What Is the Least (& Most) Painful Place to Get a Tattoo?

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Experts weigh in on how to get a painless tattoo
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Not all tattoos are created equal when it comes to pain—some parts of your body are much less sensitive than others, and different parts of the body have distinct numbers of nerve endings. On top of that, the areas close to bones or vital organs also tend to be more painful than others. To help explain, we spoke with veteran tattoo artists Michelle Myles and María Fernández González to get the lowdown on the most and least painful locations for tattoos, what you can do to cope with the pain, and how you can prepare ahead of your first tattoo to make this process as painless as possible.

Least Painful Tattoo Spots

The arms are the least painful area to get tattooed, explains tattoo artist Katherine D. Vargas. While everyone is different, in her experience, getting an outer arm or shoulder tattoo is the easiest to sit through. Other less painful tattoo placement options include the thighs, upper back, calves, and buttocks.

Section 1 of 4:

Least Painful Tattoo Locations

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  1. The more cushion a part of the body has, the less it will hurt. So, the parts of your body with the most fat, the least amount of nerve endings, and the most distance from internal organs and bones are going to be on the lower side of the pain scale. Everyone is different, but people generally find the least painful tattoo locations to include: [1]
    • Outer forearm
    • Upper arm (outer side)
    • Shoulders
    • Outer thigh
    • Upper back
    • Middle of the calf
    • The buttocks
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Section 2 of 4:

Most Painful Tattoo Locations

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  1. The less fat and the more nerve endings, the more a tattoo location is going to hurt. A section of skin is also more likely to hurt if it’s especially close to internal organs or bone. Just keep in mind, as González points out, that “every person has a very different pain threshold and a different sensitivity in each part of their body, so the pain varies greatly from one person to another.” Still, the most painful areas typically include: [2]
    • Digits (fingers & toes)
    • Ribs
    • Groin area
    • Neck/Head
    • Inside of wrist
    • Stomach
    • Sternum
    • Elbow
    • Knee
    • Shin
Section 3 of 4:

Factors Impacting Tattoo Pain

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  1. There is some mild evidence that the older you are, the less likely you are to experience extreme pain while you’re being tattooed. [3] While further research is needed, age may be a factor in tattoo pain because people become more desensitized to pain over time as they experience more of it. [4]
  2. Some studies on tattooing and pain indicate that men may be slightly less sensitive to the pain caused by a tattoo. However, this could be a byproduct of the fact that women tend to be more stressed out before a tattoo, which can make pain worse. [5]
    • Men also tend to repress pain, and they’re more likely to not tell the truth about how much pain they experience, so the data here could simply be a byproduct of men not telling researchers the truth. [6]
  3. How fast the artist works, how deep they go with the needle, and how much effort they need to put into completing the design are going to contribute to your experience of the pain. If your artist is newer, they may also accidentally overwork your skin, which is extremely painful compared to normal tattoo work. [7]
    • This is why choosing a good artist matters! Fernández says, “Do a bit of research about the artist or the studio where they are going to get the tattoo […] you really need to have a good feeling that the artist you’re working with is a pro.”
  4. A hyper-realistic tattoo that involves a lot of shading and blackwork is going to naturally require more time and effort to complete than a small and simple line drawing. If you’re new to tattoos, consider starting with something small to see how you can handle it before you ask for that photorealistic full sleeve.
    • What about stick-and-poke tattoos? Stick-and-poke (aka hand-poked) tattoos involve much less abrasion than anything you’d receive with a tattoo gun, so most people find that they hurt a lot less. [8]
  5. The longer a tattoo takes, the more pain you’re going to experience. [9] It’s extremely normal for large tattoos to require multiple sessions, so don’t worry about asking your tattoo artist if you can split a bigger piece up into more than one sitting!
  6. We’ll let Myles explain: “I would say the most important thing before you go in and get a tattoo is to get a good night's rest and to have something to eat before you go in. Because you want to be in as good a shape as you can be when you get tattooed. So you don't want to go in like all hungover from the night before and tired. If you feel good, your tattoo will be easier to handle.”
  7. Damaged skin tends to much more sensitive than undamaged skin, so if you’re going to get a tattoo on top of any damaged epidermis, you can expect a little more pain than you normally otherwise would. [10]
    • The same goes for cover-ups. Tattooing over skin that has already been tattooed often hurts a little more than normal.
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Section 4 of 4:

Expert Advice on Pain Management & Tattoo Placement

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  1. Myles says, “The secret to dealing with the pain is to relax as much as you can. Because the more tense you are, the more it hurts. If you can just really relax and concentrate on your breathing and keeping everything calm, then that actually makes it hurt less and it's kind of the opposite of what you want to do, because you feel like you want to tense up and brace against it, but that definitely makes it worse.”
  2. Myles argues that you shouldn’t change the location of a tattoo based on the expectation of pain. “I would say get your tattoo where you really want it. Don't want to make the decision based on how much it is going to hurt because the difference from one place to another isn’t really that big—especially when it comes to smaller tattoos.”
  3. You’ll experience more pain if you’re hungry or thirsty, and tattoo parlors tend to get very cold. Fernández says, “If you are going to have a long appointment, I recommend taking something to drink and eat. Also, it’s very common that when you are getting a tattoo, your body temperature feels lower, so you begin to feel cold. If you want help staying calm and relaxed, bring a blanket.”
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      • There are numbing creams you can apply to your skin before getting tattooed to minimize the pain, but they come with risks. The effects aren’t nearly long enough to last for a longer tattoo, for one. The bigger deal is that they often make the skin too soft for the ink to take correctly. [11] If you are interested in numbing cream, talk to your artist first before using them.
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      • Tattoo removal is known to hurt a lot more than tattooing, but the difference isn’t nearly as wild as most people expect when they get ink removed. [12]
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      References

      1. ↑ https://healthnews.com/beauty/skin-care/tattoo-pain-chart/
      2. ↑ https://www.hippocraticpost.com/aesthetic/expert-reveals-the-most-painful-places-to-be-tattooed/
      3. ↑ https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7767267/
      4. ↑ https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC9345212/
      5. ↑ https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7767267/
      6. ↑ https://theconversation.com/do-men-have-a-higher-threshold-for-pain-or-are-they-just-a-bit-emotionally-repressed-25681
      7. ↑ https://www.thelist.com/716418/heres-what-you-should-know-about-overworked-tattoos/
      8. ↑ https://www.ktrewtattoo.com/post/8-frequently-asked-questions-about-stick-and-poke-tattoos
      9. ↑ https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7767267/
      1. ↑ https://oracletattoogallery.com/tattoo-over-a-scar-what-to-know-pain-level-and-more/
      2. ↑ https://marineagency.com/why-tattoo-artists-advise-against-numbing-cream/
      3. ↑ https://medermislaserclinic.com/blog/tattoo-pain-vs-laser-tattoo-removal-pain/

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