Average starting pay for a tattoo artist varies from $56,500 to none.
Nowadays, tattoos are becoming more popular and socially acceptable. Correspondingly, there is a demand for more tattoo artists, and masters of the trade are sometimes earning upwards of $100 per hour; plus tips. However, becoming established in a thriving tattoo studio and earning the maximum takes time and proper training. What you make as an entry-level tattoo artist might vary according to your particular studio, level of training, work history and whether or not you own the shop.
Apprentices
If you are an experienced artist, but have no prior background or training in tattooing, you typically have to complete an apprenticeship to become a professional tattoo artist. Unfortunately, apprenticeships are seldom paying positions. In fact, in most cases you will actually have to pay your employer for the privilege of working in the shop and learning the trade. Occasionally, you can find a studio willing to train you in exchange for doing odd jobs around the shop, such as sweeping, cleaning, sanitizing and assisting other artists.
Assistant Internships
Sometimes aspiring tattooists with an artist background and clerical, promotional, or administrative office experience can land paying internships and assistant positions in conjunction with an apprenticeship. Assistants and interns are usually required to perform the same tasks as apprentices while training to tattoo, but are also responsible for a number of clerical and reception duties to earn their salary. For 2011, the SimplyHired career and salary website reports that tattoo studio receptionists and assistants earn between $14,000 and $34,000 annually.
Studio Owner vs Employee
Whether you have completed an apprenticeship or not, if you are skilled in tattooing you can maximize your earning potential by opening your own studio. Even the most experienced tattooist -- making roughly $100 per hour in 2011 -- is typically required to pay the studio owner anywhere from 30 to 70 percent of his hourly wage. With little experience, your starting salary will likely be close to the lower scale, and in 2010, PayScale.com reported that the minimum average salary for studio tattoo artists was about $22,404. In 2011, tattoo artists who own their own studios can earn between $33,129 and $56,500.
Tips
Though not required, it is customary to tip a tattoo artist as you would anyone else in a service industry. There is no specific etiquette or guidelines regarding tipping an artist, but generally patrons tip between 10 and 30 percent of the total cost of the tattoo. Even as an unpaid apprentice or entry-level intern, you might expect to periodically receive cash tips from customers that you tattoo as part of your training. As a staff studio tattoo artist you will likely receive tips on a daily basis that can considerably increase your income.
Benefits
You can almost count on not receiving any type of benefits package included in your starting salary as a tattoo artist, if ever. Since most tattooists are studio owners or considered independent contractors, most are responsible for providing their own benefits -- such as health or dental insurance -- and receive no sick days or vacation pay. According to PayScale, in 2011 less than 10 percent of all tattooists in the United States were offered health, dental and vision insurance by their employers.
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