# Websites for tattoo studios

> Websites for tattoo studios built around the artists: individual portfolios, clear booking and deposit rules, and the licensing and age policy that serious clients look for.

- Source: https://nerdsharks.com/industries/tattoo-studios
- Publisher: Nerdsharks (Exeter, Devon, UK)
- Updated: 2026-09-27

There are 24,310 other personal service businesses, a category that includes pet grooming, pet boarding and tattooing across 377 UK local authorities (ONS UK Business Counts, SIC 96090, 2025, OGL v3.0).

## How customers choose

People choose a tattoo artist, not a studio. They have usually been planning the piece for months, they know the style they want - fine line, blackwork, realism, traditional, Japanese - and they search for an artist who does that style well. They scroll a whole portfolio looking for healed work, not just fresh photos under a ring light, and for pieces similar in size and placement to theirs. Once they find the right artist they will travel and wait months. The practical questions come after: how to book, how much the deposit is, whether the artist does their own designs from a brief, day rates versus hourly, and whether the studio takes walk-ins for flash. First-timers add a layer of nerves and want to know about pain, aftercare, hygiene and what to expect on the day.

## What most websites in this trade get wrong

Tattoo studios rely almost entirely on each artist's Instagram, which works until an account is suspended or an artist leaves and takes the whole audience with them. The studio site, where it exists, is usually a dark page with a logo, a phone number and a stock photo of a tattoo gun. It does not let a client find the right artist by style, it does not explain the booking process, and it does not show the studio is registered with the council. A good studio site gives each artist a page with their style, healed work and their own booking form, sets out deposits and cancellation terms clearly, and states the over-18 rule and ID policy plainly - which also saves the front desk a lot of awkward conversations.

## What the website has to do

- **Booking enquiry with a specific artist** - The client has chosen a person; the form should route straight to them with the brief attached.
- **Deposit paid to secure the appointment** - Custom design time is wasted without a deposit, and it cuts no-shows.
- **Flash and walk-in day visits** - Fills gaps between custom bookings and brings in first-timers.

## Pages

- **Home** - The artists, their styles, and how to book.
- **Artist pages** - One per artist: style, portfolio including healed work, books open or closed, and their booking form.
- **Booking and deposits** - How booking works, deposit amounts, rescheduling and cancellation.
- **First tattoo** - What to expect, how to prepare, and the questions first-timers are embarrassed to ask.
- **Aftercare** - Written aftercare instructions to refer back to.
- **Studio** - Photos, council registration, hygiene standards, age and ID policy.

## Features that matter

- **Individual artist pages with style tags and healed work** - Clients choose by artist and style, and healed photos prove the work lasts.
- **Booking form that captures idea, placement, size and reference images** - Gives the artist what they need to quote and design without ten messages.
- **Books open/closed status per artist** - Stops enquiries for artists who are fully booked and makes waiting lists possible.
- **Deposit and cancellation policy stated before booking** - The most common source of disputes in the trade.
- **Over-18 and ID policy on the site** - Tattooing anyone under 18 is illegal in the UK, and stating it plainly filters enquiries early.
- **Artist portfolios hosted on your site, not only on social** - A suspended account should not take the studio's shop window with it.

Trust signals: Local-authority registration or licence for tattooing and skin piercing (premises and individual artists); Healed-work photography per artist; Hygiene and infection control standards; Written aftercare guidance; Age verification and ID policy.

Seasonality: Spring and early summer are busiest as people plan pieces before showing skin. Many artists open their books on set dates, which creates their own short peaks.

## Local authorities with the most

| Local authority | Businesses |
|---|---|
| Westminster | 475 |
| Buckinghamshire | 355 |
| Camden | 315 |
| Birmingham | 280 |
| North Yorkshire | 255 |
| Islington | 250 |
| Cheshire East | 235 |
| Wiltshire | 220 |
| Leeds | 210 |
| West Northamptonshire | 210 |

## The offer

- **Monthly**: £299 upfront, £99/month (the upfront is a setup fee), 12-month minimum term. We build it, host it and look after it - and after 24 monthly payments, it is yours.
- **Own It**: £1,795 upfront, £49/month, no minimum term. Buy the website outright. It is yours to keep, move or cancel.
- **Pro**: £6,950 upfront, £299/month, 12-month minimum term. No limits. For large, multi-site and fast-growing businesses.
- Payment: The setup fee is paid when you book, and it starts the design. Monthly fees are collected by Direct Debit, covered by the Direct Debit Guarantee, from the day your site goes live.
- Guarantee: You see your finished design on your phone and approve it before anything goes live, with two full rounds of changes included. Nothing launches until you are happy with it. The Monthly plan runs for 12 months from launch.
- Bolt-ons: Google Business Profile management £29/month; Local SEO pack £49/month; Business email £5/month. Coming soon, not yet on sale: Missed-call text back, Review booster.
- VAT: We are not VAT registered, so there is no VAT to add to these prices.

## Questions

### Should each tattoo artist have their own page on our studio website?

Yes. Clients choose an artist by style, not a studio, so each artist needs a page with their style, their portfolio including healed work, whether their books are open, and their own booking form. It also means the studio keeps that shop window if an artist's social account is suspended.

### Why do clients want to see healed tattoos on our website?

Healed photos show how the work actually looks once the redness has gone and the ink has settled, which is what the client is paying for. Fresh tattoos under studio lights can flatter or mislead, and experienced clients know it. A portfolio with healed work alongside fresh is noticeably more convincing.

### Should individual staff have their own pages?

If customers choose a person rather than a business, yes. In salons, dental practices and professional firms people are picking an individual, and giving each one a page with their own work, qualifications and booking link converts noticeably better than a single team photograph.

### How important is photography, really?

In visual trades it is the entire decision. Customers shortlist from photographs and read the words afterwards, if at all. It is worth paying a photographer for half a day once a year - it will change the size of the jobs you are asked to quote for more than anything else you could spend the money on.