to complete, I’ve compiled this list of a few examples. These are extremely rough estimates, but I hope they’ll be helpful in planning for your tattoos!
Scroll all the way down for a complete rates breakdown, or check my FAQ for full details.
+++ examples +++
PALM-SIZED BLACK & GREY : “Palm-sized” meaning something roughly 3x4”, give or take a little. Usually room for one single element & a little embellishment. Generally takes around 1-2 hours. One short session.
PALM-SIZED COLOR : “Palm-sized” meaning something roughly 3x4”, give or take a little. Usually room for one single element & a little embellishment. Generally takes anywhere from 1 - 3 hours. One half-day session.
SPREAD-HAND SIZED BLACK & GREY : “Hand-sized” meaning something around 4x6” - 6x8”. A little more room for detail. Generally takes anywhere from 2-3 1/2 hours. One half-day session.
SPREAD-HAND SIZED COLOR : “Hand-sized” meaning something around 4x6” - 6x8”. A little more room for detail. Generally takes anywhere from 3-5 hours. Approximately 2 half-day sessions or one full-day session.
TWO-SPREAD HANDS SIZED BLACK & GREY : Meaning anything roughly 7x10” and larger, not including full sleeves or backpieces. Anywhere from 4-6 hours. Approximately two half-day sessions or one full-day session.
TWO-SPREAD HANDS SIZED COLOR : Meaning anything roughly 7x10” and larger, not including full sleeves or backpieces. Anywhere from 5-10 hours. Anywhere from two+ half-day sessions / two+ full-day sessions.
LARGE-SCALE - FULL & HALF SLEEVES, BACKPIECES, ETC. : It’s incredibly difficult to give accurate time & price ranges for sleeves & backpieces, as each one varies so much depending on the subject, client, and experience. Remember that for full-day large scale sessions, I offer sliding scale pricing to make large-scale projects more accessible.
+ B&G HALF SLEEVES - Anywhere from three to four half-day sessions. Or at least two full-day sessions.
+ B&G FULL SLEEVES - Anywhere from four to six half-day sessions. Or at least three full-day sessions.
+ COLOR HALF SLEEVES - At least four half-day sessions. Or at least three full-day sessions.
+ COLOR FULL SLEEVES - At least 6+ half day sessions. At least 4+ full-day sessions.
+ EVERYTHING ELSE - With a sense of your project, scale, skin-type, and how long you like to sit per day, I’m usually able to give more accurate time quotes tailored to your specific project and ideas.
+++ RATES +++
STANDARD RATES
Small Stuff : $250-500
Under 2 hours of tattoo time
$250 minimum for flash : $350 minimum for custom
Fit into my schedule as time is available
Half-Day Rates : $250/hour
Between $500-875 total
Maximum of ~3 1/2 hours of tattoo work per hourly half-day session
Full Day Rate : $1200 flat rate
Covers a full work day - my start time is 11am, and my end time is 7pm at the latest.
Time includes stenciling, a lunch break, stretch breaks, and up to 6 hours of tattooing.
Any following half-day sessions needed to finish a project will be charged hourly.
REDUCED RATES FOR LARGE-SCALE WORK
This includes:
tattoo projects that span a full limb
projects expected to take more than 3 sessions to complete
full sleeves, full backpieces
full-color work larger than 8x10”
To make large-scale work more accessible, I offer reduced rates. By offering a range of rates, it works out to anywhere from a 20-50% discount on large scale work, depending on how long you get tattooed for and the rate you agree to pay per day.
Please note that this sliding scale is not available while on guest spots - this offering only applies at my home studio, Estuary, in NYC.
Half Day Rate : reduced to $200/hour
Maximum of ~3 1/2 hours of tattoo work per hourly half-day session.
Full Day Rate : $750-1,200 sliding scale, tip inclusive
For people who want to sit for up to 4-6 hours of tattoo time per session
Covers a full work day - start time is 11am, end time is 7pm at the latest.
Time includes stenciling / drawing, a lunch break, stretch breaks, and up to 6 hours of tattooing.
Any following half-day sessions needed to finish a project will be charged hourly.
Tip is included in the day rate you decide on, so please gauge what is comfortable/possible for you to pay for the day, and what you’d like to compensate me with. No questions asked, but please refer to this guide for a basic sliding scale framework.
Your day rate can be different for different sessions, as your circumstances change.
Where do these numbers come from? Some financial transparency:
$750 is my baseline - that is the minimum I need to earn per work day in order to meet my needs - home and studio rent, bills, tattoo supplies, NYC sales tax, and paying income tax (at minimum 35% of my income goes to paying self-employment taxes). This baseline figure does not account for any savings, discretionary spending, or unexpected personal expenses. This is the baseline I can charge without going negative for the day.
$1,200 is my normal full-day rate. This figure assumes 4-5 hours of tattooing at my normal hourly rate.
COMMUNITY RATES
JANUARY 2025 UPDATE:
***PLEASE NOTE THAT COMMUNITY RATES APPOINTMENTS ARE FULL UNTIL LATE 2025***
this year i am working on a special project that involves doing a lot of pro-bono tattoo work for trans people, but will re-open community rates days as soon as i can afford to. thank you for your understanding!
I offer two “community rates” or “pay what you like” appointments per month for clients who hold identities outside of white/cis/able/neurotypical experience. This includes anyone who is BIPOC, POC, trans/two-spirit/intersex, neurodivergent, and disabled folks. Full details can be found on my FAQ, and clients can opt into the community rates waitlist when requesting an appointment.
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*** Full details around budgets, pricing, quotes, & payments can be found here on my policies sheet. ***
If you have questions, please feel free to reach out : LillinKarinTattoo@gmail.com